Volunteer Opportunity Details:

Last updated on April 10, 2013

South Mississippi’s Child Advocacy Center is a community-based, child focused non-profit agency in downtown Gulfport that facilitates a compassionate, multidisciplinary approach to the prevention, identification, investigation, prosecution, and treatment of child abuse cases throughout Coastal Mississippi. Statistics prove that child physical and sexual abuse DOES occur in our respective communities. Working together we stand a greater chance of protecting these young victims of maltreatment by offering a place for them to begin their healing journey at our Child Advocacy Center. Local law enforcement, Department of Human Service workers, medical providers, mental health professionals, and our respective District Attorney’s offices, all of whom respond to cases of felonious child sexual and physical abuse and egregious neglect and maltreatment in all its forms have the opportunity to collaborate under the initiative of the Child Advocacy Center model at our Center to provide the most efficacious services following best practices in the various disciplines involved. The overriding goal is to minimize the potential for re-traumatization of these vulnerable child victims who have already endured too much trauma in their young lives.

The CHILD VICTIM ADVOCATE would welcome families/caregivers/DHS workers/ law enforcement and the children as they arrive for a forensic interview at our Child Advocacy Center. Working with a professional family advocate to offer a comprehensive array of services, this volunteer would help complement the provision of care to the child victims and their respective families before, during, and after the forensic interview has been conducted. After an 8-hour agency training on victim's rights and child advocacy, this invaluable volunteer will work directly with our clients, assist in the operation of our child advocacy services, assist with paperwork and case management as well as directly assist the children and other non-offending family members in the waiting room while the alleged child victim is being interviewed. There is quite a bit of interaction with other community professionals taking place at the Child Advocacy Center.

If there is a disclosure of abuse during the forensic interview, peer crisis counseling and immediate referrals along with safety plans and other pertinent victim services may be provided by the Child Victim Advocate Volunteer.

Providing a safe and comfortable environment is important at the outset of abuse. Snacks and/or drinks may be offered to the children, a stuffed animal or quilt provided, and perhaps engage directly with the children to ensure a reassuring presence that promotes safety, support, solution and successful outcomes. The Child Victim Advocate Volunteer would help maintain the waiting area (playroom) in preparation for the next family and maintain a professional and confidential atmosphere to honor all those receiving our services. The Child Victim Advocate would also help maintain related abuse literature in the waiting area, and offer helpful videos and important resource materials to complement service provision at our agency.

This is an important position that helps make a difference in the lives of already traumatized children, and that matters a great deal.

Volunteers must be 21 years old and will be supervised by Direct Service Staff at the Child Advocacy Center, undergo extensive background checks through MDHS and also other criminal databases, and offered extensive victim advocacy and case management training along with professional support and continuing education. Thank you for considering helping the most vulnerable children in our communities.

This opportunity is sponsored by: The Child Abuse Prevention Center

We need volunteers who are free at these times Weekdays Weekly This volunteer opportunity is available to the following types of volunteers Adults (26-54) Individual Adults (55+) Unpaid Interns

Contact Person: Cathy Barnes, Administrative Assistant, (phone), (email) View all agency contacts

Address:

2315 17th Street Gulfport, MS 39501 (See a map)

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