The “buddy system” can mean a lot of different things, but in the city of Biddeford it’s the name of a program that helps connect an elderly resident to a peer who can check in on them and make sure they are safe.
The brainchild of Mayor Alan Casavant, The Buddy System is a 1 1/2-year-old program of the Biddeford 50+ Club, and according to the club’s program director Ed Mann, it was a great idea.
The only problem is, not enough people are taking part.
Mann said there is currently only one working buddy pair, but he hopes that number will continue to grow as word spreads about the program. The idea is to pair up a person over the age of 70 who lives alone and has no immediate family in the area, with a volunteer “buddy” who can connect with them by phone on a regular basis. While that’s the basic idea, the frequency of calls depends on what the buddies decide.
Some buddies may choose to talk every day or on a weekly basis, but the Ross Center does ask for communication to be clear and relatively routine ”“ a consistent time of day is important, as well as making it known beforehand if for some reason a call cannot be made on the decided day or time, according to Mann.
The program is intended to be in the form of a phone call, but Mann said it could develop into a longer-term friendship ”“ pointing to the lone pair now participating.
The two women began with a daily phone conversation, which eventually changed to a call twice a week, and while they slipped this summer, they plan to resume talking with greater frequency this fall, according to Mann. The women have also met in person several times, he said.
“To them it’s not just a phone call, but a friendship has grown out of that,” said Mann.
It’s important to have these types of programs available to the elderly at no cost, particularly people who live alone and don’t have any family leaving near them.
Elderly people are often the targets of phone scam, and scammers take advantage of their loneliness by offering an ear to listen. If they had someone to speak with and keep them informed about what’s going on in the world and even offer some insight into such scamming calls, they may avoid becoming a victim.
Elderly people can also become injured without anyone knowing if someone doesn’t check in on them regularly. Taking a hard fall may mean laying on the floor for hours ”“ or even days ”“ until they’re able to reach a phone or until someone close to them realizes something is wrong. Missing a scheduled Buddy System call would alert the volunteer that something may be amiss.
It’s encouraging to see the Biddeford 50+ Club taking on this effort as well as volunteers stepping up to help out. Anyone who is interested in participating, whether as an elderly candidate or a volunteer, should call the club at 282-5005.
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Today’s editorial was written by City Editor Robyn Burnham Rousseau on behalf of the Journal Tribune Editorial Board. Questions? Comments? Contact Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski by calling 282-1535, ext. 322, or via email at kristenm@journaltribune.com.
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