This weblog was written by Donna Jackson, Senior Strategic Contract Negotiator at Cisco, world co-lead of Cisco’s Grownup Caregivers Inclusive Group, and Founder and Govt Director of the Noble Energy Basis and its Age To Age® program. By a community of world volunteers, Age To Age® helps the aged fight loneliness and isolation by connecting them to their family members—wherever on the earth—utilizing the Age To Age® platform and Cisco’s Webex conferencing expertise.
April is International Volunteer Month. Throughout this time of 12 months, I’m reminded of the numerous Cisco volunteers who’ve given their time and abilities to develop the attain of the Noble Energy Basis and Age To Age® program.
From Ache to Objective: The Age To Age® Story
The thought to launch Noble Energy Basis and the Age To Age® program got here from a devastating state of affairs that my family and I went by, during which caregiver burnout resulted in us not having alternatives to see our mom. This was an avoidable state of affairs, and I knew that expertise could possibly be a part of an answer the place we might assist scale back loneliness and isolation for seniors and deal with caregiver burnout.
From designing and engineering the platform to connecting individuals, Cisco workers’ selflessness has introduced our aged group nearer to their family members. Listed here are just a few of my Age To Age® program volunteer highlights:
Intercontinental Connections: Donna and Aldo’s Story
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, I had the good fortune of assembly a lady in her late 80s dwelling in North Carolina who desperately wished to reconnect together with her cousins in Italy. By the Age To Age® app, which facilitates connecting and scheduling volunteer visits with the aged, I used to be launched to Aldo, a Cisco worker based mostly in our Rome workplace. Aldo occurred to be visiting the very small Italian coastal village the place this lady’s cousins reside. It was a contented and fortuitous coincidence that we needed to reap the benefits of, so we arrange a gathering for the household to reconnect.
The reunion was great! Though among the relations had been aged and partly listening to impaired, and neither celebration proficiently spoke the opposite’s language, the dialog went easily because of advances in Cisco’s expertise, utilizing enhanced decibels and closed captioning translations. The spotlight of the gathering was when the girl realized Aldo’s identify. Aldo was additionally the identify of her late father, a coincidence that took the connection to a different stage, making it really feel much more particular and intentional.
Phrases can’t totally describe the way it felt to allow a connection between family members by expertise we use day by day. Assembly a piece colleague from throughout the globe-someone I doubtless wouldn’t have met beneath regular circumstances-made the expertise much more significant.
Taking a Private Expertise to One other Stage: Michael’s Story
Michael attended one of many Lunch-and-Study periods we organized for Cisco workers to spotlight the work of the Noble Energy Basis by its Age To Age® program. This system’s function and method resonated deeply with him. “I used to be a caregiver to each of my dad and mom, and after attending the Lunch-and-Study, I felt a private connection to this system. Quickly after, I volunteered to attach a person who had been admitted to a medical facility together with his spouse and daughters.“
Touring a number of hours day by day to go to him had develop into more and more troublesome for the person’s household. The flexibility to take care of each day visits by a easy pc connection was invaluable. “The household mentioned this service was a solution to prayer, and I skilled such success from having the ability to positively affect their lives throughout this powerful season of life,” Michael shared.
A Double Love Connection: Sonya and Thomas’ Story
Sonya and Thomas started relationship after assembly at Cisco. Sonya had heard about Age To Age® and was desirous to get entangled. The request she selected coincided with a protracted weekend to the seaside that she and Thomas had deliberate for themselves. “After we found the go to was to attach an aged man together with his girlfriend, it felt much more particular to us,” Sonya mentioned.
The ageing couple had lived in the identical assisted dwelling group and noticed one another day by day. Nonetheless, his caregiver son and household had relocated a number of hours away, and so they weren’t tech savvy. Sonya shared, “As our romance was budding, it was great to witness the aged couple’s love story, and to be a part of connecting them after a number of months of them being aside.” Sonya and Thomas had been so moved by the expertise that they proceed to be devoted volunteers. “We’re excited and hopeful to be a part of extra great tales like this,” Sonya mentioned.
“Enjoyable truth,” Sonya shared. “Thomas and I married shortly after that Age To Age® go to, and we now have two youngsters.”
From Native to International
In 2017, I used to be given the chance to “pitch” the work of Noble Energy Basis and the Age To Age® program to my leaders at Cisco. As a direct end result, a partnership fashioned, and we had been in a position to scale this system’s affect from native to world by Webex and a worldwide workforce. Cisco was fairly actually the car by which I used to be in a position to flip the ache of my household’s expertise right into a function a lot larger than I ever imagined.
Research present that social engagement for lonely or remoted seniors is essential, in some situations, extra vital than each day medicines. Because the Age To Age® program has grown, we’ve got measured the instant results of the social connections made by visits and located the research to be true. Our recorded statistics persistently mirror improved important indicators, consuming, urge for food, and extra restful sleep.
Be A part of Increasing Our Affect
As of 2024, by the work of greater than 150 Cisco worker volunteers throughout the globe, we’ve got enabled over 3,000 hours of connections by the Age To Age® program, and that quantity continues to develop. I’m so grateful to volunteers like Aldo, Michael, Sonya, and Thomas, who’ve enabled so many connections, and to the Cisco engineers (Yee F., Vinny M., Susila M., Natarajan P., Chheang D., Vyshnavi P., Adrian S., Vikrant N., and Hui Eng L.) who helped to create the Age To Age® app for our nonprofit.
In collaboration with the Cisco world accomplice group, we’ve got a possibility to scale this system’s affect and assist much more aged shoppers and their caregivers.
If you want to study extra about partnering with the Noble Energy Basis, please contact [email protected].
You can even:
We’d love to listen to what you suppose. Ask a Query, Remark Under, and Keep Linked with #CiscoPartners on social!
Cisco Companions Fb | @CiscoPartners X/Twitter | Cisco Companions LinkedIn
Share: