St. Albert Victim Services is hoping to attract more members to its ranks by adding to its board and its group of victims’ advocates.
The agency is making a major push to add to the organization, hoping to roughly double its existing roster.
Delilah Lazarenko, the program co-ordinator for the agency, said the program needs the volunteers to continue to be able to provide services and make it a manageable commitment for the volunteers it already has.
Working with the RCMP, the agency provides support to victims of crime or people dealing with tragedies from the moment the bad news is delivered, right through the court process if needed.
The volunteer advocates are the front line workers in this effort and Lazarenko said they would like to increase the current number of advocates from eight to about 16.
“We are looking for someone as a victim advocate to work with the victims at that moment when a tragedy happens.”
She said it is important to have a full roster of people available because tragedy can strike at any time.
“We need that coverage in case there is that crisis at 2, 3, 4 a.m.”
She said the ideal person for this role would be someone with a real ability to show compassion.
“We really look for people that have that empathy and that caring for others,” she said. “You really do a lot of listening to where these people are coming from and what is happening to them.”
Many of the victims the agency works with might be living far from home or for some other reason don’t have a lot of support available to them.
“Sometimes we are the only connection that they have, because they don’t have any family members that are close by,” said Lazarenko.
The agency has a current seven-member board and is looking to bring that list up to about 12.
She said board members work on fundraising efforts and help to oversee the organization and generally have to be able to provide about four to five hours per month of their time.
Applications for both positions can be found at the RCMP detachment or people can call 780-458-4353.
