Students Helping Seniors Program
Posted on Sunday, July 5th, 2009
Employment Navigators Presents:
Students Helping Seniors Program 2009
Helping seniors with household tasks and providing youth with employment.
About the Program
Students Helping Seniors enables seniors to complete odd jobs around the home with the aid of local youth through a coordinated summer program. Students provide assistance with jobs such as, yard and garden maintenance, household chores, pet care and shopping. The homeowner supplies all the tools, materials and equipment required.
The helpers are students, not experienced trades persons. For major projects we encourage all seniors to use local skilled tradespersons.
Students will be paid by the senior. Funding may be available for those unable to meet expense.
- Job cost: $10/hour
What services are available?
Yard and garden maintenance:
- Lawn care
- Weeding
- Car washing
- Water plants, etc
Household chores:
- Changing light bulbs
- Checking smoke alarm batteries
- Emptying trash
- Watering plants
- Packing and storing goods, etc
Basic electronic assistance:
- Setting up phones
- Voicemail activation
- DVD/VCR equipment, etc
Pet care:
- Feeding
- Walking, etc
Shopping assistance: (where no vehicle is required)
- Assist with shopping
- Mailing
- Pick up of small items, etc
As a Senior How Do I Qualify?
To be eligible you must be:
- At least 55 years of age or require assistance with the activities listed
- Willing to provide all the necessary tools, equipment, and materials
- Living in the Ladysmith area
- Willing to provide supervision.
As a Student How Do I Qualify?
To be eligible you must be:
- Aged 14-18
- Living in the Ladysmith area
To be considered you must complete a registration form at the Employment Navigators office. You will meet with the program coordinator and other students to participate in an orientation session prior to working.
How Do I Apply?
Complete an application form at the Employment Navigators office at 710 1st Avenue in Ladysmith or call Kirsten Bertsch, Program Coordinator, at (250) 245-7134.
The BC Gaming Commission, the Government of Canada and Ladysmith Plumbing and Heating have generously contributed funding to this initiative.
Funded in whole or part through the Canada-British Columbia Labour Market Development Agreement.
Hi Paul:
We hire one co-ordinator through the Service Canada Summer Students program. The co-ordinator in turn visits the high schools to talk about the program and we end up with a hire list of students who wish to work through the summer helping seniors, we can have up to 30 to 40 students working through the summer on a part time basis, going from job to job, such as mowing lawns, painting, yard clean up etc.
Hello Ann, thanks for your response. How many students do you hire? do you have someone that co-ordinates the workload or dispatches?
The program runs for approximately 12 weeks in the summer months through a Federal Government initiative called Service Canada Centres for Youth, to employ university students during summer break. Unfortunately this program is not available year round. If you are looking for further information on this funded program I would suggest you check out the Service Canada website and that will give you the information you need in applying for a grant for next summer. Students are hired by different organization for many diverse program. Our organization has been running Students Helping Seniors for a few years and if it is that particular program you need information on please feel free to contact me, as it was designed specifically for our community.
Hi, I am interested in setting up a business in NS where college students help seniors and was wondering how your program works?