Every third person in the upper Austria lives alone, many are lonely. 1100 volunteers are involved in the visiting service of the Red Cross in Upper Austria and have carried out more than 68,000 volunteers in the previous year. Just like Kerstin Kohlberger from Fischlham, who visits Elisabeth once a week.
242,000 people in Upper Austria live alone, in every third household a person lives older than 60 years old. Often after the death of the partner, the extract of the children or retirement spreads, loneliness. Here Kerzin Kohlberger comes into play.
“She is happy that there is someone”
Her week has had a fixed point since February this year: the visit to Elisabeth (64), who registered her son for a voluntary visiting service. The older lady is blind and lives alone, “and she is just happy that there is someone,” says Kohlberger.
It needs that for the visiting service
For her first visit, the volunteer had to follow a first aid course and the two-day visiting service training. “When you got to know the first, there was someone from the District Office of the Red Cross. Then Elisabeth and me were asked separately if we would like to continue the visiting service.”
68,000 voluntary hours
Just like Kohlberger, 1100 people are involved in the visiting service in Upper Austria. In the previous year they visited 1667 people, which was 304 more than 2023. They have done around 68,000 voluntary hours, and on average every employee of the visiting service helped 62 hours a year.
Talk about loneliness
“We get loneliness from the Taboezone and make you from foreign friends,” says Rot-Kreuz President Gottfried Hirz. He emphasizes that voluntary dedication to the single can also help, 28 percent of the volunteers at the Red Cross are older than 65 years.
Voluntary life longer
“We have around 40 work profiles on the Red Cross, where you can work for free,” explains Erich Hanneschläger, head of state of the higher Austria. Researchers from the United States even discovered that voluntaryness has a life of life.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
