In Los Gatos and Saratoga, Realtors and affiliate members from Silicon Valley Association of Realtors went out into the community to help seniors in their homes during the annual outreach program held during the week of June 9­14. Small teams of volunteers washed windows, cleaned gutters, turned mattresses, changed smoke detector batteries, strapped water heaters and performed other desired and necessary health and safety tasks.

Timothy Alston of Coldwell Banker in Los Gatos helped spearhead the local outreach program by working with local agencies and senior centers to find seniors and others who needed assistance in their homes. He also coordinated the Realtor volunteer effort as well.

"This is an extremely rewarding program. There is a sense of satisfaction to help out in the community where we work and in giving something back," Alston said.

The RSVP program is designed especially for homeowners or renters who are advanced in age, disabled or otherwise challenged. Seniors filled out an application and requested specific services such as painting house numbers on the curb, installing hand-held shower fixtures, cutting and pruning overgrown shrubs and tree branches, moving or rearranging furniture, repairing leaky faucets, removing cobwebs, and even programming the VCR.

"One of the things I enjoyed the most was helping one of the seniors with her remote control. She couldn't work the VCR and I was able to help her set it up in just a few minutes," Alston said. "At another home there was a closet door that wouldn't close so we cleaned out the closet to fix the problem. Whatever they needed done, we tried to do."

Broker Jim Magill of Village Square Realty in Los Gatos has been involved in a lot of volunteer work in the community, but he believes the Realtor Service Volunteer Program fulfills a special need. He and four other Realtors spent several hours helping out at one senior's home.

"We try to take care of things that more well-known agencies aren't able to do. There is certainly a need out there and we are able to fulfill that need," said Magill, who spent more than four hours cleaning out the gutters. "We are able to do little things here and there that seniors are often incapable of doing. It's very rewarding."

For Realtor Valerie Brand, also with Village Square Realty in Los Gatos, the program is "absolutely fantastic." Brand got involved because she took care of her grandmother for 17 years and knows firsthand what challenges seniors face.

"I know what it's like to grow old and how difficult it is to do certain things. I haven't been able to volunteer much in the past because of my work in high tech, but as a Realtor it's important to be a part of the community and I am glad to participate in this program to help others," Brand said.

Brand and her team washed windows, cleaned gutters, moved furniture, dusted for cobwebs and took down Christmas decorations for the senior homeowner whose arthritis prevented her from doing many things.

"She was very appreciative and gave us coffee and doughnuts," Brand said. "It's important for the seniors to know that we aren't there to sell houses but to help them with tasks they can't do themselves."

In addition to performing repairs and helpful tasks, Realtors took the time to chat with seniors and left behind a packet filled with community service information.

"Seniors like someone to give them a little TLC and to pay attention to them," Brand said. "I find it very gratifying to spend time talking with the seniors and giving them a little company."

The cost-free program was initiated by the Realtor and affiliate members of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors three years ago and was expanded this year to include volunteers from the San Mateo County Association of Realtors.

The Silicon Valley Association of Realtors is non-profit regional trade association serving 3,000 Realtors and affiliate members from Los Gatos, Saratoga, Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Mountain View, and Los Altos in Santa Clara County to Palo Alto, Menlo Park and Atherton in San Mateo County. An information resource for both Realtors and consumers, the association provides ongoing education programs and training, Internet access and online networking as well as mediation programs and legislative advocacy. For more information check out http://www.silvar.org.