DECEMBER 5 was International Volunteer Day and Putuo District hosted events to celebrate the individuals who have devoted their time to making the community a better place.

In Putuo, there are 31,000 registered community volunteers who are helping in 16 categories of projects.

As the aging population becomes a more critical social issue, many seniors face situations they are not capable of handling or feel very lonely because they live alone.

Solving these problems, however, is not a one-time endeavor, but building a sustainable system that benefits a community over the long term.

Network to help seniors

The Jiu Ling Jia Yuan network has been created to help seniors. Here’s how it works. The government purchases services and signs contracts with centers and has opened a hotline, 6222-9090, to provide assistance 24 hours a day. Nine zones have been set up in nine neighborhood communities that round up the resources to help the elderly, as well as disabled and poor residents. Within the nine zones are 100 stations in residential communities that provide day care, medical care and leisure activities.

Putuo has over 2,400 volunteers helping 14,000 seniors who live alone. The volunteers visit once every week to keep them company and call every two days to check on them.

Forty-five volunteer service stations are set up across the district to help seniors. The 20th of every month is a volunteer service day when various events are organized.

One big family

Building No. 81 at Gui Yang Yuan in the Caoyang community has a group with members helping and supporting one another like they are family.

The group has existed for 12 years and now has 45 members, up from 15 at the outset.

Shi Yunyan is the founder and she is now in her 80s.

“Before we were taking care of others, and now the young people are taking care of us,” she said.

All the members have retired and have more time to help others in their community.

Seniors who live alone or are at home by themselves during the day when their family is working need someone to call if there is an emergency. It started with some helping take neighbors to a hospital or buying groceries. Soon someone suggested they form a small group.

The “younger” members are paired with elder ones. Young members visit the older ones every few days to check up on how they are doing. The group has also made a handbook with the contact information of all members. The book also contains info on any medical conditions and the medications each member needs.

“I saw on the news that some elders who live alone die in their home and days pass before anyone finds out,” Shi said. “This never happens in our building. If we don’t see a senior today, we are worried.

“Group members are familiar with each other’s routines and visit immediately if something doesn’t seem right,” Shi added.

This volunteer group also contribute money into a fund and when someone is in need they use the money to help. Everyone is very generous, sometimes even donating a few thousand yuan to someone who becomes sick.

Over time members have become close friends and they occasionally go to karaoke venues or travel together.

Looking out for each other

Changshou neighborhood community has a large population with about 130,000 people living within 4 square kilometers.

Changshou Neighborhood Center opened in 2012 and it includes a wet market, service station, senior’s club and a nursing home. The center started its “365 volunteer service” to help people in the community. Various activities are organized throughout the year.

One example is the Green Changshou planting event, where experts come to instruct residents how to grow vegetables and flowers on their balconies. They also teach nutrition knowledge about various green vegetables and the importance of garbage sorting.

A health and fitness lecture given by health care professionals has taught residents how to stay healthy as the seasons change.

Every week, young white-collar workers gather at the center and practice qi gong with volunteers.

The neighborhood center also has special movie screenings for those suffering from a hearing impairment and hosts exhibition of movie props for the visually impaired so they can touch and feel them.

During the summer break volunteers also have organized puppet shows for children.

Qian Yicai is a volunteer who fixes electric appliances for residents. Every year he helps clean and sterilize more than 200 air conditioners and fixes small problems for free when he sees one.

The fire station on Yichang Road has had power outages twice in the middle of night and Qian has gone to help on both occasions.

The center also does regular surveys to find out what residents need.

Bringing joy to everyone

Ganquan Road neighborhood community is a typical old-fashioned residential area with most of the buildings built in the 1970s and 1980s. The lack of public space has long been a bane for residents.

Ganquan built some small plazas in 2011 so residents can get some exercise and relax in their free time. The plazas have also become gathering places for various cultural and sporting activities, injecting some energy into the community.

A team of volunteers help with the activities at these plazas. On one occasion, hospital volunteers have come and spent a day taking blood pressure and testing the blood sugar levels of residents. A tech company once sent people to fix computers for free.

The neighborhood community is always seeking innovative ways to improve the program with the resources at its disposal.

Three handicapped residents in Ganquan found a way to give back to the community that has helped them over the years. They formed a volunteer team to sharpen knives for residents at no cost, as well as fix umbrellas and small household appliances.

A total of 3,000 volunteers have participated in the past three years, offering services and help to Ganquan’s 50,000 residents.

Volunteer events are planned at the beginning of the year with one being held every month. A schedule of events is given to residents to ensure they can take part in the activities.