Friends@Home Slide Presentation

By: Shaina TeitelbaumFriendship Circle of Pittsburgh, PA

B”H

Friends at Home Program

~ 6 steps to a successful Friends at Home Program

2nd step - Making the FAH match between volunteers & special friend

3rd step - What goes into a first visit … why its so important.

4th step – Making a schedule for everyone … keeping on top of everyone's visits

5th step – COMMUNICATION

6th step - Group FAH days – how those work

1st step - ways to promote the Friends at Home Program!

• At initial Sign up meeting/ interview: Make sure to stress the benefits and advantages of the FAH program & even though it’s the biggest time commitment. ie they are building relationships, in their own comfort zone etc….

• You kick-off party / 1st training of the year: have your teens promote the FAH program, let them sell it for you… . * Choose teens who are passionate about it. + have a parent present.

• We created a FAH brochure!

1st step – Ways to promote the Friends at Home program?!?

• As soon as Volunteer or friend expresses interest, we add them to a spreadsheet

• Get as much info about the their personalities and interests (both volunteers and friends) from whomever interviewed.

• Ask the friend if they have a friend they would like to do it with. If not, pair them up with another volunteer.

• Try to keep visit local, unless parents don’t mind driving. • Pair up boys and girls up with same gender.• Always give parents names before volunteers. • As soon as we have a match for them we send out an e-mail to volunteer

& call parent of special friend. • You may have to recruit volunteers for a FAH match

2nd step - Making the FAH Match between Volunteer & Special Friend

• Set a time a date for the first visit. Don’t worry yet about regular scheduling. Send out an e-mail reminder to everyone the night before with the address of the special friend….

• The director (or coordinator) will go along for the first visit. (to get everyone acquainted)

• FAH activity bags: Brings along bags filled with fun activities (including 101 things to do with my friends) & business card magnets with exchanged information

• Ask the parents (in the presence of the volunteers) if there is anything they need to know about their new friend or house rules…

• First Activity: A picture is taken during the first visit & printed out on the spot….if you don’t have a printer you can always take a picture then & mail it to them later. this Gives the FAH buddies a first activity to do together!

3rd step - What goes into a first visit

Welcome to Friendship Circle Friends@Home program!!

We thought we would give you a hand in your weekly visits since sometimes it is best to go prepared to a Friends@home visit. Your friend

may not want to play or do the activities they he or she has in their home, so we definitely think a bag of activities is in order!

In this bag you can find the following items:

A board game or activity

An art project

A deck of cards

A pad of paper & Crayons

A guide of 101 of the coolest things to do with your friends

A cool friendship circle lip balm just for you

This should be a great start. Please remember to bring your bag with you every week as you never know when you may need it. Please feel free to come up with other creative ideas to do with your friend. This year we also started Friends at Home library at the Friendship Circle. If you are interested in taking out games, books, movies or just restock your FAH

activity bag please give Shaina a call or shoot an email. Also, don’t forget to tell us, via weekly posts on the mileage program, as you use these activities. We want to make your visits easier and more fun; so let us

know how we can help.

• Most important step!!!

• After first visit – an e-mail with dates for the next 2 months go out…. (volunteer & special friends check over the dates with their calendar) we then mail out the schedule with a cover page. *That way they have a hard copy of the schedule

• System on how to keep all the FAH schedules organized…. – Weekly spreadsheet & individual schedules… – send out reminder to everyone the week before. – Find out what is the Best Method of Communication (BMofC) to remind them. (e-mail , facebook or

phone call.) Warn them upfront that you will be reminded (may seem nudge).

• When the schedule has 1-2 weeks left … an e-mail goes out and a new schedule goes into the mail for everyone.

• Feedback page – Once a month I will check in with our FAH buddies & see how FAH visits have been going. Really important to write down, even if you think you’ll remember.

