Americorps grants $88.5K to Puerto Rico’s Ombudsman for the Elderly
The funds will generate 10 volunteer positions under the Foster Grandparent program on the island.
AmeriCorps, the federal agency for volunteerism and national service, announced $10 million in grant funds to two key AmeriCorps Seniors programs: the Foster Grandparent and Senior Companion programs.
The grant recipients will use this federal funding to support nearly 1,500 volunteers across 28 states and Puerto Rico. On the island, AmeriCorps assigned $88,500 to the Office of the Ombudsman for the Elderly, creating 10 volunteer positions under the Foster Grandparent program, it stated.
“AmeriCorps Seniors taps into the wealth of experience, skills and time that older Americans are eager to offer,” said AmeriCorps CEO Michael D. Smith. “Volunteers stay active in their communities, and, alongside our grantees, they can enrich their own lives while bolstering efforts to address the nation’s most pressing challenges. These grants will further the efforts of dozens of evidence-based programs across the country further engaging more older adults into meaningful service roles.”
AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers will invest nearly 1.3 million service hours in their communities. The Senior Companion Program grantees and volunteers focus on providing support and facilitating access to services and resources that contribute to independent living for other older adults and those with disabilities, while also providing respite support to caregivers.
Additionally, the Foster Grandparent Program grantees and volunteers provide one-on-one tutoring and mentoring to support academic and social-emotional development, the agency stated.
“Priority for the grant is awarded to AmeriCorps Seniors Senior Companion and Foster Grandparent Programs that serve communities with concentrated poverty and those that serve historically underrepresented groups, those in rural and tribal areas, projects that promote public awareness of the challenges faced by family caregivers, those that support individuals with arrest and conviction records and those that foster civic bridge-building projects for volunteers,” it stated.
Atalaya Sergi, AmeriCorps Seniors national director, said, “We’re excited to expand and deepen our support in our nation’s communities through this funding opportunity.”
“As a nation it is vital that we make sure our older adults are recognized as vital resources to support all generations of Americans and offer as many ways for them to engage as possible,” Sergi added.
