YFSNCorps

This work is never easy

2011-01-17T15:22:00.002-05:00

It is raining outside, and cold today. The shelter next door is subdued and quiet, all adolescent restlessness placated by the appreciation of being warm and looking out a window into the cold and wet other possibility. I am in the office, as are all of my colleagues and we are working on this holiday. It feels right to me. Banging away on the keyboard as the deadline for a grant creeps nearer and nearer.

I could have gone to a matinee. I could be napping under the covers and listening to the rain like the kids next door. I could be browsing through the bookstore and sipping a hot coffee.

It is not a day off though, it is a day on. I have come to believe in that very much. Look at these mugshots of ordinary, yet great Americans who took the day on many, but not too many, years ago.

Sitting in this quiet office proofreading this grant, it is a very small thing I can do that matters.

John

Youth and Family Services Network

2010-12-13T12:27:00.002-05:00

It sounds familiar, but there is no more "southeastern." Organizations from all over can beneift from joining our network and learning from each other, as well as experts on the many topics that human service professionals need to meet the challenges they see every day.

As Director of Training I am pretty excited for the change. For me it means learning from new members and hosting events large, small, online, or at your agency. It means exposure to the best practices around the country and bringing that knowledge to our members wherever they are geographically, or wherever they are in their own professional development.

I admit to a little nostalgia though, because the Southeastern Network of Youth and Family Services is the name of the organization that invested inme.

all I can do is pay it forward and YFSN is a great way to do that.

John

Day of Service

2009-12-21T16:44:00.003-05:00

This is a picture of the SENCorps Public Service Box, designed and decorated by the students at Pyramid Studios. They did this in service to you, AmeriCorps members, as a way of saying thanks for all that you are doing to serve your country.

Inside this box are the hand-written ideas and plans for service projects on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, January 18. "A Day On."

MLK Service Day Initiative Plans for SENCorps member sites

Make a video PSA
Green Team-Go around and make sure recycled items are recycled.
Anti-Violence Awareness Day
Take youth to visit Fisk (Site of an MLK Jr. speech)
Clean woods next door for Challenge Course
Kids helping Kids-Youth Reading Program
Paint Rooms in shelter
Volunteer for Battered Women’s Shelter
Take Teen Council to area high schools to lead discussions.
Prejudice Support Group involving art and a youtube video (stop hating).
“As an SEN AmeriCorps coach I promoted National Service to over 2000 Myrtle Beach youth in 2009.” –JJ
“I want the youth to get the same great feeling I get when I serve them.” We are going to find somewhere to serve; homeless kitchen, old folks home, or even another group home.
“I have a dream quilt.” Youth will illustrate their dreams on a patch and then we will sew them together and display the quilt throughout all of Haven House buildings in January.
We will create ideas for t-shirts then wear them to attend the local Children’s march then come back to the shelter and youth will create their own graffiti boards set up for this purpose.
Clean-ups in community
Group Picnics
Free Fun Day
Get the kids to write messages about the importance of non-violence and the fight against domestic violence.
Plug into Catholic Charities event or a local HBCU event.
Collaborate with local fraternity to combine efforts of AC, at-risk youth, and volunteers to prepare, provide meals for those in need.
Attend “City March” w/ tables for community awareness.
Involve shelter residents in a non-violence discussion panel with local HBCU students
Residents will create topics to discuss based on violence in their lives.
Coordinate w/ HBCU’s and NAACP local efforts

Together we can, Together we will!

John
SENetwork

Who Are We (and are we not) Serving…and Why

2009-12-18T10:07:00.000-05:00

Throughout the years, “Carry On” has been used by captains of ships to bring confidence to and garner commitment from their crews. The captain looks to the skies, examines the charts and determines that despite potential dangers, the crew must work together to safely continue on the journey. In the truest sense, social service programs have continued to “Carry On” despite funding cuts, staff shortages, decreasing morale, increased need and identified frustration with the challenge of finding a safe route. November 5-7, 2009, SENetwork convened “Carry On ‘09”, a meeting of nearly 100 youth work professionals and AmeriCorps national service members designed to help chart a course to enhance each participating organization’s effort to help youth achieve safety by providing the port from the storm that is affecting families and communities.

To provide the most effective prevention and therapeutic interventions requires that programs consistently assess and address the changing needs of youth and the families served. This assessment helps programs to understand the need and to assure that there is room for those in need. Through utilizing a fish bowl method (combining direct interviews and audience response), the first session provided an assessment from the field of participants. The session was facilitated by SENetwork President/CEO, Sherry Allen, and lead interviews were given by leaders of SENetwork member organizations: Kevin Priest, Arnette House, Ocala, Florida; Hollis Johnson, JCCEO, Birmingham, Alabama; Lyniece Williams, JCCEO, Birmingham, Alabama; Sheila Myrick, Tennessee Valley Family Services, Beautiful Lake Guntersville, Alabama; Sharon Weathersby, Catholic Charities, Jackson, Mississippi; Karen Bonnewell, Haven House Services, Raleigh, North Carolina. Here is what Carry On participants had to say:

Sherry Allen: What are the characteristics and experiences of the youth your programs serve?:
Interviewees: Youth have been sexually abused and/or physically abused. They and/or their families are involved with significant alcohol and drug use. Many have runaway from these circumstances, and some are surviving on the streets or through couch surfing. Most struggle with school, are truant or have dropped out of school. Some are enthusiastic, talented, middle class. There is an increase of homeless youth as a result of their families being homeless. Many are happy to be a part of the program, or come to feel that way. All are looking for safety and some kind of skills that will alleviate their difficult circumstances. They want to change their sense of isolation and desire the support of someone to turn to.

Sherry Allen: What do youth say they need?

Interviewees: Want someone to listen. Want to know how to deal with parents. They want to confirm that what they are thinking is right. Some want to be left alone. They want a safe environment to be in, and to be accepted by other kids. They want to understand how they fit in. They want job skills, training and placement so they can live on their own.

Allen: What are their skills, strengths and other assets?

Interviewees:
• Once they come in and they have shared their side of the story they are positive and once they complete strengths assessment, they are surprised at their strengths and glad it is pointed out to them.
• They are open minded about changes in their lives and willing to work toward changes.
• They are survivors and are resilient and can take care of themselves in situations where adults would struggle.
• They are resourceful and already have many connections.
• Giving back is part of their nature – they are generous.
• They want to keep doing whatever provides goodness to their community and their lives.

Allen: Who are you confident in serving?

Interviewees:
• Families that provide a level of openness and want to change their circumstance.
• Families that will follow-through and are willing to participate consistently in services.
• Youth and families whose contact is very positive with service providers.
• Parents who will make a commitment when asked/invited to participate at a different level. For example, there was a very talented child participating in a performance program whose parent, a single mom, truck driver had never seen the child perform. It took persistent phone calls to get the mom to last show, but she was thrilled to see her successful child, and then engaged in supporting the child.
• Dealing with resistant families is a challenge especially when youth are in a different “place”. They are more positive when parents start witnessing change.
• Families who are open to learning.
• Families who have progressed past “blaming”
Allen to the full participant group: Share a quick story about a youth and/or family that you feel very confident that you served them well.
• Panama City Beach Street Outreach Program: Many youth resist services, because they don’t trust. This particular youth was living in a trailer without furnishings, electricity, or water. She bathed from a neighbor’s hose. When approached, the girl refused help, although she appreciated the concern. Over time and consistent outreach, she became interested in the Transitional Living Program, especially as an alternative to child welfare department custody. She entered TLP, got a job, an apartment, and even wrote a letter to support a grant for the program. She is now glowing and healthy. She wrapped her arms around us, and we did the same for her.
• Gwinnett Children’s Shelter, Georgia- There were five kids in custody of their aunt because their mother died of AIDS. Two of the siblings came to the agency in need of services. The oldest youth entered the shelter, and exited voluntarily. She became pregnant, and, though struggling, decided to try to make it on her own. The brother, however, stayed in care after 18 receiving support and making good decisions. He is working hard at Kroger, graduated high school, and is saving money.

Allen: What are the presenting circumstances that are particularly challenging to affect?

Interviewees: Overemphasis on family re-unification at the expense of the child. When there is an unprepared, uninterested family forced to accept youth. Or when a youth is identified as a sex offender at young age (10) and when aging out at 18, is still stigmatized leading to no service availability.
LGBTQ youth struggle to re-integrate with families that not prepared to accept them.
Youth who need therapy, and are unable to get it. Fund availability and insurance is always difficult.
Staff who need training. Dealing with high burnout. Having to refer out to a lot of other entities with no ability to provide transitional rapport. Families often discontinue services. Prefer an in-house model of continuum of care.
Underage drinking (11 y/o-14 y/o is common). Serious health consequences. Underage mothers, “children having children”. Need to redefine parenting responsibilities in the community. Working a lot with elderly grandparents who are caregivers.
Challenge for parents to support involvement in the arts as prevention. Schools unsupportive, uninterested.
Post-Katrina, youth present with new issues, such as std’s, ptsd. Staff struggle to keep up with the emerging issues and be relevant.
From Group at Large – Engaging parents to want their kids back and to invest in the recognition that it is a family systems problem and not a “youth” problem.
No one available to set the bar high for youth.
Huge homeless population and not enough beds and resources especially for 18 – 21.

