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Compassionate Companions are a part of the Palliative and End of Life Care program at Seniors At Home. Our comprehensive 25-hour training program prepares volunteers to support the care of clients who are in declining health, undergoing challenging treatments, or nearing the end of life. The next training begins October 12.
The volunteer training program is led by an interdisciplinary team that works closely with clients with chronic or terminal illnesses to develop a plan to address their medical, psychosocial, and spiritual needs. Playing a vital role in carrying out this plan, volunteers provide practical, emotional, and spiritual support to clients, their families, and other care providers.
“Our dynamic volunteer community is an ongoing teaching and learning experience for all of us—about facing suffering and impermanence with compassion and awareness,” said Redwing Keyssar, Director of the Palliative and End of Life Care Program. “Many of our volunteers have observed how useful this training is for life.”
Upon successful completion of the training, volunteers are matched with a client and meet with him or her weekly. They benefit from continuous feedback and supervision from Seniors•At•Home staff, both during the training and through their participation in monthly support groups. Volunteering as a Compassionate Companion is an opportunity to touch someone’s life and a chance to join a community of like-minded peers. “It’s a wonderful community of people doing wonderful things,” says one volunteer. “The support and encouragement have been phenomenal.”
To apply, contact Rachel Kesselman at 415-449-1288 or [email protected]. No prior medical or hospice experience is necessary—just a willingness to explore some of the most significant issues we all face during our lifetime.
While training takes place at JFCS’ San Francisco office, 2150 Post Street, volunteers will be matched with clients in proximity to their own communities in Marin, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties, as well as in the city.
About Seniors At Home
Seniors At Home, a program of Jewish Family and Children’s Services, helps seniors live safer, healthier, and more independent lives in their own homes through our comprehensive range of services, including award-winning home care and care management, skilled nursing, healthcare advocacy, money management, conservatorships, and more. Our Palliative and End of Life Care Program provides a broad range of spiritual, physical, emotional, and psychological services to individuals and families facing chronic or terminal illness.
One of the oldest and largest family service institutions in the United States, JFCS was founded in 1850 by immigrant pioneers wishing to create an extended family to care for each other. Today, we continue to be that extended family, serving 75,000 people annually in a five-county region—Sonoma, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara—with the highest quality, research-based social services designed to strengthen individuals, families, and the community.