Lotsa Helping Hands - How It Works

What problems does Lotsa Helping Hands address?

Most of us have experienced the crisis of a friend or loved one suddenly unable to function as they had for their family or themselves. Perhaps it's a debilitating illness, or post-surgery rehabilitation necessitating weeks or months of bed rest.  Maybe it's a complicated pregnancy or a cancer diagnosis requiring frequent chemotherapy appointments. In many instances of acute family crisis, the stricken must also cope with quickly finding support for meal preparation, grocery shopping, and transportation for themselves and their dependent family members.

Isn't there already an easy way to coordinate volunteers?

No. Even when there are plenty of friends and community members offering help, the effort often falls short. Until now, the coordination of these volunteers from various circles has been too cumbersome to attempt, or the good intentions result in frustration and inefficiencies—missed appointments, too much food delivered, and endless phone tag.

What does Lotsa Helping Hands provide?

Once the Coordinator creates a free, private Lotsa Helping Hands web site and adds members to it, members are automatically notified of available volunteer opportunities. Through an intuitive interface that requires no training, volunteers can sign up for any number of events, view their current commitments, and be sent email reminders of upcoming obligations. Lotsa Helping Hands provides summary views of commitments as well as unassigned events, eliminating redundant assistance, missed commitments, and excessive administrative labor.

"Every day, it was just phenomenal. I'd be really tired, and I would go to the door and there would be a hot meal… I felt so isolated, and this showed me I shouldn't feel that way. It's incredible how big the community is, and how everybody wants to help." —Rebecca G., breast cancer patient

Link: Lotsa Helping Hands - How It Works.