Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers Program

06/22/2019

A few more pictures from last night's event.... Thanks again to our committee, our volunteers, our donors and our guests! And many thanks to the wonderful entertainers from The Heart of the Hills Players.

06/21/2019

Many thanks to all who worked so hard, and all who supported this event.

06/21/2019

Great night at our Heart of IVC Cabaret!

06/21/2019

She’s 103 and Just Ran the 100-Meter Dash. We (Naturally) Asked for Life Advice.

She’s 103 and Just Ran the 100-Meter Dash. We (Naturally) Asked for Life Advice.

“As I get older, I feel like I only have so many 100-yard dashes left, and I don’t want to waste them in practice,” Julia “Hurricane” Hawkins said.

06/17/2019

10 Ways to Love Your Brain

10 Ways to Love Your Brain

10 Ways to Love Your Brain – learn key lifestyle habits that can help keep your body and brain healthy and potentially reduce risk of cognitive decline.

06/13/2019

Area Agency on Aging 1-B

A group of 10 seniors learned a little about navigating public transportation – and got a chance to socialize – at a Travel Training earlier this month.

The program is part of myride2, an AAA 1-B mobility management service that helps older adults and people with disabilities put together rides, whether to the mall, a doctor’s appointment or a friend’s place.

This group met at the Clinton Township Senior Adult Life Center and hopped aboard a SMART Connector bus to Oakland Mall for lunch and shopping. Frederic Barbret, Macomb Community Ombudsperson for SMART, provided the basics on using the SMART Bus (Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation) system.

To learn more about our myride2 service, click here : https://aaa1b.org/services-and-seniors/transportation/

#AAA1B #myride2 #transportationassitance #olderadults #SmartBus

06/09/2019

Jewish Family Service of Metro Detroit

Donating your time to a cause will certainly give you the warm fuzzies, but did you know that volunteering has some major brain benefits?

Mind University’s next Free workshop is coming up on Wednesday, June 19th from 1-230pm.

We will discuss the wellness benefits of volunteering and learn how the right opportunity can make a positive cognitive impact.

To enroll, contact [email protected] or 248.788.MIND

06/06/2019

A great educational opportunity in St. Clair Shores!

06/06/2019

The Basics of Getting Help - WellMed Charitable Foundation

Some good information on caregiving resources around the country.

https://www.wellmedcharitablefoundation.org/the-basics-of-getting-help/

Many people who are caring for a family member or friend believe that they are the only ones who have ever gone through this experience. While every caregiving situation is unique, the act of caregiving is common indeed. For those who feel isolated and frustrated, the good news is that there are som...

05/27/2019

The Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers program thanks all who paid the ultimate price for our freedom.

05/25/2019

'Music for people living with dementia is a necessity’, says new national campaign

'Music for people living with dementia is a necessity’, says new national campaign

People with dementia are to be prescribed 'personal playlists' to alleviate symptoms thanks to a new 'Music for Dementia 2020' campaign

05/22/2019

Food Assistance Programs for the Elderly | NCOA

Food Assistance Programs for the Elderly | NCOA

Several food assistance programs can help low-income seniors and adults with disabilities to afford nutritious food.

05/21/2019

Inpatient or outpatient hospital status affects your costs | Medicare

If you are hospitalized it is important to know your admission status under Medicare guidelines.

Your inpatient/outpatient status affects the cost of hospital services and whether Medicare covers your skilled nursing facility (SNF) care.

05/21/2019

Went out to www.facebook.com/StFrancisStMaximillian tonight to lead a volunteer orientation, and they loaded my vehicle with even more pantry items. Their generosity does not end!

05/18/2019

Today we gather to remember a great leader of IVC, but more importantly a great person. Rev. Gene McCornack epitomized the love for your neighbors in need and lived that out each and every day. We will always be grateful for all that he gave to start and to nurture our IVC program.

05/18/2019

Another one in the books! Many thanks to all our bowlers, volunteers, sponsors, donors, friends and staff who made tonight's event a success!

05/17/2019

Tonight's the night! Walk-Ins welcome! No bowling expertise needed. Lots of fun for a very good cause.

05/16/2019

All the fun happens tomorrow night! Register today!

05/14/2019

Our 25th Annual Bowl-O-Rama is only 3 days away! Reserve your spot now! Call (586) 757-5551. Or visit www.ivcinfo.org/events/bowl-o-rama for more info.

05/14/2019

Red Cross: Less than 2-day supply of type O blood left, donors needed now

Red Cross: Less than 2-day supply of type O blood left, donors needed now

The American Red Cross type O blood supply is critically low.

