OJA Volunteer Program
The Office of Juvenile Affairs (OJA) is committed to a partnership between agency employees, citizen volunteers and student interns in achieving it's mission. Citizen volunteers and student interns provide additional resources, learn about the opportunities and challenges of OJA services, and enhance program and reintegration efforts for youth and families.
Volunteers are utilized in OJA institutions and field probation and parole offices in a variety of ways. They include, but are not limited to, mentoring, tutoring, transporting youth and families, staff support functions, religious counseling and tutoring, taking youth on recreational outings or providing tickets to outings, serving as a chaplain, church groups providing special services, serving on an advisory board, teaching youth a specific hobby or skill, providing youth with birthday or holiday acknowledgment gifts and/or parties, etc.
We want to extend our gratitude and appreciation to all our volunteers. Your work and dedication to our youth is vital to our agency.
The poet Foley wrote: Show me a person who may be asked to give more than just dedication, and I'll show you a volunteer.
Words cannot possibly explain the drive in a person to give their time to our youth. It can be said that many of our youth are lost to society once they have committed a crime. And many feel the ‘spirit’ of the youth is gone once that threshold is crossed. It is these volunteers we honor here at OJA that look past the scars and problems to see the ‘lost’ child. They see a future that can be obtained with the benefits of graciousness, kindness, abundance, love and commitment. These are the defining characteristics of our volunteers.
Changing the life of a child or youth changes the world around us. You see what most do not and renew our sense of obligation to care for the youth of this great state.
- Gene Christian
Executive Director
Everyone has unique talents and many strengths! Because we want to offer our youth access to different ideas and we believe it is important to focus on their potential, OJA encourages volunteer involvement from all cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds.
OJA has institutions and field offices located throughout Oklahoma. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer with the Office of Juvenile Affairs, contact Paula Christiansen, OJA Volunteer Program Supervisor, at (405)530-2800 or e-mail at Paula.Christiansen@oja.ok.gov for more information
Volunteer Information & Forms