New training for the Rachel Coalition’s court advocate program begins this week
The Rachel Coalition, the domestic violence division of Jewish Family Service of Greater MetroWest NJ, is seeking volunteers for its Court Advocate Program. The 40-hour hands-on training program trains participants to provide domestic violence victims with emotional and administrative support as they await their restraining order hearing in Essex Family Court in Newark.
Online training sessions begin on Tuesday, March 7, from 6 to 9 p.m. No formal legal experience or education is required to volunteer and participants will have an opportunity to observe family court proceedings. Volunteers who already have taken a 40-hour domestic violence training class can qualify for an abbreviated training. For more information on the Court Advocate Program and to schedule an interview, email Sherri Goldman at sgoldman@jfsmetrowest.org.
Each year, the Essex Family Court Domestic Violence Unit in Newark handles more than 6,000 cases of domestic violence. Since 2006, JFS/Rachel Coalition has placed trained court advocate volunteers in the Essex County Family Court’s waiting room to explain the restraining order process to victims, assist with the initial application, provide information about community services such as legal, counseling and shelters, and to offer unconditional emotional support.
For more information, go to www.jfsmetrowest.org or call (973) 765-9050.
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