Volunteer with Seniors--Bénévolat avec des personnes âgées

General description: 

Entraide Bénévole Métro is a non-profit organization that offers physical and emotional support to seniors experiencing temporary or permanent loss of autonomy within the downtown and Westmount area. Our involvement assists clients in maintaining their independence and remaining in their community through the work of our volunteers.

Our primary services include friendly visits, grocery shopping, and medical or banking accompaniments. We ask for a minimum commitment of two months and a minimum volunteer time of two hours per week according to your schedule. If this is something that you think you would like to pursue, we would be happy to welcome you among our volunteers. All EBM volunteers receive an orientation, done in person or via video conference call.

Responsibilities:

Our volunteers may fulfill any of the following tasks (on a weekly or as-needed basis): friendly visits, grocery shopping, or medical and banking accompaniments. With these tasks, volunteers may need to assist a client while walking, assist in getting in and out of cars, and carry heavier items (groceries). 

*NEW SERVICE* Due to growing demand, EBM has recently introduced a Tech Help service. This involves helping our clients with questions related to computers, laptops, tablets, and cell phones. Many requests are on an as-needed basis, while other clients are looking for weekly friendly visits focusing on tech help. Volunteers with any background or knowledge related to the above and any knowledge related to technology and accessibility may indicate their interest when applying.

Required skills/qualities:

Our clients may have reduced hearing, vision, physical mobility, or memory. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to demonstrate patience, geniality, compassion, and nonjudgmental active listening.

Volunteering through EBM is non-supervised. Our services are conducted on-location at the client's home, and depending on the service, this may also mean going with the client to a clinic, hospital, bank, store, etc. Once assigned a task, volunteers are expected to manage their time and communication with the client(s). Of course, we encourage regular communication and reaching out to our volunteer coordinators as necessary.

We welcome any skills relevant to working with seniors or helpful in improving the everyday lives of our clients. Note: EBM services do not include cooking, cleaning, or anything related to hygiene.

Bilingualism is an asset, but not necessary, as is knowing other languages beyond English or French.

Volunteer post schedule:

There are no fixed hours; volunteering can be done in the mornings, afternoons, and evenings, any day of the week, according to your schedule. We ask for a minimum commitment of two months and a minimum volunteer time of two hours per week.

-Friendly visits and grocery shopping are done on a weekly or bi-weekly basis

-Medical accompaniments are an as-needed service suited for individuals who would prefer volunteering on-demand

Please note: We are specifically looking for volunteers who are available Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. due to a higher demand for services during those hours. Those with availability outside of those hours may still apply.