Volunteer Opportunity: Friendship Partner

Position Summary:

The Friendship Partner (FP) volunteer will provide support and companionship to individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds to assist with their cultural adjustment and awareness. This role aims to foster meaningful connections and enhance the overall well-being of participants.

 

Key Responsibilities:

1. Cultural Companionship: Engage in regular social interactions with assigned individuals to promote cultural exchange and understanding.
2. Listening and Support: Act as a supportive listener and provide encouragement to individuals as they navigate cultural challenges and adjustments.
3. Language Practice: Assist individuals in practicing language skills through casual conversation and everyday interactions.
4. Cultural Exploration: Introduce individuals to local customs, traditions, and activities to facilitate their immersion into the community.
5. Resource Referral: Provide information about community resources, services, and events that may be beneficial to individuals' cultural integration.
6. Cultural Sensitivity: Demonstrate sensitivity to cultural differences and strive to create an inclusive and respectful environment for all participants.
7. Regular Reporting: Submit regular reports or updates on interactions and progress to the program coordinator or supervisor as required.
8. Log volunteer hours in the WR Portal.

 

Qualifications:

1. 18+ years old
2. Complete the World Relief volunteer onboarding (application, online workshop, live orientation, background check, motor vehicle check, reference check)
3. Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
4. Respect for cultural diversity and a non-judgmental attitude.
5. Patience, empathy, and a willingness to listen actively.
6. Cultural sensitivity and awareness of cross-cultural communication dynamics.
7. Reliability and commitment to fulfilling volunteer duties.
8. Willingness to drive their Friendship Partner match, with the understanding that most FP clients do not have a license, car, or access to reliable transportation.

 

Time Commitment:

1. Minimum 3-6 months commitment to your friendship partner
2. We encourage 2-4 monthly interactions with your friendship partner. In person interactions are preferred. Examples include outings to the zoo, sporting events, sharing a meal at home or at a restaurant, sharing a hobby, going for a walk, exploring a park, going to a museum, attending local festivals, inviting each other to your home for tea, etc.

 

Benefits to Volunteer:

1. Opportunity to make a meaningful difference in someone's life.
2. Enhanced cultural awareness and cross-cultural communication skills.
3. Personal satisfaction from contributing to the well-being of individuals from diverse backgrounds.
4. Opportunity to learn from new people, perspectives and cultures
5. Broadened and diversified network of community connections

 

Onboarding and Training:

1. General short-term/long-term volunteer onboarding process, including an application, online workshop, live orientation, background check, reference check
2. Complete the Navigating Friendships course bundle on The World Relief Workshop (coupon code wrmemphis)
3. (Recommended) Complete the English Conversation Partner course on The World Relief Workshop (coupon code wrmemphis)
4. Ongoing support and supervision will be provided by the friendship partner’s caseworker to address any questions or concerns.

 

Management and Communication:

Friendship Partners will be collaboratively managed. Church and Community Engagement (CCE) will recruit and onboard FPs and recommend ongoing trainings to them from The Workshop. CCE will hand off FPs to service lines based on the service lines’ FP requests and potential client matches. Service lines will present the FP program to their clients and maintain an ongoing log of clients who have requested to participate as a FP. When the FP volunteer is handed off to a service line, the service line will match the volunteer to a client based on mutual interests, hobbies, stage of life, or another commonality that leads the service line to believe it will be a healthy match. The service line will be the FP volunteer’s primary point of contact, and the service line will do an informal check-in with the FP and with the client once per month for the duration of the FP-client match.

 

CCE will check in with the FP within 1 week of meeting their Friendship Partner. CCE will check in every 4 weeks after that, with a specific feedback survey 30-60 days into the commitment and a survey 6 months after the start date.

Check-In Guide

 

Feedback Loop:

Throughout the FP match, the service line will meet with their assigned CCE Volunteer Coordinator regularly. The service line should notify the VC of any concerns that the FP volunteer has that is relevant to the VC or may impact future FP matches or training. At the end of the FP match, CCE will ask for feedback from the Friendship Partner volunteer. The service line will recommend to CCE whether the volunteer should be recommended for another opportunity, or if the placement was not a good fit.