Be Present / Accompany
Sometimes the hardest moments of a life arrive when nobody else is available. Be Present will send a person to simply be there — quietly, in your home, on your terms. It will be completely free.
An 83-year-old who lost her spouse of 60 years this morning does not need a program. She may just need someone present in the house. That is the whole idea.
You set the terms
Before anyone visits, you say what presence should look like for you — and it is followed exactly:
- Silence, or conversation — your choice.
- A hand on a shoulder, a hug, or no touch at all.
- Reactions, or quiet steadiness.
- While they are present, a volunteer may quietly help — dishes, folding clothes, sweeping — if that is welcome.
Visits are time-boxed, with check-in and check-out, and first visits are paired. A volunteer can also simply sit nearby and say nothing at all.
What it is, and what it is not
Volunteers are present, and may gently advocate for you if you ask. They are not medical care, not legal help, and not therapy — and they will not pretend to be. If you need those, we will help you ask for them, only if you want that.
Be Present grows out of one of Alan Davis's practices made real: doing is more important than talking or believing. Sometimes the doing is just staying.
Not launched yet
Be Present is still being prepared, carefully. If you would like to know when it begins — or you think you may want someone present one day — leave your name and email and we will write to you once, when it launches.
Thank you.
You are on the list. We will write once, when Be Present launches — nothing before, and nothing else.