05/13/2019

Remembering Rev. Gene McCornack

As our last remaining founding Board Member, Rev. Gene L. McCornack led the Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers program for over 26 years. Pastor Gene not only worked to build this program into the broad community resource that it has become, but he was the very embodiment of the love, compassion and service of IVC. His impact in the community goes far beyond our program, with Gene serving on countless non-profit organizations during his lifetime, and dedicating his entire life to service and justice.
On Tuesday, this very good and faithful servant was called home to the Kingdom where I think a great celebration was waiting. We can never express how thankful we are for all that Gene did for IVC.

Gene’s Bio & Work with IVC:
The Rev. Gene McCornack was born June 19, 1927, in Oklahoma City and graduated from Oklahoma City University in 1949. He received his Bachelor of Divinity from Chicago Theological Seminary and was ordained at Detroit’s Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ in 1954, serving there as Associate Minister until 1958. From 1958 – 1967, he served on the UCC Colorado Conference staff in Denver. From 1967 - 1969 he served as Associate Minister in Greeley, CO. He returned to Mayflower UCC in 1969, serving until 1976 and seeing the congregation through a transition to an all Black church. After serving several area churches he then became the Pastor at Faith-Trinity UCC in Warren, until his retirement on August 29, 1999. On Dec. 10, 2000, he was made Pastor Emeritus of Faith-Trinity.
During his life and career, Gene was influenced by many leaders -- from a local high school youth group leader to national figures like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He felt a strong call toward issues of Social Justice. During the 60’s and 70’s Gene took young people to Koinonia Farms, an integrated community organized by pacifist Dr. Clarence Jordan near Americus, Georgia. And his passion for “Peace with Justice” led him to take other groups to Washington, D.C.; Selma, Alabama; and to voter registration events in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
Gene was “a natural” for a Task Force that formed in the early 1990’s, to see if a local Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers program would be feasible. Once the initiative was launched, Gene joined the original “Advisory Committee” of IVC, hosting the very first meeting of the new group at Faith-Trinity UCC, in November of 1992. Gene stayed involved in IVC efforts from those early days and through all of IVC’s subsequent growth, making him our longest serving volunteer, with over 26 years of steadfast dedication to our mission.
Along with his best friend, pinochle partner and wife, Mariann, who joined our Board after her retirement, he has had a tremendous impact on our work. While it would be impossible to describe the great effort he has given to our mission over the years, we thank him especially for:
• Serving tirelessly on our Board of Directors, since the program’s inception until January 2014 – over 21 years.
• Serving as our first Board Secretary and later as Board President.
• Chairing IVC’s first Bowl-O-Rama and continuing to work on that event for many years.
• Chairing and serving on the Spaghetti Dinner committees for many years.
• Helping to organize our first Community Cares Dinner and Auction, and being one of our biggest supporters of this event over the years.
• Helping to secure office space for all of IVC’s homes -- first at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church, then St Paul UCC, and now at St. Mary, Our Lady Queen of Families.
• Together with his wife, ranking as IVC’s highest individual donors ever.
• Providing direct service to many program clients through the years, and always offering to take the longest rides to medical centers in Detroit and Ann Arbor.
• Penning original lyrics for many of IVC’s Volunteer Celebration Events.
• Serving as our organization’s most eloquent and passionate spokesperson and ambassador for all of these years.

We sincerely appreciate all that Rev. McCornack has so generously given to our program over the years and we were delighted to make him our first ever Board Member Emeritus in January of 2016. We further honored Gene’s lifetime of service to IVC with the Margaret M. D’Hulster Leadership Award – for a second time in April of 2016. This marked the first and only time that any person won this award for a second time in its 17 year history.

From Karyn Curro, Director of IVC:
No one has been involved with IVC longer than Gene, and it would be extremely hard to match all that he has done over the years. But maybe more important than any particular thing he has done is the example he gives to all of us of a live well lived. Through IVC I have met thousands of wonderful and generous people over the years. I have been blessed to be surrounded by some of the most selfless people around, all giving of themselves to their neighbors in need. But to this day I cannot say I have met anyone else who lives out their values every single day of their life like Gene McCornack. Gene was always giving, and trusting and loving and helping – at all times and in all ways – because his faith called him to do so. In situations where others would turn away or be guided by pessimism, skepticism and fear, Gene lived out all his guiding values in every interaction he had with others. Every interaction -- whether it be with a close friend, or a stranger on the street, a struggling waitress at a favorite diner, or someone recently released from prison, someone close to his heart or someone who broke his heart – all were always graced with the best of Gene, in every interaction, on every day. Gene has not only been IVC’s best Ambassador for the past 26 years, but he has been the best example of service, of giving, and of love for our neighbors.
So thank you, Gene McCornack, for all you have done for so very long to shape our mission and ensure that so many people in this community have been served and have felt loved. Well done, sir. Well done.

