ABOUT US
For over 52 years, we've been showing up,
one phone call at a time.
OUR MISSION:
CONTACT Cape-Atlantic provides free telephone reassurance and community support to seniors, people with disabilities, and anyone who is lonely or living in isolation, connecting them to a friendly voice, every week, at no cost.
OUR VISION:
A community where every person feels connected, cared for, and valued.
CONNECTED
We match every client with a dedicated volunteer who calls on a regular schedule. Building a real, ongoing relationship, not just a check-in.
CARED FOR
Our volunteers are trained, compassionate, and consistent. We also connect clients to community resources, monitor personal emergency response systems, and train community members to recognize when a neighbor needs help.
VALUED
Every person we serve matters. Our calls aren't transactions, they're conversations. We believe that being heard is a fundamental human need, and we show up to meet it every single week.
OUR IMPACT
3M+
Phone calls made
500+
Volunteers
7,000
Monthly reassurance calls
$0
Cost to every client
OUR STORY
How It Started
In 1973, a group of volunteers in South Jersey saw a need and answered it. CONTACT Cape-Atlantic was founded as a telephone crisis helpline, entirely volunteer-run, entirely free, and entirely committed to the belief that a phone call could change someone's day.
Many of those early volunteers were older adults themselves. They knew what it meant to live alone, and they were determined to make sure their neighbors didn't have to face it without support. From the beginning, CONTACT was built on something simple: connection matters.
How We Grew
By 1987, CONTACT Cape-Atlantic had shifted its focus entirely to telephone reassurance, providing regular, scheduled calls to older adults, people with disabilities, and anyone experiencing loneliness or isolation. The goal wasn't crisis intervention. It was something quieter and just as important: making sure people knew someone was thinking of them.
Over the years, we attracted volunteers who shared a core belief: that a conversation can reduce loneliness, strengthen communities, and ultimately save lives. That belief still drives everything we do.
What We Do Today
Today, CONTACT Cape-Atlantic is home to 150 active volunteers making approximately 7,000 reassurance calls every month to an average of 200 clients per day, across New Jersey.
In addition to our core telephone reassurance program, we:
Provide monthly check-in calls to individuals using personal emergency response systems (PERS), ensuring their devices are working and following up on any needs
Run the Gatekeeper Program, training community members, mail carriers, utility workers, neighbors, to recognize when an older adult may need help and take prompt action
Connect clients and their families to local services and resources
Educate the broader community about the needs of older adults and people with disabilities, building a culture of care across South Jersey.
We have a Executive Director and a Reassurance Coordinator. Everything else? Volunteers.
Want to be Part of the Story?
Whether you're looking for connection or want to provide it, there's a place for you at CONTACT Cape-Atlantic.