Program Helps Seniors Stay at H.O.M.E

When winters come, especially ones with so much snow like this year, 90-year-old Pearl has trouble keeping her sidewalks clear.

She has grandchildren who visit often, but they don’t live close enough for frequent shoveling to be practical. Moving to senior housing would solve the problem, but Pearl has lived in her Xenwood Avenue home for 32 years and wants to stay put. Enter Ben Oeth, and the Household and Outside Maintenance for Elderly, or H.O.M.E, program

The program’s goal is to work with seniors like Pearl — whose full name was not used in this article because the elderly who live at home are often the target of crime — to help them remain independent. They do this by providing services elderly residents can no longer do for themselves, such as snow removal, minor home repairs, painting and homemaking.

Debbie Ross-Staska, H.O.M.E’s south region coordinator, said this makes a big impact on the lives of their clients.

“Most older adults want to stay in their own homes, in familiar surroundings and in communities they have lived in for years,” Ross-Staska said. “Staying in their homes is more economical, and most seniors enjoy being in a neighborhood where they can be around children and feel like part of the community.”

Oeth has been a H.O.M.E volunteer since last fall, when he saw a notice on the city of St. Louis Park website that the program needed people to shovel snow for elderly clients. It sounded like a good fit to Oeth, who works as an accountant and was looking for an opportunity with a flexible time commitment.

“I have really enjoyed living here in St. Louis Park, and decided that it was time to try to give something back,” he said.

Oeth was paired with Pearl. He said that even in a year with a bounty of the white stuff, it hasn’t been hard to fulfill his commitment.

“H.O.M.E. did a good job of matching me up with someone who lives nearby,” Oeth said. “Because I live near Pearl, it is easy to get over to her house, and it hasn’t been difficult to keep up with this year’s snow.”

And Pearl, whose granddaughter contacted H.O.M.E. to see if they could provide some help for her, said the shoveling has been a big help.

“I don’t know what I would do without Ben,” Pearl said. “I am really grateful for this service.”

Pearl isn’t alone — Ross-Staska said H.O.M.E. served 126 clients in St. Louis Park in 2010, performing more than 800 individual tasks.

The program is funded in part by the United Way and the Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging, and some of the funds are used to pay independent contractors to do the work. However, Ross-Staska said volunteers are also a big part of the organization’s workforce.

“We couldn’t do what we do without volunteers,” she said.

Thanks to plentiful precipitation, Oeth has had plenty of opportunities to give back this winter, but he has enjoyed it.

“My job requires me to spend a lot of time inside at a desk,” he said. “Volunteering with H.O.M.E. gives me a good excuse to interact with others in the community, spend some time outside and get some fresh air.”