The Social Politics of Poverty: Poetry Workshop

Good, good Friday morning to you! I hope you are enjoying the overcast sky and not losing your motivation because it's dark and you would rather be under your covers watching a movie and drinking peppermint tea. Not that I'm feeling that way. Let me grab a cup of coffee and then we can talk about the poetry workshop.

Last night Jay Starr gave a beautiful poetry workshop for our guests, she got there a little before 7 so we chatted a bit. Jay got the idea for the "I Am From" poetry while working with kids in inner city Washington, D.C. for AmeriCorps. She wanted to find a way to let the kids break away from activities that refer to their homes and apartments so that they could focus on where they're from instead of where they sleep each night. This was meant to help them recognize and remember who they are and what makes them unique as an individual. It also encouraged them to avoid judgements of other people and learn where their roots lie as well.

"Homelessness can strip you of that sense of self identity." Jay explained. This poetry is to help those in situations of homelessness keep their sense of self, giving them strength, and helping them define their roles in the world. It is important to remember that we all have our own assets and skills to better define our roles.

A guest opened our workshop with an original poem titled "Dusk". Her words were thoughtful, her voice was peaceful, and her message was profound and personal. It represented the opportunities that tomorrow holds to renew, refresh, and reinvent our selves for the better.

Jay then explained that in Afghanistan, Thursday nights are traditional poetry nights. It's similar to musicians having "jam sessions" where everyone gets together and shares their voices and talents. In a way, this gave guests a chance to connect with another part of the world because on the same night, people were sharing poetry across the globe.

We had 3 poets in the room, one who writes hip hop lyrics, one that has never read his poetry out loud and writes classically, and one who is published and shared two poems she had written on the city bus on her cell phone. Everyone was eager to share their experiences, achievements, assets, skills, and knowledge. Conversations ranged from the elements, to how we grew up, where we've lived, techniques for staying calm, and interests and aspirations.

The workshop addressed the social politics of poverty in that it allowed guests to access a space where they can let their guard down and be vulnerable. It allowed the sharing of stories, poems, experiences, characteristics, skills, personalities, passions, and interests. Barriers were broken down in recognizing that we are all the same and that we can relate to each other in ways we didn't expect.

The reality of human needs was clear in the room, we all have them and we all have needs that aren't being met. I think a common unmet need is validation of emotion. People need to be recognized and appreciated, they need to know that their feelings and experiences aren't "silly" or underrated. Especially in situations of poverty and homelessness, an individual's humanity can be overlooked. Politically, the stigma surrounding poverty can put up a brick wall of judgement for us, but socially it can be overcome by giving people a chance to be heard.

One step at a time! We'll consider the poetry workshop a MAJOR successful step towards the breakdown of barriers and acceptance of each individual for who they are, not where they sleep at night. Have a fantastic weekend, and keep doing what you do (reading the blog...and whatever else you do).

-Jackie

My New Favorite Birthday...

My new favorite birthday is birthday number 22. Let me tell you why. I am greeted in the office in the morning with a big "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY! Did you get my facebook message?" from Jessica, all of our guests coming in saying "I heard it's someone's birthday today, oh it's yours? Happy Birthday!", a lovely lunch at Muddy Waters with the beautiful ladies in my corner of the office, and a phone call from my mother who is currently working in Ireland. I kid you not when I say this is the best one yet, oh and of course my best friend continuing her 7 year tradition of calling me at midnight on the day.

So what's up and where can you find us? Literally. Everywhere. Seriously, it is so busy here this week! Tomorrow, Gabi has the poetry workshop! It is at St James Episcopal Church and I know she is so excited about it since she has put so much effort into setting it up. I'm really hoping that some guests will let us post their poems on the blog, I have a feeling some of these are going to be really impressive. Gabi is also one third of our Promotional Roadshow Extraordinaire Team (I just made that up, it just means we're making a poster.)

