help_outline Skip to main content
Add Me To Your Mailing List

News / Articles

GROTON HERALD FEATURES GROTON NEIGHBORS

Published on 9/25/2019

From Groton Herald Thursday, September 19, 2019

 

by Alice Cary


“If you live in Groton and can’t drive, you’re in trouble,” notes longtime resident Pat Hartvigsen.

 
As a board member of a relatively new but growing organization that’s become a lifeline for many, Hartvigsen knows just how difficult that dilemma can be, especially for residents dealing with medical issues that leave them unable to drive, even if only temporarily.

Since early 2017, Groton Neighbors—an all-volunteer, non-profit group—has been helping members provide one another with a wide range of services, including rides to doctors’ appointments, stores, and more. In the time-honored concept of “neighbors helping neighbors,” members also help each other out with such things as household and handyman chores, light yard work, technical support, in addition to enjoying social visits and outings. Even Groton-Dunstable and Lawrence Academy students occasionally pitch in, helping members with such things as spring yard cleanups.

 

Ragot_1171123846.jpg
Terri Ragot spreads mulch on garden for Nancy Stoops

 

Annual membership costs $120 per person, although board members advise that this cost should never keep someone from joining. So far this year, this active group has fulfilled nearly 200 requests for a variety of services. Operations guru William

Knuff reports that at this rate, the organization is on track to fulfill 275 or more requests by the end of 2019.

     

Volunteer Liz Strachan says her visits with and grocery shopping for a 97-year-old “benefit me as much as they do her.” And Strachan and her husband were surprised to find themselves on the receiving end of services when another member quickly came over and fixed a “worrisome” computer problem.

 

Lieman_1087762259.jpg

Peter Macy (left) receives a ride fromSteve Lieman.

Peter is meeting a friend on Main Street for coffee.

 

Groton Neighbors is just one “village” within a national Village-to-Village Network, with over 200 operating nationwide, including more than a dozen in Massachusetts, and more than 150 in development in 45 states. In fact, the concept originated in Boston, with a goal of helping people remain in their homes and maintain community connections as they age. Selectperson Becky Pine says she and her husband Bob, a board member, use their membership “as sort of an insurance policy.”

     

Another member is Lois Young, who after working professionally in the field of elder care services for 35 years, particularly enjoys her new role as a volunteer.“I have lived in Groton for 21 years,” she notes, “but because of very consuming jobs, have not gotten to know Groton very well. Groton Neighbors is giving me the opportunity to know many dedicated people, and to help to make Groton a good place for we elders to live and thrive.”

 

VanderLinden_688481110.jpg

 

Conversation at Groton Neighbors Annual Potluck.

From the left, Chuck Van Der Linden, Paul Shay, Bob Pine, Carl Canner.

 

To keep costs low, the group has no central office or paid staff, just a dedicated group of volunteers who maintain a virtual office weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thanks to collaborative software technology, these volunteers can respond from a variety of locations to email and phone requests, then try to connect a member having a particular need to another member willing to meet that need.
    

“It works itself out,” Hartvigsen says. “We find creative ways.”

     

One office volunteer is Camilla Blackman, who helped found the group, but at age 89 has yet to request services. “I think in New England, but maybe anywhere, we’re hesitant to ask for help,” she admits, “especially over and over. For people who don’t like to ask for help, it’s the perfect solution.”

     

At an annual Groton Neighbors potluck dinner held in June at the First Parish Church, members filled the church vestry with food, conversation, and laughter. Sporting a bright-eyed grin, Blackman said, “I come here and get to meet the voices on the phone. It’s fun.”

     

Groton Neighbors hosts several social gatherings throughout the year, such as restaurant trips, movie showings, book discussions, lectures, and concerts.

     

Knuff adds, “Providing the occasional ride to a fellow member has been a surprisingly enriching and enjoyable experience on several levels. Foremost among them is the pleasure of meeting and getting to know some new and very interesting people who are members of Groton Neighbors. The whole idea of helping a neighbor just feels good.”

     

For more information, go to www.GrotonNeighbors.org, and look for the Groton Neighbors booth at Grotonfest.