Family Service Organization of Worcester

Homemaking - the program provides homemakers and personal care services to patients and clients who need assistance in order to remain at home. The program also provides home care services to elders and individuals with special needs. These services may also include case management and consultation to families about elders' special needs.

Center for childcare careers - the program provides early childhood training for Family childcare providers and center-based childcare programs through college classes, continuing education courses, workshops and the summer literacy program.

Clinical - the program provides counseling to individuals, couples, and families coping with a wide range of concerns including divorce, parenting, and elder mental health. Additional programming includes the employee assistance program, offering problem-solving services and resources to employers and employees of local companies. The services offered through eap include information sharing and consultation; short-term, solution-focused counseling; referrals; management training; and wellness seminars.

Senior companion program- the program utilizes volunteers 55 years of age and older who devote 15-20 hours per week providing individualized assistance and socialization to frail, often isolated, elders in the community and to elders in adult day care centers, assisted living and long-term care facilities. Volunteers also provide assistance with utilization of services to elders using day care or other facilities. The program also gives back to our senior volunteers by providing them with a heartwarming volunteer opportunity and other benefits including reimbursement to volunteers for travel and meal expenses, an income-eligible, tax-free stipend, annual recognition, on-going training, and networking opportunities.

Retired senior volunteer program- the program connects people age 55 and over with volunteer opportunities that focus on compelling needs in the Worcester area and has more than four hundred volunteers serving at over 70 local public and not-for-profit agencies in the greater Worcester area. Rsvp volunteers offer a vital Service to our community by providing cost-effective solutions to gaps in resources by providing direct support, information and referrals to address issues such as fraud prevention, food insecurity, support to veterans, and literacy programs for children.

Mediation program - the program is a voluntary, confidential and flexible process in which a neutral mediator assists disputing parties to come to mutually acceptable solutions. The program is affordable, allows parties to retain control over the decision-making process, is private and informal, and helps to reduce hostility by promoting communication and cooperation. The program also offers basic mediation training to perspective mediators and adheres to the uniform rules on dispute resolution set forth by the Massachusetts supreme court. Mediation services are provided to the Worcester, milford and dudley small claims courts, Worcester Family and probate court, Worcester superior court and Worcester juvenile court. The program is supported by grants from the Massachusetts office of the attorney general and umass mopc.