BANGOR – Roxanne wasn’t facing an immediate crisis, but she did need to talk to somebody. In Northeast Crisis Services’ Warm Line, she found a friendly voice.

“I cannot express strongly enough how grateful I am that the Warm Line has been available for me,” she said. “I’ve had a hard life, and especially a few years ago when I was experiencing one traumatic event after another, one of the main ways I got through the severe loneliness and emotional pain was due to the Warm Line.”

The Warm Line is a part-time, free and confidential noncrisis telephone line designed to serve those with mental illness and their families in Penobscot, Piscataquis, Washington and Hancock counties.

It is staffed by dedicated volunteers who share several common denominators: a sense of empathy, the ability to be nonjudgmental, and good listening skills.

The Warm Line offers volunteers a chance to help, and that by itself is a significant reward to those who have served.

“Working at the Warm Line has been a very educational experience,” said Crystal, a volunteer. “It has allowed me to gain knowledge about the community and help people who may otherwise feel very isolated. I think my time at the Warm Line has been an invaluable complement to my education at the University of Maine.”

Volunteers are being sought to expand the Warm Line’s hours of operation. Extensive training and ongoing support is provided in such topics as major mental illness, attitudes toward mental illness, how to deal with difficult calls, risk factors, listening skills, telephone skills and agency policies and expectations.

“I sure hope the Warm Line keeps going for a long while,” Roxanne said. “I feel it provides a much-needed service in this area. I know I would have been lost without it many times. The Warm Line is a lifeline, too.”

Maureen Walsh is the coordinator of the Warm Line. For information about volunteering, call her at 947-0366 or (800) 924-0366, Ext. 214, and leave a message. Callers will receive an application and be scheduled for an interview.