Past Grants

Smiles on Seniors is a grassroot, intergenerational volunteer program that aims to create a connection between older adults and younger volunteers, alleviating loneliness for older adults and creating positive mentors for the younger volunteers who participate. The program currently serves homebound older adults and eight retirement and rehab centers. Under this new model the program will expand to incorporate five new centers and 250 more homebound older adults. The program will measure success through various self-reported short- and long-term outcome measures for older adults and volunteers, including sense of loneliness, health, and wellness status, etc. Feedback and input from older adults will help modify the program along the way. The program’s path toward long-term sustainability will be modeled off a similar program in Arizona.