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SENIORS HELPING SENIORS HAYS, Kan. (July 1, 2000 12:01 a.m. EDT http://www.nandotimes.com) - Paying the bills. Balancing the checkbook. Shopping for groceries. Going to the doctor. They all sound like routine chores, but they can be overwhelming for seniors with health problems. For those struggling to accomplish life's daily tasks, the senior companion program in a nine-county area of west-central Kansas can help. The program was one of the first in the nation when it began at Fort Hays State University 26 years ago. Funded by a federal grant, the project connects poor, elderly Kansans who can still get around with those who often need help just to leave home. It provides a friend for elderly people who need one, plus a small stipend and other fringe benefits for the companions. "The whole focus of the program is to get older people on limited incomes involved in providing services to other frail elderly folk to help them stay independent," said Jolene Niernberger, the program's director. About 150 volunteers have served more than 500 seniors already this year, Niernberger said. Among the volunteers are Harold and Annabelle Woodford, who have been involved with the program for several years. They have been forced to cut back lately because she has cancer. Harold Woodford is a companion to Art, an 86-year-old man who is partially blind and had a knee replaced last year. He and Art go out for coffee and to the grocery store. He also takes him to the doctor, to get his hair cut, and for physical therapy. "We just generally have a good time. We enjoy one another," Woodford said. Annabelle Woodford added: "I'd be hard-pressed to say who has benefited the most in that. Unfortunately, my condition has limited him." He squeezes all that in between taking his wife for chemotherapy and her own doctors' visits. "She's been my best friend for over 51 years," he said. Harold Woodford, 74, has been helping out with cooking, even making macaroni and cheese from scratch, too, since his wife has been ill. "Have you ever burned water? I have," he joked, leaning in a rocking chair in their ranch-style Hays home. The companion program also helps them pay medical bills, since not all treatments are covered by Medicare. Annabelle Woodford, a white scarf around her head, trying not to doze because of the medication she's taking, said she still finds energy to be a companion now and then. For some, she helps balance checkbooks and pay bills, especially widows whose husbands always handled the finances. To others, she just reads the newspaper or a book. "They're able in their own way. They like to be self-sufficient," she said. At the urging of Sen. Larry Salmans, the state added $25,000 to the program for the fiscal year beginning July 1. "I see it as something that could help across the state, what's really just a good neighbor helping another neighbor," said Salmans, R-Hanston. "It's going on in a lot of small communities already, but this is a way to organize it and get people together." Niernberger hopes that money can help the program expand beyond the nine counties where it already operates. "My hope is at some point, companions could be available throughout the state," she said. "They're not there to be aides or nurses. But we can do some simple things on a daily basis." Annabelle Woodford, 71, used to volunteer at nursing homes anyway, but a year ago officially became a senior companion. Pauline Rosebaugh, meanwhile, has been a companion for 18 years, and her mother was a companion before her. On a day of her supposed vacation from volunteering, Rosebaugh stopped to sing the praises of the program. But that was only after she brought one woman home from the hospital and before she ran to the grocery store for another. Rosebaugh, 78, often brings prayer books to encourage people on her visits. Sometimes she just sits with them, reading or watching television. "Big hugs mean a lot," she said. "They love that attention. We're ones that can love them." Rosebaugh said she gets lonely on weekends, wondering how everyone is getting along. The volunteers said all their efforts pay off in the end. "The nice thing to me is the old folks have people that make them feel needed," said Annabelle Woodford. "They have a way of working themselves into your heart."