Welcome to Telespond Senior Services! Telespond Senior Services, Inc. was founded in 1974 as a private, non-profit organization assisting Lackawanna County’s older adults and their family caregivers. The initial phase of Telespond’s development centered on programs for individual older adults, and the organization soon became a focal point for senior citizens who were experiencing difficulties or facing a crisis. Services were then designed to promote the goal of independent living by providing education and advocacy on a community-wide level.
The objectives of these programs were to prepare and activate older adults to be their own “change agents,” to inform them as to what services were available, what was being done for them, and what they could do for themselves. This effort included the development of a speakers bureau and resource center, a retail Discount Program, a newspaper for and about senior citizens, technical assistance and a base of operations for senior citizens groups, a Friendly Visiting/Tel-A-Care program, a Senior Companion Program, and a series of regional education seminars.
Telespond is presently involved in developing, refining, and providing services to address the many and changing needs of older adults in the community, as well as those of their primary caregivers.
Plans for the future include the development of existing volunteer services, as well as an improved capability in assisting frail home bound and chronically ill elderly throughout Lackawanna County. The role and function of the family as the primary caregiver is also an area where Telespond will continue to be involved in providing support where needed, consistent with its ongoing and comprehensive mission of service to this community.
