Kaitlyn Baker's Day Off

Thanks to Shared Harvest's comp time policy, I got an extra 2 hours of sleep this morning! That's right--I took the day off. I have accrued about 20+ extra hours of work over the past few weeks, so I took 8 of them for a little R&R today. It felt strange to be home watching all 3 hours of the Today show this morning, and I had to fight the temptation to work on a few things from the office.

Taylor woke up a little later in the morning (Wednesdays are his regular day off) and we drove to Warren County to meet his parents for lunch. Taylor's dad recommended a restaurant called The Wildflower Cafe and Coffeehouse in Mason, whose mission is to serve locally grown, organic food. Here's what it looks like on the outside:

Our table had the Chicken Club, two orders of The World's Best Burger, and the Fried Green Tomato BLT, as well as the flourless chocolate cake and a hefty slice of carrot cake to share. The food was delicious, and the restaurant's mission statement prompted a great discussion about buying locally and eating organically.

Grow Food Grow Hope VISTAs--I hope you get a chance to make the trip down I-71 to visit this restaurant. I don't know what's on your VISTA Assignment Descriptions, but maybe you could help some interested entrepreneurs with a similar endeavor in Wilmington? Just a thought.

To learn more about this quaint restaurant, go to: http://wildflowercafeandcoffeehouse.com and plan a visit to Mason! Call ahead--the restaurant is tiny and they prefer to take reservations. If you live in Southwest Ohio, it's definitely worth the trip.

vISTa

Last night I returned home from my In-Service Training (IST) in Columbus. The training is designed to help VISTA members re-focus and get back on track after their first 3 months of service. Normally, the training lasts 3 days, with participants also trained in a program called Bridges Out of Poverty, complete with a poverty simulation. Our group is so small, though, that training lasted only 1 day total and we received a condensed version of the Bridges Out of Poverty program.

At 8:00 a.m. Monday morning, we May/June PSO babies left our posh digs at the DoubleTree Hotel and ascended the 31 floors of the Riffe Center to start our training. As I mentioned, it had been three months since we had seen each other, so the day began as a mini-reunion, as well. It was great to see everyone again! We might be doing different projects, but we share a common goal: to eradicate poverty across the state (and the country). Our experiences working to better our respective communities (while living in poverty) create a strong bond among us.

Two VISTAs from the Grow Food Grow Hope program in Wilmington, Ohio, chatting on a break. Check out that view!

The first part of the morning was spent working through logistical issues that can arise during our year of service (i.e. resolving payment/reimbursement problems, etc.). Then we spent some time envisioning the remaining 9 months of service. I know I have a lot of work to do, but from what I can tell, I am on track with completing the goals listed on my VISTA Assignment Description. It's hard to believe that I am already a quarter of the way through my year, but I am excited for the upcoming months.

Shortly after the visioning session, we took a break for lunch. A few of us took our boxed lunches to some tables near the river across the street from our hotel.

Meet Sonja and Rob. Rob was the first VISTA I met in the airport(s) en route to Indianapolis, and Sonja was my PSO roommate! At the end of PSO, these awesome VISTAs made sure I got home after storms grounded my flight leaving Indianapolis. Good times.

After lunch, Zach Reat from OASHF did our Bridges Out of Poverty training. The Bridges program teaches about how economic class can not be defined solely by income level; economic class also tends to come with a [hidden] set of rules or beliefs.

When you live in poverty, you live in crisis mode. This is called the Tyranny of the Moment--being so consumed with meeting immediate needs that planning for the future isn't really an option. However, with more money, people in the middle class can afford to shift their priorities to plan for the future. American society mistakenly believes that the more money you have, the higher your economic class. But to truly move up in economic class, you have to know (and follow) the "hidden rules" of that class.

This idea particularly rings true for people in poverty moving towards economic self-sufficiency in the middle class. Even when people in poverty come into some money through a job or tax refund, it doesn't necessarily mean they will climb the class ladder. For that to happen, their mindset would need to shift. However, people in poverty often spend or give away money as soon as they get it, because this is how they have always survived. Saving is a middle class rule, and doesn't often exist in poverty because there really isn't room for it. When your mentality has been one of immediacy, it is unrealistic to expect a shift into a middle class mindset of meeting future goals. In this way, money is an incomplete indicator of class because it ignores the ramifications of the "hidden rules" of economic class.

Because most of the social workers, case workers, and administrators live in the middle class, that's how our agencies are set up, with middle class rules and expectations. When people in poverty come in for services, their mindset doesn't match up with that of their caseworkers, which ultimately creates a barrier in securing help. The Bridges program says that we (service providers) must explicitly teach people in poverty the "hidden rules" of the middle class so they can hold onto benefits, a job, and their money. Without access to these "hidden rules," economic advancement is nearly impossible.

I agree with this idea, but I am still struggling with how this might look in the real world. I guess I am uncomfortable with the idea of the person in poverty having to make all of the changes, as if their way of life has been all wrong. Maybe there should be a transitional period in which the "Bridges Out of Poverty" are two-way: with both the caseworker and the client meeting in the middle. Yes, people in poverty do need more education on how to gain economic self-sufficiency and manage their money, and that takes time. In the meantime, caseworkers must also take into account the "hidden rules" of poverty and administer social services accordingly. For instance, instead of lecturing and judging people for missing appointments when their car breaks down, maybe caseworkers can understand the Tyranny of the Moment and make some adjustments for this person. Instead of setting up appointments early in the morning or mid-day when people are trying to get their kids to child care or themselves to work, maybe agencies can change their hours to better accommodate people accessing services. There should be a mutual understanding of both parties' perspective, and a respectful interaction between the two that reflects that. Lets hold everyone to a higher standard of understanding and communication, not just one group of people.

