Be a Volunteer

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Training Program

Barrie Out of the Cold provides training and support for all new volunteers.

At the beginning of each season, Barrie Out of the Cold invites and recommends that all new volunteers attend the Orientation meetings.

Next Orientation:

October 2010
In addition to the information you receive at the Orientation, volunteers will receive shift specific training. The leaders at the six churches hold training sessions prior to the season's start so that all the volunteers are familiar with the space they will be working in, as well as the tasks of the different shifts.

Barrie Out of the Cold Volunteers

We asked some of our volunteers over the years about thier reasons for helping Barrie Out of the Cold. Here's what they had to say...

"I have been a volunteer for the OOTC program for the past 2 years and just to hear the people we help thanking you for your time is enough to keep me volunteering for this most needed organization." -- Rick

"I believe volunteering at programs like Out of the Cold is a very needed, worthwhile and enlightening thing to do. There are so many people in the City of Barrie who need our help and who are very thankful for a warm meal and a place to stay. You do not realize how many people there are on the streets of Barrie who do not have food to eat or a place to go if they are cold and hungry - I certainly had no idea how serious a problem it was until I got involved. It's a real good kind of feeling when these people thank you from their hearts and bless you for being so kind to them. After my first few times at the Out of the Cold Program I was hooked and look forward to helping out every year and meeting all sorts of wonderful people - both the needy and fellow volunteers." -- Barb

"I saw a news serial on the then VR News about "Out of the Cold". I happened to recognize an old friend who was commenting on all the good stuff "Out of the Cold" does for homeless people. I thought if this individual is homeless it could happen to just about anybody, including myself. I thought it's time to do something, to get involved. I was speaking with a work colleague about the news segment and she advised me that she was involved and could send me an application to volunteer, and there ya go. This will be my second year as a volunteer and I'm proud to be part of an organization that assists those less fortunate. My husband has also jumped on board and will partner with me this winter." -- Shelley

To help those in need in our community
To make a difference in our community
To see someone smile
To provide a healthy meal to someone who needs it
To give a little of your time to make a huge difference in the life of someone else
To provide a helping hand to those who deserve kindness, dignity, and respect but don’t often receive it
To assist those living on the street and in poverty in a way that provides them with the daily essentials and allows them the opportunity to get back on their feet
To be a part of the solution
To provide a safe, warm environment
To provide a glimmer of hope
To share the opportunities that you are so blessed to have access to
To provide an opportunity to socialize for those who are marginalized
To change their life…and yours! -- Arin

"While getting up early on a cold winter morning is not my favourite thing to do, I am rewarded in full when, having prepared breakfast, I am greeted by a group of hungry yet extremely polite gentlemen. That day becomes the best day of the week in my humdrum routine." -- Jessie

"During cold blustery wintry evenings as the winds howled outside, I would lie in bed wrapped up in a big cozy down duvet, I would wonder about those without homes living in the streets. I would wonder why I had been so blessed in life, and why others hadn't. I know that many people are only a few paycheques from being in the same situation. And I know that but "for the grace God, there go I". It is for all of these reasons that I knew I had to get involved in a program that provided warmth, comfort and security for the homeless during our long harsh winters." -- Irena

"Volunteering with the Out of the Cold Program in Barrie has given me the opportunity to adjust to new situations, people and experiences. I am proud to be a part of our community’s effort to one day end homelessness." -- Rosemary

"When I see the young people without a home, you think of your own children and wonder what circumstance has brought them here. When one of these young men comes to you as he is leaving after breakfast and says, thank you very much I really appreciate you being here... it makes the few hours I give all worth it, if even for that one person." -- Anita

"I am a member of a team from St. John's United Church in Elmvale. We help the program at Collier St. United Church. I volunteered when our congregation was asked for help. I volunteered because I have a son that is poor, etc. Also, God led me to this and I will keep doing so as long as I am able." -- Brenda