Michelle is honestly running about 100 million different things at once right now. Every once in a while we hear her mutter something at her desk and wonder if we should respond or if she's just sorting everything out in her head. Sometimes we respond, but it is apparent that she is doing some great things over there! For one, she is scheduling some groups from Connecticut College to come work with us starting in September to act as new "evening support" volunteers, meaning they will be listening to guests and trying to gauge their needs while offering them some direction as to where they can find such resources. Michelle also wrote a grant yesterday and continues to help us pull together our "Promotional Roadshow".


What am I doing? I have no idea. A little of this a little of that, a lot of black coffee, too much blogging, not enough running. Recruiting a lot of fabulous enthusiastic volunteers, the usual. OH, and being 22!

Longer post for you tomorrow, hopefully part of the series but I can't promise you anything, I would feel too bad if I let you down because you just mean SO much to me. Yes, you. Enjoy the remainder of your Wednesday and remember that tomorrow marks the beginning of the end of the week, but don't rush it because you'll never get these days back.

-Jackie

The Social Politics of Poverty: Types of Poverty

I do not remember the last time I had such a hard time focusing on tasks. Oh wait, that would be EVERY finals week and EVERY paper due in college. Anyway, since my attempt to make a really amazing tri-fold poster for NLHHC is failing miserably at this time, I decided that blogging could hold my attention for more than 45 seconds. So here's the new series; The Social Politics of Poverty. We're not going to talk statistics, we're going to talk about the reality of poverty. Let's jump right in and start with the types of poverty:

First there is situational poverty. This can include a wide range of occurrences such as; death in the family, unemployment, illness, so on and so forth. This is one of those things that sometimes you forget about when it doesn't hit close to home. Here's an example for you; two years ago I was in Boston for a service trip through my college. We went to a homeless shelter called Lazarus House and were fortunate enough to talk with a panel of guests who were comfortable explaining their situations to us and letting us ask questions. One man told us his story, he had a beautiful life. He was married to a woman he loved, they had a house, they had a car, he had a good job that he loved. His wife was diagnosed with fairly progressive cancer and he was forced to take a lot of time off of work. He spent all his money on her treatments, medications, and hospital bills, but she died. He was left broke and without the love of his life. He was fired from his job for taking too much time off to care for his wife, then he was unable to continue paying his mortgage and lost his house. He was unable to continue paying for his car and lost his car. He could not afford to renew his driver's license so he lost that too. This vicious cycle leaves him here: I can't get a job because I don't have a car, I can't get a car because I can't renew my license, I can't renew my license because I don't have the income to pay for it. Something I remember that he said to us "I would give anything for my CAR to break down on my way to WORK." Situational poverty.

The second type of poverty is generational poverty. This includes those who's families have lived in poverty for two or more generations. Generational poverty actually effects the majority of those living in poverty. The example I share with you of this is personal to me and therefore somewhat difficult to bring up. I had a very close friend who grew up in poverty and continued to experience what it meant to lack the resources that everyone else seemed to have. I recognized his situation first when I took him to the hospital with a 104 fever, he had no health insurance and could not pay the bill that the hospital sent him. His sister was struggling to provide the best for her 2 young children, his mom was on disability and was struggling to make her rent on top of feeding the guests she always welcomed at her home, his grandparents built their own house from the ground up and were always offering the family the little money they had to help out . They wanted nothing more than to give to everyone else, and the least they had was the most they knew. It was actually heartbreakingly beautiful. This is generational poverty.

So along with the description of WHAT situational and generational poverty are (the political part) I provided you with stories that might hit home, might remind you of a similar situation, or might just make you think harder about how this happens to people (the social part). We could just discuss the politics of poverty, talk the stats, the laws, blah blah blah, OR we could discuss poverty like it is something that is effecting humanity daily, because it is. People we know, people we've met, people our friends know, the guy who makes your coffee in the morning, the woman you buy your newspaper from with the really friendly smile, it could be anyone. I know that there is a part of being human that makes us truly care about other humans, especially those that become a part of our lives whether it be a big part or a small part. This is where poverty becomes social and forms a psychological connection, breaking away from being strictly political and sociological.

What are your thoughts? On any of this. Your first realization of the social connection of poverty? Maybe your ideas on human relationships? Or if this hit home, let me know.

