FAIRFAX COUNTY JUVENILE & DOMESTIC RELATIONS DISTRICT COURT VOLUNTEER INTERPRETERS PROGRAM

The Volunteer Interpreters Program (VIP) was created in 1994 to address the growing need for language interpretation in civil court cases in Fairfax, Virginia. Since its inception, the program has expanded and now provides interpretation and translation for all programs and services provided in the courthouse as well as the Court’s programs in other geographically located facilities. The VIP was a pioneer program in Fairfax County and other enterprises have used it as a model to create similar programs to serve their communities.

The Volunteer Interpreters’ Code of Ethics requires them to provide complete and accurate interpretation without altering, omitting or adding anything to the original statement or document. They accurately and completely represent their training, certifications and pertinent experience and are impartial and unbiased. As a part of their Code, they also refrain from conduct that may even give the appearance of bias, disclose any real or perceived conflict of interest and conduct themselves in a manner consistent with the dignity of the court. They maintain the confidentiality of all parties and information, limit themselves to interpreting or translating and do not give legal advice or their personal opinions.

While Spanish is the primary language provided, the program also provides interpretation in Korean, Portuguese, French, Arabic and Italian. The VIP consists of 30 volunteers and one volunteer coordinator. The entire Court and Court Services process is expedited by having interpreters available for Court hearings and for scheduled and walk-in clients. The VIP has reduced the number of Court hearings, which have to be continued due to a lack of interpreters. Services can be provided immediately for walk-in clients seeking service without having to schedule appointments with a paid interpreter.

The Court process is confusing and intimidating for most citizens. It is especially confusing for those citizens who do not have a high proficiency in English and who come from a culture that is very different from ours. The volunteers work along side the Court Services staff to identify the issues for each of the clients, determine the appropriate course of action and the complete the necessary paperwork for the Court process. When an interpreter is present, the client does not have to struggle with making him or herself understood. They are also able to communicate their issues calmly and receive the appropriate services.

When clients are treated with respect and consideration and have their issues addressed regardless of their language and culture, they begin to trust the justice system. They also learn that they are entitled to the protections and services of the justice system. Prior to VIP, Court staff relied on friends and relatives of defendants and victims to provide interpretation services. The VIP has promoted and improved the services provided by the County to the residents of diverse cultures while also achieving the objective of giving a clear understanding of the Court system and legal procedures.

DEBORAH WOOD

Deborah Wood, who herself suffers from Multiple Sclerosis, inherited a small poodle named Pomp. Within weeks she researched and developed a way to use her new pet to help others. She and Pomp trained to become “Pet Therapists” and began visiting local nursing homes and hospitals with much success. The patients whom they visit are often isolated and lonely and contact with Ms. Wood and Pomp has helped to bring them interest and socialization.

Ms. Wood has first hand experience and a keen understanding of the loneliness and isolation that often afflicts persons with disabilities. She herself was isolated and depressed as a result of her struggle with Multiple Sclerosis. When she met Pomp and later his buddy, Raggs, she began to experience a renewed interest in life. She who had been housebound and often bed bound became excited about her new mission to bring joy and activity to others.

Ms. Wood, who is totally disabled and lives on a fixed income, has made many personal sacrifices to care for the dogs that have become such an important part of her life and the lives of those whom she serves.

ALEXANDER CIFFO

Teen Connect is a community service program that pairs teens with senior citizens to converse by telephone, sharing life’s experiences. It keeps senior citizens and teens, two vulnerable segments of our society, connected with each other and able to share various life experiences. The program is a service-learning model that builds bridges between generations. He stepped up to fill the void of leadership when the prior leader left for college at MIT. Since he has taken that position, Teen Connect has continued to expand to other schools in the nation.

Alexander has also instituted a scholarship program to reward teen participants for their generous community service, sharing and caring for senior citizens. These awards will help deserving Teen Connect participants attend college so they can return home and share more of their talents with the generations before and after them.

Recently, Alexander has developed a web site that affords Teen Connect chapters around the country as well as senior citizens, teenager and other groups, and a vehicle to review the program. This site is also a means of communication for interested parties so they can contact Alexander. Because of this technology, every town and city will be able to have participants in the Teen Connect program even if their local high school or college does not have a chapter.

Alexander also reached out to professionals in the community for assistance in setting up a nonprofit corporation for Teen Connect. This will allow him to raise money to continue to expand Teen Connect. Alexander’s efforts for Teen Connect have been ongoing, and the organization has received positive responses from seniors as well as teen throughout the county. He has been an integral part of its success, from the start of its first chapter, to its introduction in other states. Alexander has been working with Teen Connect for more than five years and given more than 3,000 hours of service which include speeches, the website, meeting with legal and accounting professionals as well as taking it to the next level as a 501(c)(3) organization.

