Volunteers
Compass House relies heavily on volunteers and interns to assist their mission to offer time in a safe supportive environment where youth can voluntarily make constructive decisions about their lives. We are always looking for Youth Counselor Assistant volunteers, Safe Place Volunteers, volunteer groups, community outreach volunteers and volunteers for our business office. Each opportunity is unique and invaluable to Compass House. In addition to a regular weekly commitment from volunteers, we are also looking for people to drop of a meal or offer to make a meal at the shelter. This could be done on a monthly basis or as often or as little as your time allows. Additionally, if you're interested in accompanying the kids on a field trip, that could be arranged as well. Just give us a call at 886-1351.
Read the volunteer opportunites below, then click on the link at the end of this page to apply.
Youth Counselor Assistant
The primary activities of Youth Counselor Assistant volunteers and interns are that of providing direct service to residents at the shelter. All volunteers/interns are screened both in-house and by the New York State Child Abuse Registry. In addition, all volunteers must complete the volunteer training program (usually minimum 4-6 hours, containing mandated Basic Child Abuse Prevention Training and Drug Free Work Environment Policy). Volunteer work is set in weekly shifts that are mutually determined. This set shift enables the volunteer program to link each volunteer with a specific staff member for supervision and direction. Volunteer/intern shifts are at least four hours long between 11:00 am and 11:00 pm.
Volunteer/interns are trained and work in the following areas:
- Providing supervision for client recreational activities
- In-house games, crafts, etc.
- Field trips, movies, annual hayride, etc.
- Helping youth with chores, homework, apartment searches, etc.
- Independent living skills (cooking, cleaning, budgeting)
- Employment skills (reading the want ads, interviewing, etc.)
- To empower youth by building self-esteem, providing experiences which can lead to success, working on problem solving and decision making skills
- Through modeling, being a role model
- By being a supportive person
- Enlisting listening skills
- Between adults and peers
- Providing advocacy and accession community services
- Learning how to do intakes and day-to-day counselor functions in both programs. (We often use experienced volunteers/interns as part-time, fill-in staff and have been known to hire them)
Group Volunteer Opportunities
 Compass House also has opportunities for groups to volunteer. We have group projects at the Compass House shelter year-round including: cleaning, painting, gardening, and sorting donations. We would also be interested in people coming in to hold groups on job hunting, interviewing, arts and crafts, and other topics of interest for teens. Groups can come in and simply prepare dinner and have a meal with the youth at the Resource Center. Great group volunteer activities also include working together to raise funds or collect donations for Compass House.
*Photograph: West Seneca Girl Scout Troop #1300 renovated the Compass House Art Room as part of their Silver Award project.
Safe Place Volunteer
The Safe Place volunteer serves as a liaison between Compass House and the designated Safe Place sites in the community. This is accomplished by providing immediate assistance to youth that seek help through Project Safe Place and transporting these youth to the shelter where trained counselors receive them.
Volunteer Functions:
§ The volunteer is dispatched by agency staff to Safe Place sites to meet with a youth in crisis.
§ The volunteer may also assist with the Safe Place program by assisting with events that make the community more aware of the program (e.g. – school presentations, festivals, fairs, civic meetings, corporate presentations and other trainings).
§ The volunteer serves as a good-will ambassador in the community to increase awareness of Safe Place and the services available to youth and families and to recruit more volunteers.
Volunteer Requirements:
Volunteers must meet the following criteria:
§ Must be at least 21 years of age.
§ Must have a positive criminal records check.
§ Must have a valid driver's license and current proof of insurance.
§ Must have good character references.
§ Must be genuinely concerned about youth in crisis.
Effect on end result:
§ Increase in number of youth receiving help through youth agency in the community.
§ Improve community awareness of the needs of youth.
§ Improve community awareness of the Safe Place/youth service agency.
§ Improve the effectiveness of agency staff through volunteer assistance with various intakes.
This is a terrific opportunity for adults who cannot commit to a specific 4-hour shift per week. We anticipate contacting volunteers a few times per year on an as-needed basis.
Business Office Volunteer
Perform business office tasks as needed such as copying and collating, filing, faxing, typing, etc. This is an opportunity for someone who is available during normal business hours and would be appropriate for a high school student 16 years of age or older.
Community Outreach Volunteer
We often set up informational tables at various community events such as the Erie County Fair, Boston Community Days, WNED Volunteer Fair, Buffalo State internship fair, etc. We need volunteers to set up, hand out information and tear down booth set up. Volunteers would be trained on Compass House and Safe Place and generally would be paired up with another, more experienced volunteer and/or staff member the first time out. These are sporadic events that take place around the county.
Click here to apply to be a volunteer!
For more information on any of these opportunities please contact Michelle Moore at 716-886-1351 or mailto:michellemoore@roadrunner.com
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