-Jackie

Trying to stay jubilous today, but please excuse my venting...I have not seen my neighbor Norm in about 2 weeks. I've only met him once but he often walked by my patio while I was reading my book and drinking my tea and we had a connection, as the best neighbors do. Then the guy who normally gives me my coffee in the morning at Bean and Leaf wasn't there today, I felt lost.

OK! Vent-Fest complete. On a much cooler note (literally and figuratively) the weather has become slightly milder and more bearable, which will make packing everyone into the overnight shelter less of a struggle! OH, you're wondering what the other VISTAs have been up to lately? Actually, so am I, let me ask them and get back to you...

Gabi spent last week obtaining birth certificates and doing job searches with guests. This week, she will get to see the work she put into setting up the poetry workshop set into action! We are all excited for this, as well as the opportunity for guests to share their poetry if they would like to. Maybe we can get one or two of them to let us blog a poem? yessss.

Michelle has been working hard to organize and advertise these Connecticut Sun games that are coming up and contributing to NLHHC. The games are July 31st and August 16th at the CT Sun Arena at Mohegan Sun and the i5 Teaching Network is donating $3 from every ticket sale to NLHHC. Along with the donation they are doing an underwear and sock drive for us as well. Isn't that amazing?! You may also like to know that on the August 16th game, UConn star Maya Moore will be there, as she plays for the Minnesota Lynx (the opposing team that night!).

NEW UPDATE! Within the last 4 minutes we have scheduled a date for a group of individuals from the Navy to come volunteer with us! Another update! I just got a call from Lisa at UConn Avery Point and we will have a group of 10-20 volunteers on Saturday, October 15th for their new "Breakfast Club". This "Breakfast Club" entails 2 hours of community service on a Saturday morning, then the group goes out to breakfast together. It sounds like fun! Can I join?!

Check that out! Look how much can happen in 10 minutes here. It's so unpredictable, one minute we're all on the phone, working with guests, running around like chickens with their heads cut off. The next minute we're all sitting around talking about what we're doing for lunch and slowly sipping our endless supply of coffee together.

Hopefully something else happens today that I can blog for you, I'm sorry this one seems a little empty. I guess I'm still feeling down and out about Norm not being around and Sgott not serving me my coffee this morning. The day can only become more jubilous, so bring it on Monday!

-Jackie

Back in the office

What a beautiful day!! Our amazing volunteers from Peace Gahanna Church in Ohio decided to work a half day today and explore New London, which sends me back to the office. Most people would hate this, but honestly it's like being welcomed home by your family here. I have missed these faces and voices so dearly that there is no where that I would rather be!

Before I continue rambling about how much I love these people, let me express how much hard work this mission group has done. I did an update on Monday...I mean Jubilation...about all the work they were doing at the overnight shelter, which is all just simply amazing. The past 2 days they have been helping out at our thrift store, Homeward Bound. They completely reorganized our attic/loft, I wish I had before and after pictures for you but let me try to paint you a verbal picture:

       You have just come home from trick-or-treating. You're feeling a little tired, a little excited, but mostly overwhelmed. You go to open your candy bag and BAM! The variety just knocks you over, not in a good way. You have so many Snickers, Kit Kats, Milky Ways, Reese's Cups, Pixie Sticks, Laffy Taffys, Swedish Fish, M&M's, Skittles, 3 Musketeer's, Tootsie Rolls, Tootsie Roll Pops, Blow Pops, Twix, Candy Corn, Almond Joys, Pay Days, Butterfingers, Jolly Ranchers, Mike and Ikes, Starburst, Sweettarts...need I say more? Yes? Ok. As great as it is to have such variety, when you want to access a Butterfinger, you have to dig for it and it's aggravating. So you take all the candy out of the bag, you organize it by type (chocolate with peanut butter, chocolate with coconut, fruit flavored, on a stick etc, etc) in AISLES so that you can go up and down the aisles to find exactly what you want when you want it.

