COMMUNITY IMPACT
STOCKING UP FOR SENIORS Elizabeth Nelson
F
or more than 30 years, the Junior League of Washington (JLW) has partnered with Iona Senior Services — a premier aging organization that has been a staple of the Washington, DC area since 1975. Year-round, League members volunteer their time to ensure thousands of aging neighbors have access to food, but the work goes beyond the meal delivery. For many impacted by Iona’s work, the time spent with League members is a positive part of their day. Iona deliveries allow Washington, DC, community members of all ages to interact and form new perspectives. “We’re really trying to give the seniors the most impactful care we can by working on external efforts,” says Maria Moussa, Iona Senior Services Committee Chair. This past year, JLW hosted Iona’s senior leadership for a roundtable discussion to deepen the understanding of Iona’s mission and gain further insight into how Iona directly helps seniors. Community members who have benefited from Iona’s services joined the meeting to provide firsthand accounts of how they’ve been impacted by the services. “The Heart of Iona [roundtable] tour really drove the importance of Iona’s mission and we want to ensure we do all that we can,” explained Moussa. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Iona and the seniors it served were especially impacted by the restrictions put into place by the DC government. Efforts to help mitigate the spread of the virus made volunteering difficult, especially when much of JLW’s work with Iona was in person. However, League members have always risen to meet a challenge, so, in an effort to both continue serving Iona and keep with city guidelines, JLW started a pantry
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2021 - 2022
stocking initiative. This allowed Iona’s work to continue while keeping everyone involved healthy and safe. Instead of delivering meals, JLW pivoted to purchasing items for the Iona pantry. All shopping was ordered via Amazon and delivered to Iona’s Tenleytown location in NW, DC. While certainly more limited than previous Maria Moussa and her husband, Chris Saleh, deliver meals for Iona seniors years in JLW’s long partnership with Iona, there have been some opportunities cheer of League members. JLW also dofor League members to volunteer in nated gift cards to retailers, such as Giant person and new initiatives, such as pantry and CVS, allowing Iona and the seniors it stocking, have allowed JLW to still serves to purchase their most needed items continue making an impact. and resources. Over the holidays, League members With the new year kicked off and were also able to assist with food delivery already flying by, JLW is looking toward on Thanksgiving and Christmas. With new ways to show appreciation for Iona’s many families still not gathering in person seniors — including holiday themed to keep loved ones safe, it meant so much cards to spread some love for those who for Iona’s seniors to receive warm meals have given so much vibrancy and life to accompanied by the smiling faces and our community. •
“WE’RE REALLY TRYING TO GIVE THE SENIORS THE MOST IMPACTFUL CARE WE CAN BY WORKING ON EXTERNAL EFFORTS.” – MARIA MOUSSA, IONA SENIOR SERVICES COMMITTEE CHAIR