4th step – Making a Schedule for everyone … keeping on top of everyone's visits

2010-2011 SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY TUESDAY THURSDAY

11:30am Sammy Balyosny David Gordon Jake Gold

11:30am Jeremy Elias Jordana Rosenfeld

4:00pm Lexi Vayonis Alex Levy Destin Groff

3:30pm Amanda Diaz Rebecca Rosen

6:00pm Ido Goldis Myan Haviv Ariel Rascoe

5:00pm Aaron Blum David Weinstein Caleb Labelle

7:00 Lucy Devlin Hannah Seigel Jacquelin Radin

10:30 am Gedalia & Sruli Boloten Shane Fishbach Darya Fishbach

12:30pm Jake Lerman Jason Diaz Ronen Kadosh

2:00pm Grady Jordan Masha Glukhovskaya Jenna Finer

5:00pm Michael Supowitz Ilissa Simon Haley Simon

6:00pm Michael Fox Emily Gorby Rachel Stein

4:00 Martin Langer Alex Kirshner Jordon Grollman

8:15am Yaakov Posin Sam Rest Justin Weinstein

10:30am Zoe Rest Lauren Myers Marissa karp

10:00am Zayne Zeff Micah Rabin

5:00pm Manny Isaacs Eli Gelernter Max Zach Yoffee

WEDNESDAY 5:30pm Amanda Diaz Emily Mostow Dana Sufrin

4:00 Shaina Kleinman Sarah Pincus Li Milch

5:00pm Yoni Kandel Micah Rabin Mia Rosenfeld

Afternoon Paige Duhl Julia Averbach Emma Yellin

6:00pm Chaim Eisen Noah Fabian

4:00pm Zack Ruttenberg Alana Rascoe Sam Ballangee

11:00 Andrew Guttman Lauren Barney Dina Biton

1:00pm Michael Supowitz Louisa Blasier Michelle Lurie

5:30pm Shayna Kleinman Chani Feigelstock Shaina Korf

4:45pmpm Riley & Ross Ringold Brett Weinberger Erica Lisitsa

3:30 Aaron Zumoff Blaine Dinkin Dani Plung

5:00pm Brendan Clancy Justin Berk Artie Newman Alex Fox

4:00pm Alex Blue Danielle VonWaldow Lizzy Spock

4:30pm Reid Ringold Sarah Horvitz Lizzie Shackney

December 21, 2010

Dear Lizzy,

Firstly, thank you for being a part of The Friendship Circle. As you know, you play a very important role in the life of a special child and we are proud to have you in our volunteer club.

Enclosed is your Friends at Home schedule for your visits with Alex Blue through January 2010. I trust that you will make an effort to be on time so each visit, as Blue is really looking forward to them! If, for whatever reason, it is absolutely necessary to cancel or make a change of date or time, please be sure to be in touch (with myself & Mrs. Blue) before the scheduled visiting time.

Thank you again for your commitment to Friendship and making a difference in the lives of children with special needs.

All the best,

Shaina Teitelbaum

FAH Coordinator

5th step – COMMUNICATION

• None-responsive volunteers: They need to confirm that their updated schedules work for them. Don’t assume that they read and are good. This is crucial to a smooth process throughout.

• Weekly reminders : use their BMofC before each scheduled FAH visit – refer back to individual schedules. This shows them that you’re still ‘tracking them’ every week. It keeps you involved.

• Checking in: Random calls or while you’re already calling to remind them. You’ll be surprised at what might come up that they would not have thought to inform you of otherwise. This will prevent bigger problems from arising. See below

• Example A (Michael/ Louisa & Michelle – Ice skating) • Example B ( Brett W ….. Twins fighting) • Example C (Yaakov Posin, didn’t go for 4 weeks… but since I kept on top of it, we didn’t let there visit

slip away. We figured out a time)

• Began as an annual event, now we increased to twice a year at the request of our volunteers and friends

• Gives friends who normally wouldn’t come to FC programs a chance to be with their friend in a group setting.

• Activities – around the room to do with their friends… board games, wii, arts and crafts etc… – one group activity. (like pass the parcel, 7up).– Snack station.

• Not so structured unlike a typical friendship circle program.

• FAH Library and Activity Refill. Opportunity for Friends volunteers to fill up on activities offered by the friendship circle…..

• Group FAH DAYS – FAH Picture Board

6th step - Group FAH days – how these work