Seven ways to belong.
Every program is free to the people we serve, runs on trained and background-checked volunteers, and is built around one idea: friendship that lasts.
Front Porch Visits
The heart of Companion Care: a trained volunteer visits the same neighbor every week, for about two hours. They play dominoes, sort photographs, bake, take a slow walk to the corner or just sit. Over months, a stranger becomes the friend who notices when you have a new haircut.
- Matched by interests, language and personality, never by diagnosis
- Staff check-in with both of you every month
- Ongoing, not one-time: 2 to 4 visits a month, for at least a year
Hello Calls
A friendly voice every week, by phone or video. Perfect for neighbors who cannot easily get out, live in rural Wayne or Yates County, or would like to start with a call. Our tech buddies can set up a tablet and teach video calling, patiently and as many times as it takes.
- Calls at a time you choose, with the same caller each week
- Available in English, Spanish, ASL by video, and more
- Volunteers can call from anywhere in the country
Out & About
Accompanied outings with accessible transportation: a morning at the Public Market, a stroll through the lilacs at Highland Park, a branch library program, a church service, a Rochester Red Wings game, even grocery trips that turn into coffee. Every outing is paced to the slowest walker and priced at zero.
- Wheelchair-accessible van and companions on every trip
- Group outings of up to six, or one-to-one with your companion
- Seasonal favorites: Lilac Festival, Park Avenue Fest, holiday lights
Common Table
Monthly neighborhood dinners and weekly coffee hours in church basements, libraries and community centers across the city. There are no tickets and no speeches. A Somali sambusa platter might sit beside Puerto Rican pasteles and a Bhutanese-Nepali momo plate. Everyone has a seat, and there is always someone to sit with.
- ASL interpreters at every dinner
- Rides available for anyone who needs one
- Sensory-friendly corner and quiet hour for those who want it
Hands & Voices
Rochester has one of the largest per-capita Deaf and hard-of-hearing populations in the country, and isolation hits hardest when the people around you do not share your language. Hands & Voices matches Deaf and hard-of-hearing neighbors with ASL-fluent and Deaf volunteer companions, and brings visual-first events to the community, with every video captioned and signed.
- Deaf community leaders help design and lead the program
- Visits, video calls and outings in ASL, International Sign and home sign
- Special support for Deaf refugees and immigrants
Bridge Buddies
Rochester is home to Somali, Bhutanese-Nepali, Congolese, Burmese, Syrian, Afghan, Puerto Rican and many more communities. Bridge Buddies pairs newcomers with neighbors for friendship, English conversation practice, bus rides, library cards and first snowfalls, and pairs people across ages and abilities in the spirit of peer friendship programs. Buddies are mutual: both sides learn.
- Volunteers who speak Nepali, Arabic, Swahili, Somali, Burmese, Spanish and more
- Partners with local resettlement agencies and houses of worship
- Friendship, not case management
Youth Connect
Loneliness is not just for the old. Young adults are nearly twice as likely as seniors to say they feel lonely, and young people with disabilities are the most isolated of all. Youth Connect makes peer friendships: library afternoons, bowling, game nights, Genesee Riverway Trail walks and weekend plans for teens and young adults, with and without disabilities.
- Peer volunteers aged 16 and up, supervised by staff
- Partnerships with Rochester schools, RIT/NTID and Monroe Community College
- Inclusive by design: sensory-friendly, ASL-friendly, wheelchair-friendly
Keep these programs free.
A $25 monthly gift pays for a month of weekly visits. During Winter Match it counts double.
Give $25 a month