Elsie Adamo
LIFELINE South East needs more volunteers to become crisis supporters, answering calls that are made to the crisis hotline.
Jeff Hodge, the centre supervisor and crisis supporter trainer, said that the organisation had their highest ever number of incoming calls on New Year’s Day, and more volunteers are needed to make sure calls are answered.
“People are scared, or have been locked up for long periods,” he said.
“There are a lot of people who are in need of help.”
There are currently 25 volunteers manning the phones in Mount Gambier but Mr Hodge said ideally there would be 50 crisis supporters.
“It is not nearly enough,” he said.
“We would want as many [volunteers] as we can.”
Crisis supporters are there to listen and help anyone who rings the Lifeline hotline, and Mr Hodge said it is the most rewarding thing he has ever done.
“We firmly believe that 10 minutes of kindness can be enough to keep going for another day,” Mr Hodge said.
“We are about giving an emotional hug to people who are really struggling.”
Mr Hodge said that if being a crisis supporter seems daunting, do not be dissuaded.
“The training gives you the confidence to be able to work with any crisis that comes through the phones,” he said.
“Every single person I have trained over the years have said ‘oh, it is way easier than I thought it would be’.”
While call centres in the cities may get hundreds of applicants for only 30 crisis support volunteering positions, Lifeline South East SA only had a cohort of three for their last training.
Anyone interested in volunteering will be asked to make a one-year commitment to the organisation, which is how long it will take to complete the overall program.
For more details on opportunities contact Lifeline South East directly.
The next information session will be held next Tuesday and training will begin the following week.