Allen: How do presenting issues differ from 5 Years Ago?
From the Group at Large
• Increase in gang involved youth.
• It is much the same as 5 years ago in that the issues continue and we are still discussing them.
• It can depend on geography and population.
• Age at which the youth experience things is declining.
• The weak economy has impacted youth aging out of the system who cannot find jobs because of adult competition.
• The Internet: Total Access to anything and everything
• Human Trafficking was something that happened in big cities or on television, but now Human Trafficking happens in our own towns and schools
• Child abuse and domestic violence are on the rise
• Increased drug and other substance abuse issues
• In families, work ethics and values seemed to have declined
• Many youth are choosing to drop out of school and perhaps get GEDs.
• Teen dating violence is on the rise. Sex seems more prevalent, though some think it is only discussed more.
• Females are very different. Reputation for toughness has increased. Girls seem to need to be more “tough”
• New challenges for both guys and girls and struggles for adaptation.
• From the perspective of someone 5 years out of high school – girls used to be popular by being “good”. Now it feels as if girls have to be “tough” in order to be noticed and fit in with the current culture.
• There are still significant issues for males, especially thinking about Disproportionate Minority Contact issues and youth who are more visible in the system are ignored as “just another kid”
• From the perspective of years of teaching, agree that many issues are present. Young ladies may not be getting the love and attention needed in healthy and safe ways.
Allen: How are programs and/or communities adjusting to the challenges?
• Raising poverty level definition to serve more of the working poor.
• School systems are writing grants to include at-risk children and to pay for basic needs including food, clothing and fees, etc.
• Community has stepped up with donations. For example, people pay for YMCA memberships for youth to provide positive alternatives. Cub Scout Group donated luggage to replace garbage bags youth were forced to use.
• More people who don’t usually donate are stepping up but program still needs to find new funders and new ways to replace losses.
• More attention on youth aging out of the system. No one really thought about what they were doing. They had the attitude: “Hope you do well but if not, don’t come to me.” Now there is at least a recognition that you need transitional support.
• Taking an interest in formal and informal partnerships/collaborations in high risk areas and those programs that are providing services in these areas.
• When programs close and kids and families are still calling – what do you do? Existing staff took on responsibilities to continue service by taking on more with less.
• “We want to do more with less” – Social Workers often do this. However, associated advocacy challenges for increased funding and telling the story of needs without burning out staff.
Allen to the Group at Large: What things could change or do to respond to these challenges, and the answer cannot be JUST money.
• Increased training of law enforcement officers to enable them to connect youth and families to resources. The Panama City Street Outreach Program is on call for every law enforcement officer in 6 counties.
• Sometimes community isn’t aware of all resources. Creation of comprehensive community resources guide. Getting the word out and increasing awareness.
• We want formal partnerships that spell out responsibilities and maintain accountability.
• Need mass transportation. Kids being forced to other areas for shelter, jobs and resources because of lack of transportation.
• Need in-school special services to respond to unique needs.
• We want schools to do what schools are supposed to do. Agreement that there is no social teaching, teachers feel less empowered, increased pressure to focus only on academics versus the entire learning process that provides a foundation for youth. Especially important for those youth who do not have an effective parent in the home. Too easy to kick kids out of school. Important to educate the educators.
• Our kids have their own flare and they need not to feel abused by the educational system.

We want to thank all who contributed to this effort to update our understanding of challenges and successes. Continue the dialogue. Go to www.senetwork.org and click Have Your Say. Tell us your thoughts about the issues explored in this article.

SENCorps Member Meeting- 11/07/2009

2009-10-19T11:08:00.003-04:00

Hello SENCorps members, John Robertson here, SENetwork Director of Training. We are just a few weeks away from meeting in Orlando, FL on Saturday, November 7, 2009 to recognize your service efforts and learn more about how SENetwork, AmeriCorps, and your local agency coordinate to support your experience as a National AmeriCorps member.

I will be facilitating this gathering with your AmeriCorps coach, Jesse Jordan. Jesse is a past AmeriCorps member himself and he now serves as Ambassador to Youth Programs for SENetwork member agency, SOS Healthcare Inc. in Myrtle Beach, SC.
SENCorps Project Director, Tammy Hopper, will also be on hand working with the Project Site Managers and to answer questions you may have about being an AmeriCorps member at an SENetwork affiliated agency.

When we get together at the meeting we will take a look at past service projects and brainstorm ideas for you to build a successful experience for your National Day of Service. You may already know what you want to do, or this may be the first opportunity you have had to consider your options.

Whatever the case may be, we are proud to be a part of helping you help America.

See you in Orlando!

John

Your Time to Celebrate

2009-04-30T20:48:00.005-04:00

Hi SENCorps Members and PSMs!

National AmeriCorps Week is May 9 -16, 2009 and I am excited about your plans! Please use this space to share ideas, solutions to any barriers you may have encountered as well as any questions that you have for other SENCorps sites.

I know you are busy and times are tough. It is difficult to think about how to celebrate and bring attention to one program when others are losing employees or perhaps even closing. However, the spirit of community service is alive and well. The commitment of members to partner with local agencies is evidence that, even when we struggle, we can make a difference if we share our gifts with others. Each of you have talked about how you have grown as part of the SENCorps project. Think about how much you have helped youth and the host agencies. There really is a lot to celebrate!

So, what's going on in your SENCorps Projects and how can we be of help?

Tammy

Social Pioneering

2009-01-06T14:01:00.002-05:00

Check out the following link. This group shares a lot of the ideals we aspire to bring to our programs. Americorps Coach, Jesse Jordan, is featured in their documentary, http://theglobalawarenessproject.blogspot.com/The Silly Side of Serious
Maybe SENCorps can be in their next film?

The "M" is me

2008-09-23T02:17:00.002-04:00

Hello everyone,

I became an AmeriCorp member in 2007, the first class and at first had no idea what AmeriCorps was or what it even stood for. But as the year went on and I attended different trainings and started to get a better understanding of what it was all about I realized that an AmeriCorp member is someone that is helping others in the field of human service. It is giving a hand to someone in their time of need.

My name is Sabrina Gordon and I am a 25 year old woman. I have an AA in psychology and an AS in Human Service with a specialization in Social Service. I grew up in Gainesville/Ocala, FL. I have been working with the public in different aspects my whole life. I am currently working hard on my BA in psychology and hopefully my MA in Marriage & Family Therapy after that.

I am currently working at the Arnette House and have been there for 4 ½ years. I work in the shelter with the youth as a direct care worker. We can house up to 30 youth at a time. We serve youth 10-17 who are ungovernable, truant (court ordered by a judge), in Department of Children and Families custody, runaways, and homeless. My primary responsibilities are to provide a safe and loving environment for the youth while they are temporarily facing their life storms. While they are in the shelter; I along with my coworkers, make sure to provide them with all their needs as well as some their wants (like getting their hair and nails done.) I am only a small part of this wonderful team that I work with and as a team we work together to help the youth and their families find better ways to deal with their problems. Not only do we provide an education, but we also try to expose them to different opportunities that they might not experience in life. Over the summer we did many trips/activities with them. We went skating, to the movies, to Easy Street (fun game center.) We took them to different springs to go swimming, to Wild Waters, and to St. Augustine. We went to Ripley’s Believe it or Not and then to the beach, different tours to Signature Brands ( which make products for Betty Crocker and Golden Flake.) The biggest trip though was to Tennessee for the Trip of A Lifetime.

First we took the youth to Blue Ridge, GA stayed in nice cabins up in the mountains, We went out to dinner, We went White Water Rafting, then to Tennessee for the SEN Youth Empowerment Conference and then to Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede. We ended the trip by going back to GA for the Georgia Aquarium and an Atlanta Braves Game. They ended the summer by going to Delonga Spring when they got to cook their own breakfast and go swimming. We have tried to provide them with many opportunities to learn along the way in hope that they will remember and use these skills one day.

By working at the Arnette House, I have learned so much about the human service field and the legal aspect behind it. I enjoy working at the shelter with youth because they are so diverse not only on ethnic level but also their cultures, the environments they come from, and in their social and economic status. Working with them, I have learned so much about how the generations are so different now then they were even when I was growing up.

