About Shelter Movers:

Shelter Movers provides moving and storage services at no cost to women and children fleeing abuse. We are the only organization of our kind in Canada, and our volunteers are no less exceptional. Every year, in collaboration with community partners, our volunteer teams contribute over 15,000 hours to support people transitioning to lives free of violence and abuse.  Our Vancouver chapter has been operational since November 2018 and has completed over 400 moves in that time span. We are growing and looking to add caring and compassionate people to our volunteer team.

Position Summary:

The Move Coordinator (MC) is an integral part of the move team, providing coordination before a move, and on-call support on the day of the move. The MC ensures volunteer teams are assembled, move goes smoothly and responds to unforeseen challenges. 

Job Responsibilities:

It will be essential to have the ability to use patience, empathy, and active listening skills in supporting people under stress. You will need top be aware of compassion fatigue, self-care, and working safely with other volunteers as well as be open to regular check-ins with Shelter Movers staff. 

Your primary responsibilities will be:

• Collect move-related information from clients and referring agencies
• Assemble volunteer move teams using a database and e-mail
• Coordinate the date/time and other logistics of a move and ensure all clients and volunteers are available
• Provide information to volunteers while protecting client confidentiality
• Reserve move vehicles and ensure drivers have necessary information to pick up vehicles
• Be available during a move to support the move team in the event of unexpected challenges (ie. extending vehicle reservations)
• Electronically file client and volunteer waivers
• Report back to Operations Manager after each move

Skills, Experience and Education

• Demonstrate strong knowledge and understanding of Shelter Movers’ policies and procedures.
• Demonstrate ability to maintain confidentiality, provide trauma-informed care to clients, and remain calm during potentially stressful situations.
• Excellent organizational, time-management, problem-solving, decision-making, interpersonal and communication skills.
• Flexible and adaptable to change.
• Tact, discretion, high maturity level and good judgement.
• Experience working with individuals from diverse backgrounds.
• A passion for Shelter Movers’ mission of supporting women and children fleeing violence and abuse.
• No previous education is required.

Assets:

• Ability to speak additional languages.
• Experience in social services, intake coordination, case management, and the Violence Against Women (VAW) sector.
• Previous volunteering experience with Shelter Movers on the Move Coordination team.

Other Requirements

Shelter Movers volunteers must be at least 18 years of age, complete an interview process, sign a confidentiality agreement, complete and pass a police reference check, and attend a Trauma-Informed Care Orientation session. Move Coordinators will be completing additional role-specific training.

Estimated Time Requirements

Approximately  6-8 hours per week. Please note: the work of move coordination isn’t performed in a single continuous ‘shift’; it involves communication and responding to messages during your chosen work hours.

Shelter Movers Provides you with:

• An opportunity to make a positive impact, helping women and children transition away from violence/abuse.
• Experience in the operations of a social service agency, including service coordination and direct client interaction.
• Training in preparation for your role, and access to ongoing training opportunities.
• The ability to work with a great team of passionate volunteers and supporters.
• After 3 months of satisfactory service, a confirmation of volunteering can be provided. 
• After 6 months of satisfactory service, a personalized reference letter can be provided.