NASA’s Earth Observatory recently posted this image of a huge dust storm off the northern coast of Egypt. This MODIS image was acquired on September 25, 2008. For all my colleagues in Cairo, I hope that you were able to stay indoors for this storm!

As we announced today on our News site, NiJeL and Beatitudes Center DOAR, a north-Phoenix based nonprofit serving homebound elders and adults with disabilities, are proud to release the Center DOAR Map, an online mapping application that shows in real-time the locations of homebound elders who need volunteer assistance. Two online maps are available today – an “ongoing services” map, which shows volunteer opportunities for things like help with grocery shopping and computer assistance, and a “transportation services” map, showing homebound elders who need a ride to things like a doctor’s appointment. These two maps can be found on the web at http://maps.nijel.org/centerdoar/.  Funding for these web-based maps was generously granted by The Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust.

With these maps, we are hoping to make it easier for current and potential volunteers with Beatitudes Center DOAR to see who exactly in their neighborhood needs help right now. The Center DOAR Map is directly linked to Beatitudes Center DOAR’s database, so when a homebound elder requests a service, that information is recorded in the database and those changes are reflected on the maps. Volunteers will have the most updated picture of who needs services in their neighborhood, and they will be able to proactively ask for volunteer assignments since they now have real-time access to volunteer opportunities near them.

Give our Center DOAR Map a try today!