Teamwork eases the pain

Barbara Diamond

Working with the terminally ill or incapacitated takes its toll on

volunteers, so the Aids Care Team in Our Neighborhood took a

different approach.

“We have teams of eight to 12 people of different ages and

different strengths that support its members as well as focuses on

one person or one family affected by AIDS,� program director Neil

Tadken said. “Our services are limited only by the number of hearts

opened up to the work.�

The local group, which goes by the acronym ACTION, is patterned

after the nationwide network of Care Teams, an expanded buddy system

with an office at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church.

However, the group is not affiliated with a particular

denomination and is waiting for confirmation of its 501c3 status.

“We do recruit from faith-based organizations because we know that

those groups are ready to reach out,� board chair Martha Davis said.

“But we have lots of members with no religious affiliation.�

The group has 10 teams in service, a couple of them from St.

Mary’s, but St. Catherine of Sienna, the Laguna Beach United

Methodist Church and Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Aliso Viejo

have also formed teams. An 11th team is soon to be placed.

“We have a firm policy that team members may belong to a faith

community, but this program is not about gathering souls,� Tadken

said.

The city recently allocated $1,500 to the group based on the

recommendation of the AIDS Advisory Committee, which stipulated that

the funds would be used to provide nonsecular and nonjudgmental

counseling and support for people with AIDS, which also would include

community education.

“Teams work to break through the isolation that often accompanies

an AIDS diagnosis,� Tadken said. “There is still a lot of stigma

attached.�

People diagnosed with AIDS will sometimes withdraw from normal

contacts because of rejection or fear of rejection, according to

Tadken.

“They need caring hearts and ears when their energy levels drop,�

Tadken said.

Not to mention more prosaic needs.

That’s where teams shine. One person may be a great shopper, but

not so hot at cleaning bathrooms. Another may be happy to watch old

black and white tear-jerker movies, while a teammate goes shopping.

Teams stay with their “care partners� until no longer needed.

“Some team members need a break then -- we do grief counseling,

too -- but most want to continue,� Davis said. “It does take a lot

out of you, but it’s so heartwarming when you see the effect of what

you can do.

“And you meet wonderful people. When you are forming a family

around a care partner, you are forming a family within a team.

“Everybody can do this -- and it doesn’t take that much of your

time. The biggest chunk of time for a team is the training.�

Davis became involved through her husband, Tom, who was a member

of the first team formed at St. Mary’s.

“They requested a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

[charitable arm of Johnson and Johnson] and were shocked when they

got $25,000,� Davis said. “The foundation usually only gives to

established groups and there was no one to direct our program.

A 15-member board was formed this fall. Most of the board members

are local, according to Tadken, including Davis, Vice Chair Robert

Mister and Grant Writing Chair Margaret Peterson.

A training class is scheduled to start Dec. 11. Volunteers would

be welcomed.

For more information, e-mail [email protected]., or visit

https://www.aidsaction.us, or call (949) 494-5165.