Another caregiving group steps in to help fill gap from Wilshire bankruptcy
A Central Coast caregiving group is expanding into South San Luis Obispo County to fill the gap left by Wilshire Health and Community Services — and it’s calling upon volunteers from the now-closed hospice nonprofit to join them.
Founded in 1997, Community Partners in Caring is a Santa Barbara nonprofit that provides volunteer-based support services to older adults and adults with disabilities. Its main service is a free transportation and visitation program that conducts check-in calls and friendly visits and helps clients get around, attend appointments and run errands.
The program builds upon the foundation established by Wilshire’s former Good Neighbor Program, which was operated for many years by the hospice nonprofit’s community services branch before it closed in June and subsequently filed for bankruptcy.
Now, Community Partners is calling upon former Good Neighbor volunteers and clients to join the program as they expand the service to SLO County, the nonprofit announced in a news release.
“We are honored to continue the legacy of volunteerism and compassion that the Good Neighbor Program brought to this region,” executive director Hilda Zacarias said in the news release. “We are bridging vital gaps in transportation and companionship support — ensuring aging adults remain connected, valued and cared for right in their own communities.”
New transportation service calls upon former Wilshire volunteers in SLO County
The new transportation program will service Nipomo and the Five Cities area — including Arroyo Grande, Oceano, Grover Beach, Shell Beach and Pismo Beach.
The expansion of Community Partners’ transportation services into SLO County after Wilshire’s shuttering follows another organization taking over the bankrupt nonprofit’s medical and hospice care services, Rose Care Group, led by former Dignity Health French Hospital Medical Center CEO Alan Iftiniuk.
After losing her job upon the nonprofit’s sudden collapse, former Wilshire employee Kristen Grasso joined Community Partners in Caring to re-engage local volunteers eager to continue serving their community.
“Fate brought me here,” Grasso told The Tribune. “I love what I do, and being able to continue what I love — helping clients and working with volunteers — is just very near and dear to me.”
Non-Wilshire volunteers are also welcome and wanted, Community Partners said.
Training and ongoing support are provided, and volunteers can serve as little as a few hours per month and be reimbursed for gas, the release said.
“Our growth depends on volunteers,” Zacarias said. “Every ride, every visit, every act of kindness helps someone feel less alone — and that’s how communities thrive.”
Support for Community Partners’ expansion comes from the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments, the Community Foundation of SLO County, San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Authority and the Nipomo Area Senior Center.
If you are interested in volunteering or referring someone in need of services, you can visit www.partnersincaring.org or call 805-925-8000 to learn more.
