The Road to Connection: How NV Rides steers volunteerism in NoVA Jewish community

When Mike Perel retired from his career in highway safety research, he didn’t walk away from the road. He simply changed his route. 

Now, instead of studying drivers, he’s behind the wheel himself as a volunteer with the J’s NV Rides program, a volunteer transportation network offering rides, connection, and dignity to older adults who can no longer drive.

As part of the J’s community impact work, NV Rides pairs older adults, mostly in their 70s-80s, with community members willing to give them a lift. Passengers are often driven to doctors’ offices, pharmacies, and grocery stores. The impact of each ride extends far beyond mileage.

“Some of the riders have really fascinating backgrounds,” Mike shares. “One that stands out is a 100-year-old World War II veteran. His story was incredible. And he was just so grateful for a simple ride. Those moments stay with you. They change you.”

The J started NV Rides in 2014, recognizing how many older adults in Northern Virginia were facing mobility challenges. Since then, our network has grown across four counties, powered by hundreds of volunteers who give their time, and their hearts, to others.

In the past fiscal year alone, our volunteers provided 22,284 services (including rides, visits, and deliveries), served 1,105 older adults, and gave 23,230 hours of their time, driving 211,369 miles — the equivalent of circling the Earth more than eight times! We even helped fund 240 taxi rides for clients needing extra support.

We don’t do this work alone. NV Rides thrives through partnerships with incredible local organizations — nonprofits, faith communities, and service groups — like the Shepherd’s Center of Fairfax-Burke, which provided more than 2,400 rides last year, averaging over 200 rides each month. Their Executive Director, Beth Kilgore-Robinson, credits us with making that scale possible.

“Without the support from Pozez JCC, we wouldn’t be able to coordinate as many rides as we do,” she says. “It’s a game-changer for a small nonprofit like ours.”

Beth, who often volunteers as a driver herself, emphasizes that a lack of transportation often results in limited access to healthcare.

“By training, I’m a social worker. I’ve seen what happens when someone has basic insurance but no way to get to a doctor or a dentist or even the grocery store,” she explains. “Transportation is a part of healthcare. Without it, people lose access to medical care, socialization, and even basic necessities. NV Rides fills that gap.”

That connection is what drives us, too. 

“It goes way beyond actual driving,” says Zina Segal, our senior director of community impact and engagement. “The rides get seniors to where they need to go. But the connections between riders and drivers are what make this program truly transformative. Volunteers often tell us how much it fills them up, how much it means to be part of something bigger.”

Behind every mile, there’s a web of care and coordination that keeps NV Rides moving. At the J, we provide funding, support, and scheduling software that helps volunteers choose rides that fit their time, distance, and comfort level. This flexibility allows people like Mike and Beth to help when they can and to build real relationships with the people they serve.

“We built our system to empower our volunteers,” says Elena Alergant, our NV Rides manager. “They can drive once a month or five times a week. Some even request the same riders because they’ve become friends. There’s one volunteer who always asks to be paired with a specific older woman, and now they go grocery shopping and have lunch together. It’s beautiful.”

The support that the J provides to partners like the Shepherd’s Center of Fairfax-Burke extends far beyond the software.

“Elena is incredibly helpful,” Beth says. “She represented us at a volunteer fair when I couldn’t attend, and when we hosted a dementia training for all our volunteers, Elena arranged for us to use space at the JCC at no cost. We’re truly grateful to Elena and the Pozez JCC for everything they do.”

For Elena, the work is personal.

“When I moved here from Moscow 10 years ago, I didn’t drive,” she says. “I was homebound. It was isolating. And I know how life-changing it is when someone offers you a ride. When I finally got a car, it was like the world opened up. That’s what we’re doing here: we’re opening the world up for older adults again.”

This kind of deeply personal, values-driven work is no accident. In 2022, we began implementing a strategic plan at the J to expand social impact through volunteerism. The philosophy behind it is grounded in tikkun olam, the Jewish principle of “repairing the world.”

This year alone, volunteers of the J’s Volunteer Services logged 3,413 hours.

“Every volunteer opportunity we offer includes space for reflection and learning,” Zina explains. “If someone is volunteering at a food bank, we talk about food insecurity. If they’re driving for NV Rides, we talk about aging, transportation barriers, and dignity. And always, we connect it back to Jewish values, to why this work matters not just to the community, but to the soul.”

For Mike Perel, it all comes back to one powerful truth: losing the ability to drive is one of the most devastating losses an older adult can experience.

“When I was working in highway safety research, I often heard that doctors found it harder to tell patients they had to stop driving than to tell them they had cancer,” he recalls. “That’s how much driving is tied to our independence. The Pozez JCC’s NV Rides program gives people some of that independence back, and I’m grateful I get to be part of it.”

As shared by many of our NV Rides volunteers, it is clear how effortlessly they are able to gift independence to someone in need. The simple act of offering a ride is not just providing transportation, but offering dignity, connection, and a moment of shared community. This generous, low-effort exchange transforms a logistical trip into a profound act of service, proving that the simplest gestures can carry the deepest meaning.

To learn more about giving the gift of mobility and becoming a volunteer driver, visit https://thej.org/volunteer/volunteer-ride-program.