Veteran-to-Veteran Companion Volunteer (York, Adams, and Franklin Counties)

Veteran-to-Veteran Companion Volunteers - As part of our We Honor Veterans Program, Amedisys Hospice of York seeks caring, compassionate individuals who would be willing to spend an hour a week visiting our terminally ill patients and their families many of them Military Veterans. Volunteers spend sacred time together with patients and families simply by accompanying them during their final journey. Companions offer patients healing by practicing a calming presence, deep compassion, and generous listening. Volunteers play an important role in providing social support and decreasing isolation that can so often occur for the terminally ill. Veterans have the ability to relate to other Veterans due to similar military experiences. That can be comforting to our military veteran patients and their families.

Volunteers are provided free training and orientation, a training certificate, and can work flexible hours that suit their individual schedules.

Skills:

• Interpersonal Skills: Volunteers need to be able to fit into any mode: engage in conversations from the superficial to the spiritually profound, depending on the day. Also need to be comfortable with silence.

Requirements:

• Be able to provide own transportation.
• Complete volunteer training and orientation.
• Complete background check (free)
• Tuberculosis tests (free)
• Out of respect for the grieving process, if you are a surviving family member, we encourage you to wait a minimum of 13 months following the patient's death to serve as a direct care volunteer or in public relations activities.