Ashlar Seeking Volunteers For Lay Training In Geriatric Ministry Program

Aging, with its many challenges, is often a time when spiritual resources and emotional support are vital to the elderly and their families. Unfortunately, there are not enough people trained to provide the pastoral care and spiritual resources so important to an elderly person’s well-being.

Masonicare and its affiliate, Ashlar of Newtown, are meeting that need by offering the “Lay Training in Geriatric Ministry” program. Open to people of all faiths, the program has been teaching basic ministry skills to volunteers from the community for more than 14 years.

The Reverend Kurt Shaffert provides the lay training at Ashlar of Newtown. Chaplain Shaffert, who joined Masonicare in 2006, has a background as a parish pastor in Vermont and as a lecturer in pastoral care at Yale Divinity School. The award-winning program was conceived and designed by the Reverend Anne Baltzell, Masonicare’s director of spiritual services.

Participants in the eight-week training program will attend 2½-hour class sessions on Wednesdays at Ashlar of Newtown, 139 Toddy Hill Road. The first class in the series will begin Wednesday, April 2, from 3:30 to 6 pm. Topics covered will include “Introduction and Orientation to our Facility,” “The Pastoral Care Visit,” “Dealing with Issues of Loss,” and “Ethical Issues in a Nursing Home Setting.” Continuing education and support sessions will be offered monthly following training.

After completing the course, participants are expected to make a one-year commitment to provide approximately four hours per week of pastoral ministry at Ashlar of Newtown. In addition to making a difference in the lives of residents, volunteers will learn skills that will enable them to minister effectively to older members of their own families, church, and even the general community.

Anyone interested in participating in the Lay Training in Geriatric Ministry Program at Ashlar of Newtown is invited to call Chaplain Kurt Shaffert at 203-679-6259 or e-mail Kshaffert@Masonicare.org. For information about Ashlar of Newtown or to obtain directions, visit Masonicare’s website at Masonicare.org.