This is what they did in the attic, but with holiday decorations. It was about 90 degrees up there and they had a teeny tiny fan, they pulled out about 50 boxes of decorations, then brought about 10 heavy sinks downstairs and outside, and 4 old nordic tracks. Then they put all the boxes of decorations back organized in aisles by holiday. Sharon, our manager actually said upon seeing the finished project "I want to cry." (in a good way).These kids worked SO hard and did an absolutely incredible job. Along with this battle, they painted our front rooms, dusted and hung all our paintings and pictures, cleared out space in the back room to allow space for deliveries, and helped load furniture into truck beds.

I am so impressed with their efforts that I just do not have enough words to thank them. Tomorrow they will be sanitizing the mattresses at the overnight shelter as well as sanitizing the bed frames, sweeping the floors, and mopping.

Considering the fact that Sunday and Monday night I was losing sleep over the anxiety of being responsible for these groups, I would say we're doing pretty well, besides falling asleep at the keyboard right now. I am 21 years old (22 next week!) and this is my first 40+ hour a week job, also the first time I delegate tasks instead of complete them. I felt that I had NO idea what I was doing, still do actually, but as my college service director, Heidi, told me on the phone last night "Knowing what you're doing is so overrated."

All in all folks, let's call this week a MAJOR success thus far. Tomorrow night I'll be attending a seminar on web design so we can beautify the NLHHC website pronto! If you're a volunteer, I have something really epically important to tell you. We could never exist without you. Every single one of you and every single thing you do holds us together like Gorilla Glue. (did you notice that rhymed? I didn't until I wrote it and read it back. Therefore, I dedicate that poem to you.) In fact, let's write a haiku about volunteers:

Oh wow you are great

Really you are so special

I am not kidding.

Clearly I'm not a haiku master. BUT YOU MIGHT BE!! Comment on the blog today with a haiku! About ANYTHING at all.

-Jackie

It's Jubilation Again!

Another fair Jubilation to you all! This one in particular is really exciting for us, or at least for me, because we have our first group of volunteers from Peace Gahanna Church in Ohio with us for the day. Each day this week we have a different group of 10 volunteers helping with the upkeep of our shelter and putting in the time and effort that staff doesn't get the opportunity to, to improve the living conditions for our guests. In these 4 days our fantabulous (fantastic/fabulous...get it?) volunteers will:

-Paint the hallways and door frames
-Scrub and paint the men's and women's bathroom stalls
-Scrub and paint the railings outside
-Organize our storage closet
-Fold and reorganize our clothing supply
-Disinfect all our tables and chairs
-Disinfect our mattresses
-Replace our mattress covers
-Pick up cigarettes butts, cans, and bottles around the property
-Pull weeds in the flower beds
-Clean all the fans
-Clean the showers
-Wash the dishes/clean the cabinets/reorganize our kitchen shelves
-Wash the bedroom windows
-Paint the common room floor
-Clean/organize/paint at Homeward Bound
-Wash all of our blankets
-Retype our signs
-Make bed numbers that stick to the beds
-Really be incredibly amazing by contributing a total of about 54 HOURS of work per day (9 of them, working 6 hours each)

Ya know what this means? At 3pm on Thursday when we have to say goodbye to these incredibly hard workers, they will have contributed over 200 HOURS of service to the Hospitality Center!! The biggest obstacle? Coming up with enough things to keep them busy this whole time. Things we thought would take 3 hours are taking them about 1, AMAZING! They have 70 volunteers in New London County this week working from 9am-3pm Monday-Thursday, this place is going to be so beautiful. We are SO excited that they wanted to come work with us!

For me, this feels so odd, but in a good way. For the past 4 years in college I was in the volunteer groups that came ready to work and gave every task their all. Now, I'm directing them. I'm delegating the tasks and though I did help paint this morning, it's hard to step back and monitor instead. I am coming to terms with the fact that my job is no longer to go in and complete these tasks, but to recruit compassionate dedicated volunteers who put forth their best efforts and assign each task to them. I'm making moves here, taking steps, and loving every bit of it.

Let's step back now and provide the slo-mo recap of the happenings among the other VISTA sistas:

Gabi has really jumped into her work and is making amazing progress. Every day last week I feel I turned around and Gabi was working with a guest building a resume, assisting in job searches, or talking with our Spanish speaking guests (as Gabi is the only one in the office who knows how to speak Spanish). She is setting up meetings galore and being extremely proactive in making sure our guests are receiving the best we can offer.

