Catholic Charities' Crisis Response and Support Network (CRSN) is in urgent need of volunteers to serve as First Responder Crisis Counselors - providing compassionate support to the families and friends of homicide victims in Oakland.
These volunteers are the heart and soul of their support system for homicide survivors. They respond to calls from the Oakland Police Department and CRSN First Responder Team Leaders and go the scene of homicides, hospitals and the homes of survivors to provide immediate support in the first hours following the traumatic death of a loved one. They are part of what we call a "ministry of presence" and are trained to provide information that helps families understand what is going in, but most of all they function as a compassionate friend offering practical support.
First Responders are "on-call" during hours they identify but must be prepared to respond to a call-out and arrive at the designated location within 30-45 minutes. Volunteers should be comfortable moving about and working in Oakland neighborhoods being impacted by violence. The overwhelming majority of cases involve African American and Latino families
and volunteers need to be able to interact effectively with these traumatized survivors.
First Responders work in teams and the need is great for men and bilingual volunteers.
CRSN provides training and substantial support to all of their crisis volunteers. This is difficult work and the goal is to build a cadre large enough for volunteers to be on-call no more than one week or one week-end every month or two.
Right now the need is urgent. The homicide rate has gone up and the number of cases CRSN is being called upon to support has increased accordingly.
For more information, please call Millie Burns at (510) 768-3188 or e-mail her at mburns@cceb.org
These volunteers are the heart and soul of their support system for homicide survivors. They respond to calls from the Oakland Police Department and CRSN First Responder Team Leaders and go the scene of homicides, hospitals and the homes of survivors to provide immediate support in the first hours following the traumatic death of a loved one. They are part of what we call a "ministry of presence" and are trained to provide information that helps families understand what is going in, but most of all they function as a compassionate friend offering practical support.
First Responders are "on-call" during hours they identify but must be prepared to respond to a call-out and arrive at the designated location within 30-45 minutes. Volunteers should be comfortable moving about and working in Oakland neighborhoods being impacted by violence. The overwhelming majority of cases involve African American and Latino families
and volunteers need to be able to interact effectively with these traumatized survivors.
First Responders work in teams and the need is great for men and bilingual volunteers.
CRSN provides training and substantial support to all of their crisis volunteers. This is difficult work and the goal is to build a cadre large enough for volunteers to be on-call no more than one week or one week-end every month or two.
Right now the need is urgent. The homicide rate has gone up and the number of cases CRSN is being called upon to support has increased accordingly.
For more information, please call Millie Burns at (510) 768-3188 or e-mail her at mburns@cceb.org
Comments
Catholic Charities of the East Bay with its collaborative of organizations including the Khadafy Foundation, S.A.V.O.Y, the Lovelife Foundation and faith based groups will organize, recruit, train and support a volunteer workforce comprised of 75 respected and competent members of targeted Oakland neighborhoods. ... Catholic Charities will hire a Program Director, two Outreach Workers and volunteers in the collaborative will receive stipends for the services they provide.
http://clerkwebsvr1.oaklandnet.com/attachments/15368.pdf