Anonymous
Evolve IP®, The Cloud Strategy CompanyTM, and 805 CounselorConnect, today announced that fire and mudslide victims struggling with the tragedies in the Santa Barbara area can talk with volunteer therapists who are either licensed or specially trained by calling (805) 979-9091 or visiting www.805counselorconnect.com and clicking to call.
The hotline is currently open between 10 am and 10 pm Pacific Time on weekdays, and available to anyone affected by the tragic events in California, regardless of where they live. As additional therapists become available, hours will be extended to the weekend. The volunteer counselors, located across the nation, are interconnected via a contact center to ensure callers are routed to the first available therapist. Callers are also given an option to leave a phone number for a callback should all counselors be busy.
Heather Wennergren of 805 Counselor Connect noted, “The recent fires and tragic mudslides have left our community with many unknowns and people here are in a state of despair. With a background in psychology, and now in my role with IT and communications, it occurred to me that only counseling, and a lot of it, could help this community deal with the tragic situations experienced by so many friends, loved ones, and rescuers.”
Wennergren continued, “I had recently seen a demo of Evolve IP’s contact center and I knew that it would solve our issue of connecting a nationwide network of therapists. I also needed to be sure that if the lines got too busy callers could get a call back as soon as the next therapist was available. Within 2 days of my asking for support the call center was up and running.”
“We’ve watched in horror with the rest of the nation as images and videos of the tragedy emerged,” said Rich Fox, Vice President of Contact Center for Evolve IP. “When Heather asked if we could help with the program we said ‘yes’ without hesitation. We’re incredibly thankful for the therapists who are volunteering as well as all of the heroic first responders who continue to put their lives on the line to keep us safe.”
One of the world’s fastest growing cloud strategy companies, Evolve IP provides best-of-breed cloud solutions to more than 1,500 enterprises across the globe and to more than 350,000 users. Many of the world’s most recognizable brands rely on the company’s Evolve IP OneCloudTM strategy to migrate multiple integrated cloud computing and cloud communications services onto a single, unified platform including: disaster recovery, contact centers, IP phone systems / unified communications, virtual desktops, IaaS, and more. For more information about Evolve IP please visit: www.evolveip.net.
ABOUT 805 Counselor Connect
805 Counselor Connect is a non-profit created to connect people who need to talk with those qualified to help them. The organization is donation funded and staffed by volunteers. The group is seeking volunteers who are licensed or specially trained therapists to support callers.
