Advocates wanted

Times Reporter    

 

In the time of a crisis, having someone listen or be there for you can make a huge impact. That’s why the Strathmore Regional Victim Services Society is always looking to add new advocates to its ranks.  

Victim Services has been available in Strathmore for 17 years this upcoming spring. It began as a phone crisis support system and has since evolved into what it is today. The Strathmore office is located at the RCMP detachment and also serves Gleichen and Chestermere and areas in between. 

“You get to feel that you made a difference in someone’s life when they’re in a real crisis situation. They may not remember your face or your name but they’ll remember that there was someone there that helped them through those first few hours and that’s a really good feeling,” said Lesley Hering Program Coordinator for Strathmore Regional Victim Services.

The advocates are all volunteer and help with a number of different types of cases from a sexual assault file, to a fatal vehicle collision, sudden death, or a house fire among many other things. The advocates also help with court appointments, court preparation and will even accompany the victim to court. 

The extensive training is one of the perks to becoming an advocate. The training involves learning about domestic violence, sexual assault and homicide. 

“So really cool kind of interesting things on the surface, messy and emotional (when) it becomes personal. You get to learn about a lot of really cool stuff, and we send you on training as well,” said Hering. 

“So there’s the core training that’s online and then you get to go get trained on First Aid and CPR, you need to do some grief training, some suicide training and a tour of the local shelter, extra stuff.” 

Another perk, said Hering, is getting to work with an amazing group of advocates. She said they are warm, compassionate and fun people so there is the opportunity to make great new friends, and you get a cool jacket. 

The requirements to become an advocate for Victim Services are you must be over the age of 18, be a Canadian citizen, be able to pass a security check and have a functional, reliable vehicle. Being able to commit for a few years is also necessary. 

“We want to know that they’re going to be around for at least two years because we’re going to be training them backwards and forwards, we want to get some return on our investment. The on-call requirement is 72 hours a month,” said Hering. 

The role of Victim Services is to assist the victim in getting their story out. Victims feel powerless and it’s the advocate’s role to help the victim regain that power and give them the information and tools to get back in control. 

For more information go to www.strathmoreregionalvictimservices.com