WINNIFRED OLSEN

Born in Olympia 87 years ago, Winnifred Castle Olsen has been a “doer” since school days when she edited the Olympia High School paper and the annual and was student body secretary (1933-34). Immediately after graduating Phi Beta Kappa from Washington State College in 1938 and being married in the fall, she became involved in Olympia activities writing free publicity for Girl Scouts, United Good Neighbors, Red Cross, Easter Seals, March of Dimes, and other “causes.”

After having two sons, she became PTA focused – helping organize the preschool nursery school; was a cub scout den mother, Hi-Y supporter; president of the Olympia high School PTA, president two years; PTA City Council; regional PTA council; and president of the Olympia Citizens Advisory Council on Education. This group helped lay the early groundwork for a state college in Thurston County.

Before the days of television, she became “Mother Goose” on KGY radio, producing a half hour creative play/music program for pre-schoolers every Saturday morning for 8 ½ years (1948-1957). She also helped organize the Thurston County Juvenile Protection Committee, the Olympia Panhellenic, Olympia Junior Programs and was involved – writing publicity – in the beginning of the YWCA and the League of Women Voters. She served 11 years on the Washington State Fulbright Scholarship Committee.

While working at the State Capitol Museum (1963-67), she became aware of and intrigued with the little known story of George W. Bush, the mulatto pioneer who helped establish the first American settlement on Puget Sound at Tumwater in 1845. She has researched and developed the Bush family history for the past 40 years and finally experienced a “dream come true” helping to dedicate a Bush family historical kiosk on part of the family’s 1850 Land Donation claim in Tumwater of February 22, 1997.

Mrs. Olsen’s first assignment with the Tacoma Public School in 1967 was to put minorities into Northwest History. She made classroom presentations, wrote teaching materials, student texts and a series of KTPS television programs on Black history, Native American culture and Tacoma history. She worked with parents to start the Indian Education Program and with Black parents to supplement Title IV activities. She served on Title II and Title III NDEA committees for the State Department of Public Instruction and taught a popular series of extended education classes on Indian Treaty issues, “Think India”, for UPS, PLU, and WWSC. She edited a study guide on Negro History in 1968 which won a NEA Carter G. Woodson award and then authored a text on Puyallup and Nisqually Indians for third graders and a text on Tacoma Beginnings. Her history of the Tacoma Public School (1869-1984) won the National School Public Relations Association’s Golden Achievement Award for 1986.

Since her retirement, Mrs. Olsen has undertaken more volunteer roles in Olympia and Thurston County. She was appointed to the Olympia Timberland Library board, serving ten years 1985-1995); the Evergreen Convalescent Center Community Advisory Board (1985-1989), the Thurston County Historic Commission (1989 to the present, currently vice-president); steering committees for the Olympia Library Bond campaign (1995-1997) and the Olympia Library Friends Board since 1990.

ADOPTIVE/FOSTER PARENT ASSOCIATION OF COLQUITT COUNTY, INC.

The adoptive and foster parents are consummate volunteer caregivers. These volunteers came to the program because of a sincere desire to take care of children. The foster and adoptive parents provide the children with a loving a safe place to start the healing process. They open their hearts and homes to children of all races, ages, backgrounds and crises. Their mission and concern is to take care of children.

The association has set up various activities for service in the community. They set up a special intergenerational project for Make A Difference Day. The association chose to help the elderly in the community, and this activity was chosen to teach the children about different age groups and to help out and give back to the community.

The project offered various activities for the elderly. Some needed assistance with cleaning windows, raking leaves, sweeping and cleaning off carports. Others needed assistance with other odd jobs around the home. Both the parents and the children volunteered and continue to volunteer to help the elderly in whatever areas they have a need. The children benefited from this because they are developing relationships with older adults and learning from them. They also feel good about being able to help someone. The parents get great rewards from seeing the children affected as well as the new “older” friends.

The adoptive and foster parents are continuing their relationship of service with the elderly in their community. They are now planning to set up a voter registration drive and hope for that to be ongoing also.

HERMAN SLOTOROFF

When a recovering heart patient contemplates life after surgery, the prospects may seem bleak. Herman Slotoroff, a 70-year-old retired accountant from Somers, NY, however, saw opportunity on the horizon. Told by his doctors that exercise and a good diet were essential to his recovery from a heart bypass operation, he took them at their word. The result, 10 years later, is an ongoing program, the By-Pass-Open tennis tournament, that through his efforts has contributed more than $200,000 to the American Heart Association for heart research. It also has promoted the cause of exercise and a healthy diet for hundreds of recovering heart patients.

