What to Expect as a Volunteer

What to Expect as a Volunteer

Crisis Center Volunteers represent a very diverse cross-section of the community - students, professionals, business owners, homemakers, teachers, retirees and so on. They range in age from 20 to 60+, with varying degrees of experience, backgrounds and training. Volunteers have in common a desire to help others, a willingness to give of themselves, and an investment of their time, energy and emotions in an endeavor they believe is worthwhile.

Volunteer Phone Counselors are trained to respond with confidence in an empathetic, caring manner. Empathy and care are expressed from the first words of greeting spoken by the Crisis Counselor to the closing of the call. The Phone Counselor is trained to be sufficiently knowledgeable of the referral information and references utilized by the Center. By the time a volunteer candidate becomes a Phone Counselor, they have been deemed capable of performing these duties with minimal assistance. However, the Volunteer is never alone in the system. There are layers of supervision and support. A Volunteer knows they can quickly and easily consult with supervisors at the Center. In fact, there are circumstances under which the Volunteer should always consult as a matter of policy. Additionally, the Center hosts regularly scheduled community spaces and in-services to provide support and growth for our Volunteers.

Being a Volunteer Phone Counselor can be one of the most rewarding and enlightening experiences a person can have. It provides an excellent opportunity for personal growth, increased self-awareness, and improved sensitivity to others. In fact, many of our volunteers choose to promote to other roles within the center (such as being a part of the Mobile Crisis Response) once they complete the 6-month volunteer commitment.