Punxsutawney Phil was up to his old tricks of seeing that shadow of his again. So, winter continued, but relief was on the horizon! It’s a new year with new hopes, plans and adventures. We usually think of  our health when a new year rolls around. This year we have 4  new Bone Builder classes to choose from.  A class just started in Shaftsbury. It’s the first one in Bennington County to be held in the evening – 5:15 to 6:15. We are hoping that folks who work will be able to take advantage of this and sign up. In November we hosted a lovely tea at the hospital to welcome the former Red Cross Gray Ladies to Green Mountain RSVP. They are now being referred to as RSVP Lobby Desk Volunteers and are continuing to provide indispensible service to patients and visitors. If anyone reading this has a desire to volunteer at the hospital Lobby Desk, give us a call. Help is especially needed on weekends and evenings.
     Before the holiday rush began, Pat travelled to Portsmouth, NH, along with Susan, Peter, Harry and Linda to attend the Tri-State Conference of the Corporation for National and Community Service. Attendees from Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont were there representing RSVP and AmeriCorpsVista. It’s always enlightening when the over 55ers get to mix with the young AmeriCorpsVista volunteers.  The workshops were interesting and full of energy, and we came back with lots of information from our peers in other offices. We are pleased about being the recipients of a $5,000 grant from the Vermont Community Foundation. Because it was not awarded for any certain program, we can use the funds for needs such as printing an RSVP Handbook and updating our brochure. Many towns notified us that their funding was decreased because of their budget constraints.
     Our main focus is to spread the word about RSVP so that we can send more volunteers out into the community where help is needed more now than ever. If you know of anyone who could use some joy and satisfaction in their life, send them our way. The more you give to others, the better you feel!