Senior Care Volunteer Network
Promoting the Independence of McHenry County Seniors Since 1998
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
SCVN continues to seek funds to diversify the overall budget goals. We are currently receiving a majority of funding through county grants that are not considered a sustainable resource. SCVN will be looking to increase fundraising efforts and seek new grants that are not considered public funding, but investigate more private foundation opportunities. SCVN also looks to increasing individual donation and corporate program support.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Volunteer Services for Seniors
SCVN exists to address the challenges faced by our county seniors. SCVN provides a number of valuable services to help seniors maintain their independence, dignity and quality of life: Caregiver relief: Devastating long-term disabilities that require 24 hour care create havoc on family members who become the caregivers. Several studies indicate that family caregivers experiencing extreme stress have been shown to age prematurely and that the stress can take as many as 10 years off of a family caregiver's life. Relief service can be provided once per week to provide some relief. Volunteers sit and visit with a homebound senior while the caregiver goes grocery shopping or runs other important errands. We are the only no-cost service in the county of this kind that can be provided on an on-going basis. Friendly Visits and Phone Calls: A significant problem for seniors continues to be loneliness and isolation which can lead to depression, substance abuse and even suicide. Our visits help stave off the epidemic of loneliness that often plagues seniors. Many times, volunteer companionship in the form or friendly visits or phone calls leads to life-long friendships. Frequently, the friendly phone calls originate from those who are care recipients themselves, with obvious benefit. Fall/spring yard clean-up: makes a considerable difference for seniors who can maintain their inside living environment, but have difficulty keeping their yards in order. Seasonal yard clean-up, help with gardening, limited lawn mowing, trimming trees and weeding, are all a huge help. We have several volunteer landscape outfit that after completing their paid jobs first, assists with two to three homes pro-bono for our seniors. We have other volunteers and large service groups who assist as well. Minor home repairs: A cadre of laborers, both groups and individuals, assist with minor home repairs. There is no funding to purchase supplies, so this expense falls on the home owner/renter, but the labor, often the most expensive piece of a repair job, is provided at no cost and with a smile. Shopping/Errands: volunteers shop food banks and grocery stores, pick up and deliver prescriptions, or stop in hardware stores for needed home repair supplies when they are home bound or unable to leave their home. Durable Medical Equipment ("DME”) Loan Closets: Supplies are kept at the SCVN office in Crystal Lake and we have also formed partnerships with the St. Mary’s Knights of Columbus in Huntley, and the Township of McHenry to provide additional closet locations. As the only absolutely no-cost loan closet in the county, we are happy to help when asked. Diaper Bank: In cooperation with Diaper Bank of Northern Illinois thousands of incontinence products a month are distributed by our volunteers at no cost. Flower Power/PartyPacks: Flowers donated by several local florists and purchased gifts are delivered on the care receivers’ Birthdays. These deliveries and well wishes are the conduit we use to introduce freindly visits to our seniors. Many do not ask for visits, so we find creative ways to encourage them to let us in and bring part of the community into their sometimes isolated and lonely worlds. Many times, these wishes and visits are the only Birthday greeting at all.
Transportation
No-cost transportation is provided to life-sustaining as well as life-enriching destinations. SCVN volunteer drivers can provide additional assistance (to-the-door, through-the-door, and stay-at-the destination) that is needed by older adults.
Durable Medical Equipment Loans
We are the largest Loan closet serving anyone in the McHenry County area needing durable medical equipment loans such as; wheelchairs, walkers, canes, crutches, knee walkers, shower benches, shower chairs, high-rise toilet seats, quad canes, transport chairs, and beside commodes
Where we work
Awards
Diamond in the Rough Award 2020
Downtown Crystal Lake Association
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Evaluation documents
Download evaluation reportsNumber of clients who report adequate access to services
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors, People with disabilities
Related Program
Volunteer Services for Seniors
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Currently serving the senior population throughout McHenry County utilizing over 200 volunteers providing direct services. These metrics reflect unique clients who receive multiple services per year.
Number of clients living independently
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors, People with disabilities
Related Program
Durable Medical Equipment Loans
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
90% of the population we serve encounter challenges with mobility, hearing, and or vision. These physical disabilities impair their activities of daily living needing equipment or assist to stay home.
Number of new clients within the past 12 months
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors, Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
Volunteer Services for Seniors
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Approximately 50% of the clients served in 2023 were new to our services or programs. Many clients carry over year to year because in-part to the services helping to maintain their independence.
Number of clients who report feeling less isolated
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors, Older adults, Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
Volunteer Services for Seniors
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
79% of our volunteer friendly visits and phone calls provide critical "touches" reducing feelings of isolation or depression among our clients.
Hours of no-cost treatment provided
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors, People with hearing impairments, People with physical disabilities
Related Program
Volunteer Services for Seniors
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Hours of volunteer service. Volunteer hours of services hit a high pre-COVID and have since been rising again as more volunteers are becoming more comfortable with serving seniors in smaller spaces.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Senior Care Volunteer Network (“SCVN") exists to address the challenges faced by our county seniors. Our goal is to assist seniors, 60 years of age and older, to remain independent in their homes for as long and as safely as possible. We would like to continue to provide services at no cost to the senior, without implementation of a wait list.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
SCVN volunteer drivers can provide additional assistance (to-the-door, through-the-door, and stay-at-the-destination) that is needed by older adults. Moreover, utilizing volunteer drivers greatly reduces the cost of transportation services. We are the only no-cost service organization in the entire county that provides transportation to both life-essential and life-enriching locations. SCVN fills the gap for those who need to cross township boundaries, those who need extra assistance and door-to-door service, those who find it difficult to endure long waiting periods for a bus, those who live in the outlying areas of the county and those who cannot afford taxi/limousine services. These services help close the mobility gap and decrease isolation and depression in seniors. We have been able to accomplish this without a wait list.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Our last fiscal year, SCVN volunteers drove more than 152,340 miles and provided 19,982 hours of services to help 1541 local seniors remain in their own homes. $0.89 of every dollar we receive is used for direct program services.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
We continue to be proactive in implementing new resources available to us and increase efficiency with new tech grants and software updates. We recently moved our location and decreased our occupancy expenses by nearly 50% allowing us to bring on more support staff to meet the demands of the growing senior population.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals, Track improvements as a result of services received
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We share the feedback we received with the people we serve, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Senior Care Volunteer Network
Board of directorsas of 01/19/2024
Mr. Robert Grahamn
Pilot, Retired
Term: 2020 - 2026
Mary Eisenmenger
Humana
Term: 2021 - 2027
David Ward
Crystal Lake Bank & Trust
Jennifer Johnson
Care.com
Ken Nicholsen
3 Step Internet
Lindsay Halik
Senator Aide
Betsy Malpica
Wassen Enterprises
Joan Van Allen
Liberty Mutual
Gina O'Connor
Retired
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 01/19/2024GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.