Uplift is privileged to serve children and youth and their caregivers from throughout the Philadelphia region. While Uplift welcomes and includes all families regardless of race, religion, income, gender, identity, or immigration status, approximately 88% of youth and families we serve are Black and Brown.
Uplift is looking for volunteers and interns who wish to be involved directly with families in a meaningful way or who want to help support Uplift Center for Grieving Children through behind the scenes work. Current and former volunteers can attest to the rewarding and personally fulfilling nature of getting involved with Uplift!
If you care deeply about children/teens and love to listen to them;
if you are capable of tolerating sadness;
if you are able to appreciate the joy and hidden gifts within children;
if you are willing to share your own humanity; and,
if you are willing to make a commitment of time and energy;
We have a place for you.
If you are interested in being part of this rewarding work, we’d like to hear from you. Volunteers and interns are required to complete clearances, take our training course and are asked to commit to one program year.
Please note, Uplift is not able to provide parking or mileage for in-person groups. Zoom and reliable wi-fi connectivity are required for those supporting virtual groups. Email communications are frequently used by clinicians.
Uplift grief groups benefit from the participation and inclusion of volunteers and interns to help support grieving youth and caregivers. Most grief groups are facilitated or supervised by an Uplift clinician and are supported by a team of volunteers and interns who have chosen to spend a program year at Uplift. Rarely does a newly trained volunteer have to facilitate a grief group by themselves.
Prospective volunteers and interns receive a phone screening/interview and must complete clearances. Attendance and full participation in training around grief, child development and trauma must be completed. Once volunteers complete training, they are assigned to groups based on their availability, group days and meeting times, and the volunteer or intern’s skills, abilities, and interests.
Grief groups currently take place from September through June. Participants meet during the day in a partnering school, or after school hours in the late afternoon or evening. After-school groups meet virtually via Zoom or in person at a partnering site in Philadelphia. The time commitment for volunteers is 2–2 1/2 hours a week when groups are running, and we ask volunteers to commit to a year of groups. Interns are expected to support grief groups for the full program year. During this time, they will learn to facilitate the grief groups to which they are assigned under the guidance of an Uplift clinician.
Volunteers support grief groups and are expected to fully participate in the group. While Uplift clinicians usually facilitate grief groups, volunteers work in tandem with clinical interns, medical students, and other trained volunteers. Volunteers participate by adding to discussions, demonstrating how to complete activities, helping youth, or monitoring the chat during online groups. As volunteers gain experience, they may be asked to help develop and lead some activities. For example, volunteers may provide the welcome, review group agreements with all participants, or introduce icebreakers or games.
Interns are expected to fully participate in grief support groups and gradually increase their participation, contributions, and leadership to assigned groups, culminating in facilitating a grief group under the guidance of an Uplift clinician. Interns will be assigned to support respective grief groups based on their schedules and availabilities. Interns will also be invited to participate in clinical team meetings, work closely with clinicians who are leading their assigned groups, and receive and participate in weekly supervision with an assigned field supervisor.
All grief group volunteers and clinical interns are required to obtain clearances, including PA Child Abuse, PA Criminal History, FBI fingerprints, Act 168 Sexual Misconduct-Abuse Disclosure Release, and a Certificate of Completion from the mandated reporter training. The links for these documents will be sent to prospective volunteers and interns following an initial screening call and must be completed and submitted to Uplift before beginning training. Applicants who have obtained any of these clearances within three months of starting groups may provide those to Uplift rather than obtain new clearances.
All new volunteers are required to participate in training sessions which are held in the evenings for 2-3 nights and may be in person and/or via Zoom. The trainings take place in the fall or start of the year.
Interns will receive training during their required internship hours during Uplift business hours for 2-3 days at the start of their internship.
After completing the application, a member of Uplift’s clinical leadership team will reach out to schedule a screening interview. Interviews may take place over the phone or on Zoom, and allow clinicians to discuss internship and volunteer expectations and questions. This screening call also starts the process of joining an Uplift grief group in support of children, teens, and caregivers.