NSVS offers in-house and outreach programs:


The One-on-One Visiting Program


This is our major outreach activity on the North Shore. Now in its fifth year, it has grown considerably since its beginnings. We
currently average 40 to 50 one-on-one clients and volunteers per year. Volunteers are carefully screened and matched to the needs of the clients. About 75% of client referrals come from the Geriatric Outreach Program of Vancouver Coastal Health. The program is designed to provide social interaction to isolated seniors and/or a brief respite for care givers. Our volunteers do not provide medical or house-cleaning services for these clients.


If you are, or know, a senior who would like to participate in this program and be paired with a volunteer, please download the “Clients” application form below. If you would like to apply to become a volunteer for the One-on-One program, please download the volunteer application form:


                                          
  





Our in-house programs are:


Monday Nordic Walking For Seniors

Join our Nordic Walking group and get a bit of fresh air. This program is offered every Monday from 2PM to 3:30PM throughout the winter. Walking poles provided. Refreshments provided after. Call us at 604 922 1575 to register.

(pre-registration required).


Dress for the weather.



Tuesday and Wednesday Lunch and Games


Seniors meet at the Centre at noon, getting there on “their own steam”, i.e. transportation is not provided. A regular group attends and a staff member phones the clients in the morning to remind them and to check whether or not they will attend that day. Clients are served a soup lunch, they socialize for about 40 minutes and then split up to play bridge, whist, scrabble, puzzles or Nintendo Wii games for about two hours. Most of our seniors play bridge and we usually have three Bridge tables. However, they play purely for fun and the game (as the entire program) is geared towards seniors in their eighties and nineties. Near the end of the program they are provided with tea and cookies and the program ends at 3 pm. Average attendance at this program is approximately 15 clients which is optimal for the size of the location.



Monthly Bus Trip


Every fourth Wednesday of the month, NSVS offers a bus trip for its clients. It usually takes place between 12:30 and 4:30 pm. Clients are encouraged to have lunch before they leave home. The outings always end with tea and treats at a select location. In the past, we have taken seniors to visit an art gallery in Lions Bay, the Solart Glass Studio in North Vancouver, the Ferry Building Gallery and t
he Silk Purse in West Vancouver. We have taken them up Grouse Mountain and through Stanley Park, visited the Port Moody Station Museum and the Sun Yat-Sen Gardens in Vancouver’s China Town as well as many others destinations. Since the vast majority of our clients no longer drive, this is a very popular program.




Nintendo Wii Program


Join us for our new Nintendo Wii program beginning
September 11th 2008. This social gaming experience is held Thursdays 10am-12pm in partnership with Homecare West. Learn to play while getting physical and mental exercise, practice your memory skills, and meet new Wii friends. You don’t just play Wii – you experience it!

Coffee/tea and goodies available.


Thursday Exercise and Conversation Club


This is a collaborative program with the West Vancouver Seniors Activity Center. Chair exercises are followed by animated discussion on a variety of topics and light refreshments. The program is held at the drop-in centre every Thursday from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm.



Friday Multicultural Event


Seniors meet to discuss areas of interest and participate in various ways such as singing, playing games and discussions with guest speakers.

2:00 pm Fridays.


Special Events


Throughout the year, the Board of Directors generally hosts four seasonal dinners for the clients, i.e. for Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas as well as a Summer Salmon BBQ. North Shore Volunteers for Seniors also organizes a picnic for the clients in June and a fundraiser in August.