Traynae Dawkins, a New Orleans Job Corps Center HOT student, said visiting the elderly at Woldenberg Village Retirement Center this week made her day.

“I talked to a lady- Ms. Cox- and she was so happy to see me. She was so happy to see young people taking time to visit the residents,” said Traynae. “She told me to come back and visit and I think I will because it was a very rewarding experience.”

Eleven New Orleans Job Corps Center medical trainees, along with the Center’s CMA Instructor and BCL,  prepared and delivered over 100 care bags to the nursing home as part of six Make a Difference Day activities the Center participated in over a one-week period. The care bags contained various hygiene products such as soap, toothpaste and shampoo. Yet, companionship was perhaps the most important gift delivered that day to an oft-forgotten segment of the population.

“A lot of the elderly were really surprised to see us and really wanted to take pictures with us,” said the Center’s recently elected TLC president Durand Harris. “I really enjoy that feeling of giving back and, as it relates to my trade, I saw positions that one day I may be doing in a hospital or nursing home.”