Although he had never organized a public event before, Mr. Slotoroff, an avid tennis player before his operation, created the By-Pass-Open in 1993. He incorporated the Open as a nonprofit organization, convinced a nearby tennis club to donate its facilities on an off day, and then personally undertook all the myriad tasks needed to make the tournament a reality. Recruiting recovering heart patients as players, through referrals and through suggestions offered by the many doctors he solicited, his first day-long tournament set the pattern for a day-long tournament that has taken place every year since then. The program has not only won funding for heart research through entry fees and sponsorships, but has promoted the cause of a healthy diet through the printed material he has made available at the tournament, and through the low-fat pre-event and post-tournament luncheon.

As his program has grown, Mr. Slotoroff has won commendations for his efforts including a book on exemplary nonprofit concepts, CPR For Nonprofits, and attracted players from all over the country including such luminaries as former New York City Mayor David Dinkens and CNN financial commentator, Myron Kandel. The program he created is a unique effort and one will continues to grow annually.

For more information on the tournament, visit the By-Pass-Open web page or the American Heart Association web page.

PETER LOR

Peter Lor is a longtime member of the community served by NYU Downtown Hospital: his 65-year residency in Chinatown has been interrupted only by his military service. During the World War II, to protect the United States, to make peace in the world, he joined the U.S. Army Air Corps to serve the country (1942-1947). After his retirement from the restaurant business, Mr. Lor was looking for a way to stay active and benefit the community. In 1995, he heard NYUDH Volunteer Department recruiting Chinese Volunteer Corp. on the radio, making an appeal for volunteers to work at the Hospital. Mr. Lor saw his opportunity, and has been serving at the hospital ever since.

At the age of 80, when many people might feel overburdened by the demands of volunteer work, Mr. Lor is at the hospital every week, sometimes helping with filing in the Outpatient department, preparing patient’s charts for doctors, getting laboratory reports and getting supplies for the clinic. But most often Mr. Lor translates for Chinese patients who are non-English speaking.

A couple of years ago, Mr. Lor was diagnosed with cancer. However, he has not let health difficulties interfere with his community service any more than he has let age slow him down. In recent years he has undergone radiotherapy and chemotherapy for cancer and has continued to volunteer at the Hospital throughout his illness, even for the four months in 2000 when he was receiving both regimens simultaneously. Today, with his chemotherapy continuing, he says that it makes him tired; but he has not cut back on his schedule at the hospital.

In fact, when someone is in particularly difficult circumstances, he is willing to help far beyond his scheduled duties if patients need him. Not long ago, a 40-year-old woman, unable to speak English and without family or friends help, was referred by clinic for surgery at the Hospital For Joint Diseases. Without reducing his other scheduled volunteer time, Mr. Lor accompanied and translated for the woman during all the related appointments and through the surgery itself, spending up to five hours at a time at the Hospital For Joint Diseases.

Because so many people served by the hospital are Chinese immigrants, cultural and social problems often hamper their ability to obtain relief from health problems. At the outpatient clinic, more than 90% are Chinese, and 60% of the patients in inpatient care are Chinese. Bilingual support is necessary and crucial to providing these patients and community residents with quality health care services.

Until the early 90’s in Lower Manhattan, the predominant Chinese language was Cantonese and only 10% was Mandarin. Today 50% of Chinese speak Mandarin. There is a great demand for Mandarin interpretation at the clinic. Patients who speak only Mandarin Chinese are unable to communicate with most of the Chinese staff who speaks Cantonese in the clinic. Mr. Lor spoke only Cantonese when he came to volunteer; in order to meet the demand of interpretation for the Mandarin speaking patients, Peter learned to speak Mandarin at the age of 72, when conventional wisdom has it that a new language is nearly impossible to learn. Now he interprets both Cantonese and Mandarin for patients.

LINDA MALINOWSKI

Linda Malinowski works daily to find ways of making life better for those around her. She is a dedicated supporter of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, a local food pantry and members of her community.

The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is dedicated to curing and improving the quality of life for people suffering from Leukemia, Lymphoma, Hodgkins Disease and melanoma. Ms. Malinowski works to raise money for the organization throughout the year. The money is used for research, financial assistance, and patient aid programs and for patients and their families. She also sponsored a young girl, Lindsey, for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Lindsey was born with Down’s Syndrome and Leukemia, and she and her family are vigorously fighting the disease. They are very thankful for Ms. Malinowski’s support and are looking for the funds to help soon find a cure.

Ms. Malinowski also practices the art of active listening. Many may not recognize this talent as valuable but it can save lives. People with serious concerns or problems talk with Ms. Malinowski because she is willing to lend her ear and direct them to agencies that can further assist them. In addition, she will follow up with a card or letter to let that person know she is still thinking about them and encouraging them to be positive and to continue to work through whatever challenge they are facing.

