HOUSTON — Tom Gill lives alone now. His wife of more than 51 years passed away in December 2019. The loss hit Gill hard.
"I still miss her. We’ve been married that long and it’s something that’ll be hard to get by," Gill said.
The Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office stepped in with their program for seniors called "You Are Not Alone."
The program enlists the help of alumni from Fort Bend County's citizen police academy to work as volunteers to call seniors every day to check in and occasionally stop in to help with household tasks that can be tough for elderly people. The volunteers are typically seniors themselves.
"Having that peer-to-peer meeting really sets up a nice scene," said Major Thomas Goodfellow.
Goodfellow said the program helps mitigate social isolationism, depression and anxiety, while providing resources for seniors.
The elderly population in Fort Bend County is growing, according to the sheriff's office. In a county of roughly 850,000, nearly 10 percent are seniors.
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To be eligible, people must be at least 65 years old or have a disability. People can enroll themselves or loved ones.
"They just like a visit. They just like someone to communicate with to break that social isolationism," Maj. Goodfellow said.
"When we go to visit some of these people, we’re their only contact," said volunteer Betsy Strong. "They don't have family, or if they do, they're far away or they're not talking to each other."
Strong's husband, Skipper, is a volunteer, too, and said a surprising number of people they encounter are estranged from their families.
For Gill, he sees his son on a regular basis but does not interact much with his daughter.
The program began with a soft launch in October 2019 and is now ramping up. Major Goodfellow said they currently have 16 volunteers helping about 40 families.
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