Many Southlake seniors might feel lonely during this extended period of social distancing. The Young Men’s Service League is helping to alleviate some of that isolation.
The Young Men’s Service League is a nonprofit organization that was established in Southlake in 2009. Comprised of mothers and their sons who attend CISD campuses, philanthropy chair Jacqueline Westerberg says their goal is to assist, serve and support those who are in need in the community.
“We’re always serving, and we have 15 philanthropies that we support,” Jacqueline expresses. “I’ve always had a heart for service. That’s the heart of our organization.”
One of the organization’s partners is the Senior Activity Center, which provides programs and events for Southlake’s elder residents to participate in. But after the center closed last month due to the coronavirus, over 150 seniors went home and the Young Men’s Service League were out of 500 hours worth of community service.
But rather than stop volunteering, its members pivoted to make a difference in other ways. The Senior Activity Center provided a call sheet of their registered members so the league could call them and check up to see how they were doing. After adding in their own contacts, Jacqueline estimates that they made about 200 check-up calls.
“We had some neat interactions,” Jacqueline remarks. “One of our boys contacted a lady that was stuck in South Africa and couldn’t get home. She was just so happy to hear a voice from home. All of our moms and boys were taken aback by the gratitude they received just to be thought of. That was really sweet.”
But that isn’t all its members are doing. The Young Men’s Service League is also making and delivering gift bags to retirement homes around Northeast Tarrant County. Gift bags include items such as games, puzzles, treats, personal care items and encouraging personal messages. Jacqueline estimates that the league has delivered over 200 gift bags so far.
“It’s the power of community that we’re seeing at work,” Jacqueline expresses. “Everybody needs to be encouraged. We’re all in this together, we need to care for each other during this time. We’re doing this because we have a heart for it and want to encourage others to do the same.”
If you would like to volunteer or see how else you might be able to help the Young Men’s Service League, go online at YMSLSouthlake.org.