Neighbor Connect volunteer Milton Whitehead drops off groceries to a South Side resident.
In response to COVID-19, Richmond City Councilmember Stephanie Lynch and Council Liaison Amy Robins recognized a need to care for vulnerable residents of the 5th District. They worked together to build the new Neighbor Connect program, a corps of volunteers who reach out to homebound and isolated seniors.
Robins spearheaded the program and reports it has more than 70 volunteers reaching out to approximately 1,800 residents across a district that includes the Fan, Randolph, Oregon Hill and Westover Hills. Robins developed a script for volunteers to use in phone and door-to-door outreach, with important information about COVID-19 and resources for residents in need of health care and food distribution through Richmond Public Schools and Feed More.
The Rev. Robin Mines
The Rev. Robin Mines, who competed with Lynch for the 5th District seat, is now working with Lynch and Robins to support the program. “Most of the seniors are doing well with family members checking in on them, but there are those whose spouses are in nursing homes and may need more help,” she says. “We make sure they have everything they need through Meals on Wheels, picking up prescriptions and welfare checks, yard work, and whatever else we can do to help.”
“We have had such a great response from our seniors and volunteers,” Lynch says. While the initiative is distinct from the city’s existing Neighbor-to-Neighbor program, which aims to “leverage volunteerism as a city strategy to help meet needs, solve problems, cultivate relationships, and build One Richmond,” according to the city’s website, Lynch sees the potential for the two to merge in the future.