Malinowski has also volunteered her time with the Wild Life Federation, the Humane Society and a local food pantry that is a Catholic Charity program helping needy families in the community. She also helps elderly neighbors with chores around the house as well as transporting them to doctor’s appointments or to the grocery store. Ms. Malinowski also makes sure they take their medications, fix lunch and visits with them to keep them company.

THE CHILD RESCUE FOUNDATION, INC.

Thousands of women and children are impacted by domestic violence daily. The Child Rescue Foundation, Inc. (CRF) maintains the mission to provide financial aid to families and children impacted by trauma and violence and to continue to establish outreach and feral programs that provide a holistic approach to recovery for those that have been impacted by violence. CRF focuses most of its violence prevention and education programs in the Denver metro area where Denver police respond to more than 6,000 domestic violence calls annually with more than 1/3 of the calls involving children who witness the violence. Since 1996, there have been more than 300 homicides directly related to domestic violence.

The Teddy Bear Project™ was created three years ago to provide gifts for children who have been impacted by violence. In three years, CRF has provided more than 26,000 plush animals as a symbol of unconditional love for kids in crisis. Each year CRF works for months to build partnerships with community leaders (such as the Build A Bear Company, Rocky Mountain Alarm Co. and the Bombay Trading Company) and to gain volunteers who will collect and re-tag the teddy bears. 2003 marks the second year that CRF has collected and retagged plush animals on Make A Difference Day. This year, 97 volunteers helped to collect 1,598 stuffed animals, 40 packets of blankets, and 25 packets of diapers. The collected items were delivered to Denver-area aid organizations.

The Teddy Bear Project™ impacts two different portions of the Denver community. The first group is comprised of community members who donate or volunteer to retag and deliver the items. They are reminded of the importance of violence prevention and education. The volunteers are also motivated to take action in their own lives and the lives of those that they care for. The second group is composed of people who have experienced violence and may depend on the kindness of aid organizations and individuals for their survival. The stuffed animals are retagged with the contact information for CRF, which offers information on available resources, if and when the child is in trouble. The tags also contain a special message to the recipient with its own special name. The University of Denver athletes/students have an ongoing commitment to this program and feel hat it greatly adds to the students’ college experience by exposing them to the issue of domestic violence by aiding the healing process for children in crisis.

Domestic violence impacts all of us. CRF’s program is unique, because it strives to galvanize the community, especially the children, in giving back to the community. More than 2,700 Girl Scouts work on this project during the fall season each year. These symbols of unconditional love provide hope, peace and care in times of crisis.

DOROTHY NELSON-2

Well into her 70’s, when many senior citizens might consider slowing down, Dorothy holds two on-going volunteer positions, both requiring a high level of skill and commitment.

Dorothy has been a volunteer staff member of the Montgomery County Volunteer Center since June of 1998. She works approximately 15 hours per week, and maintains and updates a vast database of volunteer needs of the over 600 non-profit or public agencies that are registered with the Volunteer Center. This is no small task with more than 2,000 volunteer opportunities in the database that is ever changing with the needs of the community.

In order for the Volunteer Center to mobilize people and resources to deliver creative solutions to community problems, the database serves as the link in matching businesses, religious organizations, school groups, scout groups, neighborhood associations, and individuals to one-time, short-term, or ongoing volunteer opportunities. As such, it is critical that the information contained in that database be current and complete. Her work requires meticulous record keeping, computer, and people skills. As the technology changes in maintaining the database, Dorothy is ready and willing to learn a new system or process to insure the efficiency and integrity of the database.

Dorothy became a member of the Montgomery County Long Term Care Ombudsman Program in February of 1995. The program is designed to resolve complaints made by residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities. The program serves more than 6,000 long-term care residents throughout the region. Dorothy oversees the quality assurance component of the program. Her nursing background and quality assurance knowledge have been an integral part of the successful record keeping required in the advocacy work of the more than 60 volunteer ombudsman representatives and eight staff members of the program. Dorothy has created an atmosphere of credible service because she assures continuity through the review of all records before closure. She is dependable and reliable, volunteering an average of 3-4 hours every week.

In both programs Dorothy’s work meets critical community needs. At the Volunteer Center the database that she manages is posted on the Volunteer Center website and accessed by thousands of county residents who are interested in getting involved and making a difference. The feedback received from the agencies that rely on the Volunteer Center database to recruit volunteers, and from the people in the community that access the database on the website is consistently positive. Her work is literally building a connection between the needs of the nonprofits and the resources of those interested in solving community problems.

Her work with the Ombudsman Program also has an important impact. Due to Dorothy’s competency in the quality assurance field, the program is able to continuously re-evaluate areas for training and improvement. Her work helps make the Program’s goal, to promote the highest possible quality of life and care for residents living in the County’s licensed nursing homes and assisted living facilities, a reality.