50 Volunteers Now Answer 988 Crisis Texts in Pennsylvania

When someone in crisis sends a text to 988, they're reaching out for help in their darkest moment. In Pennsylvania, only 18% of those texts got answered in 2025—until Centre Helps decided to change that.

The nonprofit in State College just finished training 50 volunteers to respond to 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline texts. The training started in November and wrapped up in mid-January, making Centre Helps only the fourth crisis center in Pennsylvania equipped to answer both calls and texts.

Executive Director Denise McCann calls the state's 18% text response rate "not acceptable." She's right. When someone texts 988, they need help just as urgently as someone who calls.

Most of Centre Helps' volunteers are Penn State students who give their time to support people in crisis. They're already skilled at handling calls, but text conversations require completely different training.

A typical crisis text conversation lasts at least an hour. Some stretch to three hours as volunteers work to help someone through their darkest thoughts. That's why volunteers currently handle just one text conversation at a time, though experienced volunteers will eventually manage two.

The texters tend to be younger than callers, with a growing number under 18. This means volunteers need specialized training on how to support young people in crisis, which differs from helping adults.

The Ripple Effect

Every answered text could prevent a tragedy. Centre Helps has proven successful at de-escalating crisis situations, which means fewer emergency service calls and more first responders available for medical emergencies and accidents.

The impact extends beyond individual conversations. When a crisis center answers more texts, it sends a message that help is available in whatever format someone needs it. A young person who prefers texting to calling now has a better chance of reaching a trained volunteer who can help.

Moving forward, all new Centre Helps volunteers will train in both text and call responses simultaneously. Twelve volunteers are currently in this combined training program, the first group in the organization's history to learn both skills together.

Anyone interested in volunteering can start the application process on the Centre Helps website. The need for volunteers remains constant as the nonprofit works to answer every call and text from someone reaching out for support.