Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Piedmont Senior Resources (PSR) Area Agency on Aging has been notified by Meals on Wheels of America of its success in earning more than $9,700 in grant money through its efforts on the Santa for Seniors Project with The 2020 Subaru Share the Love Event, held last Christmas.

With the help of many volunteers and staff – including lead sponsor Navona Hart/Real Living Cornerstone, PSR stuffed more than 600 bags and baskets with masks, hand sanitizer, hams donated by FeedMore Inc., hand sanitizer, toilet paper, cleaning supplies, dish liquid, laundry detergent, bars of soap, shampoo, hand-made quilts and blankets, canned goods, non-perishable food, toothpaste, tooth brushes, and more.

This is the fifth year PSR has participated in Subaru Share the Love Event, and received substantial monetary reward.

“In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s fantastic how we were able to pull off this event in a safe, healthy manner,” PSR CEO Justine A. Young said. “This community always comes through – even in the midst of a global pandemic – to help care for older adults in need.”

Young, who added PSR applies successfully for most all eligible grant opportunities available to help sustain the agency’s efforts, confirmed PSR knows and has been told that often, these are the only gifts clients receive during the holiday season, and this was the demonstrated case in December when the gift bags were delivered.

According to Director of Nutrition and Transportation Thomas Jordan Miles III, more than 20 volunteers, advocates, students, and community leaders helped pack hundreds of bags filled with toiletries and household staples for older adults in the region just in time for Christmas. In addition, Navona Hart and her team collected items and funds and donated significantly to the cause.

“Our drivers, companion aides, advocates, and staff delivered hundreds of gift bags to homebound, older adults who were literally deathly afraid of leaving their homes,” Miles said. “The Santa for Seniors program has definitely become a permanent, essential fixture for our clients and older adults in the seven county area.”

Though no formal in-person events were held, PSR held many online webinars with many local and statewide subject matter experts and advocates to discuss the Santa for Seniors program, along with the aging process, mental health awareness, and healthy eating and food insecurity.

Notably, each older adult was gifted a blanket, many of which were handcrafted by citizens in the community, thanks to a local quilting group of volunteers.

Over the last 11 years, Subaru of America and its participating retailers have donated more than $145 million to help those in need. By the end of this, the 12th year, Subaru and its participating retailers will have donated over $170 million to help those in need through the Share the Love Event.

PSR serves the counties of Amelia, Buckingham, Charlotte, Cumberland, Lunenburg, Nottoway, and Prince Edward with home delivered meals, hot meals, personal protective equipment, non-emergency medical transportation, homemakers, insurance counseling, and many more services.

For more information on PSR, email psr@psraaa.org or call (434) 767-5588.