Volunteers are needed to serve as community ambassadors for WISE in Lebanon. (Courtesy of WISE)
Volunteers are needed to serve as community ambassadors for WISE in Lebanon. (Courtesy of WISE) Credit: —Courtesy photograph

Lebanon — WISE, an organization that supports victims of gender-based violence in the Upper Valley, is looking for volunteers for a variety of positions, ranging from ambassadors to help spread the word about the organization to people to work the crisis hotline.

The organization is holding upcoming workshops for people who are interested in learning more about the organization or educating themselves about sexual and gender-based violence on a larger scale.

“I think people are more aware and more interested in how to understand the language (around gender-based violence),” said Stacey Glazer, the programs operation coordinator at WISE. “The volunteer trainings are really great to any community member who is interested in just making sense of what’s going on.”

There are a range of options for volunteers at WISE, but there are three roles in particular that volunteers are needed for. Ambassadors are needed to help work tables at community events to spread awareness about WISE’s mission. Court observers are needed to attend court proceedings to help support people who have experienced gender-based violence.

“They sit on the victim’s side and watch hearings as sign of support,” Glazer said.

A training for court observers will take place on Monday, March 5, from 9-11:30 a.m. at WISE’s program center at 38 Bank St. in Lebanon.

The most critical need is for volunteers to work the crisis hotline, which receives about 1,300 calls each year. During the day the line is answered by staff members, but volunteers insure that it can be kept open for 24 hours each day, even on weekends.

“Most of the people we speak with are victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking,” Glazer said. “They might need to talk, need help on safety planning, or need advice on filling out paperwork.”

Occasionally crisis line volunteers, known as advocates, are asked to meet a victim in person at a hospital or police station to offer support. Because advocates need a particular skill set, the training is fairly intensive. The 30-hour training is broken into two courses, which are each administered over three weeks.

The first training, Foundations of Gender Based Violence, begins on Thursday, March 8, and continues meeting on Mondays and Thursday from 6-8:30 p.m. until March 26. The second portion of the training, Supporting Survivors Training, begins on Thursday, March 29, and continues until April 19, also meeting at the WISE program center from 6-8:30 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays.

For more information or to register, contact WISE at 603-448-5922. If you are in need of assistance, contact the crisis line at 1-866-348-WISE.