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March 23, 2020

 

Dear Neighbors,

 

With the number of COVID-19 cases rising daily in the District and even here in Mt. Pleasant, it is evident that we are entering a new phase of the pandemic. Public health officials have been very clear about the importance of social distancing, self-isolation, and other measures intended to slow transmission of the disease and diminish our chances of catching it.  And despite some surprising findings that younger adults are catching the virus at rates similar to those of seniors, it is clear that the risk of fatality from COVID-19 is much higher for those over 60.

For over a week now you have heard or seen some information about the Neighbors Helping Neighbors initiative spearheaded by Mount Pleasant’s Advisory Neighborhood Commission members and the Mount Pleasant Village.  This is community-wide effort to help maintain the health and safety of all Mount Pleasant residents, especially those most vulnerable to the effects of COVID-19. For us as Village members, this effort could be life-saving.

Neighbors Helping Neighbors is drawing on the volunteer energy we all associate with Mount Pleasant.  Its basic elements are modeled on programs developed by the Village, especially Helping Hands and the Cluster network.  Over 120 volunteers have gone through an orientation session to familiarize them with protocols and procedures intended to safeguard the security and safety of the people they help and of themselves.  The orientation describes the elements of the program, including the risks each volunteer must assume and the measures all should take to minimize them, as well as the efforts undertaken to maintain privacy and confidentiality.  Even though the Village’s Helping Hands volunteers are largely unable to provide services during the crisis because of their own heightened risk, many features of Helping Hands have been incorporated into the Neighbors Helping Neighbors program. The bottom line is that a large army of volunteers is available to all Mt. Pleasant Village members who may need assistance as they wisely confine themselves to their homes and eliminate physical contacts with others.

The glue that holds this effort together is the Village’s Cluster network and the connections Cluster Coordinators have with Village members. Cluster Coordinators will be reaching out frequently to the members in each cluster to chat, see how they are, and determine whether they have any needs that can be met by the volunteers.  We are grateful for the hard work the coordinators have done to prepare for the developing crisis, and we hope all Village members will take advantage of the support they and the volunteers will offer.

Support through this program will come in three forms:

  1. Remote Assistance and Communication: Including over-the-phone basic tech support, help with online grocery ordering, and phone calls to check-in and keep each other company in a time of isolation
  2. Errands: Primarily grocery or other shopping. Expected to be the most common request.
  3. In-Home Tasks: Assistance with tasks that can’t wait until the crisis is past. (This will be as rare as possible and limited to a subset of volunteers who have undergone background checks.)

The Cluster Coordinators can work with you to determine what level of help you need and can forward your requests to a volunteer who lives nearby.  Or, you can make a request directly by calling 202-573-7548 or sending an email to: info@anc-volunteering.org.  You can learn more about the Neighbors Helping Neighbors initiative by visiting the website at www.anc-volunteering.org.

We know that needs we can’t anticipate now will almost certainly arise, so please help us stay on top of the situation.  Stay in touch with your neighbors. Stay in touch with your Cluster Coordinator.  And if you think there is more the Village can do to help its members, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with any Village Board member, especially Bill Emmet, the Village President, at president@mountpleasantvillage.org.

It is tremendously heartening to know that so many of our Mt. Pleasant neighbors are willing to put themselves at some risk to help Mt. Pleasant Village members and all residents of Mt. Pleasant who are most vulnerable to the most serious effects of COVID-19. It also says so much about Mt. Pleasant Village and its members that all of us are pitching in to help each other in this unprecedented time.

Thank you for being a Village member, and please do all you can to stay safe and healthy. Remember, it is safest for each of us to assume we are a virus carrier and to do what we can to avoid infecting any other person, especially those closest to us.

Best wishes to all of us,

The Mount Pleasant Village Board of Directors