Does anyone have any ideas on how to help out during this crisis? Normally I'd look for opportunities to volunteer in the community, but isolation put a stop to that. At least isolation is something I've excelled at. So far, the only thing I've done that seems helpful is purchasing online gift cards at some local restaurants to ensure that they'll be there for their employees when things start returning to normal, but what else is there? Wondering if anyone else has come up with a way to support the people most vulnerable to this crisis.

 

Perhaps an online course on cutting your own hair ?

Another couple of weeks and I am going to have the same hairstyle I had in the sixties, thinking positive I still have hair

 

It's tough to say because it depends on how it is where one lives. Due to the nature of the virus volunteering is hard. Where I live people can donate money to support the cause (Our town's mayor spent the cash in the budget for Easter lights and decorations). Some tailors have started producing N95 masks. Hotel owners provide free meals and accommodation to hospital staff and other people at need.
What I've done is help senior citizens with small tasks, I have a designated day in the week for grocery shopping and I shop for everyone who needs it as well. I also help them with paying bills, if there are any. Older folk, where I live, do not know how to operate internet payments and any help in that regard is very well received.
Something as small as a few kind words go a far way. My mother, who is a nurse, works for a private practitioner(who thankfully closed down before the epidemic) and she helps older people by reminding them that their appointments will be kept after all this ends, should they desire so, and calming them in general, with advice. My mom is a people's person and highly skilled in her work.
The people most vulnerable are hospital staff, elderly people and the ones with pre-existing conditions. Sadly, there is not much we can do to prevent over-exhaustion of hospital staff. As for elderly people, doing whatever we can to keep them safe is our best bet.
Also, never forget to keep a positive mindset. This sounds cliché, I know, but it's invaluable.

 

I feel the same. But helpful help demands personal contact. And that has been prohibited here, for good reasons.

 

Donate to NGO , local hospitals, give blood if you can.

 

I would say the best way to help is to find a cause to help out our medical professionals. They are the ones on the front lines trying to curb this virus. They are the most at risk, and I don't feel like people are giving them enough credit. They don't have a choice to hole up and social distance.....

 

Contact your local hospital and ask them what you can do to support the ER staff. These people are working very long hours under very stressful conditions, often without proper equipment and personal protective gear, and putting their lives on the line every day to care for the rest of us.

 

It's a nice thought, but the only thing you can do to support medical professionals is to not become a casualty. I know dozens of them and, unless you have a stash of PPE laying around, there's nothing they need from you or me. They're well fed and financially secure. People in need of help that can be provided by their neighbors are more likely to be at the other end of the economic spectrum.

 

Two philharmonic orchestra members from two cities in this province pooled their talents, selected a project piece, turned on their sound and video equipment in their homes, and put together a video performance that took several days to put together. it appeared on the TV screen as a montage of players in their separate locations, all performing the same piece under the guidance of their conductor. It was very well done.

 

@Canuck can you post a link to that. It sounds cool!

 

Donate cash to food banks. Simple yet effective and can be the difference for someone like the waitstaff at your favorite restaurant being able to hang on and ride this out.

 

See if this works. I’ll keep looking for links.

https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/32-alber...lf-isolation-orchestral-performance-1.4869237

or

https://m.facebook.com/cbcedmonton/...s-perform-together-remotely/1079223772433685/

 

We’re trying to support local restaurants (not chains) by ordering takeout. I’m also doing a “outfit of the day” which my daughter is posting to her FB and IG accounts, for the dozens of adoring fans, it brings a little humor to their day. No - I’m not ready to go global

 

Since the elderly have been asked to stay in and avoid going out it never hurts to ask any older folks if you can do any errands for them (grocery, pharmacy, and the like), many of them are stuck with no good options to keep the necessities of life flowing. If nothing else it keeps them 'in the game' until this passes.