Amicus | Partners Building New Lives



Join Our Email List Email:

Amicus on Facebook

Volunteers

Amicus offers a number of volunteer opportunities, many simply involving offering friendship to an inmate or ex-offender-men and women, adults and youth who are motivated to build new lives. Most opportunities involve a minimum of monthly contact and a one-year commitment to the relationship.

Studies show that inmates who have an ongoing, positive one-to-one relationship with a community member are 40% less likely to offend again. That adds up to a big difference in reducing crime and promoting the positive contributions we all have to give to our community.

Volunteer opportunities include:

Visit and support an inmate through the ONE-TO-ONE program
Become a mentor to ex-offenders transitioning into the community.
Serve as a guest presenter for MEN OF RAFIKI on employment, goal-setting, or other life skills
Participate in a community circle for a youth offender in the Girls Restorative Justice program monitoring progress and troubleshooting problems
Help connect with employers, landlords, and resources through the RECONNECT program
Help with general office support at the Amicus headquarters in downtown Minneapolis

Amicus depends on the generous help of many individuals and groups. We would love to talk with you about what you might be able to offer. Extensive training and staff support is available to volunteers. Speakers are also available to address groups.

Apply to be a volunteer mentor or a volunteer Amicus in the One to One program by completing the Volunteer Application (or PDF format) and returning it to the Amicus office. You will then be contacted by Russel Balenger to arrange for an interview.

To view a list of volunteer events, click here.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it's the only thing that ever has."
Margaret Mead

For more information, call us at (612) 348-8570 or email the Amicus Volunteer Coordinator, Russel Balenger at russel@amicususa.org

We look forward to hearing from you!

What being an Amicus volunteer can mean to an inmate:

"I've been incarcerated for 13 years and had begun to lose touch with people of society. This only tends to make a person hard on the inside. My amicus has changed all that. In him, I see the good I thought no longer existed. Thank you for making me feel like a person again."

SAMPLE VOLUNTEER PROFILE:

Crystal can easily keep me there talking to her for more than an hour," says Amicus ONE-TO-ONE volunteer Toni Green about her friend. Green first became involved with Amicus as part of the RAFIKI recruiting project for African-American volunteers. "Given the number of African-American women in the prison population, I felt that volunteers needed to step up to the plate," says Green. The idea of "each one, reach one," appeals to Green.

On a personal level, Green just enjoys being with Crystal and learning from and about her, like any friend. "She's very funny and loves to talk," says Green. Green says she also appreciates her blessings more after spending time in Shakopee.

For Crystal, the chief value of the relationship is also in the friendship. "Toni is a great person-I can talk to her like family-she doesn't criticize," says Crystal. At the same time, Crystal appreciates that Green doesn't take her side just because she's her friend. "If I do something wrong, she lets me know about it," she says with a smile. Crystal loves postcards and looks forward to getting them from Green, who travels frequently. She also loves to read and appreciates that Green always has a new book for her. "Most of my family is out of state, so Toni's visits make me feel special," says Crystal. "She is a great person."

Green thinks that the secret to success for an Amicus friendship is to be open and non-judgmental toward the other person, and stresses that this goes for both volunteer and inmate. "You can't assume that, because of your different situations in life, it will be hard to relate, or that you will have nothing in common," says Green. "You never know where another person's feet have taken them." Those who stay open can form a good attachment. In the philosophy of ONE-TO-ONE, connectedness leads to feeling cared about, which leads to hope, which leads to change-and a better life.

Amicus thanks our volunteers for all that they do:

Valuing others
Offering hope
Listening actively
Using your talents
Never giving up
Taking the time
Esteeming all lives
Expanding horizons
Respecting everyone
Shining in the darkness

PARTNERS BUILDING NEW LIVES

Projects are funded/supported, in part, by the Office of Justice Programs through the Minnesota Department of Public Safety and the Minnesota Department of Corrections.