Maybe with the full two days of training this program would be clearer to me, maybe not. One thing is for certain, though; issues of poverty and class are complex and difficult to work through, and there are no perfect solutions. I will continue to explore these ideas and reflect on them here throughout the year.

Weekend? What weekend?

Despite our Labor Day holiday last Monday, the past week feels like it will never end! To say we've been busy is an under-statement.

On Saturday (yesterday? yes--I guess it was yesterday) Alex and I drove to the Evangel Church of God in Dayton for a community resource fair. A few weeks ago, I arranged all of the details with Pam, the church's event planner. She told me that the people in their community needed a lot of help and support, and they wanted to put as many resources as possible in one place. They lwere looking for a one-stop place to send people to get plugged in to as many supports as possible. Perfect! We were a great fit for the fair, and Pam later told us that our Ohio Benefit Bank booth was the pride and joy of the event.

We arrived about half an hour before the event began at 11:00 a.m. to set up our booth. The rest of the fair (complete with inflatable jumping arenas, food, games, and music) was outside, but because we needed access to electricity for our computers, we were set up in a room just inside of the church. It wasn't quite far enough inside to block the live music blaring from the stage outside of our door, but it was a good enough set up. Take a look:




Throughout the day, Pam made several announcements from the stage about our booth and personally sent in as many people as she could find. We did 35 quick checks total, and a majority of the people we saw had no idea of the benefits and tax credits they were most likely eligible for. The OBB sites in Dayton will be busy after all of our referrals! It felt great to see the smiles (and relief) spread across the people's faces as we showed them which benefits they could possibly receive.

We also talked to several volunteers staffing the event, and we were even able to recruit potentially 3 new OBB sites through the ministries offered within the church!

We packed up and left a little before 5:30 p.m., feeling very good about the potential impact we had made on the 35 families we saw. It was one of the most rewarding days we've had so far in our year of service!

Today I'll be heading for Columbus around 4:00 p.m. to stay overnight for my In Service Training tomorrow.

Weekend? What weekend?

Converting the Convent

Yesterday was the National Day of Remembrance and Service, so to commemorate the day, Alex and I joined 70+ AmeriCorps*VISTA members, VISTA Leaders, and HarvestCorps members in Columbus for our service project. As I mentioned, we helped transform an old convent into a new shelter for mothers, immigrants, and refugees in poverty.

Thanks to Alex's GPS, Rita, we were able to find the location with plenty of time to spare. While we waited for things to get started, we caught up with some other VISTAs outside of the convent, and chatted about what we'd been up to. This little huddle of laughter and fun was a great way to start the day.

Around 10:00 a.m. we were split into groups of two and assigned a room of the convent to paint. Alex and I worked as a team to repaint a little room on the second floor. Take a look at the before shot (at left).


It's a cute little room with a bed, two sewing machines, two ironing boards, a lamp, and a fan. We piled the little stuff onto the bed and moved everything to the center of the room, away from the walls. During this process, we learned how to collapse an antique ironing board and we even had a visit from an outside guest:

After a little rearranging, we got to work taping off the room in preparation for painting. Alex and I didn't consider ourselves skilled enough to freehand it! Once every inch of the trim, windows, outlets, and door frames were covered, we located some paint supplies and got to work. There weren't a lot of supplies to work with, so we grabbed two brushes, a gallon of white paint, and a gallon of light green paint. We started by painting the trim around the room until rollers and trays became available. Unfortunately, we never did get rollers, so we left quite a bit of work to do for Team B coming in after lunch.

After a couple of hours of work, here's what Alex and I accomplished in our room with a roll of tape, a couple of paint brushes, and two gallons of paint:

There were about 14 other teams of 2 or 3 working in similar rooms, accomplishing similar results! Here we are outside of the convent:



At lunch time the second group of volunteers came in and we went to the Columbus Public Library for lunch and a VISTA meeting. Overall, it was a great (but exhausting!) day and we were proud to have been a part of it.

National Day of Service Eve

As you all know, another year has passed and September 11th is upon us again. In honor and remembrance of the lives lost at Ground Zero, in the Pentagon, and on Flight 93 eight years ago, this year President Obama has proclaimed September 11th a "National Day of Remembrance and Service."

Accordingly, the OBB VISTAs and HarvestCorps members are traveling to Columbus tomorrow for a statewide service project. This is a bit of a treat for us. Being an AmeriCorps*VISTA is a lot like being a stagehand on a play. We work behind the scenes to make direct service possible in our organizations. So rather than directly handing out food to hungry people, we help organize the food drives. Rather than directly mentoring small children, we recruit volunteers to serve as mentors. Rather than directly using the OBB with clients, we train counselors on how to use the program. In other words, our everyday duties revolve around indirect service.

Tomorrow's direct service project will be a real change of pace for us VISTAs that I hope will be invigorating and fun. From what I've heard, we'll be helping to transform an old convent into a shelter for impoverished mothers and refugees. It's certainly a worthy endeavor and I am proud to contribute to it, but I have mixed feelings about tomorrow's activities. I live and serve every day in Butler County, and I've seen a lot of hardship here. It would be just as worthwhile to roll up my sleeves and spend the National Day of Service right here at home to improve my local community. There certainly is a need for service here, and, as a VISTA, I rarely have the opportunity to get directly involved.

Of course, there is a need in every community across the country to improve the lives of its citizens. That's why I hope all of you will catch the spirit and spend at least a few hours in service to your community and your country tomorrow. Volunteer at your local food pantry, or pick up trash on your street, or even mow your neighbor's lawn--do something to serve someone else. Need some more ideas? Call your local 211 (United Way) to get plugged in to volunteer opportunities.

And after tomorrow is over and it's September 12th, I hope you won't wait until next year to do it again. Service is a mindset, not a date.