It is really about connecting with people. With the hotline, a caller can be sure they will get a warm, nonjudgmental voice on the other end. This warm voice could also be a chance for help. The road to becoming a Samaritan hotline volunteer isn't easy. We look to see not where volunteers have been, but where they are now.
New volunteers undergo thirty hours of training over three months.
We look at what are your biases. You may have sexual issues. You may be talking to someone who has AIDS, someone who beats their wife, men who are women-haters. We hear every scenario on the hotline. The volunteers are trained not to take it personally, not to take the hit.