Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program Volunteer Opportunities

What is the Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program?  https://www.vrrp.org/
As a local field office of the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI), the Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program (VRRP) serves as the only resettlement program in the state of Vermont.  Since its establishment in 1980, VRRP has been bringing hope and opportunity to the lives of refugees and immigrants by defending human rights, promoting self-sufficiency, and forging community partnerships.  VRRP provides refugees with their first home in the United States and acculturation services.  VRRP’s award-winning volunteer program offers crucial community connections to newly arrived refugees.  In addition, VRRP’s Interpreting and Translating Services (VITS) provides the region with professional services in more than twenty-five languages.  Through a wide range of direct and collaborative programs, VRRP helps refugees to successfully adapt to life in the United States.

Resettling refugees into our community involves the dedication and generosity of many people.  VRRP’s volunteers  and supporters find themselves performing incredibly fulfilling tasks when they devote their time to our clients and our mission.  VRRP has a number of ways that you can give of yourself to help refugees—whether you can commit to ten hours per week or ten hours per year.

Volunteers

Volunteers with a high degree of integrity and compassion are essential to easing refugees’ transition to self-sufficiency.  Ready for a new and remarkable journey?  Join other community members, businesses, and organizations by volunteering your time!

The first step is to attend a Volunteer Orientation.  Volunteer Orientations are held at VRRP the first and third Wednesday of each month from 5:30-6:30, and the second and fourth Tuesday from 12:30-1:30.  You can find the complete schedule of Volunteer Orientations on our calendar.  Everyone who is interested in learning more about the resettlement program is welcome to attend.  No RSVP is required.  If you have questions about volunteering you can contact our Community Partnership Coordinator, Laurie Stavrand at (802) 338-4633 or volunteer@uscrivt.org.

Volunteers Needed:

Family Friends

  • Offer friendship and a sense of belonging to a new arrival.
  • Share a cup of tea, go for a walk, shopping or simply take time to be together.
  • Help each other to understand how cultures collaborate and combine.
  • Problem solve as a neighbor helping a neighbor. It works both ways.

Is There a Slide Show Creator(s) Extraordinaire Out There?

  • We need a volunteer(s) to put together a slide show for Judy Scott’s Retirement Party.
  • We have lots of pictures from over the years to start with and are expecting volunteers, clients and staff to add more between now and March 27th.
  • The job will involve bringing together photos from VRRP’s archives and new photos coming in via email or in hard copy needing to be scanned.
  • The slide show will run from 1-3 and 5-7 during the Party on March 31st.

Call for Videographer(s) with an Appreciation for Oral Tradition

  • Help us give everyone a chance to record their message to Judy at her Retirement Partyl
  • The plan is to set up a video camera at her party and give people who wish to an opportunity to speak.
  • Additional filming before or after the party is optional.
  • Raw footage is fine. Editing is optional.

Scrapbook Artist(s) Please Share Your Talents

  • Will the project involve ten pages or hundreds? We do not know.
  • Everyone has been invited to contribute to Judy’s Journal so we need to be prepared to put it together on the fly.
  • There will be some planning and set up prior to the party on the 31st.
  • The book will be compiled at the party, one person, one page, at a time.
  • Then after the party it’s time to put it all together.

Academically Minded Mentors Needed for new High School to College Program

  • Volunteers needed to mentor students and parents with the goal of helping students to get into and stay in college.
  • If you have an understanding of how the educational system works and want to help a student and their parents translate that into a plan, then this is a job for you.
  • Mentors will have a mentor so you will not be on your own.
  • Students and parents are already doing a lot. You can help them tie it all together.

Courtesy of: Laurie Stavrand

Community Partnership Coordinator
Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program/USCRI
462 Hegeman Avenue, Suite 101, Colchester, VT 05446

 

Direct Phone: (802) 338-4627 | Main Phone: (802) 655-1963 | Fax: (802) 655-4020
E-mail: lstavrand@uscrivt.org | Web: https://www.refugeesvermont.org