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Certified Senior Peer Support Volunteers

Peer Support is a one-to-one service of emotional support, provided by specially trained volunteers who are supervised by professional staff.

Senior Peer Support Volunteers provide emotional support to seniors if they are experiencing:
      • loneliness and isolation
      • grief and loss
      • housing transition or relocation
      • health related challenges and aging concerns
      • a need to connect to their community
      • depression and anxiety
      • isolation from friends and family

The volunteers support by:

Visiting seniors in their home, not judging, not advising, listening and helping seniors understand their issues in order to find coping skills and strategies.

JSA provides at least two of Peer Support training sessions per year, in order to maintain a certain number of volunteers working. Since our volunteers are seniors we lose a certain amount of trained volunteers through attrition, health problems, family problems or death. This is why the training programs have to be kept and many intensified, as the demand for our peer support program is growing daily.

Prior to being admitted into a peer support training session, prospective volunteers are screened and must pass a Criminal Records Check. Upon successfully completing of intensive training the graduates receive a Certified Senior Peer Support Certificate. Peer Support volunteers are then matched with appropriate clients.

Peer Support sessions are generally provided on a weekly basis. Peer Support volunteers receive ongoing educational training and volunteer/client support through our professional staff.

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