Homeless Shelter Chaperone
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This is a great need that has to be filled NOW because Covid-19 has kept many of the regular chaperones (students from Cal Poly and Cuesta College) away from SLO County.
St. William’s parishioners have been volunteering at ECHO Homeless Shelter for years. They need us now more than ever. Please see the links below for more information about ECHO and specifically information about being an Overnight Chaperone. The information is comprehensive and will answer all of your questions. In addition, you probably have some extra questions due to Covid-19 and hopefully the information below will put your mind at ease.
At ECHO the health and safety of our clients, volunteers, and staff are always our top priority. We understand there are growing concerns around Coronavirus (COVID-19) so we wanted to update our community on some options for continuing to support ECHO during this time.
I have listed our hygiene precautions in accordance with the latest CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) strict guidelines:
· If you are feeling unwell, we ask that you stay home and rest. Let us know if you need to cancel your shift at your earliest convenience.
· Hand washing stations are located at all 3 entrances of the building. Everyone must wash their hands with soap and water before entering the building.
· Hand sanitizer stations are located throughout the shelter and dining room.
· Staff, volunteers, and residents are rotating to use sanitizing wipes to sanitize all high use handrails, doorknobs, tables, chairs etc. once an hour.
· If you are able, please wear the provided gloves and face mask for the duration of your shift. If wearing these items is an issue for you, please reach out to me to discuss alternatives.
· Volunteers and staff will be using a no-touch thermometer to take all clients temperatures daily.
· For the time being, all community dinners will be served in to-go boxes. To encourage social distancing, all dinner guests will be asked to leave the property once they've received their meal box.
· We currently have less than 30 residents living at the shelter at the moment to increase social distancing.
· We've received 2 trailers from the county to isolate clients should anyone find themselves feeling ill. So far, we have not had any clients show any symptoms of the virus.
We can't thank you enough for supporting ECHO during this time! We rely on over 1,500 volunteers annually to help keep ECHO open. Every person who comes to the shelter to help is providing a critical service that so many of our clients and guests depend on, especially now more than ever. Any sort of food, monetary, or volunteer donation is greatly needed and appreciated during this time!
Does this sound like a CONNECTION you would like to add to your life? If so, please fill out the Sign-Up Form to sign-up and/or learn more about this CONNECTION.
In addition, due to the strong need for chaperones at this time, please call Raychel Nowak, Volunteer Coordinator & Community Outreach at ECHO, directly at 805-539-7858 or email her at Rnowak@echoshelter.org to volunteer and/or ask additional questions.