Why Donate
The Senior Connection is a charitable organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. All donations are tax deductible to the full extent that the law allows.
For just a moment, imagine your life without your car keys. Or, if you usually use public transportation, imagine getting by without access to the bus-stop or the train station.
Going to the grocery store, to the doctor, picking up prescriptions, getting a haircut or any other frequently visited business establishment becomes very complicated and sometimes out of reach. Losing the ability to drive or get around on public transportation is a devastating loss. How quickly independence changes to dependence.
Volunteers from The Senior Connection, help to ease the worry for many seniors in Montgomery County. Public transportation is not always accessible for folk who need a steady arm to support them to the waiting vehicle and private escorted transportation is too expensive for many. Transportation to physical therapy or cancer treatments often requires multiple trips per week, which is expensive for individuals of any means.
With the help of reliable and friendly volunteers from The Senior Connection, older residents of Montgomery County are empowered with mobility. Since there are no fees for services, donations are essential in order to keep the coordination of services going. Administrative and training costs are held in check through the generous donations we receive from organizations and individuals.
Individual Donations
While The Senior Connection could not begin to survive without the major dollars from government and foundation grants, it is the individual donations that help us understand how much value the services have to the persons who volunteer and to the persons who are served by the volunteers. That small donation from an individual, many identified with an extremely low income, has as much meaning as a larger donation and reinforces the notion that we are providing a valuable and vital service. No gift is too small or too large.
Donations can be made on-line through PayPal or Network for Good.
Just click this button to be directed:
Or mail your donation directly to:
The Senior Connection
3950 Ferrara Drive
Silver Spring, MD 20906
In-Kind Donations
You name it, we may need it: equipment, supplies, and professional support services. We gladly accept any size donation – even if it’s one ream of paper. Large or even small businesses that may buy supplies in bulk can filter some of the overstock to The Senior Connection.
Click here to download our item donation form.
Donated professional services received and continually welcomed include:
- Media coverage
- Compiling of and reporting on our annual satisfaction and impact surveys
- PowerPoint presentations and public relations materials
- Volunteer training seminars
- Office staffing
- Volunteer recognition gifts
Sponsorships and Hosting of Events
Sponsorship and hosting of events and fundraising opportunities enables The Senior Connection to offer full tax deductions for donations received at an event. All proceeds then go to funding the volunteer program, rather than being used for administrative and fundraising expenses. Special recognition and opportunities for marketing your business are a good exchange for sponsoring or hosting an event. Many of our business partners have helped us in the past and we look forward to more opportunities in the future.
Conference rooms and meeting space offerings help us with volunteer training, committee work and board meetings. The office’s limited space only accomodates a few people at a time. Without the generous support of meeting space offered by so many of our colleagues, The Senior Connection would not be able to carry on the business of doing its good work. We are very grateful for the support from so many friends in the aging network.
Corporate Donations
In addition to in-kind gifts, sponsorships and hosting events, corporations provide a portion of the much appreciated contributions needed to maintain the volunteer services. Gifts from agencies and aging network providers reinforce our mission and validates that we are providing a valuable service to the community.
Foundation Grants
Support from Foundations is vital to The Senior Connection’s ability to build capacity, recruit volunteers and offer new and innovative programming. The Senior Connection’s revenue does not include fees for services; therefore, foundation funding is very important to help us sustain the ongoing program resources. While the important work of servicing seniors is done by volunteers, the coordination and facilitation of those services is accomplished by a very dedicated but limited number of paid staff. In addition to payroll, the costs of telephone service, supplies, insurance, equipment maintenance and printing materials are essential to accomplishing the work. While we do not have free office space, our lease is charged at a very nominal rate and we consider most of the office lease expenses as an in-kind donation from Montgomery County.
Montgomery County Department of Aging and Disability
The Senior Connection receives a significant portion of its revenue from a contract from Montgomery County’s Department of Health and Human Services’ Division of Aging and Disability. This contract relationship enables The Senior Connection to pay for staff support, and a significant portion of its operating expenses. This contract calls for the volunteers to provide basic support to Montgomery County’s older residents and for the staff to work with the faith communities to identify needs and provide support to its surrounding community. This contract support is essential to The Senior Connection’s survival and in exchange the county receives the benefit of knowing that reliable and free services are available to help Montgomery County seniors to “Age in Place.”
United Way and Combined Federal Campaign
The Senior Connection has been a Partner Agency with the United Way/CFC for many years and we are grateful for the support received from the United Way campaign as well as through the Community Impact Fund. You may designate funding to our program through United Way Designation #8246 and the CFC Designation #61134.