That hasn’t been that long ago for me, but the challenges that they face today are just amazing compared to the challenges that my generation faced. The youth are a lot stronger than us adults give them credit for. Sometime just listening to them talked about their problems and their situations can make you realize that we have a lot to be thankful for ourselves. I can’t imagine going through some of the problems that they face, so I thank God for putting me in the this field to hopefully be a light or set an example for one of them to follow. When you see a youth years later come back as an adult and say thank you; it makes all the headaches, the feelings of being unappreciated, not valued, (and sometimes worthless) go away.

It makes you feel good to know that you made a difference in a young person’s life. You just say to yourself “this is where I supposed to be right now.
I am putting my needs aside to help these young people find better ways to deal with their problems. If I can shed a little light on a dark cloud that is hanging over their heads then I have made a small accomplishment in their life. Hopefully they will remember it one day.

By being an AmeriCorp member I have met so many wonderful people in different parts of the world who have a passion about what they are doing. It has been a wonderful experience to be able to talk to others who are in the same field and understand the positives and the negatives of what I may be feeling at times. I have been to so many different incredible places like when we went to GA for TAPP Middle Management Retreat, Cocoa Beach for the Advancing Youth Development training, and now Kentucky for the SEN conference!

By being an AmeriCorp member, I feel that I have a voice that needs to be heard. It a voice that is coming from not just a youth care worker but an individual that is part of an organization that is everyday striving to finds ways to better serve youth. It is an individual that is just as important as the CEO of the company. I thank everyone for this opportunity and it is truly a blessing. Always remember that it takes a village to raise a child. There is no “I” in team and yes there may be a “me” but the “e” stands for everyone and it comes before the “m” which is me.

Sabrina

Big Thanks!

2008-09-04T14:10:00.003-04:00

When I first got serious about trying to organize a volunteer program at Capital City Youth Services runaway shelter, it was Louisa who gave me the basics on how to get started at an SEN Middle Management Retreat (TAPP!). That wasn't the most important thing I took away from her workshop that day.

I took away permission to try.

All of the hesitation I felt about screwing up or not getting started was gone after that session.

She basically said, "Go on and do it, what are you waiting for?"

Now that she is passing the torch of blogmaster back to me, I am reminded of those first early steps in coordinating a service learning program. With that permission to try and the motivation to speak about my vision things began to come together. A sense of pride and commitment from a few interested individuals grew into partnerships with Florida State University, Florida A & M University, Tallahassee Community College, and more civic groups than I can name. By applying the same principles of good service she spoke of in that first workshop we found ways to be productive, have fun, and focus on a good quality of life for the kids living in the shelter.

For the last few months Louisa has written of the who, what, where, and why of public service. We have examined legendary examples of public service and our own personal relationship to service. We have studied philosophies that support youth care work at its very best. We have shared strategies, activities, and techniques for engaging young people and our peers in service opportunities.

Louisa will continue to support the SEN Americorps project in other ways, but for now, this blog is ours and she has given us permission to try.

If you have a story to share from your Americorps project site, a question to ask your peers, or a burning issue you would like to discuss, please send me an e-mail at jrobertson@senetwork.org and I will help you get it out there.

Thanks to each of you for investing in yourselves and the youth of America by committing to Americorps service.

Together We Can,

John

From Nicole

2008-08-17T14:59:00.002-04:00

Hey Everybody,

Nicole is stepping up to blog to you all. I am going to put her blog here and I hope you will leave your comments for her.

Nicole, You Go Girl!!!!

I've been trying to work on staying in touch, which I think may be easy for me because I am young I am still interested in some of the things they are. (teens)

Although sometimes I'm afraid to let them know that for fear they may see it as a sign of weakness and I would lose some of the respect they give me.

For example when we took the shelter boys out for lunch... they got in the car and I let them have control of the radio they were all shocked that I knew the words to the songs they wanted to listen to.

Would you all be interested in techniques about staying in touch?

Nicole

New Bloggers

2008-08-04T17:50:00.003-04:00

Hello Everyone!

It is SO hot here. About 100 degrees I think. How is it where you are?

Sabina and Nicole have volunteered to learn the blog and try blogging for us all.
That will be very cool.

So I will be emailing them and hopefully you will hear from them soon!

Thanks Nicole for the comment and website.
Hope you all try it out.

Now for some games that we didn't do at training, but you might like to try.

Betcha Never

Ask your youth to come up with something they think is true about them that is not true for anyone else. Give each person a chance to say their name and "I betcha never _____". If someone else did that, then the person has to come up with another unique fact.

Blanket Game

This is a good game to use when youth kind of know each other's names.

Break into 2 teams. One person from each team holds one end of the blanket, so it divides the two groups and no one can see the other side. Each team chooses one person to stand on their side of the blanket facing it. When ready, the blanket-holders drop the blanket and the persons facing each other try to call out the name of the other person first. Whoever loses has to go over to the other side. The side with the most wins.

Cereal Pairs

Good for a large group when you want to have them divide into pairs. Write down on separate sheets of paper the first and last names of cereal. Like "cocoa" and "puffs" and "captain" "crunch" . Each person has to find their cereal mate.

That's all for now!

LA

More Games

2008-07-30T18:07:00.002-04:00

Hi Everyone. Thank you Sweetie Pie for your comment. I am glad the "I've got mail" game worked for you. I think it is fun for all ages and no matter how often I play, I still enjoy it.

So...more games:

Group Former

One way to get people into groups is to write down 3 or 4 (or however many groups you want) things on a card and hand them out. For example, you can wight down 4 different songs if you want 4 groups and everyone has to hum the song they were given and find the others that are humming the same song. Or animal noises or something else.

Paperplates Ranking

Put the numbers 1-10 on 10 paper plates. Ask people to find the number that expresses how they feel. For example, tell everyone to think of how they feel on a scale of 1-10, 10 being fantastic and 1 being horrible. Or you can use the numbers for how much they like an activity or how they feel about an issue, etc. Allow people to share why they chose the number they did.

Beach Ball Toss

Buy and inflate a beach ball that has the different color areas on it. Write with a permanent marker a question in each area. Throw the ball to each other in the circle and when someone catches it, they have to answer the question in front of them.

Learning Names Toss

Get everyone in a circle. Have each person say a person's name and throw the ball to that person. They can not throw the ball to someone who has already had it. When the ball has gone to everyone, go around again in the same order. Start it a third time in the same order, but start adding more balls until there are lots of balls being tossed.

Have fun!

LA

Ice-breakers

2008-07-29T19:18:00.003-04:00

Wow! It was great to hear your voices today on the conference call. It reminded me of what great people you are and how much fun I had with you at the training.

Some of you wanted to hear more about the ice-breakers we did. John, you said the "Two Truths & a Lie" worked great for you. So let's start with that one.

Two Truths and a Lie

Ask each person to write down on an index card, 2 things that are true about them and 1 thing that is a lie. Each takes a turn reading their 3 statements. Then ask the group to raise their hands if they think that statement is a lie when the person reads them again slowly. You can demonstrate with yourself first if they don't get it.

Concentric Circles

This activity starts with the group getting into 2 circles. The inside circle turns around to face the outside circle. Then ask a question that you want them to answer with the person they are facing. After a few minutes when both have shared, ask one circle to move to the left one person. Ask another question. Continue until the circle gets back to the beginning.

This is a great introduction exercise or one when you want people to be thinking about things you will be teaching or exploring later.

Line Up

Ask your people to line up according to something, but they can't talk. It could be how old they are or how long they have done something, etc.

I've Got Mail

Everyone gets in a circle with a piece of paper under their feet to mark where they are standing. You get in the middle of the circle and explain that you will have mail for all those who ....something that is true about them. It also has to be true about you (& whoever is standing in the middle). If it is true about them, they have to find another spot to stand that is NOT adjacent to where they started. The one who can't get a spot has to go into the middle and say something true about them.

More tomorrow!!

LA

Important Notice

2008-07-28T20:10:00.003-04:00

Heads up Everyone!!

Important Announcement about the blog!

It has been decided that YOU are now going to be the bloggers. YOU, the Americorps Members, are going to own and take care of this blog!

I have had a lot of fun writing you all, but there has been very very little interaction or comments.

So hopefully we are going to have some of you want to be bloggers. You will be able to blog weekly or so which won't take much time at all.

So tell me what you think about this. Suggestions? Comments?

LA

In Touch

2008-07-24T20:35:00.002-04:00

Hello Everyone!

Well, I think we beat patience to death, don't you?

Let's talk about being in touch. Maybe I am wrong, but that seems to me to be easy if you are working with youth. Being with them as they watch tv, listen to music, talk to each other....and ASK QUESTIONS.

Who is that?
What does that mean?
What do you like?
Who is your favorite...?

Another way to keep in touch is to ask each other. You each hear and learn about things the others might miss. Share the new "cool" things that youth are into.

