Page 49 - December 2019 FOP Magazine

Service to seniors earns Second District officer recognition
n BY ERIKA WURST
As a child, Second District Officer Daliah Goree tagged along after her grandparents to crochet classes and garage sales, spending much of her early life in the company of seniors.
So it should come as no surprise that, decades later, Goree would use her love for those at an advanced age to serve them in amazing ways. Now, as one of the district’s elderly service officers, Goree is breaking down walls for those she serves and protects while building relationships and trust.
Her efforts have not gone unnoticed. In September, she was named one of only two officers in the state to receive the Elderly Service Officer of the Year Award from Attorney General Kwame Raoul. This was her second time receiving the award.
“It felt great,” Goree said, adding that she simply treats those she interacts with the same way she’d treat her own grandpar- ents, who have since passed away. “I was humbled. I just real- ly like dealing with the seniors. When you have a passion for something, it comes naturally.”
She checks on them when the weather is too hot or if their children can’t reach them by phone. She throws parties with DJs who play music from their eras. And Goree has found that the events she helps facilitate, including resource fairs, scam aware- ness meetings and Thanksgiving dinners, make a huge differ- ence in the lives of these often forgotten residents.
Goree spent eight years in the Englewood community, work- ing as the senior liaison. She’s been in the Second District for about a year and a half. In that area, there are a host of senior citizen buildings where she must focus her attention. Building managers reach out to Goree when they become aware of a res- ident being taken advantage of, and Goree even talks to resi- dents about safe sex and STDs.
“It’s a touchy subject, but I make it fun,” she said, referring to seniors as born again teenagers. “But it really is a reality [in senior communities].”
Along with sex, scams and health scares, there are a slew of things to consider when dealing with the aging population. That being said, Goree wouldn’t change what she does for the world.
“Dealing with the senior population is not hard work because you know you have to do it, so you do it,” she said. “It’s our turn to take care of the seniors and give them some sense that some- body cares about them. They paved the way for us.”
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