LA CROSSE, Wis. (WEAU) – Gundersen Health System’s Crime Victim Services team and their volunteers help people navigate the aftermath of domestic violence and sexual assault.
Team manager Stephanie Young says team members assist victims during the day and volunteers can be called in to help overnight or on the weekends.
“When people who have been recently sexually assaulted or been in a domestic violence incident need medical care, they’re able to be a support person for them during that exam while the nurse is attending to their medical needs and collecting forensic evidence,” says Young.
There continues to be a need for volunteers, but Young says the team is running very low.
“We usually like to have double, if not triple, what we currently have. It’s always been a difficult volunteer opportunity to recruit for because it requires a special person to feel comfortable to provide the support to someone so close after a trauma. Since covid, our organization and others have had a harder time recruiting volunteers in general,” says Young.
Sexual assault nurse examiner Olivia Kendall says a good volunteer can provide support for victims while also making a nurse’s job easier.
“Everybody has a role to play in providing effective care, but one thing an advocate can do differently than a nurse or a doctor is follow their care journey and their needs after they leave the emergency department. They can be somebody who is an advocate as they transition to navigating the legal system,” says Kendall.
Young says it isn’t just the La Crosse area that’s in need either.
“There are volunteer advocacy opportunities in the Eau Claire area for those who live closer to that area and not in the La Crosse area. Family Support Center is an agency that provides similar services who always has a need for volunteer advocates as well,” says Young.
Gundersen requires volunteers to attend forty hours of training, to work at least two shifts a month, and to sign up for volunteering for at least one year.
For more information on how to volunteer, you can look here for La Crosse and here for Eau Claire.
Copyright 2025 WEAU. All rights reserved.
Gundersen Health System calls for volunteers for their Crime Victim Services team