When you are driving the youth somewhere, listen to what they talk about. You will learn a lot.

I used to be in touch because I had four teens...with an 11 year spread. Now my youngest is 20 and I am pretty out of touch. I know some of the music, but not much else. I need to be more intentional about what youth are into these days.

So are there any other ways you can think of to keep in touch?

Next time lets look at some of the "in" stuff.

LA

Patience V

2008-07-21T19:05:00.002-04:00
Hi Everyone!

This is the last blog on patience for now...unless requested for more. There are a few more tips to share with you.

1. Eliminate boredom. When you are waiting for traffic or in a doctor's office or for teens to get ready, etc. have something to do.

2. Spirituality helps with patience. Prayer and/or meditation can be a way to calm yourself. It is also a way to help the situation by calling on a Higher Power.

3. Have an affirmation or mantra like gimmeshack said. Something to say to yourself over and over to calm you down. I like the slogans from the 12 step programs:

Easy Does It
Let Go & Let God
Live & Let Live

Those are some of my favorites.

4. Remember that being patient with others, especially youth, is a form of respect. We talked about adultism in the training. (When adults act/feel like they are superior to youth.) One way to practice caring and respect is to be patient with others.

5. Remember that patience is bad for your health...raises your stress levels and blood pressure. You are happier when you are patient.

6. Detach with love. Try to observe the teen's behavior without letting it bother you. Breathe deep and relax. Be nonjudgmental and just observe. Be like an anthropologist observing the youth culture.

Anyway, if any of you have any more tips or methods to become more patient, let us all know!!

LA

Patience IV

2008-07-18T20:35:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone,

Sorry I haven't been blogging much this week. I have been working too hard. Did an AYD training for our shelter residential staff. We had fun, but it was a small group.

Thanks Gimmeshack for your comment! Mantras and sayings DO help and especially if others know you are struggling and can help or laugh or both.

I will finish the list of ways to help with patience that we started.

Step Six Remind yourself that things take time. Soemtimes we are impatient because we see what needs to be changed, fixed or done now. And it isn't happening. So we can breathe deep, relax and remember that things take time. I try to remember that there are things in a person that need to grow or heal on the inside first before they can make a lot of changes on the outside.

Step Seven: Expect the Unexpected. Plans often go wrong. People are late. Things don't go perfectly. We only stress ourselves out when we get impatient with life's little turns and twists. Besides, we are working with teenagers and non-profits!

Step Eight: Don't be a Perfectionist. When we hold ourselves to really high standards, we will be impatient with ourselves and others. I am guilty of being the hardest on myself. Today, I didn't look good becuase I messed up. It made me impatient with myself even when I got home. Life is hard enough as it is, without us beating ourselves up. If you do that, you need to stop. Me too.

Step Nine: Remember What Matters. Or "How Important Is it?" I try to do that when I am driving too fast. I ask myself if where I am going is as important as an accident. Then I can slow down and not be impatient with those slow drivers. Or at work, is it more important to get everything done or to listen?

Easy stuff to write about, but hard to do.

Let me know what works for you!

Have a great weekend!

LA

Patience III

2008-07-15T19:23:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone, I have been traveling again. If you are wanting to move on to a different topic, you will just have to be patient. LOL

Everyone been practicing their patience?

I would love to hear from you guys. Just click on the comments and let me know how you are doing and whether you are becoming more patient.

Actually, what usually happens when you want to change a habit is this:

You decide you want to stop doing a certain behavior.

After you have done the behavior again, you realize it afterwards.

This goes on for awhile.

Then you start noticing in the middle of the behavior that you are doing it.

That goes on for awhile.

Then you catch your self as you begin the behavior....and stop.

After awhile you can stop yourself before you do the behavior at all.

Finally, you will notice that you don't even think about or do the behavior much at all.

The example I love for this is a child being potty trained.

First the child doesn't even realize she is wet.

Then she learns about the potty.

For awhile after she pees in her pants, she says, "I need to go potty".

Then while she is peeing in her pants, she says, "I need to go potty."

Then she says, " I need to go potty" and while she is running there, pees in her pants.

FINALLY, she says "I need to go potty" and makes it there without peeing in her pants. She still might have "accidents" but they will be less and less until she doesn't even have to think about it. Her new behavior is a habit.

It would be silly (but human) to be impatient with yourself as you try to learn patience!! It takes time. But you can do it!

Let me know how it goes!

LA

Patience II

2008-07-10T22:07:00.002-04:00
Hello Everybody,

We will continue our blog on patience.

Step One: Give yourself time and space
Step Two: Make a list of what causes you to lose patience.

Step Three: Whenever you find yourself losing patience, take deep breathes. Our body reacts to stress and we get agitated...ready for flight or fight. Taking deep breathes can cue in our body that we can relax. It also helps to repeat the serenity prayer.

God, Grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.

Step Four:Look for patterns. Are there certain times, situations, clients, activities where you lose your patience the quickest? Look at what you can do to change that. Or ask for help and ideas for what you can do to make it less problematic for you.

Step Five: Practice being patient in the non-important areas. Like driving! Practice being patient with the horrible drivers out there and you will find it easier to be patient with teens. You need Step One to do this of course. If you aren't running late somewhere, it is easier to be patient at the 5th red light in a row, or the driver that cuts in front of you and slows down or the driver that does 5 miles under the speed limit in the left lane....aaaah!

Anyway. That is enough for today. I need to do these things myself. I have had too much to do and too little time and thus been impatient and stressed.

Hope some of this is helpful to you too.

Soon,

LA

Patience

2008-07-09T18:06:00.002-04:00

Patience

Well, I asked my 20 year old son, "How do you get patience?"

He said, "You mean like a doctor?"

I laughed. Patience not patients. But I think a sense of humor is definitely one of the ways to have more patience.

So let's get started....

I found this article on patience:

The first step in becoming more patient is to figure out if you are doing too much or spread too thin. Well, most of us in social services can say a big yes to that one. I know that if I don't have enough time, I lose my patience quickly. If I am late, I am impatient with other drivers, red lights, etc. I also have a job that has a lot of different things going on at the same time. It stresses me out and I lose patience.

So for me, trying to do one thing at a time and giving myself enough time helps.
But, I don't think that is what you all meant by needing patience.

So step two might be more helpful:

Pinpoint the triggers that often make you lose your patience. Impatience creeps in insidiously, and if you feel anxious, worried, or unhappy you may not even realize that the underlying cause of these feelings is impatience. To reduce the frequency of impatience, it helps to be aware of it. Which events, people, phrases or circumstances always seem to make you lose your cool? Sit down and make a list of all the things which cause you anxiety, tension, or frustration. At the core of most triggers is a reality that we have a hard time accepting. What are those realities for you?

We can all try it.

First: make a list of all the things that make you lose your cool.
Second: ask yourself what you might be resisting.

The 12 step programs have a saying: Life on Life's Terms. Others have said, "Whatever you resist persists." Anyway, the idea is the same. Life just is. People are going to act the way they do. Teens are going to act the way they do. If we can expect that, it might help us not lose our cool so much. Resisting reality makes us stressed and angry...impatient!

Anyway, I think I will make the list....will you?

Till tomorrow,

LA

Future Blog Topics

2008-07-08T21:02:00.002-04:00

Hello Everyone!

It is hard for me to be back to work. The daily stuff is not nearly as much fun as being with you all. Nor is it as fun as swimming and being on the beach!

So I jotted down the topics that you all named more than once as areas of improvement. I would like to spend some blog time on each one. And if you have more, please let me know.

These are the areas:

Patience
Communication skills
Being energetic
Being in touch
Being non-judgmental
Motivation
Professionalism

So we will spend some time on each of these. And I hope that those of you who are strong in these areas will add your own things that work for you.

So tomorrow we will start with patience....

Till then,

LA

WOW

2008-07-07T18:42:00.003-04:00

WOW! What a Training!

Thanks to all of you who were there. I just love all of you and miss you too. What a great time we had. It was your training and you were awesome!

I only regret that we didn't get a complete group shot! So I put in the one we got of all who were still there when we remembered to take the photo.

I left Cocoa and went to Siesta Key for a few days to relax and swim and sun. Now I am back to work and ready to blog!

I hope you all will click on the comments and jump in!

For today, I will put up your best practices that you came up with after each section of the training. So here they are!

Best Practices

Become a Mentor

Set High Standards

The Starfish Story..."It Matters to This One"

Stay Aware

The Golden Rule

Claim Your Successes

Support Them But Challenge Them

Never Forgetting Where You Come From (Your Situation) And Those Who Helped You Along The Way.

Helpers Need Guidance

So there you have it: your best practices.

Any thoughts on them?

