Community Corner
Time Well Spent: Los Altos Senior a Role Model for Giving Back
From her home at The Terraces at Los Altos, Rosel Barowsky has spent much of the pandemic knitting scarves for the homeless.
A desire to give back has always driven Rosel Barowsky. Over 25 years, she’s volunteered thousands of hours at the American Cancer Society Discovery Shop, a specialty resale store whose proceeds support the American Cancer Society.
But the pandemic has curtailed most of Barowsky’s public volunteerism and forced her to redirect her efforts. From her home at The Terraces at Los Altos senior living community, she’s been busy knitting scarves for the homeless in Santa Clara County.
“I think it’s important seniors are aware they can still be important in life,” said Barowsky, who, pre-pandemic, also volunteered at the nearby Los Altos Senior Center. There she served lunch, helped with ESL classes, and lead discussions for older adults who are exploring a transition to community living.
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She recently partnered with Los Altos-based One Warm Scarf, whose mission is to get scarves around the necks of local homeless people. Barowsky has spent hours knitting more than a dozen handmade scarves, which she recently donated.
According to AmeriCorps, about one-quarter of older adults in the U.S. volunteer in some capacity, contributing more than 798 million hours of service worth an estimated $19.2 billion.