Studio City : Volunteers Honored as Family Friends

Tim Kroll carries a picture of 10-year-old Emily in his wallet, and he pulls it out at luncheons just as a real grandfather would.

A Winnetka resident, Kroll was one of about 40 “volunteer grandparents” from the Family Friends Project of Los Angeles honored at the Sportsmen’s Lodge on Sunday for their work with disabled and critically ill children and their families.

“I just like kids,” said Kroll, 73, who had retired from selling medical supplies in 1989 when he decided to volunteer. After meeting Emily, who cannot speak because of a rare neurological disorder, Kroll decided he wanted to visit her school, the Lokrantz Special Education Center in Reseda.

After seeing Emily and her classmates, Kroll recalled deciding: “That’s what I got to do. I’ve got to work with these kids.” His volunteering work at the school led to a part-time job there as a preschool assistant. And he still sees Emily every Thursday and takes the youngster and her two sisters shopping and to the movies.

“I don’t see the disability as much as I see the child,” Kroll said.

The North Hollywood-based Family Friends Project has 86 volunteers who work with families throughout Los Angeles. Volunteers from the group take children to doctors’ appointments and on other trips, giving the parents a respite from their constant care giving or more time with their other children.

Jackie Schlocker, 61, of Van Nuys had pushed to become a volunteer eight years ago, even though she was too young. The group’s volunteer grandparents program is only open to those 55 and older.

“This appealed to me immediately,” Schlocker said. “I have no children, but I have a husband and I have dogs.”

Schlocker has worked with children paralyzed by automobile accidents and stricken with leukemia. Often, she spent hours in hospitals with their families.

“I was able to be there when they needed someone,” Schlocker said. “I tried to be on call for them. I was glad I did it, but it was hard emotionally.”

For information about the volunteer grandparents program, call (818) 761-3447.