Nursing Home Volunteers Bring Joy to Residents and Build Lasting Friendships

 As a professional clown, Maryann Greco brings joy to people on a daily basis, but volunteering in a nursing home made her realize how important a simple conversation or game of Scrabble can be to another person. While making daily visits to the Allendale Nursing Home in New Jersey to see her mother, who suffers from dementia, Maryann that many of the residents did not receive any visitors – so she began to sit and talk with them. As just one person, she could not visit everyone, so in 2012 she started Growing Relationships and Making Memories (G.R.A.M.M) to recruit volunteers to match with seniors. Through one-on-one interaction, volunteers form meaningful relationships with seniors, bringing love and joy to their lives.