Lethbridge Police Services call for Victim Services volunteers

By Ry Clarke - Lethbridge Herald Local Journalism Initiative Reporter on September 3, 2022.

Lethbridge Police Services has opened its application process for the volunteer Victim/Witness Services Unit, running from Sept. 1 until Oct. 10.

As part of the annual recruitment, members of the community are being asked to consider joining this critical first responder team of volunteers as crisis support workers. This year LPS will be looking to add around 20 individuals to its team, saying it takes around 60 people to ensure the V/WSU can deliver 24-hour support year-round.

“It’s a fairly involved process to recruit for Victim Services, because we need to have people that are not just eager to be on our team, but also well suited for the team,” said Catherine Pooley, program manager for V/WSU. “We look for people that are ready to be empathetic and compassionate for the community. We also look for someone who has the strength in their resiliency to be able to do this work and have it be a benefit to them, not something that is hard on them.”

Victim Services are first responders who are called out to the scenes when incidents are happening, based on needs determined by the officers. The work involves follow up support with people, staying with them while they navigate their way through the criminal justice process while dealing with police, courts, and making sure information and support is where it is needed. Volunteers will also provide referrals, acute crisis support, and simply being there for people when they are experiencing a tough time.

“We look for people who are able to give us a minimum of two 12-hour shifts a month. These shifts are on-call. You are not in the police station for that entire amount of time. It means that you are ready to respond to a call should there be a need for you,” said Pooley. “You would have a few hours in the office doing follow up support, but 12 hours on call two shifts per month, a maximum of 24 hours in a month, to be able to meet the requirements.”

Applications are being accepted online at forms.office.com/r/YFfLKkhwHA.

“It’s a little different this year. Previously, we used to have printed application forms, people had to fill that out and get it back to us. This year, we’ve done an online application, which should save people a ton of time and make it a whole lot easier to put your name in the hat to apply,” said Pooley, adding the interview process is a two-way street with applicants determining if this is a good option for them to be able to donate their time, while ecognizing volunteers are the lifeblood of this program.

“Without them we would not be able to support people to the degree that we do. We open thousands of files every year and we want to make sure that we have the right people to do this job.”

Pooley also notes volunteering for this service is a great opportunity for those looking for careers in fields like this.

“If you are thinking of a career as a police officer, or if you are thinking of a career as a counsellor, this is a really great opportunity to get some boots-on-the-ground experience,” said Pooley. “It’s a huge benefit to the people that volunteer in their future careers. But it’s not just for students, whether you’re retired and looking for an opportunity to give back, or a chance to be connected to the community.”

For more information you can contact Pooley at 403-330-5023 or Catherine.pooley@lethbridgepolice.ca.

“We genuinely could not run this program without our volunteers. The amount of gratitude we have for them is (abundant). We really want our team to reflect the community that we support. This is a really good opportunity for volunteers to be here and make sure that we have a good reflection of the city of Lethbridge,” said Pooley.