Partners in care (PIC) |
 |
Almost from our beginning nearly thirty years ago, volunteers – both men and women, have been an integral part of the Atlantic County Women’s Center. We couldn’t provide the level of service we currently offer without the care and support of the community we serve. Here are some ways that you can volunteer your time and make a difference at the ACWC. If you are sixteen years of age or older and interested, please complete our “Volunteer Application” and click “Send”. An ACWC representative will contact you within the business week to discuss your activities and schedule an interview.
Volunteer
activities are broken down into two areas: shelter advocacy services
which require some degree of training and confidentiality, and more general
Agency, clerical or event activities that require little or no training.
Both types of service are described below. If you have an avocation,
interest or skill not listed, but which you feel may benefit the ACWC – please
let us know! Whichever volunteer activity you choose, please know that
your time and efforts are much appreciated and will help us further our
services to the families of this community seeking safer, happier and
healthier lives.
Trained Volunteer Activities:
The ACWC provides a forty hour training program for the following activities:
Sexual Assault Crisis Counselor
Provide compassionate support and advocacy to sexual assault victims at hospitals and police stations. As part of the SART (Sexual Assault Response Team), your help is the first line of emotional aid to our clients.
Shelter
Services
Shelter volunteers staff our 24-Hour crisis hotline and provide advocacy-based support, information, and resource and referral services for domestic violence and sexual assault. Volunteers become familiar with the safety net of services offered by municipal and State Agencies and by other non-profit organizations.
Legal Advocacy
Volunteers familiar with the legal system are an invaluable resource to our shelter clients. A volunteer advocate can provide information, help with paperwork, provide emotional support, accompany clients to court hearings and effectively navigate the client through the criminal justice system.
Community Education
As part of our mission of empowerment, the ACWC is often involved with
presentations for service groups, clubs, schools and other community
organizations and agencies. A community education volunteer will be both
a 
representative
and Women’s Center advocate and assist with presentations, projects
and events, (such as, “Shattering the Silence”, our annual
sexual assault awareness workshop).
Children’s Advocacy
Help is always needed to assist with children’s activities in our residential (shelter) program. A children’s volunteer will provide support with children while our Moms are attending shelter group sessions, court or meetings.
General Agency Volunteer Activities:
Even though the following activities do not require forty hours of training, the ACWC asks that interested volunteers (both male and female), submit to a short interview/orientation. Our expectation is to familiarize all volunteers with our services and to also gain an understanding of their skills and interests.
Clerical Work
If you can type and have a working knowledge of basic computer programs, (Microsoft Word, Excel, Works or Access), the ACWC needs your help. Volunteer opportunities also exist for other clerical duties such as, filing, copying and collating Agency materials.
Maintenance
and Repairs
Cleaning, packing boxes, rug shampooing, painting and light carpentry are some activities in this category. Do you like to makes things shine? Tackle a small repair project? Please let us know.
Donation Pick-up
As the ACWC relies on the generosity of our community to sustain our efforts and support their needs, we, in turn, must rely on the help of concerned individuals. Volunteers are always needed to pick-up, drop-off and sort donated items. This can be an on-call or as-needed activity for someone with a small truck, SUV or minivan.
Special Events
Throughout the year, the ACWC holds funding raising events to raise community awareness and bring in additional revenue. Some special events activities include: distributing flyers, helping to prepare mass mailings, publicity, selling tickets or promotional items and staffing at the event. Since these activities occur every few months, please contact us for updates.
Gardening
Do you have a green thumb that’s just itching to do some good? We have a small plot of untended land that would benefit from a volunteer’s loving care. Also, if you or someone you know can donate flowers, bushes, benches and anything else that would make this fallow ground into a garden, we would be very appreciative.
Volunteer
Events
If you love to organize your own events, you may want to consider holding a bake sale, car wash, flea market, contests…etc. to benefit the ACWC. We will provide you with brochures, flyers and help you in anyway that we can to ensure that this is both a successful and fun activity. Also, if you have a craft that you can market on our behalf, please let us know.
Classroom Facilitator
The ACWC's WomenSource Training Institute is looking for volunteers interested in teaching classes in any of the following areas:
- Women's issues
- Childcare
- Employment Skills
- Financial Information
For more information, please call 609 601 9925 ext. 208.
Translators
Both our Child Care Network and VIP Programs often require the services of a bi-lingual, (Spanish or Hispanic), translator. Since the VIP translator would interact with our residential clients, some training would be involved. In addition to this, CCN seeks to have some of their forms translated to meet the needs of a bi-lingual community. For more information, please contact Andrea Ples 609-601-9925 Ext. 208 or at aples1@netzero.com.
Accountant
The ACWC is seeking a pro bono accountant willing to commit to 3 – 6 hours of volunteer work per month. If you have a degree in Accounting, please contact Caren Fitzpatrick at 609-601-9925 Ext. 207.
Facilities
If you are a weekend fixit fan, our Facilities Administrator needs a volunteer who can help repair or assemble furniture, inventory building repairs and organize storage areas. As this volunteer activity involves moderately strenuous activities, we ask that you be in good physical condition with the ability to comfortably lift fifteen pounds. If interested, please contact Andrea Ples 609-601-9925 Ext. 208 or at aples1@netzero.com.
Computer Services
The ACWC is frequently in need of a specialist able to detect computer hardware and software problems and resolve them. Also, to install and upgrade staff software programs. Beyond this, WomenSouce seeks computer facilitators to augment the computer classes currently offered to our client population. If you have the time for any of these activities, please contact Andrea Ples 609-601-9925 Ext. 208 or at aples1@netzero.com.
How to Volunteer?
You can print and mail the application in. Click here to Print Application
Or, you can fill the application out on-line. Click here to go to our on-line application.