Michelle is working on fundraising (as Fundraising Coordinators do) but with a basketball team that wants to donate a portion of their ticket sales to the Hospitality Center. She has also started writing thank you cards to our donors and is single handedly managing anyone who passes through wanting to donate any item as well. (By the way, our thrift store Homeward Bound takes donations of any houseware and furniture items! If you have big furniture, they will come pick it up for you.)

Well that's all folks. For today at least, I'm sure you will have a post everyday this week to look forward to. Partially because I have this strange inkling that this is going to be an eventful week, and partially because now that my job is to monitor, I find that I have more time to get other things done. Don't jump to conclusions here, blogging is actually a legitimate part of my job.

Oh the life of a full-time professional volunteer.

Until later, friends.
-Jackie

VISTA Bob's Last Day

Today, ladies and gentlemen, is the day we bid a tearful farewell to Bob, one of NLHHC's VISTAs from this past year. Bob's title was Volunteer Coordinator, and you may find that before I took over the blog, there was a different writing style. This style belonged to Bob. We also have a 500 page manual in our office with citations and page marks, contacts and resume examples, resources and love. We credit this large book of compassionate knowledge to Bob.

How would we have hooked our computers up to the wireless printer? How would we load the nonprofit version of Microsoft Office onto our laptops? How would we know where to find the employment section of the manual? How would Charles have EVER gotten the $2 he has been desperately needing? How would I know how to answer the front desk phone? How would Gabi know where to pick up the food on Wednesday nights from the Coast Guard Academy? How would this organization have survived this past year without Bob?

The simple answer: it wouldn't. The complicated answer: is about 500 pages and I'll have get back to you at the end of my VISTA year.

In all honesty, as a new VISTA I am incredibly grateful for the hard work Bob has done in this past year. He has paved an amazing path for us to follow in and we guarantee that without his efforts, we would be completely lost. He has been sitting with us in the office for the past 2 weeks answering every question and showing us how to do everything we need to know. Bob recognizes the most important things for us to learn (such as working the front desk and navigating our manual) and has made sure in these 2 weeks that he isn't leaving us hanging or terrified. I am positive that next week I will turn around to ask a question and notice too late that Bob isn't there anymore, time for this VISTA to grow her wings and lift off.

Don't worry Bob, we'll call you everyday and write you letters. I'm just kidding we definitely won't do that. But we WILL remember how much you have done for NLHHC in this past year and it will be apparent everyday as we remain thankful for the foundation you have laid. Thank you so much for everything you have done, we'll miss you! Good luck with your next adventure!

-Jackie

"Daddy Lessons"

Every thought is the start to a brainstorm for the next blog post. Since Michelle and I have been working the front desk all day, there has been more brainstorming than usual and the response to everything that happens becomes "BLOG POST!". Today friends, I bring to you what I like to call DADDY LESSONS. They are the top 3 things my dad taught me growing up that have stayed with me and continue to influence me daily.

1. Always be early.

     If you're early, you're on time. If you're on time, you're late. Harsh right? Almost humorous even since it's been proven that we all have a personal battle with punctuality here. Not everyone holds this rule to be essential, but for those of us who DO, there are plenty of ways to accept those who DO NOT. When someone walks into a meeting late, we can react in many ways. We can be angry because we think our time has been wasted, we can be happy because we really didn't want to go to this meeting anyway, we can feel comforted because it alleviates our guilt for being late yesterday, we can be irritated because our time isn't valued. In any case, I encourage you to be understanding of those who stress always being early as well as those who are less concerned with time and more concerned with content.

2. Always do more than expected.

    To me, this applies in many cases. First at work, when you are given your basic tasks and you exceed them you benefit not only your boss but also your personal value of self. In fact, maybe you have done more than you expected of yourself. Next, with friends, let's put you in the position of taking a lovely weekend vacation to visit your old roommate in Boston. Your roommate is so glad to see you and host you, but through all the excitement, don't forget to help with dishes, clean up after yourself, and be conscious of the resources you are borrowing. Even to this day, I mean literally 3 hours ago, Dad emphasized to me how important it is to put extra effort into my social media domination (it's in my job description, seriously, it says "take over social media").

