Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteers donated more than 5,100 hours - the equivalent of two additional staff positions - for A Safe Place/ Lake County Crisis Center last year. Their dedication and enthusiasm was channeled in many directions such as at the Lake County Courthouse where they double the size of A Safe Place's staff on any given day to help domestic violence victims prepare paperwork to obtain orders of protection and accompany them into courtrooms as emotional support.
Volunteers augment staff in answering the not-for-profit agency's 24-hour help line, often the first step a victim of domestic violence will take in reaching out for comfort and assistance in escaping an abusive relationship. They assist children's counseling in mentoring the many child witnesses who accompany their mothers into A Safe Place’s emergency/temporary shelter program, reading storybooks to preschoolers and helping older children with homework.
Other volunteers give of their time by providing staff relief in phone/reception duties or by preparing large mailings several times a year.
"The history of volunteerism at A Safe Place truly goes back to our beginnings," notes Executive Director Phyllis DeMott, "when members of the first board of directors and other volunteers would arrive at the shelter's door early each morning, asking 'What can I do?' and jumping right in to answer phone calls or rustling up a meal for residents. Volunteers are as essential to us today as they were 25 years ago. Our programs and the number of people we serve have grown immensely. The continued response and commitment of the many communities we serve in Lake, McHenry and northern Cook counties are what enable A Safe Place to answer the needs of battered women and their children."
To begin the volunteer process, please fill out the application and background check forms and mail them along with three letters of personal reference to A Safe Place, Attn: Volunteer Specialist. For more information on the next 40-hour Volunteer Training, please contact our Volunteer Specialist, at 847.731.7165 ext. 108.
