Interfaith effort helps keep seniors in their homes

In Albany, one "retirement community" now looks just like a neighborhood -- because it is.

A year after its inception, the Neighborhood Naturally Occurring Retirement Community project (NNORC) is declaring its efforts a success at keeping seniors in their own homes in one area of Albany.

The area is the part of Albany bordered by Academy Road and Marwill Street on the east, Whitehall Road on the west and south, and New Scotland Avenue on the west and north. That tract is home to about 850 senior citizens, the highest concentration of elderly residents in the city.

Staying home

Since those seniors want to remain in the neighborhood where many have lived for decades, the NNORC program provides services with that goal.

"Our goal is to promote independence -- for seniors to have a role in their own aging," remarked Deb Riitano, community outreach coordinator. So far, people in the neighborhood "are very good at saying what they need."

Requests have included everything from medical care to lawn mowing; one senior struggling with household tasks asked for a better can opener, while others needed volunteers to help with grocery shopping.

Connections

Not all the calls come from the seniors themselves. Mrs. Riitano said that neighbors sometimes tell her, "I'm a little concerned about so-and-so across the street." A NNORC staffer will then check on the resident.

Some calls are more sobering. Mrs. Riitano recalled one woman who went to her dentist for what was supposed to be minor surgery, but became more extensive. Groggy from medication, the senior could only recall her connection with NNORC, so the dentist called Mrs. Riitano.

"I was able to send a home-care person who stayed all afternoon with her until she was feeling better," she said. Because Mrs. Riitano also knew the woman's friends, she called them to be sure they checked on her, as well.

Funding

Last year, New York State funded nine NNORC grants around the state, including $144,000 for the Albany NNORC. That enables the project not only to match seniors' requests with people and organizations that can fulfill them (such as Senior Services of Albany and St. Peter's Home Care), but also to create activities of its own.

For example, students from the Albany Academy for Boys and Girls recently interviewed seniors living in the NNORC, then wrote and filmed their biographies for a "This is Your Life"-style presentation.

Plans are now under way for the seniors to interview the teenagers before the students head off to college.

Faith factor

During the past year, those running the NNORC project have connected with more than half the seniors in the neighborhood. In addition, they have touched base with the many churches and synagogues in the area, including three Catholic parishes within walking distance: St. Catherine of Siena, St. Teresa of Avila and St. James.

Mrs. Riitano, a parishioner of St. Vincent de Paul Church in Albany, said that NNORC staffers were able to speak to a senior citizens' group at St. Catherine's and hold a health program there, and also talked about NNORC at liturgies at St. James.

Ellen Boyer, social service coordinator for St. Teresa's, often refers seniors in need to the NNORC project. One couple were able to receive medical help through NNORC -- even a doctor who made visits to their home.

Interfaith effort

The NNORC project is co-sponsored by Catholic Charities, the Albany Diocese, Jewish Family Services, SUNY-Albany's School of Social Welfare, Albany Senior Services, the Jewish Federation and St. Peter's Home Care.

Mrs. Riitano, who is heavily involved in interfaith dialogue, called her position "unique": In helping to coordinate the NNORC project, she works with residents, programs and organizations of all faiths.

She pointed at a recent dinner in which the Sidney Albert Jewish Community Center paired with NNORC to sponsor a speaker from the Albany Police Department. Seniors who were not Jewish came to the event to learn about home safety, and the JCC's attendance at its periodic dinners rose correspondingly.

In this way, the NNORC project hopes to continue helping seniors maintain their freedom, dignity and homes.

"We're on target. We've touched a lot of people," Mrs. Riitano stated. "It's going very well."

(The project can connect seniors with housekeeping and repair services, home-delivered meals, health screenings, exercise programs, advocacy, transportation, shopping assistance, home visitors, money management, paperwork, social events, and volunteer opportunities. To read a previous story, search for "NORC" -- with one "n" -- at www.evangelist.org. Contact the NNORC project at 514-2023 or go to www.nurturingneighboorhoods.org.)

(9/20/07)