Volunteer Victim Counselor training by Helping Services for Northeast Iowa August 6-8

Helping Services for Northeast Iowa will be hosting a free 24-hour victim counselor training in Postville during the first full week in August. The training will be held Monday through Wednesday, August 6, 7 and 8, from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. in the Fireside Room at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 417 Lawler Street in Postville. There will be a break for attendees to have lunch on their own.
Counselors, social workers, teachers, clergy, nurses, law enforcement, judges, lawyers and more will benefit from the victim counselor training. Attendees will learn about the dynamics of domestic and sexual abuse, victim advocacy, the legal and court system, laws associated with domestic and sexual abuse, diversity of domestic and sexual abuse, crisis counseling and the impact on children exposed to violence.
Through the Helping Services for Northeast Iowa Domestic and Sexual Abuse Resource Center, those who have a passion for helping victims of domestic or sexual abuse can:
• Answer the 24-hour crisis line nights or weekends. (The crisis line can be routed to home or cell phones.)
• Open their home to provide a temporary place to stay for individuals or families who no longer feel safe in their own homes.
• Transport individuals or families to a safe place, a court appointment or other transportation needs.
• Respond to a crisis situation, a hospital or police department, to comfort a victim and/or their children who have been physically or sexually assaulted.
Those who are unsure about volunteering as a victim counselor but would still like to attend the free training are strongly encouraged to do so. This information alone is beneficial to everyone in the community as a whole to help in the fight against domestic and sexual abuse.
Attendees are asked to park in the parking lot in the back of the church, at the corner of Lawler Street and Military Road. The Fireside Room is located furthest to the left and on the lower level as one looks at the church from the back parking lot. Use the external stairs located on the left. A sign will be posted on the door.  
Other volunteer opportunities through the Helping Services for Northeast Iowa Domestic and Sexual Abuse Resource Center include, but are not limited to: donation drives, fundraisers, 5K help in the fall, office work, organizing personal care closet and food pantry, organizing inter-office library loan books and DVDs, and helping deliver Christmas giving gift donations to clients and their children.
Those who are interested in any of the above opportunities or who would just like to have the training for the information may contact the volunteer coordinator, Teresa Dehning,  Volunteer Program Manager at the Domestic and Sexual Abuse Resource Center, at tdehning@helpingservices.org or 563-864-7163, ext. 101.
Helping Services for Northeast Iowa is a not-for-profit agency that promotes the health and well-being of children and adults living in its service area. The agency focuses resources on substance abuse, child abuse, domestic violence and sexual abuse prevention. Staff provide presentations, research-based programs, mentoring coordination, trainings and advocacy. Helping Services works with community members to help create environments that are safe, nurturing and healthy.