www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver, Friday February 13, 2009 - 3 Helping people through their darkest hour By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF T heir duties may require them to speak with someone whose wallet has been stolen or with a person who has just lost their child. The uncertainty of what the next call will bring is a daily reality faced by members of the Halton Regional Police Victim Services Unit, a largely volunteer group charged with providing immediate emotional support and community referrals to victims of crime and tragedy throughout the region. With around 43 members currently serving Halton, the group wants to increase its volunteer ranks by around 20. Candidates for these roles must be more than committed, possess great compassion and excellent communication skills, with the sense to know not only when to talk, but when not to talk. The unit is divided into two groups. The first makes telephone calls and sends letters to recent victims of crime informing them that Victim Services is available to help get them through a difficult period if required. "What we find with a lot of people is they are concerned they had a crime committed against them and they need to figure out how they can deal with that, so we give them information about who they can go to to get their locks changed and that kind of thing," said Jack Elms, a retired banker, a volunteer with the Victim Services Unit for the past six years. "The other challenge they've got is they're often left with a sense that, `My home's been invaded. I'm not safe anymore. They need emotional support. We can only provide that in the short term. We're not counsellors, but if they really are concerned, we've got the contacts to get them in to see counsellors." The second group of the Victim Services Unit is involved in crisis intervention. On duty 24/7, police call on this group to deal with people moments after they have been touched by tragedy. Deaths that take place outside a hospital make up a large portion of the calls the members of the unit respond to, something Elms knows full well. His first call required him to comfort a man whose young daughter had just been killed in a school bus accident. "I had to go with the officers to the father's house. We had reporters coming to the door from all the T.V. news channels. The family didn't want to see anyone, so we had to sort of keep the premises safe from them," said Elms. "In a situation like that you can listen. It's really about being there, being empathetic, using really good listening skills and getting the people talking. I find that if people are Sign up on Line DAVID LEA / OAKVILLE BEAVER HELPING HANDS: Halton Regional Police Victim Services Unit members (l-r) Noreen Heaney, Rhonda Murray (volunteer) and Jack Elms (volunteer). really distraught talking about the person for a longer period of time if the person that's gone helps or talking about other doesn't have anyone to help them get things at certain times is good, it calms them through their grief. down." While helping a person get through the Besides giving emotional support, Victim death of a loved one is an important task for Services Unit Co-ordinator Noreen Heaney the Victim Services Unit, volunteers are also said unit members procalled upon for other "Although you may not have vide grieving relatives types of crisis intervenwanted to walk through that with important infortion. mation about the Rhonda Murray, who door, when you walk out you actions being taken by has been volunteering know you've done some good. the police. with the unit for three The way I look at it is, I was there "When there is an years, recalled an incifor a couple of hours that were infant death at home, a dent when she and probably some of the hardest, SIDS (Sudden Infant Elms spent 12 hours at Death Syndrome) death saddest hours of a person's life the home of a woman, or what have you, the who was terrified her and by being there, I made it procedures are that abusive husband would 10 per cent less painful. It's that they have to be treated hurt her. as a homicide until oth- 10 per cent that keeps me "She was scared to erwise proven and that's coming back." leave her home. She the same with a suididn't know what door cide," said Heaney. was secure and what Jack Elms, volunteer, "So there are certain Halton Regional Police door wasn't. At that things within the home Victim Services Unit time her husband was that are taken by the being held in jail, but at major crimes investigaany time someone tors and when this happens we're there to could have bailed him out and she was worexplain why these things are being taken. ried she wouldn't be notified before he got You can tell them (grieving relatives), `This is home," said Murray. normal. This is what they're going to ask Murray said a number of unit members you. This is what the coroner is going to tell attended this incident along with uniformed you.'" police officers, who routinely accompany Elms said the job of the Victim Services unit members during their calls. Unit usually comes to an end when friends Elms' carpentry skills were used to reinand family arrive. force the woman's door while other memIn other situations, they may be involved bers spoke to her children and watched over them while the woman went out to get groceries. "The crisis to them is very real. They are living it," said Murray. "We have to step into their shoes, so we can understand how we can break this wall down, so these people can move forward. You need to let them know, but not in a direct way, that they have overwhelmed themselves with paranoia. They have a right to feel the way they feel, but there are ways and agencies that we are connected with who can help them with a more long-term process on their road to healing." The training required to volunteer with the Victim Services Unit is intense. Candidates must complete a six-week training program (three hours per week for six weeks), which includes an introduction to the various units that make up the Halton Regional Police Service. Through these interactions, the candidates will learn police procedure, something that is crucial. Candidates may soon need to explain these procedures to a distraught person grieving for the sudden loss of a loved one. Heaney quickly points out that no one is thrown into a crisis intervention situation. "We'll try and walk them in," she said. "They don't go alone. They have experienced people who go with them." While many may find it inconceivable that people actually volunteer to step into the middle of what can be the worst moment of another person's life, Elms and Murray note that the work has its own incalculable rewards. "Although you may not have wanted to walk through that door, when you walk out you know you've done some good. The way I look at it is, I was there for a couple hours that were probably some of the hardest, saddest hours of a person's life and by being there I made it 10 per cent less painful," said Elms. "It's that 10 per cent that keeps me coming back." For Murray the motivation is the same. "At the end of that crisis call, you know you've touched a life, you've made a difference and at the very least you showed them that Halton Regional Police really care," she said. Applications for the available volunteer positions with the Victim Services Unit can be found at www.hrps.on.ca (go to Join Us, hit the volunteer icon and under volunteer opportunities select Victim Services). Applicants must be at least 21 years of age, have a valid drivers license and be available for a minimum of 12 volunteer hours per month. Applications will be accepted until Feb. 28. 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