Charles Huggins

Staff Writer n charlesh@nwanews.com

Of the 23 volunteers at the Schmieding Center for Senior Health and Education, one is no more important than the next, and there is always room for more.

Sherry White, the coordinator of education, relies on the assistance of local volunteers to help with the many elder care-giving programs offered at this state-funded institution. Volunteers can do anything from answering phones and taking messages to greeting and ushering at the seminars or other special events.

"Volunteers are important because I am the only full-time employee here," White said.

The Schmieding Center, located at the Highlands Crossing, is an outreach resource center in conjunction with the Arkansas Aging Initiative that helps seniors and their family members with elder caregiving in the home. Approximately 80 percent of home care services are provided by family caregivers.

"Our goal is to not only improve the quality of care, but to find resources to help the caregiver," White said.

Books and videotapes full of information on a wide array of senior ailments can be checked out for up to two weeks at a time. A caregiver resource list is available with contact information for national centers and support services, and a caregiver directory can be used to find a local caregiver.

Workshops for family caregivers include topics on infection control, home safety, nutrition, mobility and skin care. The classes are free of charge and funds are available to pay for care of your loved one while attending the seminars.

Upcoming events include a program dealing with communication resources and devices for the sensory and physically impaired, in partnership with the Telecommunications Access Program and the Increasing Capabilities Access Network. The seminar is scheduled for Jan. 18 at 10 a.m. in the First United Methodist Church on Boyce Drive.

Melissa Powers with the University of Arkansas Department of Exercise Physiology will be presenting a program titled "The Benefits of Exercise" on Jan. 20 at 1 p.m. at the United Lutheran Church on Cooper Road. On Jan. 25, White will be helming a workshop on hiring caregivers for the home at 10 a.m. at the Schmieding Center in Highlands Crossing.

For more information on home caregiving and senior assistance, just stop by the Schmieding Center, or contact Sherry White at 876-2335. For help trying to find the right volunteer organization, contact the Retired Service Volunteer Program at 636-7301.