3. Never blame others.

    Always take responsibility for your actions. It is part of human nature to resort to blame, when we feel angry or irritated or aggravated, we likely put the responsibility of these emotions onto other people. For example, "I'm angry because you didn't call me." Now my anger is your fault, when REALLY I mean "I felt disappointed when we didn't get to talk on the phone last night because I really wanted to tell you how excited I am about my new job."  Besides our feelings, it is also important to take responsibility for that time you spilled the coffee on the new work laptop. Come on now, is it really your co worker's fault for putting the laptop there, or did you know you shouldn't have brought the overflowing cup of coffee to the keyboard?

"That's great, Jackie, thanks for the lecture." Let me avoid being hypocritical real quickly. How did I live out the Daddy Lessons so far today?

1. I am expected at work by 8:30 am, I was here at 8:25 (hey, every second matters.) I was also early for the 1pm webinar I was supposed to attend, only to find that my computer is not compatible with said webinar. I was still early.

2. I exceeded my own expectations, I wasn't even going to write a blog post today. I also showed up downstairs to work the front desk at 1pm when I got rejected from the webinar (everything happens for a reason...sometimes).

3. No, I did not make a contraption to keep the chore receipts in for the overnight shelter, I am sorry, I take the blame for the fact that we are still using a little plastic envelope and you have to put them on my desk. And when I get home tonight, my apartment will not be clean because I did not clean it, not because you forgot to remind me (but really, next time, can you remind me?).

Share with me either lessons from growing up that stuck with you, or ways that you find you followed the Daddy Lessons today. You read the blog, you've already done more than expected...

(Hey Dad! Are you reading this? Comment if you are, we're all interested to see how you've avoided blaming others today...)

-Jackie

Happy Jubilation! (aka Monday)

When I was a kid my parents crossed out the word "Monday" on each month of the calendar and wrote in "Festivus" to avoid the stigma surrounding the idea of "the Monday blues". In an attempt to avoid any Seinfeld references, let's just start calling Monday "Jubilation". Let's CELEBRATE the start to a fresh new week and think about all the wonderful things we have time to accomplish!


First, let's reflect on all the important things we were able to do last week:
1. The Hospitality Center VISTAS became well acquainted with the New London community
2. Gabi officially set up a poetry workshop (we'll talk about it in a little bit)

3. We (the VISTAS) attended and actually loved our first staff meeting
4. We met with the VISTA at the Women's Center across the street and plan to work with her to build both of our volunteer bases and resources
5. We saw our first Sailfest fireworks
6. Michelle had to jump into a pool to rescue her daughter, phone in pocket, and both phone and daughter are ok!

Look at that, so many good things in one week. Today is only Jubilation and there are already things to update you on.


The poetry workshop is official! On Thursday July 28th at 7pm a poetry workshop will be held at St. James Episcopal Church on the 2nd floor above the nighttime shelter. It is being hosted by Jay Starr who will be introducing a fun way to express yourself with words. Snacks and light refreshments will be provided. Join us for a fun, interactive workshop. No experience necessary. Just bring yourself! (I'm reading this off of the poster right now). If you have any questions or just want some more information, feel free to email Gabi at helpdesk.nlhhc@gmail.com.

You know what I really love? Goals (as in things I would like to accomplish AS WELL AS when the Boston Bruins score). You know what else I really love? Blogging my goals. So this week, my goals are:
1. Respond to every email within an hour of reading
2. Listen to my voicemail instead of just clearing the counter and pretending they don't exist
3. Learn how to work at the Help Desk at the overnight shelter

4. Empty my dishwasher
5. Start working on (and put some serious creativity into) what Cathy refers to as our "Promotional Roadshow" meaning our posters, pamphlets, flyers (or is it 'fliers'?), bulletins so on and so forth

6. Buy eggs.


Please, for the love of peppermint stick ice cream, share with me the things you ACCOMPLISHED last week and the things you want to accomplish this week. Brag about your achievements a little bit, I don't mind, it's healthy to acknowledge the good things about yourself. And if you share your goals, maybe we can work together and support each other to be sure things get done.