Till tomorrow,

LA

Vacation

2008-06-25T22:03:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone,

I am heading to Cocoa Beach Florida to do the Advancing Youth Development Training on Friday until Monday. It will be great to meet those of you who will be attending.

I might be taking next week off. I will let you know. I will be on vacation if I decide to stay in Florida. I haven't decided yet.

When I come back (whenever that is), we will talk about adolescent development.

So have a great rest of the week and tune in next week to see if we are on blog-break or not.

Take care,

LA

News

2008-06-23T19:55:00.003-04:00

Hey all,

I thought I would just gab a little tonight. I left my material on adolescent development at work and that is what I was going to write about.

So I will just tell you a little of what I have been up to this summer. First of all, I had my first grandchild on May 20th. Her name is Katherine, but she is called Rin. She lives in Raleigh, NC. I probably already told you all this.

At work, I am being moved into all training in August probably. Right now I am doing training and volunteer services.

I am trying to get my house ready to sell. I know it is a terrible time to sell, but I want to stop being a homeowner. I want to be able to call someone to fix stuff. So I have a repair man redoing the chimney and all kinds of repairs that I have put off. You know that those of us who work in social services don't have much money to put into houses anyway.

My youngest son is 20 and is hopefully moving into an apartment July 1. Anyway all of this is exciting.

I am looking forward to this Friday when I get to fly to Florida to train a lot of you all. It will be fun to meet you and learn together.

This month has been crazy. We have 5 weekends in June. The first one, I flew to Raleigh to see my grandaugher. The third one, I flew to Maryland for my family reunion, and now the 5th one, I am flying to Florida to train. Whew!

Yesterday I was invited on a pontoon boat at a lake about an hour from Nashville. It is a beautiful lake with trees all around and a lot of marinas on coves and inlets and little parts of the river. A lot of country music stars like Alan Jackson have houses there, but the houses are mostly hidden by the trees. We had fun swimming in the water and being pulled by the boat on one of those floaty thingees.

Then at 7pm (when the boat was supposed to be returned to the marina where my friend rented it) we realized that we had no idea where we were or where the marina was. And there were no landmarks, light houses or buoys or anything. Two and a half hours later we found it. I thought for sure I was going to have to sleep in wet clothes on an open boat all night.

It is a lesson to me to not forget where you came from, where you are going and where you want to go.

Till tomorrow,

LA

Advancing Youth Development

2008-06-20T20:10:00.002-04:00

Hello ALL,

We will discuss Advancing Youth Development (AYD) because I will be training about half of you on that beginning Friday.

What is it?

AYD is a curriculum. What is a curriculum?. Follow the link to find out.

Anyway, in 1992, the Office of Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention funded the Center for Youth Development and Policy Research at the Academy for Educational Development (AED) and the National Network for Youth to develop AYD.

There were 10 organizations that piloted this curriculum in 1995 and the final version was published in 1996.

I first took AYD at the Oasis Center. Then I took the Training of Trainers. SEN was responsible for both of those trainings. Now they are going to have me train you all.

So what are the benefits of AYD?

Surveyed youth workers have said that the training a had a great impact on their work. One youth worker said, "I concentrate more on listening to the youth. I understand that I don't have all the answers...Also I have changed the program by creating a different structure, which includes more of the youth's ideas."

It also helps youth workers with self-reflection, assessment and development.

Youth workers gain best practices and strategies.

Youth workers meet each other, network and make allies.

Youth workers gain a professional language for their work.

Youth workers can regain their excitement about working with youth.

And more.

So I hope you are looking forward to some fun and learning. I am!

Have a great weekend!

LA

Allies

2008-06-19T13:15:00.002-04:00
Hello, everyone. I am writing from Atlanta. Just here for the day even though it is 4 hours from Nashville.

I just finished an Advancing Youth Development training in Nashville. And the group came up with a term I really like:

Allies

So what is an allie? Wikepedia says:

...those who share a common goal and whose work toward that goal is complementary may be viewed as allies for various purposes even when no explicit agreement has been worked out between them.

So they are others who share our goals. Others who do what we do and are willing to help us. Youth work is not something we can do alone. Our young people need as many caring adults and resources as we can provide. Just like that familiar quote, "It takes a village to raise a child.", I would say, "It takes a community to develop a teen."

We can find allies at our workplace or other non-profits in our area.

We can also find allies among each other. All of you are Americorps with SEN in youth agencies. That is a lot of commonality. When we are at the training in Florida, I will give you a lot of chances to meet and get to know each other. It is my hope that you will like each other and want to become allies to each other. That you will want ot exchange ideas and support with each other not only in person, but on the blog.

This blog is for you. And I would love to sustain an allie-group with it.

More tomorrow!

LA

Cutting Edge

2008-06-17T20:06:00.002-04:00
Hello!

I am back from my family reunion at a state park in Delaware on the ocean. Found a deer tick on myself this morning and since Delaware is in the area with the highest risks in the country for lyme disease, I am taking antibiotics and had my blood tested. YUK. I hate those things!!

Ok.

We are the cutting edge.

The last of the SEN assertions or values. SEN is cutting edge and so are we.

One way that we are cutting edge is through the Advancing Youth Development Curriculum. This framework and training is what youth workers need to be professional in their work. This is the training that we will be doing the end of this month in Florida. I have been training youth workers in Nashville with it this summer.

Another way we need to be cutting edge is to keep up with new research about youth. For example, there was hardly any research done on the adolescent brain until 10 years ago. Now they are discovering that the teen brain is really not fully formed. The part of the brain that has to do with thinking of future consequences is not formed. It is a biological factor. It is important to learn everything you can about these things.

Another area to be cutting edge in, is technology. This is a SEN blog. That is cutting edge!

So we will start talking about cutting edge subjects from now on....

Till tomorrow...

LA

Courage

2008-06-11T19:53:00.003-04:00

Hello, I just got back from swimming 25 laps...that is what facing fear will do for you. (See yesterday's blog)

I will just write some more thoughts about courage and fear.

One thing I heard is that people who are paralyzed by their fears treat fear like a stop light...the red on a traffic signal. If they are afraid they avoid whatever it is. They stop any forward movement. Their life gets smaller and smaller, because their choices get less and less.

People who move forward even though they are afraid treat fear like a yellow light. They go with caution. (I know, I know the analogy breaks down if you are like most people and you speed up to get through the yellow before it turns red.)
But for the sake of this subject, we will take the yellow light as it was intended....caution. (Yes, I think that is an apple in the photo of the traffic light.)

When you meet up with a fear, it is okay to be cautious. Examine what your fears are. What is the worst that can happen? Are these real fears? Talk to someone who is a compassionate listener. (Someone who calls you a wuss or tells you to "Just Do It" is not what I am talking about.)

I have a group of people who are my support team. They are not my closest friends or best buds, but we are there to help each other. We email requests to the group for prayer or advice. And we do what is called a sandwich call. We call someone and tell them our fear and ask for support while we face it and then call them afterwards and report in. For example, if I were afraid of a job interview, I would call someone from my support group and talk to them about it just before the interview. Then after the interview I would call them back and tell them about it.
This way, we are not alone.

Some of you may have family you can do this with. Anyway, it is a good tool to use to face fears.

Later,

LA

Courage

2008-06-10T21:02:00.002-04:00

Hello! We will talk more about courage.

Do you like Courage the Cowardly Dog? There is a lesson there. If you are not afraid, you do not need courage. Courage is what we have when we face our fears.

Or.. Courage is fear that has said its prayers.

And what is fear anyway? I like the following:

F alse
E vidence
A ppearing
R eal

Now of course some fear is very real and we need to take account of that. (For example walking across the interstate at rush hour.) But most of our fear today is anxiety. Fight or Flight responses that never go away or are dealt with. Because we aren't fearing a big sabertooth tiger that will either eat us or run off and leave us relieved and safe, we don't resolve our fears. We fear things like loss of approval, humiliation, failure, etc...all things that go on and on and on. And things we can't see or fight with spears. False beliefs, shoulds and critical voices in our head that feel as big as a herd of mammoths.

For example the "bag lady" is a common fear for single older women. It goes like this: "Oh no, I am going to end up living under a bridge with no money at all."

There are many methods for relieving these fears: cognitive-behavioral therapy, meditation, staying in the present, etc. It is good for us to work through our fears, because we can see how hard it is. Then we can help our youth work through theirs and have compassion.

Anyway, we only get courage but facing our fears. But we don't have to do it alone. There are support groups, counselors, books, churches, and all kinds of help.

More tomorrow

LA

Courage

2008-06-09T19:59:00.004-04:00

Hello Everyone, well I am sorry I haven't blogged since last Wednesday. What happened to me? I just got heat-stroke I think. How hot is it where you are? It has been like 98 degrees everyday here.

Today we are talking about:

We derive courage from facing and moving through our fears.

