Hospice of Santa Barbara is seeking volunteers — especially bilingual and male volunteers — to make a difference in a child’s life by joining the “I Have a Friend” mentor program.
Mentor volunteers are adults who experienced the death of a parent or sibling as a child, and are trained and matched with children who have recently experienced a similar loss. Mentors help the children understand that not only are they normal, but that their lives will be good again — and they can be happy and successful people.
“When your friends don’t really understand and just tell you, ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry,’ your mentor actually understands and can help you through it,” said Chase McFadden, I Have a Friend program mentee.
The mentor volunteer training sessions will be held for four consecutive Tuesday evenings beginning March 2. Dinner will be provided.
Hospice of Santa Barbara is hoping that good mentor matches from the community will come forward to help the children recover from their painful loss, as well as enrich their own lives.
“I wish there was something like this when I was 11 years old, and I lost my father and brother,” mentor Carol Sharpe said.
Registration for the training program is required. For more information or for a mentor application, contact Joy Janssen at 805.563.8820 or jjanssen@hospiceofsantabarbara.org.
— Daniella Elghanayan is a publicist.