CAROL PORTH -- For a good cause

Story by Mathis Winkler

“Good morning, Catherine. How are you today?”

Over the past 11 years, Carol Porth has asked that question thousands

of times. While the names might vary, the concept stays the same. As a

volunteer at the Oasis Senior Center in Newport Beach, Porth calls

elderly residents every Thursday to check on them and make sure they’re

fine.

“If I call somebody and they sound depressed or blue, then I make a

note and Vikki [Chin, a social services coordinator,] calls them,” the

Porth, 86, said during a brief break between calls.

Porth logs all calls in a folder, which includes files for 14 seniors.

If she talks to the person on the phone, she marks off the day and writes

down some comments about the conversation. The people she doesn’t catch

on the first try are called again later.

While Porth has talked to some of the seniors on the phone for more

than a decade, she’s never met any of them in person.

“They would have to come in and most of them can’t come in,” she said.

Porth, a retired senior quality engineer for an electronics company,

began volunteering at the center in 1983, after her neighbor urged her to

come along.

“When you work all your life, you don’t know your neighbors,” she

said. “After working, you need an anchor. And that was my anchor.”

Although Porth said she can’t, and shouldn’t, replace expert medical

advice, she’s made suggestions in the past.

“Good morning, Cora. How are you today?” said Porth, checking in on

another person on her list. “Your chest doesn’t feel free. . . . Cora, do

you have an inhaler? The reason I say that is because I use an inhaler. .

. . When that cold drags on, I want you to be sure and see a doctor, OK?”

After hanging up the phone, Porth seems concerned about the woman.

“She’s coughing. She shouldn’t cough,” she said. “When I call her next

week, I’ll see whether she’s gone to see the doctor.”

While she’s still able to come to the center and volunteer, Porth said

she knows she might need someone to return the favor one day.

“Who knows how many years I am before someone calls me?” asked Porth,

adding that her husband, James, died in August.

“I find that coming up here helps me adjust to my recent status,” she

said.

But then, she picked up the phone again and returned to work.

“This is George,” she said while waiting for the man to pick up on the

other end of the line. “George is always OK. George is always fine. . . .

Good morning, George. . . . You’re fine. We like to hear that. Someone

will call you again tomorrow.”

FYI

Newport Beach residents interested in participating in the Reassurance

Telephone Program at the Oasis Senior Center should call (949) 644-3244.