Community Service Programs

Paine Senior Services helps older Cambridge Residents manage safely at home. The agency is over 100 years old and is named after its founder, Jeannie Warren Paine, a member of First Parish. Members or friends of First Parish may serve on the Board of Directors, which also includes professionals from the elder care network. For more information contact Liz Aguilo, LICSW, at (617) 864-2580 or e-mail paineseniorservices [at] verizon [dot] net

AGENCY BACKGROUND

The Paine Fund was established in 1905 to honor the wishes expressed by Jeannie Warren Paine in her bequest to the First Parish in Cambridge. Serving Cambridge residents, the Paine Fund responded mainly to financial distress. Gradually, Paine expanded its operations to include a wider variety of social services. In 1977, the name was changed to Paine Social Services (PSS) to more accurately reflect the work of the agency. In 2007 it was changed to Paine Senior Services to clarify its purpose and client base. Paine Senior Services is an organization of First Parish in Cambridge. However, the agency is non-sectarian and provides services regardless of financial means.

MISSION STATEMENT

PSS is committed to providing a wide range of high quality, personalized services primarily to the elderly and their families in the City of Cambridge regardless of their financial means. In a spirit of compassion and justice, PSS offers assistance through effective counseling, preventive planning, advocacy and collaboration with community resources.

ORGANIZATION

An Advisory Board administers Paine Senior Services. This board consists of members of First Parish and individuals from the Cambridge community some of whom serve the elder population in their professional roles or various civic commitments. The First Parish minister is an ex officio member of the Board.

Paine Senior Services’ Executive Director is responsible to the Board of Directors for administering the day-to-day operations of the Agency and managing the Agency’s activities to successfully accomplish its mission and achieve its goals and objectives.

The Executive Director supervises the PSS staff.

Tuesday Meals, a program of First Parish for over 20 years, serves a hot meal and provides other services to 90-135 people in need every Tuesday. In addition to a nutritious dinner (soup, salad, entrée and dessert), we also provide guests with food to go: a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, fruit and snacks. Students from Harvard Medical School are available in the foyer to check blood pressure, answer health questions and make referrals.

Between 60 and 100 hours of volunteer time are spent preparing, serving & cleaning up each week. Most of our volunteers are “lunchtime” volunteers or “dinner” volunteers. The lunchtime volunteers prep food, make a soup and salad and prepare the “to go” food including peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They work 10:15 am - 1:00 pm and then often share lunch at the end of their work. The dinner volunteers arrive at 5:15 and work continues until 7:45pm. This group plates and serves the meals and then cleans up. Volunteers are welcome to come for clean-up at 6:45-7:45.

How you can help:
• Volunteer to help prepare the meal, serve or clean up—volunteers are needed every week! You can volunteer weekly, once a month or once a year. See above for details.
• Offer to pick up food and supplies. In particular, drivers are needed between 9:30 AM and 11:00 AM on Tuesdays.
• Volunteer for one time tasks such as organizing a volunteer database or inventory supplies or helping with extra needs for holiday meals.
• Once a year, on a Sunday evening in March, we host a Volunteer Appreciation Dinner—this is a time when we recognize the hard work and dedication of our volunteers, and try to provide them with a special experience. Help is needed to shop, prepare, cook, set up, serve dinner to our volunteers, and clean up after the event.
• Pick up, wash & dry, & return laundry each week (aprons, clean up rags, table cloths). This will save the program over $600 per year.
• Organize a group to do a thorough kitchen cleaning
• Donate a specific food item needed by the program such as olive oil or commercial size spices, or donate needed kitchen equipment, such as serving utensils or cutting boards. Contact the Program Coordinator for specific needs.
• Research grant opportunities and help with grant writing.
• Donate new socks and underwear for dinner guests, and gloves and scarves during colder weather.

To Volunteer: contact Tuesday Meals Service Coordinator, Thomas Hathaway at TMPVolunteers [at] fpcambridge [dot] org for more information.

Tuesday Meals is generously supported by an anonymous annual donation of $22,000. Tuesday Meals receives significant support from three local nonprofit organizations working to ending hunger. The Tuesday Meals Program is a member agency of the Greater Boston Food Bank. Tuesday Meals receives fresh produce and bread from Food for Free in Inman Square. Tuesday Meals also receives support from the Cambridge Economic Opportunity Council (CEOC).
Local businesses that make regular donations to Tuesday Meals include: Hi-Rise Bakery, The Charles Hotel, Starbuck’s Coffee on Church Street, Finale in Harvard Square and Whole Foods in Fresh Pond.

The Tuesday Meals Committee, consisting of volunteers and First Parish members, provides support and direction to the program.

Tuesday Meals recently underwent a staff re-organization. Follow this link for an update on staffing changes in the Tuesday Meals Program