The Shanti Program Training - New Eyes

I found the Shanti program while researching volunteer opportunities online. For years, I’d been interested in volunteering, but had never found the right fit. As soon as I read the description of the Shanti program’s goals and purpose, I knew it was for me. Becoming a one-on-one emotional support volunteer for partners living with grief, isolation, illness, depression, or any combination of those issues was a challenge and privilege I knew I wanted to accept. I applied for the volunteer role, and was invited to participate in the two-weekend training session. I had no idea just how significant the training would be to my own self-awareness, my understanding of human relationships, and my ability to connect.

Joining a room of 20 strangers to talk about feelings can be a daunting experience.  However, having met with Shanti Program Coordinator Nika and Shanti Program Director Robert during my orientation, I was also thrilled to open myself up to a new perspective. Right from the start, Nika, Robert, and the other program facilitators created a safe, open environment that allowed me to share my honest reactions—as well as my vulnerability—without fear, judgment or recrimination.

One of the most impressive elements of the Shanti training is everyone’s willingness to explore their feelings so openly. Having the facilitators there to lead by example, I was able to share emotions and even judgments I’d never known existed. As the training progressed, I also found facilitators’ and volunteers’ honesty in constructive feedback of my role-playing interactions absolutely invaluable. It was very freeing to speak candidly with people of all backgrounds and forge strong connections with volunteers I otherwise may have never met. I’m really looking forward to meeting in small monthly volunteer support groups, possibly with some of my peers from the same training.

My personal favorite training segment was when currently paired volunteers and partners visited to discuss their relationships and how Shanti has enriched their lives. Those discussions confirmed that the instinct that had guided me to Shanti from the beginning was spot-on. I can’t wait to be matched with a Shanti partner!

Another truly amazing element of this program is the organization and stability of the training. Because much of our time is spent delving into deep feelings on sometimes painful and controversial topics,  a sense of balance and support is essential—and Shanti facilitators offered that at every step of the way. Every segment includes a section on communicating about a given topic, followed by discussion or exercise regarding personal connection to the topic, and finally a break into small groups to check in on emotional reactions and re-stabilize. The structure of this process was extremely effective and thorough.

I can’t emphasize enough what a growth opportunity this training has been for me—I think everyone should be fortunate enough to experience it! I feel ready to be present and available to be a sounding board, support, and listening ear for anyone who needs it—without trying to fix or control. Shanti has helped me learn how to develop skills that have made me a better version of myself, so that I can be there for others.

- Jenny Jackson, A New Shanti Volunteer

Third Place Winner

I started volunteering with Rosehedge / Multifaith Works this past spring, drawn by a Craigslist ad for the CareTeam and Shanti programs. Like the last volunteer to write on this blog, I came to RH/MFW because I felt my life was missing something; I didn’t feel as though I was actually helping people, no matter how many hours I worked at my job or how many one-off food-bank volunteer sessions I went to. I wanted to be doing something meaningful, helpful, and consistent. The opening offered by RH/MFW was simple; I could make a difference to someone just be being there. Rocket-scientist skills were not required: just the ability to listen, and the willingness to care. So I got in touch with the office, completed a stirring weekend of CareTeam training, and helped out with some office tasks while waiting for placement on a CareTeam. During that period, and since being assigned to a team, the overall character of the organization and the people it includes (staff, clients, and volunteers) has struck me as phenomenal. Part of the RH/MFW mission is to “…unite communities of compassionate care and inclusive spirituality with people living in isolation and loneliness.” From my perspective – I’d been bummed out, an East-Coaster transplanted to Seattle, far from family – the organization lives this mission so thoroughly and with such integrity that it offers compassion, care, and inclusiveness not only to clients but even to volunteers.

After several weeks working in the office, I got assigned to a CareTeam -- and what a CareTeam I got! We volunteer at one of the organization’s adult family homes; we have six team members (and growing), and a whopping twelve wonderful CarePartners. The team, the Partners, and the overall experience are more complex and more rewarding than I could have imagined. Since our Partners and their housing services are subject to regulation by the public health department, we as a CareTeam can fill a special place in their lives. I’ve found it hard to articulate this, but here’s the best analogy that comes to mind (from the Third Place Books website, at http://www.thirdplacebooks.com/about):

“Sociologist Ray Oldenberg suggests that each of us needs three places: first is the home; second is the workplace or school; and beyond lies the place where people from all walks of life interact, experiencing and celebrating their commonality as well as their diversity. It is a third place.”

As a CareTeam, we are that third place. We are the people that are neither staff nor family, but somewhere comfortably in between. We’re a third group -- reliable yet not reliant, present but not pressing. We’re simply there, to whatever extent the Partners need or want us, to experience and celebrate our commonality as well as our diversity. Modern society, state-run systems and big-city life can feel disjointed and impersonal, yet RH/MFW has created a village of care in the midst of an otherwise inattentive metropolis. I am grateful to be part of it.

Kelly Cunningham
Volunteer