Your quarterly news & updates
Currently, thanks to our supporters, our program is the biggest its ever been!
Our four social workers and interns currently take care of 108 homebound adults! This is made possible by our generous funders, The Victoria Puder Foundation, The Grotta Fund, Higgons Foundation, and Partners for Health Foundation. More about these generous donors can be found in the “Grants” section that follows.
The holiday season is upon us. This time of the year can be particularly challenging for our homebound participants who may not see their loved ones as often as they’d like. This year, as in the past, our social worker staff and interns brought Thanksgiving dinner to 24 of our participants.
Wishing you and your loved ones a very happy and healthy holiday season. If you or a loved one is homebound and isolated, please contact me at alex.kent@cahnj.org or 973-239-2600, ext. 1075.
Spotlight on CAH Staff
Lynn Kuran
Lynn Kuran joined the CAHNJ family nearly four years ago and has enjoyed a successful career as a social worker for 25 years. She earned her Bachelor of Science Degree in Psychology and a Master’s Degree in Social Work from Temple University.
Lynn has always felt drawn to this field and was especially influenced by her family and personal experiences to pursue this career. She has worked with many different populations such as children, families, and adult medical and drug and alcohol programs. Joining CAHNJ was a new, welcome experience for her. A favorite by Catherine Grahm sums up how she feels about working at CAHNJ, “To love what you do and feel that it matters, what could be more fun?”
Lynn believes that what makes CAHNJ special is the uniqueness of the program. There are programs that provide senior friendly technology and there are many social service and case management programs but CAHNJ does both! “We address the social isolation aspect of life that happens as we age. The combination of technology with social work support to address social isolation and depression in older adults is what sets CAHNJ apart from other similar organizations.”
CAHNJ provides an outlet and support system to our program participants. She feels that through working with this population she’s gained a lot of knowledge, learning about their history, outlook on life, inspirations and experiences. “Working with the older adult population, you learn a lot about them because they get comfortable enough to open up about themselves thus, helping us understand their needs and whatever else they may need assistance with. Furthermore, she states, “Instilling trust with your clients creates a stronger relationship with them and helps to identify their most pressing needs.”
“I am so grateful to be a part of CAHNJ and to be a part of these people’s
Client Spotlight – Susan
Susan is one of our many clients here at CAHNJ. Susan is very pleased with the services she’s received through CAHNJ, most notably, receiving her GrandPad. She says she loves her GrandPad because she can listen to music, play games, read the news, and be more connected to the outside world while increasing her mental activity. She doesn’t have much family or friends near her so her GrandPad helps keep her company, busy and well connected.
Intern Spotlight – Amanda Kaiser
Amanda recently finished more than a year internship as our MSW here at CAHNJ. She is a full-time student at Rutgers University School of Social work while working full-time. She plans to continue in the field of social work pursuing her clinical license. At CAHNJ, Amanda met with program participants weekly and says that she enjoyed her experience here because she was able to build relationships with the clients and staff. Amanda says, “While at CAHNJ, I learned about the various social service programs that support older adults. It’s been a great clinical learning experience.”
Grants and Programs
Grotta Fund and The Human Needs Food Pantry
A grant from The Grotta Fund has enabled CAHNJ to partner with The Human Needs Food Pantry to reach more homebound older adults in the Montclair area. Thus far, CAHNJ has engaged 8 participants. Our goal is to reach 20. If you or a loved one live in the Montclair area and are an older adult who is homebound and you’d like technology and social support services, you can reach us at alex.kent@cahnj.org or 973-239-2600, ext. 1075 to learn more.
Partners for Health Foundation Support’s CAHNJ’s Future
Partners for Health Foundation made it possible for CAHNJ to participate in a strategic planning process that will help shape its future. With this guidance, CAHNJ has prioritized efforts to build and sustain our organization. For the next three years, our efforts will focus on the following:
· Develop Board of Directors : if you have an interest in CAHNJ’s mission and a valuable skill that can be applied in a Board setting, we’d love to meet you.
· Diversify Funding Sources : if you are a business, foundation or an individual interested in supporting our mission, we’d love to hear from you.
· Forge Partnerships to Extend Impact and Reach: if you also serve homebound older adults through services that are complementary to ours, we’d love to hear from you.
If any of these efforts speak to you, please reach out to Alex Kent, Executive Director, at alex.kent@cahnj.org or 973-239-2600, ext. 1075.
Beware of Scam Artists and Fraudsters
Scam artists and fraudsters are people who take advantage of individuals by soliciting people for money and gathering personal information. This can be done over the phone, door-to-door visits, snail mail, email and more. These are the most common forms of fraud that are committed against older, isolated adults. Because homebound older adults tend to be alone more, easily trusting, and unaware of what fraud is and looks like they are more vulnerable and can be an easy target for scams and fraud.
Here are ways YOU can avoid becoming a victim of fraud:
· Don’t give anyone you don’t know personal information over the phone including banking information, social security number and even money.
· Call the National Do Not Call Registry at (888)382-1222 or visit www.donotcall.gov and ask that your phone number be added to the Do Not Call list.
· Do not answer the door if a stranger comes to your door, refrain from letting them into your home and do not give them any of your personal information or money.
Connections at Home NJ is a nonprofit, 501c3 organization. We operate on donations from generous donors like you. Kindly support our mission to reduce social isolation among homebound older adults. Make your donation at www.cahnj.org/donations today.