Volunteer Interfaith Caregivers

Volunteer Interfaith Caregivers (VIC) has been helping elderly and younger disabled residents of Corvallis and Benton County for 37 years. It’s a ministry of eight Corvallis churches, and Good Samaritan has played an active part of Caregivers since it began.

Volunteers provide help to older adults & disabled younger people, allowing them to remain living independently in their homes as long as possible. They assist with transportation, indoor and outdoor chores, shopping, build wheelchair ramps and provide much-needed respite for family caregivers. Friendly visits from volunteers helps home-bound people stay in touch with the world around them. Together, our dedicated volunteers have helped many hundreds of elderly and disabled, some for more than ten years!

• Last year, Caregivers volunteers provided over 2,913 hours of service.
• Volunteers staff the organization’s office weekdays to take phone requests for service.
• Post-pandemic, volunteers began again to build wheelchair access ramps and have built handrails for others.
• Last year, VIC hired its first paid Director, Nancy Louise Clayton. (This has allowed Good Sam’s Sandy Potter to retire as director!)

Community Outreach, Inc

Community Outreach, Inc, (COI) has served basic human needs in the Mid-Willamette Valley since 1971. COI has a can-do attitude and a wide range of programs to support it. It’s in the business of inclusion, not exclusion: “service to,” not “screening out.” They want people to find solutions and obtain services, and they cooperate with other agencies to provide a continuum of care.

Thus, COI provides walk-in medical and dental clinics twice a week as well as providing mental health and substance abuse counseling.  Housing for men, women and families continues to be available and Mari’s Place supports families in need of childcare. Once people have stable shelter, other problems can be dealt with through counseling. A veterans’ program, Good2Go, aims to help each veteran gain employment, coping skills, income, and permanent housing.

COI believes that everybody deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, regardless of their personal circumstances, and that everybody should be offered the skills, knowledge and assistance they need to lead healthy and productive lives. A donation this month will help Community Outreach continue their mission: “Helping people help themselves.”