NEW ORLEANS – The Home Instead Senior Care® office serving Orleans and Jefferson Parishes is helping to facilitate Be a Santa to a Senior®, a community program that provides gifts and companionship to seniors who may be isolated from friends or family during the holiday season. The program is made possible through the support of local nonprofit organizations and numerous volunteers who adopt seniors and supply gifts.
“The holidays can be a troubling time for seniors,” Lisa Rabito, owner of the Metairie Home Instead Senior Care office, said. “They may feel the absence or the distance of loved ones. Be a Santa to a Senior provides a ray of hope for many seniors, and it means so much for them to know that people care and value them as members of our community.”
Through Be a Santa to a Senior, more than 800 local seniors will receive holiday gifts. The seniors benefiting from the program come from local nursing homes, an assisted living facility, a program for developmentally disabled adults, hospice and residential care homes.
The Home Instead Senior Care office partnered with area non-profit organizations and businesses including Ochsner Community Outreach program, Ochsner Golden Opportunity, Salon M, Crescent City Orthopedics and the Home Instead CAREGivers to help with gift collection and distribution.
Anyone interested in helping with collection and delivery of gifts should contact the Home Instead Senior Care offices at (504) 455-4911.
“Be a Santa to a Senior provides a much-needed boost for seniors who may be isolated, not just through gifts, but through interaction and companionship,” Rabito said. “We’re so grateful to have a community that comes together to show our local seniors they are not alone during the holidays.”
