Role of an advocate:
After Hours Support - Midwest Victim Services provides 24/7 crisis support to victims of crime and trauma.
Examples of situations where a victim services staff and advocates may be requested by police are;
- to attend the scene of a fatal motor vehicle accident in order to provide assistance and support to survivors/witnesses
- to attend the hospital to support the family and/or friends of a deceased person
- accompany the victim of sexual assault during a sexual assault kit
- assist RCMP during next of kin notifications
- attend the detachment when a victim has reported an assault or any other crisis situation where your assistance and support is required.
In Office File Work - Most referrals to our program are not after hours’ crisis calls. RCMP members provide referrals to the Coordinator who then assigns new files to advocates.
Court Support - Not all Midwest Victim Services volunteers are able to do court support due to their employment and other day time commitments. However for those who would prefer volunteering during day time hours, this is an excellent opportunity. Our staff and advocates arrange court orientation/tours with clients, as well as accompany victims and witnesses who have been subpoenaed to testify in court. Acting as a support person, as well as a liaison between the client and Crown prosecutor, Midwest Victim Services personnel strive to make the court process clear and as comfortable as possible for those involved.
Volunteer Expectations
- hours are flexible, however we ask that you agree to sign up for a one year volunteer commitment
- pass the RCMP Security Clearance Process
- Be able to take the on-call phone for one week every 4-6 weeks
- Have your own transportation (crisis call out mileage will be reimbursed by the program)
- Attend the detachment once per week to review files and update victims on the status of their files. (Can take anywhere from ½ hour to an hour depending on the number of files and degree of support required)
- Complete the Solicitor General E-Learning Victim Services Advocate Training and various other ongoing training offered by the Ministry of Justice and Solicitor General Victims Progams
- Attend detachment for in office training as well as shadow senior volunteers for a period of time
Volunteer Application
