Many people think that they know what Samaritans are for and that we only ever talk to people who are thinking of ending their life. The most frequent comment when Samaritans are mentioned is ‘ I could never do that. It must be awful’. Samaritans in fact, listen to a much wider range of issues than that. You don’t have to be suicidal to phone Samaritans. We do indeed take calls from people who, for whatever reason, feel that life in no longer worth living. We also talk to lonely and vulnerable people, some of whom have mental health issues. We offer support to those who just need a few words of encouragement to get through each day. Sometimes the caller has never spoken to anyone, even close friends or family, about what is troubling them. Some callers live very full lives, yet are stressed, lonely and secretly in despair. We never offer advice to any caller. What we do is offer unlimited time to our callers to talk to us and, if it is their wish, to explore with them their feelings and by talking to us, hopefully they might find a way to resolve what is troubling them. We are contacted by phone, email, text and we have callers who come to our branch.
Yes, being a Samaritan volunteer is challenging, but it is very, very rewarding. Our volunteers come from all walks of life and they range in age from their 20s to their 80s. It is extremely rare to meet a Samaritan you don’t like. We are looking for volunteers to join the rota for our branch. We ask that you commit to a minimum of three hours per week and be prepared to do an overnight shift once a month. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer for Luton, South Beds and Harpenden Samaritans, why not find out more about us by checking us out. Come along to one of our Introductory Days which can be found on our website. www.samaritans.org/branches/samaritans-luton-south-beds-and-harpenden. You’ll be surprised at what you might learn about us
You won’t just change someone else’s life by becoming a Samaritan. You might very well change your own.
We need both listening and support volunteers.
It currently costs £35,000 to run our branch. Fundraising is also a priority.