Agency: Headquarters Counseling Center

Contact: Kristine Chapman at 841-9900 or at Kristine@HeadquartersCounselingCenter.org

Headquarters Counseling Center supports adults and children in need of emotional support or in crisis, through “life support” counseling, children’s safety education, on-site crisis response after emergencies and traumas and suicide bereavement support. Headquarters is looking for empathetic, caring and nonjudgmental volunteers to answer its counseling and suicide prevention hotline calls. The interview and screening process for volunteers is beginning for the spring training program. The first step in the training process is attending an informational meeting at one of the following times: 

Saturday, Aug. 17, 10 a.m. to 11:15 a.m., at the Community Mercantile, 901 Iowa St.

Thursday, Aug. 22, 6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. at Fire Station 5, 11911 Stewart Ave. 

Monday, Aug 26, 6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. at Fire Station 5, 1911 Stewart Ave. 

The training offers the opportunity to learn excellent communication skills, about life challenges and about helping people through hard times. Because of the nature of Headquarters’ work, volunteers must be at least 20 years old and have at least one year of living independently from a parent or guardian. Please contact Kristine Chapman at 841-9900 or at Kristine@HeadquartersCounselingCenter.org to volunteer.

Other immediate needs

• The Lawrence Humane Society is looking for volunteer animal transport drivers to transport dogs from Lawrence to less crowded shelters in Colorado for adoption. A reliable van is provided as well as all expenses, including overnight lodging in Denver, Colorado Springs or Boulder. Volunteers must have a valid Kansas driver’s license and insurable driving record. Some animal handling involved. To volunteer, contact info@lawrencehumane.org or call 785-843-6835.

• KVC Behavioral Health Care enriches and enhances the lives of children and families by providing medical and behavioral health care, social services and education. Possible volunteer opportunities include providing child care and activities during foster parent trainings, office tasks, assisting with special events and organizing clothing donations. KVC Behavioral HealthCare will be hosting Volunteer Orientation from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Aug. 22 at 1202 E. 23rd St., Suite C.  Please RSVP to volunteer@kvc.org by Aug. 20 to reserve your spot!

• The Willow Domestic Violence Center works towards the elimination of violence in our communities.  Volunteer advocates provide one-on-one peer counseling to survivors of domestic violence either in person or on the crisis line, provide court advocacy, do activities with children in the emergency shelter and participate in community education. The fall session of advocacy training is scheduled for Aug. 20-23. For more information, please contact bburns@willowdvcenter.org or at 785-331-2034, ext. 104.

• The City of Lawrence is gearing up for its annual pedestrian and bicyclist count in Lawrence, Eudora and Baldwin City. Data collected on bicycling and walking will assist City and Regional Leaders with estimating usage and demand for bicycle and pedestrian facilities. The counts will also be used to track the region’s progress on increasing the use of non-motorized transportation, strengthen grant applications to leverage additional federal funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects, evaluate existing projects and help determine the location of future investments. Volunteers are needed to manually count pedestrians and bicyclists. New volunteers will need to attend a mandatory training session prior to their scheduled count day. Training sessions are available Aug. 26 and 29 in Lawrence, Aug. 28 in Baldwin City, and Sept. 5 in Eudora. Count days are in September. For more information, please contact Jessica Mortinger at jmortinger@lawrenceks.org or at 785-832-3165.

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Douglas County provides one-to-one relationships for children facing adversity. A Big Brother is needed for Patrick. Patrick is 7 years old and enjoys being active outdoors.  He also enjoys art and playing video games.  Patrick is friendly and thoughtful and can be shy at first.  He lives with his mom and sister, so he really just needs some guy time with someone who has similar interests.  To become a Big for Patrick or for any of the 80 boys waiting for a Big Brother, contact Stacie Salverson-Schroeder at 785-843-7359, ext 112, or at sschroeder@ksbbs.org.

— For more volunteer opportunities, contact Shelly Hornbaker at the United Way’s Roger Hill Volunteer Center, at 785-865-5030 or volunteer@rhvc.org, or go to www.volunteerdouglascounty.org.