05/13/2019

This Friday is our 25th Annual Bowl-O-Rama! Please join us for a night of fun and prizes -- all while raising money to help your homebound and isolated neighbors.

We hope that you can join us for this year's Bowl-O-Rama fundraising event! Mark the date in your calendar now. Be there or be square... :)

04/28/2019

Many, many thanks to the very generous parishioners of www. facebook.com/stfrancisstmaximilian. We had donations for our client pantry spilling over in three spots at the church! After a month of collecting we enjoyed a celebration lunch today for this Thrivent Action Team project led by Michail Curro. What a beautiful and blessed Sunday! (When even the Pope shows up, you know it was a success!)

04/27/2019

We had a small but mighty team out at Friendship Garden today, getting all the beds ready for planting. Produce from the garden will be delivered to our homebound and low income clients, feeding over 100 neighbors in need.

04/26/2019

Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers Program

We hope that you can join us for this year's Bowl-O-Rama fundraising event! Mark the date in your calendar now. Be there or be square... :)

04/26/2019

Tomorrow is the national Drug Take Back Day. Find a location near you and get rid of old or unused medications.

Please take advantage of this event to dispose of your old medications, or to help an elderly relative do so. The medicine cabinets of older adults can be full of many expired or excess pills that can pose danger to them or other family members who might take them.

03/31/2019

A wonderful second day at St. Francis - St. Maximilian Catholic Church. Parishioners took over 100 bags to fill with toiletries, paper products and more for our homebound clients. Thank you Michail Curro and Thrivent Financial for organizing this Action Team Project.

03/30/2019

Speaking after all masses this weekend at St. Francis St. Maximilian in New Haven.

03/27/2019

Alzheimer's Awareness

#AlzheimersAwareness 💜

03/27/2019

MI News Wire - MI Attorney General Dana Nessel and MI Supreme Court Justices Announce Michigan Elder Abuse Task Force

MI News Wire - MI Attorney General Dana Nessel and MI Supreme Court Justices Announce Michigan Elder Abuse Task Force

Michigan News and Information from all State agencies -

03/27/2019

Please take advantage of this event to dispose of your old medications, or to help an elderly relative do so. The medicine cabinets of older adults can be full of many expired or excess pills that can pose danger to them or other family members who might take them.

03/24/2019

Setting up for a Ministry Fair at Lutheran Church of the Master in Troy.

03/18/2019

We hope that you can join us for this year's Bowl-O-Rama fundraising event! Mark the date in your calendar now. Be there or be square... :)

03/15/2019

Did you happen to get some lovely Christmas gifts that just aren't right for you? Did you get a gift card for your birthday that you probably won't use? Do you own a business and have some excess stock you would like to donate? IVC NEEDS YOUR TREASURES!

Our marvelous team of basketeers is low on items to use in building our gift baskets. Baskets, items and prizes are used at all our fundraising events throughout the year, and help us raise money for our important work.

Please consider donating your extra items to IVC. Your gift will help provide services for our older and disabled neighbors. You can drop them off at our office in Center Line anytime from 9:00 -- 4:00, Monday -- Thursday. Or call us at (586) 757-5551 to make other arrangements.

03/15/2019

McLaren Oakland

McLaren Oakland and Delay the Disease are partnering to provide a research-based wellness program that empowers people with Parkinson’s Disease to live better and experience new levels of HOPE by optimizing function and restoring independence. Please see flyer below for additional details on this program.

03/15/2019

MCA - Home Rehab Program

MCA - Home Rehab Program

Assists eligible homeowners with repairs to achieve decent, safe and sanitary affordable housing as defined by Macomb County Housing Rehabilitation Standards.

03/13/2019

AAA 1-B Service Priority & Needs Survey 2019

The Area Agency on Aging 1-B is conducting an online survey to help shape their three-year plan for senior services in the metro area. Please add your input at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/aaa1b2019

Take this survey powered by surveymonkey.com. Create your own surveys for free.

02/17/2019

Many thanks to Trinity Utica for once again including us in this special event!

02/17/2019

We don't often win...but we always have a lot of fun! Many thanks to this year's Family Feud team.

02/15/2019

Caregiving benefits: Expanding the conversation beyond paid leave

Caregiving benefits: Expanding the conversation beyond paid leave

More employers are offering paid leave, but that might not be enough for those that are caring for a sick loved one.

02/14/2019

Wishing all our volunteers, clients, and friends a Happy Valentine's Day!

