At SARPAD, volunteering in the service of the elderly is first and foremost « A labor of love ».

SARPAD volunteers are mostly retirees, students from many fields (medicine, social work, occupational therapy, gerontology, etc.), immigrants needing to improve their proficiency in French or English, etc. They come from various ethnic communities, just as our beneficiaries.

Selection criteria used in the recruiting of volunteers:

• Be 18 years old or over.
• Be a permanent Canadian resident.
• Be fluent in French and/or English.
• Be willing to sign up for a minimum of three months.
• Able to put in a minimum of three hours per week or over two weeks.
• Prove to be serious, resourceful and reliable.
• Pass a selection interview.
• Present at least two references other than friends and family
• Present a valid proof of identity with photo (driver’s permit, passport, etc.).

Two categories of volunteers

• On-call volunteers are available to accompany, transport with their own car or get groceries on demand. The volunteer receives a call from SARPAD at least 48 hours and up to a week before the meeting with the beneficiary in order to check his availability.
• Regular volunteers give their time on a regular basis to make friendly visits, walks, friendly calls or do errands on a fixed schedule pre-determined with the beneficiary.

Training offered by SARPA

Through the year, SARPAD invites its volunteers to participate in meetings with healthcare professionals or from different backgrounds so that they may acquire additional knowledge, skills and tools pertinent to their mandate.

• These training sessions enable them to:
• Better grasp the challenges facing the elderly with impaired mobility.
• Share their volunteering experience with other participants.

You can consult the Activities and Events Calendar to learn more about our training offer.