Friendly Visiting
Through Friendly Visiting, older adults welcome volunteers into their homes for weekly or monthly visits to build meaningful social connection and friendship. You’ll share interests, life experiences, and more while creating a bond that enriches both your lives.
Program Type: Volunteer Visit Make a Friend
Age Group: Adults 60+ Adults 18+
Frequency: Weekly Monthly
Program Access: In Home
Want to Welcome a Friendly Visitor?
If you’re an older adult who would like to be matched with a volunteer for regular visits in your home, take the next step and learn more about the program.
Become a Volunteer
Discover how you can enrich your life and the life of an older adult as a Friendly Visiting volunteer.
About Friendly Visiting
You can make new social connections at any stage of life, and our Friendly Visiting program is a wonderful way to do just that. Through Friendly Visiting, older adults and volunteers enjoy weekly or monthly visits together in the older adult’s home. It’s an opportunity to share interests and experiences, make new memories, and develop a genuine and life-enhancing friendship.
How It Works
Our social work team thoughtfully matches individuals based upon shared interests. Once your match is made, you’ll meet regularly for at least a year on the weekly or monthly schedule you select. A DOROT social worker is there to support both volunteers and older adults throughout your friendship—a hallmark of our program that contributes to a rewarding experience.
Volunteers and older adults often tell us about the deep and caring relationships they form through Friendly Visiting. Many develop lifelong friendships.
Who Can Participate?
Older adults who live on the West Side of Manhattan between 59th and 125th streets and on the East Side between 14th and 96th streets—or anywhere in Westchester County.
Volunteers who live in New York City or Westchester County and are able to travel to an older adult’s home.
We chat about events in our lives, the happy ones and the sad. We share news of our families and our hopes for the future. I am always delighted when she calls to say she is coming.
Related Programs
Caring Calls
Caring Calls brings together older adults and volunteers for weekly phone conversations to socialize, chat, and connect. It’s easy to get started—and to make a new friend!
Tech Coaching
Tech Coaching supports older adults in using technology to stay connected and access a wealth of resources—key factors to aging well. Meet one-on-one with a trained volunteer who will help you with the skills you’re seeking to build.
Occasional Help and Visits
DOROT’s Response Team volunteers connect with older adults for occasional visits, outings, help with special projects, or errands.
Stories of Friendly Visiting
DOROT’s Friendly Visiting program matches older adults with volunteers for regular visits in the older adult’s home. These visits are deeply rewarding for both participants, often resulting in friendships that last for years.
Thank You
DOROT is deeply grateful to The Barbara and Bentley Kassal Foundation for their leadership support of DOROT’s Friendly Visiting Program.
DOROT Westchester is supported in part by: The US Department of Health and Human Services — Administration on Aging (AOA), New York State Office for the Aging, Westchester County Department of Senior Programs and Services.