Mending the Gap supports 700 low-income seniors who lack access to transportation and struggle to
find healthy food, basic hygiene, and cleaning supplies. We offer biweekly distributions of fresh food,
cleaning supplies, toiletries, and personal care items. Volunteers make weekly phone calls, visit or send
cards, and celebrate special milestones for senior clients who struggle with loneliness and isolation.
Our “Be a Friend Program – Pet Food Assistance” recognizes how much our furry friends bring friendship and
joy to seniors living alone. Pets are often their main companion, but the cost of care can strain budgets.
Offering extra help with pet food costs allows seniors to care for their animal companions better. It
helps improve seniors’ nutrition since sometimes they spend dollars on pet food rather than their food.
The intergenerational initiative “Adopt a Senior” allows youth and other groups to work with seniors,
increasing cooperation and interaction across the age spectrum.
Seniors are the fastest-growing population in Gwinnett. As seniors live longer and choose to age in
place, the demand for Mending the Gap’s services is increasing and reaching a critical level. Mending the
Gap, launched in 2010 as a focal point for providing services, programs, and activities to low-income
seniors aged 60+, helps them remain healthy, independent, and less isolated. Most seniors we serve
reside in subsidized housing and extended-stay motels and are raising their grandchildren. More than
90% of our seniors live below the Federal Poverty Level and struggle to meet basic needs, living on less
than $1,000/month.
Our primary objectives are to provide access to healthy food and daily living supplies. Moreover, we
emphasize using an intergenerational approach to providing for seniors' social and emotional well-being
through phone calls, visitation, and the pen pal program. Our transportation services allow for the
delivery of goods for seniors in our care who have no access to transportation and no family members
involved in their lives. We also coordinate with our fellow nonprofit agencies in Gwinnett to help
support transportation options for our seniors. We do not charge fees for our services since seniors live
on minimal budgets. As advocates for the senior community, we provide a forum for understanding and
addressing issues affecting seniors and our community.
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