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Welcome New July– December RSVP Volunteers!

Sheryl Bruns, Mickie Knowles, & Richard Ruff of Chadron

Larry Olson, Liz Sprock, Kathy Mitchell, & Connie and Paul

Bernath of Crawford

Coffee Socials

Drop in and Visit!

Fun gift bags given for door prizes,

birthdays & hours.

Chadron Coffee January 19th & February 16th 10 am at the RSVP office

Crawford Coffee January 26th & February 23rd 10 am at the RSVP office

Harrison Coffee Jan. 5

th

10 am at the Sunshine Center

Please Note:

The Volunteer Services/ RSVP

Office will be closed

December 25th -29th

Winter Recognition Join Us

Friday, January 26th at 2:00 pm

at the Chadron Senior Center

Shake off the cold and the

winter doldrums

As we celebrate YOU with

Music and Magic

The Best Bell Captains and incredible ringers made our Salvation Army campaign a special joy this year! We were also blessed with some unbelieva-

bly warm weather and you won’t find us complaining! Thank you to one and all. The final tally will be announced in the paper soon, but

beyond the exact number, THANK YOU for the tremendous difference these dollars will make in the lives of those in our community in the coming year. Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Some ringers were shy! Do you recognize them?

RSVP volunteers & some wonderful high school students made the Mobile Food Pantry a breeze. Thank you for helping to bring food to those in need!

And that’s not all! RSVP wrapped gifts & prepared boxes for 19 seniors and 74 special families for Caring and Sharing, we decorated the window in Crawford with a special message to Santa, you brought your grandkids (thanks Fran!) to serve at Closer to Home and two new RSVP teams prepared meals at for the American Legion—both meals were delicious, of course! And then there was all the “regular service” done every day by our volunteers. What a gift you are!

Thank you to all those who have already replied! Your support is critical to our success.

If you haven’t replied, please consider making a donation to support RSVP via our Friends of Volunteer Services/ RSVP Booster Campaign. The funds raised are used to help meet our grant’s matching funds requirement (each year we need to raise 30% of our funds locally through cash and in-kind donations) and these matching dollars are used to pay for expenses not covered by the grant. With cuts in the federal support in recent years, the support of boosters makes a tremendous difference. THANK YOU!

Friends of Volunteer Services/ RSVP Booster Campaign: Support Levels

Name: _________________________________________________ _____$ Your Choice

Street or PO#: ___________________________________________ _____$50 Ambassador

City, ST, Zip: ___________________________________________ _____$25 Family or Business

Please make checks payable to: _____$10 Individual

NCAP - RSVP · 270 Pine Street · Chadron, NE 69337 Gifts are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.

What did we do last year?

We helped to collect 421 units of blood! Say what? Yup, 421 units and EACH unit can save three lives.

What a difference you make!!

Next Drives:

Chadron—February 19th at

United Methodist, Chadron,

11 am-3:30 pm

Crawford—February 20th

at Crawford Community Center, 1 pm -6 pm

Treat Bakers, appointment callers and

blood drive volunteers needed!

Keep those plastic bags coming for the Breadbasket. Walmart bags, Safeway bags, etc. Please drop them at the RSVP office & we will make sure they get delivered!

The Crawford Food Pantry... is also accepting plastic bags. Please drop bags at the pantry or bring them to the Crawford Coffee Social.

Mobile Food Pantry February 21st Crawford Community Center

Set up at 3 pm Distribution at 5 pm

RSVP Raises $1,020 for Local Food Pantries!

Great job! Thanks to donations during our book booths throughout the year, our total contribu-tion to our food pantries is $1,020. The Crawford Food Pantry, Shepherd’s Pantry and Extra Help-ings will all benefit. Thank you to everyone who helped man the booths this year. You not only provided books and materials to improve literacy in our community, but you also raised money for our local food pantries. The donations will help the food pantries buy meat and other essentials that they don’t get during traditional food drives.

Thank you for making that possible!

