Volunteer of the Month: CRIS CAT – Allisyn Roszel
By Mel Rubenstein
As our population ages more people are in the need of services, especially getting to medical appointments. Recognizing that need, CRIS CAT was founded in 2010. CRIS is an acronym for Community Resources for Independent Seniors, and CAT is for Cazenovia Area Transportation.
CRIS CAT is an organization of volunteers dedicated to providing medical transportation to residents in Cazenovia, Fenner and Nelson. This service is provided to individuals age 55 and older who are independent, but unable to drive themselves to necessary appointments. This program is modeled after FISH which covers Fayetteville, Manlius, Skaneateles and Camillus. (A volunteer from FISH was featured in this column in 2013.) Allisyn Roszel is a volunteer for CRIS CAT, and more.
Allisyn was born in Texas where she attended Stephen F. Austin State University and, following in her father’s footsteps, earned a degree in geology. She then met her husband, Hugh, who worked for a manufacturing business. In 1992 they moved to the Syracuse area where he had an opportunity to grow his business, and the Roszels settled in Cazenovia.
Over the next few years Allisyn was a stay at home mom where she raised three children. Once they were in school she began volunteering in the Cazenovia school system, and was a substitute teacher. Roszel had several friends who were volunteers for CRIS CAT, and thought, “Good thing to do. Why not me too?”
When Allisyn called the CRIS office she was told that the organization needed a scheduler, and she immediately volunteered for the position. Then came an interview and a confidentiality agreement.
During the interview Allisyn learned that the parent company of CRIS CAT is CRIS. The overall goal of CRIS is to provide the services to help seniors stay active and engage in the community and assist with aging in place.
Roszel then went thru a training session that included the policies of the organization, how volunteer drivers are selected, and how they should handle different situations with the passengers. Those who ask to become volunteers fill out an application and provide an abstract of their driving record.
She learned that the driving service is just for people who have medical appointments, and are unable to drive themselves, and have no other way to get there. In order to use the service the passengers fill out an application, and they must be ambulatory, which means no wheelchairs. Requests for rides should be made five to seven days in advance of their appointment.
Allisyn began volunteering as a scheduler and driver in 2014. She also assisted the coordinator, and in 2017 she became the coordinator. During this time Roszel was also doing scheduling and was a volunteer driver. Allisyn said; “I probably average about three to four hours a week of coordinating–plop on possible driving (three to four hours), plus my turn to schedule (four to five hours), and it makes for a full week. Last year I logged 722 miles in driving and this year I have 161 miles so far. With all of this activity CRIS CAT drivers have never had an accident. Something we are proud of. There was one time that the driver’s car broke down while driving a passenger to an appointment, but the driver’s wife saved the day and picked up the passenger and finished the assignment.”
CRIS CAT currently has about 20 active drivers and 70 passengers, and averages 30 rides a month. The furthest CRIS CAT drivers have gone is to Liverpool, but that is rare. Allisyn said; “When I hook up a driver with a passenger I give the driver the passenger’s phone number. This allows the driver to be in direct contact with the passenger to make arrangements for time and place of pick-up, and, in the rare event if the driver has to cancel.”
After the driver drops off the patient at the doctor’s appointment, the driver can go shopping or run an errand, and return at an agreed upon time. Or, the passenger can call the driver when ready to be picked up.
As a coordinator, Allisyn’s duties include; maintaining the driver and passenger data base, making sure all forms have been turned in, and produce monthly reports to the CRIS Board. She also creates a weekly schedule for the seven schedulers, of which two go away for the winter and the other three take off for a month or two during winter. She said; “My most fun job is to organize the Yearly Driver Appreciation Luncheon.”
Allisyn Roszel also volunteers with the Cazenovia Garden Club and helps out once a month with Fresh Foods/Caz Cares. She said; “Fresh foods is where the food bank comes once a month with fresh foods and delivers to our local food pantry/clothing closet.”
Karisha Solomon, Executive Director of CRIS CAZ, said; “Volunteers are the heart of all of our programs at CRIS. Without the volunteers we would not have our CRIS CAT program, timebank or vital conversations. CRIS CAT especially is crucial to keeping our seniors in our community because it fills one of the major needs of aging in place by providing medical transportation. However, CRIS CAT is more than just the medical transportation. These volunteers are also providing social and emotional support to the passengers. Without our volunteers many of our passengers would need to move to another community where they can access healthcare or transportation. It truly is local people helping out a neighbor.”
Jean Shirley, board president, added; “Volunteers are the heart of all of our programs at CRIS. No one is more deserving than Allisyn Roszel who epitomizes the value of a volunteer by her countless hours of dedication and diligent work and passion for the mission of CRIS CAT, which is one of our most vital programs, and she makes it work.”
Allisyn is also on the CRIS Board and is active in senior seminars and health fairs in the Cazenovia area. The Roszels have three children and one grandchild.
For volunteer opportunities with CRIS CAT, contact Karisha Solomon at: [email protected],or call 315-655-5743. Donations may be sent directly to: P.O. Box Box 99, Cazenovia, NY 13035.
To recommend someone with a stellar record of volunteering to be featured in this column contact Mel Rubenstein: [email protected] or 315-682-7162.
