22 FRONTDOORS MEDIA | MAY 2 020 Egan and his team at FSL had to jump into action. On an average day, FSL serves more than 1,400 meals. They had to switch those meals to be home- delivered quickly. “That meal they get from us sometimes is the only hot meal of the day,” Egan said. In response to an overwhelming number of requests from homebound seniors for groceries and household items such as toilet paper, FSL’s “Care by Design” program implemented a Grocery Bag Delivery Program in March. Social workers are the points of contact for the program, which delivers food and paper products to doorsteps. The Care by Design team has also been checking in with more than 250 homebound seniors each week. Comfort Callers bring emotional support, and through questions and conversation, determine seniors’ immediate needs. For example, they connect seniors who seem to be emotionally declining with a licensed counselor via telemedicine. During an average year, FSL serves more than 30,000 people. This year, the numbers will skyrocket. At the same time, FSL, like many nonprofits, is dealing with decreased funding. Carey Peña CONTRIBUTING WRITER @CareyPenaTV Their annual event, which was supposed to take place in May, raised over $250,000 last year. They had to cancel this year’s fundraiser because of COVID-19, and the organization has to figure out how to raise that money — plus more. Egan told me that canceling the event was a tough decision, and he lost several days of sleep having to make the final call. Fortunately, a few corporate donors stepped up to help. WAMO made a generous donation to FSL, and others continue to express interest in helping seniors through this crisis. FSL has seen the community come together, including Brophy students who are writing inspirational notes for the home delivery bags. The day I interviewed Egan, he left the studio worried about how they were going to meet the need. Since then, they’ve been working all hours to make sure seniors in the Valley are taken care of with food, necessities and emotional support. We all need human connection: a phone call, a note from a student, or a quick socially distanced visit from someone who cares. Whether it is your Gammie, or someone else’s, we have to make sure older adults are not alone in this fight. We owe it to them. To learn more about the Foundation for Senior Living, go to fsl.org . To see more of Carey’s reporting, visit inspiredmedia360tv.com . FSL staff is shopping to keep pantries stocked to ensure that older adults don’t have to fight crowds in local stores for essentials.