Don’t forget the timesheet drop box in front of our Chadron office is a convenient option for getting those timesheets in. It’s available 24/7 in front of the NCAP office. It’s attached to the planter by the front door & it’s ready for action!

Timesheet Drop Box

Opioid Addiction and Older Adults During the month of January, as a MLK Day Service Project, Senior Corps projects across Nebraska are focusing on the opioid epidemic that is sweeping the U.S.

A study conducted by Medicare found that about 15% of Medicare recipients were prescribed opioid-based medication after visiting the hospital, and about 43% of that group continued to take the medication three months after it was first prescribed.

The number of seniors hospitalized for opioid overdoses has increased five-fold over the last 20 years. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 44% of all opioid overdose deaths in 2013 and

2014 occurred in patients between the age of 45 to 64.

Often seniors can find themselves addicted despite following doctors’ instructions to the letter. But why is this?

It is no secret that as you age, you face greater risk of illness and injury. Seniors are more susceptible to injuries

that require pain management, such as broken bones and chronic pain. And, unfortunately, there are not many good options for treating pain in seniors. Even seemingly benign drugs like ibuprofen or Advil can lead to serious bleeding, while being far less effective at treating pain than opioid or synthetic opioid painkillers.

What can be done to help prevent accidentally becoming addicted to opioids?

If you or a senior you know are taking an opioid, encourage your doctor to prescribe the lowest necessary dose, and look into alternative options to address pain, such as non-opioid medications. Never exceed the recommended dose, follow the instructions given to you by your doctor, and don’t take your prescription with alcohol.

Most importantly, listen to your body. If you

feel that you are being over- prescribed pain

medication, or are dependent on your pain

medication, speak to your doctor

immediately.

Jim Sheaffer 1/13 Randy Gulbranson 1/14 Jim Claussen 1/17 Mike Knueppel 1/18 Darlene Nissen 1/23 June Ballard 1/28 Todd Brownlee 1/29 Martha Empson 1/29 Sheris Dojcsany 1/30 Jane Druecker 1/30 Nancy Sayer 1/31 Linda Barcus 2/2 Daisy Morgan 2/6 David Rama 2/11 Gerry Fickel 2/12 Jeanne Dueker 2/14 Betty Witte 2/19 Betty Reading 2/22 Joanne Grantham 2/25 Merlyn Gramberg 2/26 Lou Marshall 2/28 Chuck Miller 2/28

Chadron

Doralie Lawson 1/1 Peggy Marshall 1/1 Bertha Landreth 1/2 Dorothy West 1/4 Suze Jones 1/4 Jan Storjohann 1/5 Lila Anderson 1/6 Dixie Blundell 1/10 Kay Tyree 1/11 Dan Konrad 1/13 Clarence Morgan 1/13

Our hearts are full….

Knitters & Crocheters

Thank you for those hats, mittens and scarves! The Bordeaux Trappers 4H Club had a hugely successful outreach at the Parade of Lights. Over 300 were distributed and they thank each and every one of you.

Trees of Love

The Trees of Love, with gift tags for the residents at Ponderosa Villa and Crestview Care Center, were a big hit again this year. Thank you to Crawford Dollar General and Chadron Bank of the West for hosting the trees and thank you to all those who purchased gifts to let the residents know they are an important part of our community and they are warmly remembered.

Caring & Sharing

Thank you to Sharon and her team for phenomenal outreach. Food, gifts, toys and clothing were purchased by community members and then assembled and wrapped with the help of RSVP volunteers. You brightened the lives of so many in need.

Virgil Couch Toy Drive

The Virgil Couch Toy Drive is always a big undertaking, but so worthwhile. Thank you to Sue and Jarenda for distributing the gifts and to all those who purchased gifts and helped along the way.

Crawford

Bill Stolldorf 1/9 Ed Moody 1/11 Bob Arnold 1/13 Judi Frahm 2/18 Terrie Gleason 2/27

Harrison

Lona Thayer 1/13

“The Staff & Residents would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and to thank you for all you do

for us. Blessings”– Sheryl Bosch at Crestview

“Now is the perfect time to give thanks for all of the blessings that God has given us,

and we would like to thank you for being ours. We would not be able to do what

we do here through The Salvation Army without you! So Thank you and have

blessed holiday season.”—The Salvation Army Service Extension Team: Joel Arthur, Peter Hoskin, Mark Rodvold & Jamie Swisher

Don’t let aging get you down … It’s too hard to get back up.

Congratulating THE Northwest Community Action Partnership

Volunteer of the Year

Congratulating THE Northwest Community Action Partnership

Volunteer of the Year

Northwest Community Action Partner-ship (NCAP) is proud to announce that Chadron resident Jane Druecker is the recipient of its 2017 Volunteer of the Year Award. This award recognizes extraordinary service that embodies the mission of Northwest Community Action: Helping people. Changing Lives. Engaging communities to allevi-ate poverty. Jane Druecker is a 21-year Senior Corps RSVP volunteer, she is the president of the Chadron Arts Cen-ter, has held multiple position in PEO (an international women's organiza-tion with a primary focus on providing educational opportunities for female students worldwide) and is active in her church, but it was Jane’s selfless act to step outside her comfort zone to help NCAP accomplish more that cemented her nomination for Volun-teer of the Year. Last year, NCAP had the opportunity to bring an Ameri-Corps volunteer to the Panhandle to help the community prepare for possi-ble disasters. The ideal AmeriCorps candidate was located. A young man named Tyler Woodard had just gradu-ated from St. Louis University with a degree in Emergency Management.

He wanted to do a year of national service with the agency, but ultimately decided that because of his student loan obligations he could not afford housing and he could not volunteer. Undeterred, NCAP put out a call for help to RSVP volunteers to find hous-ing. Within a short period of time, Jane stepped up and offered to share the lower level of her home for the entire year. Jane’s extraordinary act of kind-ness and selflessness allowed North-west Community Action to continue its work in disaster preparedness and the Panhandle of Nebraska is stronger and more resilient because of it. Dawes County Commissioner and Northwest Community Action Board President, Jake Stewart, presented the award at a reception held in Jane’s honor.

Jane’s tells us that her favorite volun-teer service is when she is shoulder to shoulder with other volunteers work-ing for the common good. As an RSVP volunteer, Jane has served at nearly 20 of the 50 non-profit sites supported by the Dawes & Sioux County RSVP pro-gram. To name a few, she has served

at Closer to Home, the American Le-gion, United Way, Dawes County His-torical Museum, Post Playhouse and the Salvation Army. When RSVP start-ed a new program last year and Jane was one of the first to volunteer. The program, called CARE Callers, provides a daily call of assurance to seniors to share some friendly conversation and in the process help them to fight the loneliness and depression that can occur when living alone. Ultimately the CARE Callers goal is to help the seniors to stay in their own homes.

Jane is active in the bell choir and par-

ticipates in a dance group called Step

Sisters. She often joins in performanc-

es with these groups for area seniors.

Jane developed a special place in her

heart for the elderly during her work

as a physical therapist. During her

career she worked at the VA hospital

in Albuquerque, New Mexico and lo-

cally at Crestview Care Center and Pio-

neer Manor through Chadron Commu-

nity Hospital’s Home Health program.

CONGRATULATIONS JANE!!

NONPROFIT

ORGANIZATION

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

CHADRON, NE

PERMIT NO. 00066

270 Pine Street

Chadron, NE 69337

rjohnson@ncap.info

Phone: 308-432-3393 Fax: 308-432-5799

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

Blood Drives Feb 19th in Chadron &

Feb 20th in Crawford

Volunteers, Callers & Treat Bakers Needed!

Volunteer Opportunities! Call 432-3393

RSVP is serving at

Closer to Home

We need cooks & servers

Jan. 11 &

Feb. 8

15 Dessert Makers needed for the Loaded Baked Potato

Bar on February 3rd

Mobile Food Pantry Crawford—February 21

Set Up about 3 pm

Food Distribution 5 pm until done.

Invite a friend to

join RSVP today!

Is looking for clients. Do you know someone who would like a daily call?