About The Samaritans Cape Cod and the Islands

The mission of The Samaritans is suicide prevention. A nonprofit organization with decades in volunteer public service and proven expertise in the field, The Samaritans provides support to people who are either contemplating suicide or who have been personally affected by suicide. Our focus is not solely on those people who are at imminent risk for suicide. Our goal is to provide pathways to healing for our whole community. We do this by providing caring, sincere, and attentive listeners who rekindle people’s lost sense of hope, de-escalate situations from a crisis level, and provide the connections that make day to-day living manageable through compassionate interaction in a safe, comfortable, and anonymous environment. We promote an inclusive environment where differences are acknowledged and celebrated, communication is open, conflicts are addressed early and resolved, and where there is a shared mindset of supporting our communities, we serve.  

About the role

The Crisis Line Associate provides support to the Crisis Line program by answering calls for approximately 10-25 hours each week during periods with the least amount of coverage as designated and assigned by Crisis Services Manager with the goal of building Crisis Line response capacity. 

Must reside in on of these states: AZ, CA, GA, MN, MA, OH, TX, VA, WV

What you'll do

• Answers crisis calls from those who are seeking emotional support including those who may be at risk of suicide 
• Adheres to performance measures in attending to call volume 
• Thorough and accurate documentation of completed calls 
• Participates in staff meetings and supervision, schedule permitting 
• Attend continuing education and training as needed 

This role requires open availability, as scheduling may occur at any time during a 24-hour period, up to 20 hours per week.
Assigned shifts are provided in 90-day increments to support personal planning and consistency.
Our work schedules are subject to change as necessary to meet the Agency’s and its client’s needs. Reasonable notice is provided to facilitate personal planning.

Qualifications

• 18 years of age or older 
• High school graduate or GED equivalent 
• Minimum of two years of professional experience preferred 
• Previous work as a volunteer preferred 
• Experience working on a crisis helpline a plus 
• Ability to respect confidentiality 
• Ability to be empathetic and engage in active, non-judgmental listening with our users 
• Ability to work with sensitive and confidential information 
• Must be able to display good, sound judgment 
• Must possess strong communication skills 
• Ability to resolve conflicts appropriately 
• Ability to tolerate different beliefs and opinions 
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively to maximize teamwork across the organization 
• Some flexibility in working hours 
• Must keep time commitments 
• Displays willingness to learn 
• Ability to accept direction 
• Successful completion of the Volunteer Befriender Training and assigned learning shifts on the helpline after hire 
• Other responsibilities as assigned by supervisor