"I think it keeps me healthy. My brain, healthy body, healthy soul and heart healthy. It's a gift to me," said Brenda Foster, a 75-year-old foster grandparent.
Women like Foster are part of a special group of nearly 100 seniors who share today to shape tomorrow.
"These are people 55 and better who want to serve and want to give back," Natalie Salas, education manager at Seniors in Service.
They're called Foster Grandparents, an extra support system for hundreds of local kids.
"We truly think it takes a village to raise a community," said Salas.
This village of mostly retirees from all different career backgrounds is embedded in over 35 schools across Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties.
"Very important, because these kids today, it's just like we have younger people raising them, and they're really not teaching them what they should know," said Margaret Jay Butler, a 78-year-old volunteer.
The program, offered through Seniors in Service of Tampa Bay, is part of the National Americorp program, which has helped millions of children from coast to coast for more than 50 years.
"This gives me the opportunity to be able to be a tutoring grandparent, to be an extra grandparent to children that don't have families and don't have grandmothers," said Gail Cooper.
For six years now, Cooper has been giving the gift of her time to local elementary school students, providing emotional support, mentorship, and tutoring.
"You will be surprised at the number of children that lack attention from home," Cooper said. "And you can tell the ones that don't get it, because those are the ones that come to you all the time, and they want a hug."
Click here if you'd like to find out more information about volunteering.
