When Victor, originally from Los Angeles and a recent Northwestern Pre-Med graduate, decided he wanted to volunteer, he was excited to learn about Senior Connections. The mission of Senior Connections is to recruit, train and support volunteers who visit and befriend isolated older adults in the Evanston community. Senior Connections’ friendships enable seniors to continue their participation in the community and to access needed additional support and services. The outcome maintains a quality of life for seniors and enhances the caring fabric of the community.

Victor wanted to help others who may not be fully able to help themselves. He had a close relationship with his own grandmother.  He would spend time with her, help her get around and found it very rewarding to hear her stories. After his grandmother passed away, he knew that Senior Connections could provide a similar opportunity to what he had with her.

The first time Victor met Ms. D, he found her to be very polite and they both realized that it would take some time to break through the generational gap and to also broaden her experience with  Asian culture. Soon they realized they both had a love of sports and it was this common bound that brought them together. Ms. D also had quite the sense of humor and wanted to be Victor’s #1 girl, but knew she was competing with his girlfriend and jokingly grumbled about being #2.

After a while, Victor realized that his weekly visits with Ms. D were no longer an obligation where he kept track of time, but was a relationship where he would spend afternoons sitting with her and simply talking. After a full year of visits, she had become a part of his family. This was demonstrated by her presence at his graduation despite some medical ailments and showed Victor how much their relationship truly meant to her.    

Unfortunately, Ms. D passed away soon after Victor had moved back to Los Angeles. Victor was able to speak to her the week before and she continued to bug him about being his #1 girl and her sense of humor was still visible despite her diminishing condition. Victor was happy he was able to make the most of his time with her and framed a picture of her so it could always be a reminder that friends could and should be made across all gaps. Victor is incredibly grateful to Senior Connections for giving him the platform to develop their meaningful relationship and was thankful that Ms. D let him into her life.

Evanston Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition:

The Mission of the Evanston Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition (ESAPC) is to increase the health of Evanston youth by preventing alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use through community-level strategies.

The ESAPC is comprised of multiple committees that develop strategies to:

• Raise awareness about prevention and alcohol and other drug trends
• Educate youth and adults in Evanston
• Create a community environment that supports youth's non-use
• Introduce or improve local policies or practices to prevent or reduce use
• Organize advocacy initiatives 

ESAPC membership is open to any Evanston resident or employee.

History: Because the City of Evanston was a dry community from 1873 until the early 1970s, the legalization of alcohol in 1972 – and the subsequent opening of the city’s first liquor store in 1984 – proved to be a substantial transition. In order to help deal with the issues arising from this shift, The Evanston Substance Abuse Prevention Council (ESAPC) was formed in 1984, following a roundtable discussion hosted by the Evanston Mental Health Board.

ESAPC's accomplishments include: the introduction and establishment of Beverage Alcohol Server and Seller Education Training (B.A.S.S.E.T.) for liquor establishment employees, the implementation of an evidence-based curriculum called Project ALERT at all District 65 middle schools, and the ETHS social norms campaign, Strength in Numbers.