If you love the energy of community events and enjoy talking with people from all walks of life, you’ll fit right in with our Community Outreach Team. Outreach Exhibitors volunteer at monthly events like community, cultural, health, and senior fairs—and all other events where older adults gather! No experience is necessary; we will teach you everything you need to know to talk to the public.
Please note: Our busy time for exhibitors is May through October.
Volunteer Benefits
- Participate in fun events! Go to new places and meet new people—all while enriching the lives of older adults in your community!
- Be a vital team member and directly impact the lives of older adults and caregivers.
- Share your knowledge with individuals who truly appreciate it.
- Develop a spectrum of marketable skills while receiving ongoing support, education, and training.
- Expand your social network and increase your professional development opportunities.
- Receive volunteer mileage reimbursement.
Volunteer Role
Volunteer Outreach Exhibitors are trained to help others:
- Understand the scope of Senior LinkAge Line (SLL) and Trellis services and promote those services.
- Learn about caregiver supports.
- Learn about low- to modest-income programs that can lower out-of-pocket Medicare costs.
- Identify, report, and prevent Medicare fraud and abuse.
- Learn about MinnesotaHelp.info
Volunteer Requirements
- Basic email skills. Our Outreach Exhibitor opportunities are posted in a weekly emailed newsletter, and email communication with Volunteer & Outreach staff is crucial.
- Ability to pull and lift outreach materials (rolling carts, carrying bins and/or bags, setting up display tables).
- Eagerness to learn about SLL and Trellis services.
- Ability to work independently and make appropriate decisions.
- Desire to talk to new people and go to new places; reliable transportation for events in the seven-county metro area.
- Effective communication skills and comfort with conversing with people.
- Being comfortable not knowing every answer and receiving consistent coaching.
- Compliance with agency non-conflict of interest, confidentiality, and other policies.
- Sensitivity to the needs of older adults, persons with disabilities, and other diverse populations.
Volunteer Training
- Onboard and train with Outreach Team staff.
- Shadow one or more exhibiting events with an experienced volunteer or staff member.
- Co-lead one or more exhibiting events with an experienced volunteer to demonstrate appropriate knowledge and talking points.
- Receive ongoing trainings, supervision, and shadow support visits.
- We recommend all new volunteers attend the following free presentations: How the Senior LinkAge Line Can Help You and Fraud & Scams Targeting Older Adults.
Time Investment
Trellis is open Monday – Friday from 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., and many volunteer opportunities are available during this timeframe; there are also occasional evening and weekend opportunities. We ask volunteers for a minimum of 4 hours per month and a minimum commitment of one year to the program. Volunteers are responsible for logging their volunteer, educational, and training time in our online portal.
Volunteer Setting
Outreach events are held at various community partner sites across the seven-county metro area. Volunteers work under the direct supervision of Volunteer & Outreach staff.
For More Information:
If you have questions, please contact a volunteer coordinator at volunteer@trellisconnects.org or call 651-917-4637.
