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[BWC Staff Only]

Contact Cares
Confidential Hotlines

Contact Cares has been listening to Silicon Valley for over 30 years. Our 24-hour help lines are staffed by trained volunteers who provide supportive listening, crisis intervention and referrals to other community resources. 


Contact Cares teaches volunteers to
"listen bigger and better":
  • Empathize
  • Be nonjudgmental
  • Confront in a caring manner 

We receive calls for a wide array of reasons, so our volunteers are trained to lend a supportive ear for a variety of situations.  Callers may be lonely, isolated, in crisis, grieving or depressed.

"Listening is the oldest and perhaps most powerful tool of healing. It is through the quality of our listening and not the wisdom of our words that we are able to effect the most profound changes in people around us."

~ Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.


Having someone listen to us is a basic human need.

Just the simple act of listening provides support and comfort.  For someone feeling sad or alone, having someone to talk to can make a big difference.  Our volunteers don't offer advice or have the answers, but they do listen with care.  Training topics include issues that touch each of us in some way.

Contact Cares was founded in 1970 and became a program of Bill Wilson Center on July 1st, 2004.



Help Lines

  • All help lines are confidential 

  • 24 hour availability

  • 7 days a week 

 

                                           
Crisis Line
(408) 850-6125
A crisis hotline for anyone experiencing depression, anxiety, grief, loneliness, parental stress, or general hard times. Callers receive supportive listening, crisis intervention, information and referral.

Jobkeeper Hotline
(800) 793-5909 
JOBKEEPER is a free hotline providing supportive listening, information and referrals, crisis intervention, and problem solving for employment retention. Callers may also find out eligibility for benefit programs in Santa Clara County.
 
Anti-Hate Hotline
(408) 279-0111
A service, partnered with the Human Relations Commission, for listening, reporting and follow-up of incidences of discrimination and hate crimes.
 
24-7 Line for Youth
(888) 247-7717
A free hotline for youth ages 7-24, providing supportive listening, crisis intervention, and information and referrals. Youth may call the line ANYTIME FOR ANY REASON.
 
Centre Cares Hotline
(408) 850-6179
A hotline for people infected or affected by HIV/AIDS. Anyone whose life has been touched by HIV/AIDS can call the line for supportive listening, crisis intervention, and information and referrals.

To request more information or for questions, email us.

Would you like to volunteer?
Visit our volunteer page for more information

TCs, sign up for a shift here.