Building your Crisis Response Team -- A Letter of Personal Reflection
By Roger, Peg and Mary
Getting Volunteers
Let’s face it, organizations such as Crisis Response Teams rely on volunteers, but
getting and keeping them is a challenge. In fact, the very word “volunteer” might scare
people away. If you’ve ever been in a meeting when the group has been told that
volunteers are needed, then you have also seen folks quickly absorbed in the piece of
paper in front of them. So what to do? Take your lead from other community
organizations in your area that have successful “volunteer” programs – maybe they are
members of a village leadership council, or trustees on a board. In our case, they are
members of a team that have a common concern, thus a common goal – helping those
who suffer a crisis to not only survive, but to regain balance in their lives.
Involving employers is important. At the beginning of each new year, our team
coordinator sends a letter to employers in our community to thank them for allowing their
folks to participate and/or to recruit new members if needed. This letter can emphasize
the need for a strong team and can include reference to responses made. It is helpful to
remind employers of the need for a trained team, the need for the volunteer to attend
trainings and meetings, and the possibility of needing the employee/volunteer to
participate in a response during work hours.
Think diversity – it’s key. Over the years the Madison County CRT has had pastors,
psychologists, social workers, guidance counselors, teachers, school administrators,
school secretaries, transportation directors, EMA and other emergency workers, victim
advocates, folks who work in special populations, corrections officers, and policemen.
Each “career” area lends a different perspective and opens up the potential for response
in a wider arena as the team’s existence becomes well known.
Team Focus
To get and keep buy in, have a clear focus for the group. Each member needs to clearly
understand and agree with what the purpose of the group is. If you are just forming your
team, value their input into what the roles and responsibilities of the team should be. If
you are recruiting new members to an established team, make certain they understand
what the team is all about and how they can make a valuable contribution.
Being valued – Making the Work Possible
When you ask a person to “volunteer” their time and resources they have a right (and
certainly an expectation) to have their contributions valued. That may mean a variety of
things. Being adequately trained to provide the response service is certainly important.
Paying for (or paying toward) training is equally important. If you have a sponsoring
organization, they may be willing to provide funds. Grant monies are often available. In
Ohio we are extremely fortunate to have a state CRT that also works to provide training,
often free to the participants through our Attorney General’s office.
Continued training is important, too. A portion of each meeting (or a designated number
of them) can be dedicated to table top exercises or practice interventions. Bringing in
professionals to provide information or training is also important and these services are
often provided at no charge when the purpose of the organization is understood.
Although meetings don’t have to have totally serious content, it is important to have
purposeful team meetings. Sometimes the purpose is just to have fun and renewal of
spirit. Shortly before coming here, our team had a dinner out – a social get together to
touch bases with each other and to remember what we and our group are all about.
Providing team members with what they need to take to a response is critical. Flip
charts and markers can be important for tracking dialogue and appropriately responding
depending on the type of response. Our group has “Go” Bags that contain copies of
appropriate coloring pages (these are in the Tools for Intervention folder), crayons,
stress toys, and various handouts. We have various books that can be taken to the
response – those are listed in the Books to Share folder.
Sometimes There is an I in Team
For most folks who join a group such as a CRT, praise for the work isn’t required, yet
each of us wants to know how the work was perceived. Debriefing after a response is
essential, not only to understand what went well, but to understand what could have
been done differently and to make certain the team members who responded are okay
and taking care of themselves.
Keeping it together
Sometimes Crisis Response Teams are almost overwhelmed with responses. Then
they go through inactivity lulls. Willing team members are not always able to respond
and may end up feeling like they are ineffective or not needed. On the other hand, the
same team members may seem to do most of the responding. Either situation can lead
volunteers to leave the team. Keeping team members is essential so making certain
they each feel like they are or can contribute (and not overly relied upon) is also
essential. Broadening the scope of responses can help. Our team was asked to
“companion” folks at the H1N1 flu clinics conducted by our county health department.
Parents and children alike can panic when facing getting shots. The fear of a flu
epidemic added to the unease. Agreeing to assist at the clinics gave more team
members the ability to participate especially since many of the clinics were outside the
normal work day.
This is what works for us…if you have questions or comments we would be glad to hear
them and will help in any way we can. Our contact information is:
Roger Roberts, Coordinator
614-581-3236
rroberts@co.madison.oh.us
Mary Dietz
614-832-8300
marydietz@gmail.com
Peg Johnson
740-852-9438
p1680johnson187@yahoo.com