Members of the Jefferson City Evening Rotary Club spent the past couple of days distributing digital tablets to eight nursing facilities in the city - four for each.
The 32 Amazon Fire tablets are intended to help residents of the nursing homes to meet online with their families and physicians.
Club President Joe Meysrik arrived at Heisinger Bluffs - a Lutheran Senior Services complex on West Main Street - with four of the devices in hand late Tuesday morning.
The club sought the matching grant from Rotary District 6080 by presenting the idea of getting tablets for the Jefferson City nursing facilities.
"My dad passed away in July," Meysrik said. "It was the height of COVID-19. He was on hospice. The nurses were kind enough to use their personal devices to allow him to make a FaceTime call to family members and things like that."
His father had very limited mobility, he said. Even using nurses' phones, he was unable to meet online with doctors.
"We knew he wasn't the only one out there. And COVID-19 has really wreaked havoc - in terms of getting people out to their physicians," Meysrik said. "If they have to go out, they have to be screened and quarantined."
The club realized it could help by providing devices that would allow people to connect virtually with family members, physicians and others - and "make the world a better place," he said.
The grant was about $2,500, which is enough to help the club purchase the 32 tablets. Each tablet came with a charger and protective case.
Heisinger Bluffs already had a few devices, but not nearly enough for all the residents at the facility, said Sarah March, administrator of independent living.
"This will allow multiple people to talk to their loved ones at the same time," March said.
Staff was also forced to limit how long residents could use the devices, because of demand.
"(We had) a lot of demand," March said. "When we were completely shut down, this was our only form of communication with loved ones."
Family members of some residents dropped off devices for their loved ones to use.
Staff had to learn to use every device manageable, March said.
The facility has opened up a little bit since the beginning of the pandemic and is allowing some physical visitation.
"This will still be helpful," she said, "and in the long term for loved ones who live far away."
Nearly 100 percent of residents in the facility have received both doses of the Moderna vaccine for COVID-19, she said. Licensed areas of the facility are 100 percent vaccinated, March said.
Residents of its independent living area are to receive second doses Friday.
Heisinger Bluffs has about 70 people in independent living and 45 in assisted living.