Happy Jubilation one and all, let's celebrate it!


-Jackie

What's Going On: In the Office

Attempt to Master Blogging Day 2.

We have so many really great pieces in action right now that if you were to walk into our office, you might feel discombobulated and turn around to run away. Don't run! Please! First, let me take a few minutes to explain to you what is in our future...

FIRST and foremost, our wonderful Help Desk Coordinator Gabi is arranging and organizing a Poetry Workshop to offer our guests. Gabi has been working on this for the past couple of days and today it is falling beautifully into place! Jay Starr Habibyar, an AmeriCorps alum, will be coming to our shelter this month to offer a workshop on "I am From" poetry. The goal of this workshop is not only to have fun, but to focus on creating ownership of something that has been taken away (for example, bridging a disconnect of an individual from their home). We are feeling very excited about this workshop because we are hoping that our guests enjoy it and we want them to experience a stronger confidence in themselves and their choices.

NEXT we have been upping our use of social media to network and hopefully build strong connections with other nonprofits and organizations that have goals and needs that are similar to ours. I've been working with our already established Twitter and Facebook accounts, and have recently started a Tumblr for those who connect well with images and written word. I also started our LinkedIn group today and I know NOTHING about LinkedIn, so connect with me on there and join our group, maybe you can guide me...

Something that is really exciting that we discovered today on Facebook is the International Freedom Coalition's documentary in progress. It is titled "Human First: The New Face of Homelessness" and it will be focusing on "dispelling common misconceptions about the people experiencing homelessness, exposing a deeper truth: people experiencing homelessness need the same human and civil rights protections afforded to them outside of the system, and supporting a Bill of Rights for the Homeless as a solution to end abuses and help individuals transition to self-sufficiency quicker." (International Freedom Coalition Facebook post on our page).

What the International Freedom Coalition is asking for is a story or multiple stories and accounts of those who were formerly homeless, and we are so excited for some of our guests to hopefully be able to share their persistence, struggles, and overall humanity with this project.

I commend you for having read to this point, I'm horrible at reading blogs, I get too excited about what's written and then I kind of forget to catch every word.

So if you're like I am with blogs, here's a summary:
-Gabi is organizing a poetry workshop for our guests.
-I am working hard to get us on every social media site in existence.
-The International Freedom Coalition is doing a documentary on the formerly homeless. (and we are hoping to submit some materials to them).


Blogging success? I think so. Enjoy your Thursday, do a lot of great things, have a really good cup of coffee, and look forward to the weekend.

-Jackie

New people!

Hello blogging universe, your warm welcome has made me feel oh so comfortable and excited to be able to address you!

I'm Jackie Thurnauer, the new Volunteer Coordinator at the New London Homeless Hospitality Center. There are 3 new people working here, we've been placed through AmeriCorps and we are what the volunteering world call VISTAs (Volunteers in Service to America). Let me introduce the other lovely VISTAs:

Gabi Arias hails from New York City and is working as our Help Desk Coordinator at NLHHC.  She is a recent graduate of Hamilton College, she loves food a lot, she is Dominican, and is extremely enthusiastic about her upcoming year as a VISTA. you can contact her at helpdesk.nlhhc@gmail.com

Michelle Bell joins NLHHC from Fort Myers, Florida as the Fundraising Coordinator.  She is happily married and a mommy of 4 beautiful children. You can contact her nlhhc.development@gmail.com for all of your fundraising wonders.

The 3 of us are so excited to be here this year and look forward to any suggestions, thoughts, feelings, ideas, or simple words you have to share with us. Comment on the blog, "like" us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter (@NLHHC), follow us on Tumblr (NLHhospitalitycenter.tumblr.com), or email us (emails for volunteer opportunities can be directed to volunteercoordinator.nlhhc@gmail.com).

Thank you for you support and compassion, and I hope that this blog can serve as a tool for you this year to help you understand our goals, as well as develop your own personal goals in the realm of volunteering.