There are many anonymous volunteers in the Subud USA community who are not, nor need they be, official Elderberry Volunteers. We encourage them only to keep us posted as to the life status of their Elders and their pertinent information. They may do this by contacting their Regional Elderberry Board Members or Rosetta Narvaez at elderberry@subudusa.org.
We emphasize that the role of Elderberry Volunteers is primarily to provide the Elders with Latihan, either by joining them at their domiciles or bringing them to the Latihan hall.
Persons interested in becoming volunteers may ask their local and regional Helpers and Chairs if there are any Elders with Latihan needs in their state or region.
Volunteers need not be Subud Helpers, local, regional or otherwise. It is sufficient they be seasoned members who are not new to receiving the Latihan with other members.
Vouchers
Volunteers who take on additional responsibilities requiring extra time and effort, may complete an Elderberry Voucher explaining the request for reimbursement with receipts. Finally, we urgently request all members, whether they wish to be volunteers or not, to inform us of any Elders who are not already in contact with Subud members and to let us know about them.
Do You Speak Elderberry?
By now, most people know that the Elderberry Program’s aim is to find all the elderly ‘Pioneers’ around the U.S. who may have lost touch with Subud through illness or an incorrect address. Elderberry’s next job is to find them a volunteer with whom they can do Latihan, or who will take them to a group.
I’m delighted to say, more and more members are interested in assisting with the Program, and for that reason, we have to be sure we’re all speaking the same language!
The terms we use are very specific to avoid confusion. Not that they are the best terms, but they’re the ones we used initially to define what we mean. For that reason, it’s important not to interchange them. So to be sure we are all speaking the same language, let’s go over the vocabulary:
The Regional Representatives
Regional Representatives are volunteer Subud members who have taken on the responsibility of contacting and assisting elders in their Region, often in collaboration with Regional Helpers.
Regional Representatives may also work with a corps of volunteers within the groups or region to facilitate elders in enjoying their Subud life. Elderberry’s Board of Directors is comprised of Regional Representatives.
Caregivers
“Caregivers” are never Subud members. They are persons hired and paid for by an organization, such as Social Services or a nursing facility. It is important not to confuse this term with Subud Volunteers.
Nursing Homes
When an Elder Pioneer is in a nursing home, a written permission needs to be obtained from the Elder so that the Volunteer may visit freely and share in medical information if the Elder so wishes. Please contact David McCormack for more information regarding nursing home procedure.
For Elderberry
Mardiyah Tarantino