About Volunteering

Volunteers are an absolutely vital part of the Cleveland Rape Crisis Center. In 2006 they handled more than 3,000 phone calls on the hotline, assisted over 200 survivors and secondary survivors in local emergency departments and police stations and provided immeasurable help and support for various fundraisers and CRCC events.

We at the CRCC thank our volunteers for allowing us to provide essential services to survivors of sexual assault and those who support them on a 24-hour basis at absolutely no cost.

Volunteering with the CRCC provides you with an opportunity to become an active part of the movement to end sexual violence. It is extremely personally rewarding. Volunteers become part of a close-knit community. And volunteering allows you to strengthen your resume and gain valuable experience.

Volunteer Opportunities

The Cleveland Rape Crisis Center offers a variety of volunteer experiences. This allows you to choose what best fits your personal strengths and interest. There are both direct service and non-direct service opportunities continuously available.

Direct Service Opportunities

Direct service opportunities involve volunteer work directly with survivors of sexual assault and their friends and family members. No experience is required for these service opportunities. The CRCC provides all volunteers with a free 40-hour comprehensive training program which gives them the information and experience they will need in their role as volunteers. We are very flexible in accommodating volunteers' schedules and other commitments.

Direct service opportunities include:

Hotline Advocate - The Cleveland Rape Crisis Center provides the community with a 24-Hour Hotline which receives over 3,000 calls a year. Calls are made by survivors of sexual assault, their friends or family members, area professionals, law enforcement, social workers and many others. Hotline Advocates answer these calls to provide these individuals with support, information and referrals and crisis intervention.

This Hotline utilizes a call-forwarding system that allows volunteers to take shifts and respond to calls from their home.

Face to Face Advocate - The Cleveland Rape Crisis Center also provides survivors of sexual assault with Advocacy services available 24-hours a day. Face to Face Advocates respond to emergency departments and police stations in Cuyahoga County to provide survivors and their friends or family members with information, support, resources and advocacy and to facilitate communication with law enforcement, medical professionals and others.

Participation in the Face to Face Advocacy Program requires an additional 8 hours of training available upon completion of Hotline Training.

Non-Direct Service Opportunities

Non-direct service volunteers help support the mission and work of the CRCC but do not work directly with survivors of sexual assault.

Occasionally there are a variety of opportunities available for those interested in non-direct service and the CRCC will work with individual volunteers to shape their experience into something that is both beneficial and fulfilling. Training is not required.

Volunteers may be involved in the following areas:

Special events
Program and administrative tasks
Committee involvement
Board of Trustees

Volunteers interested in Non-Direct Service Opportunities can complete a Volunteer Application and will be contacted as needs arise.