Category Archives: Volunteering

Compassion: People Who Gave … and Gave

by Dave Riley When you write about people — good people, that is — you don’t choose just anyone for a subject. You look for those who are somehow special, somehow more compassionate. As a result you can easily develop an attachment to them, as if each one were a close friend. When I wrote […]

Veterans Day: WW II Through the Eyes of a Kid

A blue star banner indicated that a household had a family member serving in the military during the war. A gold star indicated a family member had died in the service — either killed in action or died from other causes. by Dave Riley MY WORLD WAR 11 began on a Sunday afternoon in December […]

Infirmities: The Caregiver

“…I suspect there are a lot of caregivers who would tell us that the film isn’t a realistic portrayal of their lives.” by Dave Riley I HAVE NEVER BEEN A CAREGIVER for someone with Alzheimer’s or any form of dementia. I have known some such caregivers, and from what I can glean, the road they […]

Meals on Wheels: ‘One Is A Lonely Number’

“There’s a lady on my route who comes to the door with a huge smile on her face. She says I’m just about the only person she talks to on my delivery day.” By Dave Riley My first encounter with what I will characterize as senior isolation occurred when I was just eight or nine […]

Meals On Wheels Is A Lot More Than Comfort Food

“8.3 million seniors face the threat of hunger every day in America. Every day.” By Dave Riley My friend Al Wegel is a retired editor who loves words and wordplay. He and I both do the New York Times crossword, but with different results. He finishes the Friday puzzle, which, in case you didn’t know, […]

Making A Difference: Robert Macauley, The $12 Billion Man

“He was motivated by the belief that if you act quickly you have more impact and save more lives, than if you act slowly.” by Dave Riley Forty years ago this month Saigon fell, which is why this week newspapers and networks are running stories about that era.   Here is one you may not have […]

Making A Difference: Len Lesser

“He had hundreds of television and movie credits to his name, yet there he was, spending hours [volunteering] at a school in an out-of-the-way, low-income San Fernando Valley neighborhood…” by Dave Riley Several years ago I gave a pitch for one of my favorite charities, Meals on Wheels, before about 300 people at the Ritz-Carlton […]