Community Advocates
People in early recovery are onboarded and trained as community advocates. Their job is to be present, helpful, and human in the neighborhood. Compensation is discussed based on work, and begins as contract work with 1099. This makes the job very flexible.
The kind of work that reconnects people to where they live.
Core Activities
Your advocates do four things, on repeat.
Canvassing with Purpose
- Petitions, surveys, event notices, business features
- Flyers that always serve two sides: community + local business
- Not mass mail. Hand delivered. Conversations when appropriate.
Neighborhood Presence
- Trash pickups
- Cleanups
- Event setup and breakdown
- Being seen doing work that obviously benefits the block
Meeting Participation
- Attend committee meetings
- Attend board meetings as support, note taker, runner
- Learn how decisions actually get made locally
Shadowing and Progression
- New advocate shadows a lead advocate
- Learns how to introduce themselves
- Learns when to talk, when to listen, when to move on
- This is where soft skills are learned naturally, not in a classroom
Why This Works
Most job programs teach people how to behave in theory. This teaches them how to exist in a community again.
The Real Skills
That Visibility Matters
People see them:
- When trash cans are out
- When lawns are being mowed
- When shop owners are opening up
- When neighbors are outside, not online
The Value to Neighborhoods and Partners
This isn't charity. It's infrastructure.
Get reliable help and follow-through
Get extra hands without burnout
Get promotion with context, not spam
Interact with someone who knows the neighborhood and the mission
And every interaction reinforces:
"This person belongs here."