02/14/2019

As our last remaining founding Board Member, Rev. Gene L. McCornack led the Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers program for over 26 years. Pastor Gene not only worked to build this program into the broad community resource that it has become, but he was the very embodiment of the love, compassion and service of IVC. His impact in the community goes far beyond our program, with Gene serving on countless non-profit organizations during his lifetime, and dedicating his entire life to service and justice.
On Tuesday, this very good and faithful servant was called home to the Kingdom where I think a great celebration was waiting. We can never express how thankful we are for all that Gene did for IVC.

Gene’s Bio & Work with IVC:
The Rev. Gene McCornack was born June 19, 1927, in Oklahoma City and graduated from Oklahoma City University in 1949. He received his Bachelor of Divinity from Chicago Theological Seminary and was ordained at Detroit’s Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ in 1954, serving there as Associate Minister until 1958. From 1958 – 1967, he served on the UCC Colorado Conference staff in Denver. From 1967 - 1969 he served as Associate Minister in Greeley, CO. He returned to Mayflower UCC in 1969, serving until 1976 and seeing the congregation through a transition to an all Black church. After serving several area churches he then became the Pastor at Faith-Trinity UCC in Warren, until his retirement on August 29, 1999. On Dec. 10, 2000, he was made Pastor Emeritus of Faith-Trinity.
During his life and career, Gene was influenced by many leaders -- from a local high school youth group leader to national figures like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He felt a strong call toward issues of Social Justice. During the 60’s and 70’s Gene took young people to Koinonia Farms, an integrated community organized by pacifist Dr. Clarence Jordan near Americus, Georgia. And his passion for “Peace with Justice” led him to take other groups to Washington, D.C.; Selma, Alabama; and to voter registration events in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
Gene was “a natural” for a Task Force that formed in the early 1990’s, to see if a local Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers program would be feasible. Once the initiative was launched, Gene joined the original “Advisory Committee” of IVC, hosting the very first meeting of the new group at Faith-Trinity UCC, in November of 1992. Gene stayed involved in IVC efforts from those early days and through all of IVC’s subsequent growth, making him our longest serving volunteer, with over 26 years of steadfast dedication to our mission.
Along with his best friend, pinochle partner and wife, Mariann, who joined our Board after her retirement, he has had a tremendous impact on our work. While it would be impossible to describe the great effort he has given to our mission over the years, we thank him especially for:
• Serving tirelessly on our Board of Directors, since the program’s inception until January 2014 – over 21 years.
• Serving as our first Board Secretary and later as Board President.
• Chairing IVC’s first Bowl-O-Rama and continuing to work on that event for many years.
• Chairing and serving on the Spaghetti Dinner committees for many years.
• Helping to organize our first Community Cares Dinner and Auction, and being one of our biggest supporters of this event over the years.
• Helping to secure office space for all of IVC’s homes -- first at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church, then St Paul UCC, and now at St. Mary, Our Lady Queen of Families.
• Together with his wife, ranking as IVC’s highest individual donors ever.
• Providing direct service to many program clients through the years, and always offering to take the longest rides to medical centers in Detroit and Ann Arbor.
• Penning original lyrics for many of IVC’s Volunteer Celebration Events.
• Serving as our organization’s most eloquent and passionate spokesperson and ambassador for all of these years.

We sincerely appreciate all that Rev. McCornack has so generously given to our program over the years and we were delighted to make him our first ever Board Member Emeritus in January of 2016. We further honored Gene’s lifetime of service to IVC with the Margaret M. D’Hulster Leadership Award – for a second time in April of 2016. This marked the first and only time that any person won this award for a second time in its 17 year history.

From Karyn Curro, Director of IVC:
No one has been involved with IVC longer than Gene, and it would be extremely hard to match all that he has done over the years. But maybe more important than any particular thing he has done is the example he gives to all of us of a live well lived. Through IVC I have met thousands of wonderful and generous people over the years. I have been blessed to be surrounded by some of the most selfless people around, all giving of themselves to their neighbors in need. But to this day I cannot say I have met anyone else who lives out their values every single day of their life like Gene McCornack. Gene was always giving, and trusting and loving and helping – at all times and in all ways – because his faith called him to do so. In situations where others would turn away or be guided by pessimism, skepticism and fear, Gene lived out all his guiding values in every interaction he had with others. Every interaction -- whether it be with a close friend, or a stranger on the street, a struggling waitress at a favorite diner, or someone recently released from prison, someone close to his heart or someone who broke his heart – all were always graced with the best of Gene, in every interaction, on every day. Gene has not only been IVC’s best Ambassador for the past 26 years, but he has been the best example of service, of giving, and of love for our neighbors.
So thank you, Gene McCornack, for all you have done for so very long to shape our mission and ensure that so many people in this community have been served and have felt loved. Well done, sir. Well done.