Volunteering

Volunteer at Riksula – group activities and community spirit

There is a lot going on at Anton's House in Riksula, and your contribution can enrich it even more. We offer volunteers the opportunity to lead comfortable and low-threshold groups, where there is space for togetherness and conversation, as well as experiencing a sense of belonging.

As a volunteer, you can, for example, lead chair exercises, bingo, or do you have an idea for starting a new group where your strengths can be showcased? As a volunteer, you can support the activities by socializing with customers and helping with the coffee.

Do you have special skills and would you like to occasionally accompany community singing, perform or lecture to our visitors? All of this is possible at Riksula.
Come join us in making everyday life more lively!

Friendship activities – genuine encounters and presence in everyday life

In buddy work, a volunteer acts as a friend and companion to an elderly client. The work is based on regular socializing and unhurried encounters that are of great importance to both parties.

A friend can come to visit the client at home or they can arrange to meet at a place like Riksula, a café, a library or a park. Together you can chat, play games, read the daily newspaper, listen to music or do other activities that you both enjoy.

A volunteer does not replace the help provided by a professional, and does not perform nursing or home care tasks. The befriending activity is free of charge and is based entirely on volunteerism. People participate out of a desire to do good and meet other people.

Go outside – become an outdoor buddy for an elderly person

Do you enjoy going outdoors and want to offer someone else a refreshing outdoor activity? As an outdoor buddy, you offer an elderly person the opportunity to go outdoors safely in good company. As an outdoor buddy, you support and encourage them to move according to their own strengths and wishes. Not all elderly people are able to go outdoors alone. The reasons may be a new living environment, fear, the use of assistive devices, uncertainty about their own ability to function, or the fact that going out alone is not appealing.

Outdoor activities together lower the threshold for exercise and increase mutual well-being. As an outdoor buddy, you can take leisurely walks with the client, explore the environment, or enjoy nature together. As a volunteer, you support and accompany the client during outdoor activities. Outdoor buddy activities are not physical activity guidance and do not replace professional help. The activities do not require special skills, but are based on ordinary togetherness and trust.

Outdoor activities must be safe for both parties. The volunteer does not provide physically demanding or risky support and does not work at the client's limits. As a volunteer, you will receive sufficient guidance on the safe use of available aids and information on risk factors such as a tendency to dizziness or falls. The activity is based on volunteering and is free of charge for the client. We offer orientation to the task and support along the way.

Culture buddy – together for culture

The Cultural Buddy activity offers the opportunity to visit theaters, museums, or concerts in Riihimäki together with a volunteer. The activity is aimed especially at older people for whom going to cultural events alone is challenging. The challenges may be related to, for example, physical ability, mood, or social situations.

The activity is free of charge and is made possible by the following cultural actors: Riihimäki Theatre, Riihimäki Youth Theatre, Riemu Museum Centre and the Finnish Glass Museum. The cultural actors supporting our activity offer free admission to a cultural friend who comes with the customer. A cultural friend can also be invited to free events of Riihimäki cultural and event services, such as Riihimäki Easter, Arts Night or block and lunchtime gigs.

The cultural buddy activity is coordinated by open welfare services together with the cultural and event services of the city of Riihimäki. The aim is to support equal opportunities for participation in culture and increase the inclusion of older people. Culture belongs to everyone and it increases well-being, the meaning of life and enables the experience of learning, insight and inclusion.

Discover the exhibitions at the Riemu museums in the city of Riihimäki.

Read more about the events of Riihimäki Cultural and Event Services.

Discover current events in the city of Riihimäki.

Discover what Riihimäki Theatre has to offer on their website. (www.riihimaenteatteri.fi.)

Ask a cultural friend to accompany you to a cultural event or museum for yourself or a loved one by contacting Jemina Salone. Contact information below.

If you would like to volunteer as a cultural friend or offer a new cultural destination to our offer, please contact Jemina Salone. Contact information below.

The library offers the opportunity to volunteer as a book courier.

The book delivery service serves elderly people who are unable to visit the Library due to limitations. The Library assembles a book bag tailored to the customer's wishes every six weeks. The book delivery service picks up the bag from the library at the agreed time and delivers it to the customer, returning the previous bag to the library on the way back.

Some clients may long for company to chat over books, but others are happy to just have the books delivered to their home. The volunteer and the client are free to form their own relationship during the service. If the parties wish, the volunteer agreement can be expanded to include friendship activities, in which case they can have coffee, exchange news and, for example, discuss literature.

Discover the selection, events and services of Riihimäki City Library.

 

Talotsemppari brings joy and community to your home!

Kotikulmilla® is an operating model developed by the Age Institute, which gives older people the opportunity to participate in group activities in their own local environment. The activities are aimed especially at those who find it challenging to leave their homes. Groups and Good Mind Walks are organised in housing associations, blocks of flats or other nearby locations, and their content is agreed upon according to the wishes of the participants. The meetings can include, for example, coffee, games, quizzes and going out.

We are looking for volunteer housekeepers who can inspire and guide activities in their own housing association or in the surrounding area. Does your housing association have a shared group space? That would be an excellent place for a Kotikulmilla group! We train new housekeepers in collaboration with the Ageing Institute, and we provide orientation and materials to support the task.

The activities are supported by the City of Riihimäki's activity director, an applied physical education instructor, and the Kotokartano Foundation's physical education instructor, who help with starting the groups and planning the activities. This way, we ensure that each group gets the support and ideas they need.

Would you like to join us? You can participate in groups or become a volunteer housekeeper. At Kotikulm, our volunteers guide residents in activities such as brain exercises, chair exercises and water exercises.

In cooperation:

You can read more about the activities on the Age Institute's website. ikainstituutti.fi/kotikulmilla