By Anthony Rifilato
"I love to drive, but I have a heavy foot," Wagner joked. She sometimes cruises up Grand Avenue to the Fairview Shopping Center. "If I feel I can do it, I'll go there or to the bank," she says.
Though the frail Wagner is still able to do some things on her own, it has become increasingly difficult for her. Last year she underwent knee-replacement surgery and wasn't allowed to drive for a few months. Every three weeks she receives treatment at Mercy Medical Center for her herniated disk. At times she is barely ambulatory, and her days include sitting by the window and doing crossword puzzles, watching television or reading magazines.
Although she has three grown children who visit regularly -- two live nearby -- they now have families and careers of their own and can't devote all their time to their mom. Wagner's husband died in 1976, and she lives alone. And for the affable and talkative Wagner, who said a nursing home is out of the question, being alone can get really boring.
Two months ago, Wagner came across an advertisement for the Good Neighbor Network, a growing program begun last year with the aim of helping the homebound elderly, disabled and chronically ill. The organization relies on volunteers to help people such as Wagner do minor chores or simply to pay them friendly visits.
"Just the fact that she comes by makes me feel better," Wagner said of her new friend, Jeanne Torma, a Baldwin resident and Good Neighbor volunteer. Torma visits Wagner on Thursdays, and sometimes drives her to the supermarket and helps out with other chores. But mostly, the two just chat.
"I originally came for transportation needs," said Torma, who read a story about the program in the Baldwin Herald. "I was thinking, This is something so needed."
A Hempstead-based non-profit organization affiliated with the Education and Assistance Corp., the Good Neighbor Network currently has several volunteers and is testing the waters in Baldwin. Some of the organizations involved with the program include Molloy College, the Baldwin Interfaith Conference and Catholic Charities.
The goal is to assist those who are unable to do certain tasks on their own, such as shoveling snow, mowing the lawn or driving to the supermarket. And if the job is too big for volunteers, like a leaky roof, the organization will coordinate and make referrals. In Wagner's case, the Good Neighbor Network arranged for free transportation through All Island Cab to take Wagner to her treatment at Mercy Medical Center, which is on the program's board.
But it hasn't been easy locating volunteers or people who need the service. This month, the Good Neighbor Network will hold a forum in collaboration with the Baldwin Interfaith Clergy Fellowship in order to get the word out.
"Part of the idea of the open house is to let the community know it's there," said Program Director Diane Monks.
Though Monks said the organization is trying to attract volunteers, she also is hoping that the service appeals to those who really need it. "I think the main thing is making the elderly feel comfortable," she said. "Loneliness is a tremendous factor in the deterioration of health."
Monks offered some statistics as to why the service is vital, and said that nationwide, 20 percent of people 85 and older live alone. Locally, Monks said, one-fifth of Nassau County residents are over 60, many of them in the Town of Hempstead.
But part of the problem, Monks admits, is that some people who need the service are reluctant to call. "People by and large don't like to be dependent," she explained. "It's hard for people to admit."
That was the case with Wagner. "I felt funny at first, but I figured I'd try it," she said, adding that although she was wary about having a stranger visit, she really wanted the company.
For Torma, part of the reason for volunteering was her own parents' unwillingness to move into a nursing home, and she said she understands how Wagner feels. Torma's mother, who died in 1999, had received home hospice care. "They were my inspiration," Torma said of the volunteers and nurses from Mercy who helped her mother.
At the open house this month, Torma and other volunteers are slated to receive some training in areas such as listening and health-assessment skills, as well as bereavement training headed by people involved with the program, such as Dr. Charlotte Allen, coordinator of the gerontology department at Molloy College.
As the Good Neighbor Network looks for volunteers, Wagner and Torma are getting along like old friends, and last week the pair's conversations ranged from Torma's dogs to Wagner's love of Mary Higgins Clark novels.
"Even if we talk about anything, it's interesting," Wagner said. "If I need something during the week, I might call Jeanne."
The Good Neighbor Network is hosting a community open house:
"Revitalizing Self, Revitalizing Community," on Saturday, May 31 at
Bethlehem Lutheran Church, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. For more information or to RSVP, call 516-539-0150.
