Life’s most urgent question is: What are you doing for others? – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Every year, YWCA Yakima serves over 6,000 individuals impacted by domestic violence. You can help by volunteering.
We are so excited that you are interested in being a volunteer with YWCA Yakima. We rely on passionate volunteers to fulfill our mission of eliminating racism, empowering women and providing a safe and supportive place where victims of domestic violence are able to heal and become self-reliant survivors.
We have two different ways you can be involved:
Non-direct volunteer services allow you to work in the facility and around participants, but you cannot provide volunteer services directly to families and children in our program. In order to volunteer to assist with non-direct services you are required to complete 2.0 hours of orientation which includes an introduction to our services and online training video of 1.5 hours.
Some examples of non-direct services can include but are not limited to:
- Donation room sorting and organization
- Training on answering phones and supporting at the front desk
- Helping the team collect stories of survivors from our on-site advocates
- Assisting a client find work appropriate clothing at Persimmon Boutique through our Working Woman’s Wardrobe
- Baking birthday cakes or providing a meal for the families living in our shelter
- Teach skills and workshops for participants and children
- Participate in outreach and community information booths
- Help provide childcare during women’s support groups and or family events
- Provide client pampering: hair, nails, massages, movie night, etc.
- Work with individuals and/or youth on individual tutoring
In order to provide direct community service work with participants, volunteers are encouraged to complete the required to complete a total of 20-hour advocacy-based training with our YWCA Yakima team. This includes 15 hours of advocacy-based classes and 5 hours of advocate job shadowing. Advocacy training hours are scheduled upon volunteer’s schedule and regularly upon volunteer coordinators training schedule throughout the year.
Please fill out a volunteer application or reach out to our Outreach staff for more information.
Examples of direct client services include:
- Assist with crisis calls, safety planning and referrals with participants in needs
- Provide advocacy-based services
- Support participants with respite care when needed it
- Provide emotional support to participants
- Attend court with participants upon safety planning with legal advocate staff
- Provide advocacy support to housing and emergency program advocates
- Assist participants with applications, or community referral forms
- Help facilitate domestic violence groups, or support groups with staff
- Assist family & children’s advocate in creating age-appropriate activities, assist with family events, help to facilitate children’s groups
- Help share awareness of services during informational and community booths
- Other services can be discussed with outreach staff team…
If you have something that you would like to do for the families who live at YWCA Yakima that you do not see listed above, feel free to contact our Outreach Coordinator, Dani: daguilar@ywcayakima.org , or our Director of Development and Outreach, Lisa: lkapuza@ywcayakima.org.
Download the Volunteer Application HERE or email Dani, daguilar@ywcayakima.org .