Wow. I can certainly talk about this from experience. I have struggled with fear so much of my life. I left highschool with hardly any self-esteem or confidence at all and it has been tough! Actually I got married right after college and was able to defer some of my fears until my divorce 19 years later. Then there was no one to buffer my fears and I was on my own.

One of the most helpful tools for me was the book Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway by Susan Jeffers.

This book is great for getting past your fears as well as living a very full life.

One of my favorite points in the book is similar to our saying. That we will never get over our fears unless we face them. Also everyone has fears and everytime we reach new experiences we will have fear to face all over again.

Jeffers also talks about not letting fear contract your life. I did that for most of my life. Here is a small example. When I was under 12 years old, we belonged to a community pool. In order to swim in the deep end, you needed to pass the pool test which was 2 laps lenghwise of the pool. Well I was afraid to swim and my friends would play in the deep end and I was alone.

Why was I afraid? Because when I was real little (6 years old perhaps), I had to take swim lessons at the YMCA and I cheated. I would pretend to swim but really have my tip toes on the bottom of the pool. I fooled the teachers by staying in the middle of the class as went back and forth across the shallow end of the pool. But when it came time for us all to jump in the deep end (12 feet)and swim, I refused. (I wasn't stupid!) I was pushed in. Down, down, down I went to the bottom....and stayed there till the teacher jumped in and got me. I failed the class...no "little guppy" award for me. And I was terrified of not touching the bottom of the pool.

So I would not learn to swim...I would watch my friends play without me.

Well, one summer when I was 12, I was able to attend a camp in New England. I hated it with a passion, but I did learn to swim. How? Well, there were anchored floats in this mountain lake that we had to get to....no problem... I could tippy-toe right?

Well, I did. And when I got up on the float, I had leeches on the bottom of my feet!!!!! Yes, real live black slimy leeches. They were on the bottom of the lake.

So I learned to keep my feet OFF the bottom of the lake. I faced my fear and learned to swim. When I got home, I went directly to the community pool and passed that pool test with flying colors. I have not been afraid to swim ever since. (Still not thrilled about leeches though).

More about courage, tomorrow!

Stay cool,

LA

Laughter Con't

2008-06-04T20:35:00.002-04:00
Hello!

I think we will talk about laughter a little more. I was trying to think of some jokes but I can never remember them.

Anyway, what does it mean that laughter opens doors? What doors? Well I think of a door as a means to enter somewhere. In this case I would think it would be a way to enter into relationship. The key to all we do is in building relationship with the youth we serve. So laughter is a way to enter into relationship. Laughing together builds community and rapport. It builds bonds. It puts you on the same page, the same side.

Making fun of ourselves and being willing to look foolish is one method that works too. Dancing around in the shelter to the kid's rap music makes them laugh and we can laugh at ourselves. When my office was there, I would ask the youth to teach me the latest dance...like that superman thing...now THAT is good for a laugh....me trying to learn that.

One thing about our kids is that many of them have had to grow up too fast. Be too serious and too adult too early. It is great to encourage them to have fun and laugh. Games that encourage this are great too. We will do some of them in the training this month.

I like to get people who are stern and rude to laugh if possible. It opens a door. I think the door opens to a person's joyful self...their real self that is hidden by all the false fronts people put on to look okay.

Teaching someone that it is okay to laugh...that is a gift.

More tomorrow....

LA

Laughter Opens Doors

2008-06-03T09:44:00.004-04:00

Good Morning!

I am working later tonite so I thought I would blog early!

Today's topic: Laughter Opens Doors
Laughter. I love it. I think a sense of humor can accomplish things that nothing else can. Laughter does so much, we can spend a few days on this one.

In fact I think we will.

I read somewhere that the average little child laughs hundreds of times a day, while adults laugh only 10 or so. (I know adults that don't laugh even that much!) I am grateful to my family for a sense of humor. I would never have made it in my life without one.

Laughter brings us health. Do you all know the story of whats-his-name who had a terminal illness and decided to laugh himself into wellness. He watched 3 stooges and Laurel & Hardy movies and laughed and laughed all day every day. He was cured.

Evidently laughter sends really good chemicals through our body. Can you tell I am a social scientist? I have no idea what those chemicals are but I also heard that they are equal to a good cry. And if I have a choice, I would rather laugh!

Laughter works well with our youth too. We have a no touch rule in our shelter, but sometimes (lots of times!) our youth push the limits on that one...especially when they get romantic with each other. So instead of saying over and over, "You are too close...move over...remember the rule...no touching" when they are sitting together on the couch, we will say, "I think I would like to sit....here!" and plop ourselves right between them. It works.

I laugh a lot. I even make myself laugh. I mean I really crack myself up! We must be able to laugh at ourselves. Laugh whenever you can.

I'll close with some of my favorite you tube videos in case you need a laugh now:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCYaw5tGYAs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MbzKnB-XkY
LA

Reflection

2008-06-02T18:09:00.002-04:00

Hi there,

We are going to look at:

Reflection and Self-evaluation Keep Us Honest

Well, that makes sense, but how do we do that? We definitely need to find time, because for most of us, it is not part of our job description and our days can be so busy that we don't stop to eat, much less reflect. A good weekly supervision can be a time to do this. Otherwise, you have to make the time.

I am a self-evaluation junkie. I love to reflect and look at my motives and what needs improvement. For me, I need to learn how to look at what I am doing right. It is easy for me to feel like I have so much to learn, that I never celebrate or feel good about what I have accomplished.

For some people, it is hard to look at themselves. We have learned to avoid looking bad, and we don't want to know what we aren't doing well.

In the field of youth work, however, we must reflect and self-evaluate. We must be honest. We must walk our talk. We must be willing to own our stuff. We must be able to apologize or make amends when we have been wrong or disrespectful.

One way to maintain this practice is to listen for constructive advice from the youth. They will often tell us what we need to hear about ourselves. It is hard to own sometimes, but often they are right. Then ask your peers for help in working through an issue or seek help yourself in how to change.

I know of a youth worker who was getting increasingly frustrated with the teens who were talking about drug and alcohol use. She was lecturing them constantly on the evils of chemical abuse. One teen finally told her that she was judgemental and acting like their parents. She came to me and said that she couldn't work with the youth anymore. But she was willing to reflect and realized that her own teen issues were getting in the way. She got honest and admitted that she was an alcoholic herself, but had stopped attending 12 step meetings. She started back to AA and finished her internship. Amazingly she took a full-time job at an adolescent treatment center. She is still there years later.

Let's stay in tune with ourselves. Let's stay honest.

LA

Actions Create Opportunities

2008-05-30T22:15:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone,

I missed yesterday because I picked up my daughter from the airport. She was returning home from Japan after 4 months. It was her last semester of college. She had the wonderful opportunity of studying and seeing Japan because she took action. The most important action she took was to apply for 3 scholarships last year for the trip. She received all of them and was able to take the semester in Japan.

Today I took action and flew to Raleigh, NC to see my first grandchild who is 9 days old. I had the opportunity to hold her for the first time.

It seems obvious that actions are necessary for opportunities. But actually I have always had a problem with procrastination. I put things off usually because I am indecisive, fearful, unsure, or just too tired. For example, I started a novel a year ago and have written 5 chapters. I have not written anything for months. There will be no opportunity for my dream to come true, unless I actually write.

How many opportunities have we missed because we didn't take the actions? What actions do we need to take in our own lives to make our dreams come true? What actions do we need to take to provide opportunities for the youth we serve?

One thing is for sure. You have all taken action to become Americorps members and in doing so, you have the wonderful opportunity of service. You have many opportunities this year.

Way to go!!!

LA

Information is Nourishment

2008-05-28T14:37:00.002-04:00

Hello Everyone,

Well, our SEN value today is Information is Nourishment.

Reminds me of the old movie Short Circuit about a robot from an assembly line that got zapped and became alive. He constantly said, "Input. Input" and was starving for information and knowledge. He couldn't get enough.

This is the Age of Information. We can look up anything and everything on the web. A friend of mine told his son that he would give him $100 if he could find a name of something that wasn't a domain name....meaning that it wasn't a web address. Try it! The son couldn't find one.

I love being able to look up everything and anything instantly. One of the best things we can do for our youth is help them be internet-savy. And show them how to access computers for free in their local libraries.

As for ourselves, information feeds us too. We can look up youth development skills on line and other youth centers and information about mental disorders and medications and anything!!

You can even google yourself! I looked up my house on zillow.com and there was a photo of it...with my son't girlfriend's car in front of it!

I love learning and information. To instill a hunger for information in our youth is a great goal. And then teaching them how to find that knowledge...trips to libraries and museums, true life movies, how-to books, there is an endless supply.

Be excited about knowledge and it will be contagious.

Let me know what works!

LA

Flexibility Begets Creativity

2008-05-27T19:31:00.002-04:00
Hello All,

Hope you had a good holiday weekend. Our server at work has yet to be replaced.

Anyway, what does this value of SEN's mean?

Let's look at flexibilty first. Whenever I interview a volunteer, intern or staff member for work with teens in our emergency shelter in our crisis services program, I make sure that they know flexibility is a must. Things are not going to go according to schedule a lot of the time. So what does flexibilty really mean?

Responsive to change; adaptable Okay, so we need to change to meet the needs or situations around us. Working with people is not like mathematics. There are no given answers as to what will help a troubled youth even if something specific that you did helped a youth yesterday. Ours is not an exact science. We have to be able to bend and try new things.

And thus the creativity part. If we are open to doing things differently, we will. We will think of ideas that might work. We will be open to picking up signals from the youth. We will listen. We will research new ways to lead group or explain rules or resolve conflict.

It takes courage to be flexible and creative. We don't know what the results will be. But we will be less stressed out!

An example....a few years ago, we had a social work undergrad intern in the shelter who was an older student. She had been a helicopter mechanic in the army. Well if there is a career that is very exact and rigid, it would be mechanics. And if I were the pilot of a helicopter, I would not want my mechanic to be flexible (hmmmm, maybe I could substitute this part instead...) or creative (let's see if this thing can fly without that part). See what I mean?

So she had a very hard time with her learning plan. This is the plan from her school with her goals on it. Social work learning plans are very vague. For example...."Use the ecological perspective in your work with families". She struggled and struggled. And then she decided to rewrite her plan in terms she could understand. She was a lot happier after that.

So be flexible and creative! It is more fun, too. (Of course don't do that with the rules, policies or procedures!!!)

See ya,

LA

Learning is a life-long process

2008-05-23T09:57:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone!

I still have another photo, but our server is down and I can't access it right now. If you are like me, you are at work today. I drove into the parking lot and there were no cars at all! This is at the admin building. All our shelter staff are here too.

Today we are talking about:

Learning is a life-long process.

I believe this one is about us. Are we committed to learning? I love to learn. I am always reading. I am always asking questions. I can not imagine not discovering new things.

It is sad that often our education system does not instill that love of learning into our youth. It is often about students doing whatever the teacher wants to get good grades. It is often about memorizing facts that have no relevence to life. Anyway, I hope that you love to learn. (Especially since I will be doing our training in June!)

Learning can be about more than our work, though. I love to learn the names of the birds, trees, flowers, etc. I love to learn about people. I especially love to learn about other countries and places.(There are things I don't like learning though. I am not interested in mechanical manuals...like how to operate a computer, camera, etc. I am not interested in learning how to fix my own car, etc.)

I encourage you to explore what you love and to commit to learning more about it. Once I read the book, The Long Gray Line which is about the West Point class of 1966. This is the class that had the most lieutenants sent to Vietnam. After reading it, I started reading other books about the Vietnam War inlcuding one written by a soldier who got cancer from the agent orange that his father okayed using on the countryside there.

If we are learning, we can't help but share that with others. We can help our youth learn on the internet, but also through books. Remember in our assets talk, that reading for pleasure was the lowest of all activities done by youth today. (The Harry Potter books are great ones to get youth interested in reading for pleasure.)

As for us, reading about youth development and working with youth is a great way to increase our knowledge in what we do. I will get a list of suggested books from the staff here next week and share them with you.

Hope you have a great holiday weekend!

LA

Leaders are Everywhere

2008-05-22T16:45:00.002-04:00

Hello All!

Here is another photo.

Today we are looking at the SEN Belief:

Leaders are Everywhere

Do you believe that? I think it calls us to look for leadership opportunities for all our youth. And what are some of those? At our shelter we have a team leader. Residents get to facilitate the chore assignments and help with disagreements. Those might seem small, but that is where we need to start with our youth who have never considered themselves able to lead.

I think we can find small ways...baby steps...for all our teens to try out leadership.

But what is leadership? This definition says it is the ability to guide, direct or influence. So even when we give our opinions, if it guides another or the group...well, that is leadership.

Leaders have a vision and are able to communicate that vision to others in such a way that the group wants to make it happen. To me, managers are better at making things happen and supervising, etc. Leaders have the vision. And our youth are often idealistic at this age, so we can build on that.Remember in the Assets Development lessons, we found that one of the highest assets that youth have, is the belief in a postive future.

We are leaders as well. We have a vision for the youth we serve. As it says so well in our Oasis philosophy:

Nurture visions that make the impossible, possible. Yes! That is what you do!

LA

Photos!!

2008-05-21T16:21:00.002-04:00

Hi!

Thanks to Jesse, who you have met, we have more photos. I will put one on each day. The CD of photos is at SEN. Hopefully that will get uploaded soon.

Last night my home computer crashed. My son said it has the "blue screen of death". Oops. It feels like I have lost a friend.

Okay today we will look at the next SEN value:

We do with--not to--others.

So what does that mean? Aren't we helping youth?
Well, of course we are. But we are working WITH them. Unlike the medical field, we aren't fixing them. We aren't doing things to them. They are not passive receipients of our help and resources. They are not on the operating table with us poised with scalpels to carve into them and give them a new heart or head.

We respect them enough to ask them what they think and why they think it. We work with youth to help them develop the skills and identity they need to be successful. We don't tell them what they should do or think. We ask questions and encourage problem-solving and decision making skills. It is like the motto of teaching people to fish instead of just feeding them fish. Of course like Maslow's hierarchy of needs, we need to feed youth if they are hungry. But in our shelter, the youth cook the meals for each other. Many of them are learning to cook for the first time.

Partnership. This value is really about partnership. What does that mean? To me, partners are equal in value. One is not superior to the other. One does not have more power over the other. Both have input. Now we know that as adults we do have some power over youth, but as much as we can stay away from power struggles the better. As we say here, "once you are in a power struggle with a teen, you have lost."

Any relationship that is defined by power over another is a doomed one. It is as we come to each other in respect as equals that we have a chance to touch each other's lives. I have received just as much from youth as I have given. I bet you have too.

LA

SEN Values

2008-05-19T17:11:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone, I think I will talk about the SEN values or guidelines. They are very cool.

So the first one is :

How we do our work is as important as what we do.

So I think that means that the end does not justify the means. That how we do our work is crucial. And the truth is that we can not control the results of what we do, because we are in the people-changing business and no one can make another person change.

There are so many pieces to what we do. And certainly listening and respecting youth as well as provideing resources, skills, help and more are crucial elements to our work. But if we aren't walking the talk, then teens will see right through us. And we will be viewed as hypocrites and insincere.

We have to model what we want youth to do and learn. That is why it is so important to respect young people. They feel and experience respect and then will want to give it to others. And respect our co-workers too.

I remember my mother telling me as a child, "Do as I say, not as I do". Well that doesn't work.

We can know that we have done the very best if we are doing a good job. Even it the youth don't all make positive changes now....how do we know that they won't later? They will be influenced by you and who you are and how you work and your values.

So...how you do your work is as important as what you do.

LA

Americorps Videos

2008-05-15T20:27:00.004-04:00
Hello Everyone!

Take a look at the blog entries about service. It is what you are doing and it is so badly needed. You might never be famous like the secret service people I wrote about....hey no one ever guessed all of them. Take a guess!

I just finished a 3 day training with youth workers and it was wonderful to hear the stories. People like you who are helping teens. So often it was giving a teen one more chance that made the difference. Or a teen realizing that someone really cared for them.

Keep up the good work.

Take a look at the videos on the americorps site...you can vote for the best one.

They are very inspiring and they are doing what you do...they are about you!!!

PS I like the Superhero one.

LA

Our Blog

2008-05-13T19:41:00.003-04:00

Hey Everyone!

I have sent you all an email wishing you Happy Americorps Week! And a link to the blog. I have only gotten several comments from all ya'll since February.

I will keep on blogging, but I would LOVE to hear from you all. I would especially like to have some topics to discuss that you are interested in.

Today, I think I will mention what a wonderful opportunity you have to be positive role models to young people. Not only are you choosing to spend time with them, but you have dedicated your year to service. As you build that relationship with your youth, they will respect and value you. Service will mean something to them, because you will be the personification of it.

So remember to share with your youth about your membership in Americorps and maybe some day they will choose to join and serve.

You are special people and you have a special message.

LA

Happy Americorps Week

2008-05-11T15:01:00.003-04:00
Happy Week to you all!

This is your week to feel REALLY good about yourselves and what you do! To start off the week, take a look at he fun things to do site on the Americorps Web site:

fun things to do

There are videos to watch and you can even create your own. You can get on the website and tell your story, etc. Be proud of what you do and who you are.

If you are wondering about the history of Americorps, etc. you can go back and read the early blogs: February 11th -14th.

So what are you all going to do to celebrate this week? Any plans? Any ideas?

I am writing today, Sunday, for two reasons....it is the beginning of National Americorps Week and I wanted to send you good wishes right away. And tomorrow I will be working 14 hours, so I most likely will not be blogging tomorrow.

Hope to hear from you!

LA

Things You Can Do

2008-05-09T19:14:00.003-04:00
Hi!

Today we will look at things you can do during Americorps Week.

1. Give a presentation in your community:
You and some of your fellow members can arrange to speak to local groups about your experience. There is even a free presentation kit to help you.
free kit: (just click on this link)

2. Invite a local official and/or others to shadow you at work...let them be an Americorps member for a day.

3. Have an open house in your shelter to invite potential volunteers, local officials, the media, etc. to see what you do as an Americorps member.

4. Contact your local media and do an interview for Americorps Week.

5. Take Americorps pamphlets to libraries or places young people visit.

6. See if you can do some presentations at the schools.

And there are more ideas and how to do them on the site above. It can be as simple as emailing your friends. It is a good time to recruit others and celebrate yourselves.

Let us all know if you are doing anything at your service site to celebrate!

Some states are doing proclamations....don't see any of our states on the list yet. Maybe by next week! (Hey, you could call your state government and get them to do a proclamation!)

Have a great weekend!

LA

Americorps Week

2008-05-08T19:23:00.003-04:00

Hi all!

So what is Americorps week?
According to the Americorp website:

AmeriCorps Week is a recruitment and recognition event designed to bring more Americans into service, salute AmeriCorps members and alums for their powerful impact, and thank the community partners who make AmeriCorps possible.

AmeriCorps Week provides an opportunity for AmeriCorps members, alums, grantees, program partners, and friends to shine a spotlight on the work done by members in communities across the country—and to motivate more Americans to join AmeriCorps or volunteer in their communities

So this week is a lot of things.

1. A recruitment event. This is when Americorps gets some attention and perhaps people see and hear about it and want to join.

2. A recognition event for you guys who are serving right now. A salute to you and the work you are doing.

3. Recognition to those who have already been in the Americorps and have served their community and made an impact.

4. A thank you to the community partners who make Americorps possible.

So what is going on during Americorps week?
AmeriCorps Week events are happening across the country. They include statewide AmeriCorps gatherings, award ceremonies, “AmeriCorps for a Day” events with local VIPs, community service projects, recruitment fairs, and more. The week will open with a big event near Denver, and close with a major environmental project near Miami.

Tomorrow we will look at some ideas of things that you can do during Americorps week!

Till then,

LA

May 11-18

2008-05-07T18:47:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone!

Do you know what next week is? It is National Americorps Week. So I will be talking to you about you and Americorps and service again!

There will be a lot in the news about service and help with the devastation in Myannar. They are estimating maybe 100,000 dead?

But we will look at Americorps next week and how to celebrate you.

Till tomorrow,

LA

Sorrow & Gratitude

2008-05-06T19:52:00.004-04:00

Hey,

Well we have finished Circle of Courage and the Developmental Assets methods or philosphies.

So today I am taking a break just to talk.

So much sorrow in the world. It is hard to imagine the kind of devastation that has occured in Myanmar. I had never even heard of this country before now. And evidently, they have tried to keep it that way. They had intentionally isolated themselves and now they are all over the news and accepting support and help from around the world even though it is hard to even reach them.

Reminds me of our talks about support and belonging. Life is too hard to do all alone. 22,000 dead and 41,000 missing. My mind can not even take that in.

It is easier for me to mourn the death of the filly in the derby than 22,000 men, women and children. I can not even go there.

When I get past the horror of it all, I can go to gratitude. Gratitude that I am not dealing with the devastation or loss taking place in that country.

I can get so bogged down in my own problems...the price of filling up my gas tank on my car, paying bills, stress at work and home....BUT those are just the "stuff of life" and I can be grateful that I have a life....a home...a car...my family...a job...etc.

I am thankful for all the blessings I have in my life each and every day.

Till tomorrow,

LA

Positive Identity

2008-05-05T18:05:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone,

I hope you had a good weekend. I am so sad about Eight Belles who had to be put to sleep after breaking her front legs at the Kentucky Derby. She was the only filly to run and came in second before falling. Those horses try so hard and run their hearts out. I just hate it that it has to kill one of them. :(

Today we will finish with the 40 Developmental Assets. The last group of the internal assets is the Positive Identity Assets.

I will quote/paraphrase Search Institute here:

Solidifying identity is the primary task of adolescence, according to Erik Erikson...The hope is that the identity will be positive. Youth programs can give messages in multiple ways that reinforce self-esteem and belief in oneself and the ability to affect ones's future. In fact, all of the other asset categories work together to build positive identiites.

And I believe that is true. Relationship building, listening, empowerment, competencies, affirming, supporting, etc. all help a young person feel better about him or herself.

But here are some tips:

Use positive language to influence youth's perceptions of themselves. (For example, we tell youth who call in on our crisis line that they are courageous.)

Look for ways that youth can be successful

Be alert to special talents, aptitudes and passions in youth

Enlarge youth's vision of their future and reinforce optimism

Ensure that you and the other adults around speak positively about themselves and each other

Where possible, celebrate cultural heritages of the youth

Expect young people to experience ups and downs of self-esteem during these years

Avoid comparing young people with other young people

Let teenagers know that you are proud of and excited by their talents, capabilities, and discoveries.

Support teenagers as they struggle with issues and questions of identity

Let teenagers know that you are willing to listen if they want to talk about their sense of purpose in life, including their ideas about how they would like to contribute to the world.

And I would add to use the strengths perspective. Catch youth doing something right. Notice their good points.

And most importantly, accept and affirm who they are, not just what they do. So many youth today have grown up with shame and humiliation. They need to feel they are okay for who they are.

You all have the opportunity to be that person in a youth's life. The one who helps them see themselves in a new positive light.

Till tomorrow
LA

Social Competencies

2008-05-01T20:31:00.003-04:00

Happy Friday,

I am off to Memphis this weekend for their music festival.

Today we will talk about social competencies. These are the life skills that youth need to make good personal choices, develop healthy relationships and to contribute to society. We can teach these skills in subtle ways and also in obvious ones.

At Oasis we spend a lot of our afternoon group time on communication skills and life choices. We spend our family sessions on communication. These are big areas. They include: decision making, planning, resisting, conflict resolution skills and more.

Really it is about how we get along with others and keep our self healthy. I know many adults who struggle with that one (me included). When one comes from a home environment that is dysfunctional, these skills are lacking.

Here are some tips:

Watch for opportunities to coach teens in good communication skills and peaceful conflict resolution. (not hard to do that in our shelters is it?)
Help youth recognize and name theri feelings
Help youth have empathy
Brainstorm solutions together with those in conflict
Teach nonverbal communication skills
Teach respectful communication
Help teens interact well together
Teach good decision making
Introduce diversity into your programs with volunteers of different backgrounds, ethnicity, etc.
Teach cultural sensitivity.

This is hard. I think of how teenage boys talk to each other...whew, not real respectful or sensitive!!

I would add, taking teens on field trips to experience new and different settings too.

I would love to know how you all work on these areas!

Have a great weekend!

LA

Positive Values

2008-05-01T19:59:00.003-04:00

Hello!

We are up to the Positive Values asset group. Aquiring values is a crucial part of youth development. Values clarification used to be big...in the 80s maybe? But I don't hear much about values today. Asset Development says we can expect youth to behave in ways that are consistent with the values in our programs.

So what are values afterall?

Values are those things that really matter to each of us ... the ideas and beliefs we hold as special. Caring for others, for example, is a value; so is the freedom to express our opinions.

Most of us learned our values - or morals, if you prefer - at home, at church or synagogue, at school. But, where are our children learning their values? Maybe from parents, teachers and religious leaders, but society has changed. Too often young people today are most influenced by what they see and hear on television or on the street.

Here is a value clarification activity.

We use a values activity similar to this when we train volunteers for street outreach. We want to make sure that they don't judge the homeless.

Here are some tips for helping you develop values or at least get the teens to think about them:

Talk about values
Use games and activities to help youth explore their values
Encourage youth to question their values
Be committed to promote positive values & put signs, posters, etc. up
Point out youth's behavior that reflects positive values
Encourage youth to take responsibility for their behavior.
Encourage adults to apologize if they need to
Encourage youth to mentor and help other youth
Use service learning projects to promote the postive values of caring, responsibility and social justice
Teach and role-play skills and decision making.

On the other hand, someone told me once that if you want to see what people really value, look at what they do, not what they say. Ouch! :)

Till tomorrow.

LA

Commitment to Learning

2008-04-30T15:32:00.003-04:00

Hello!

Last time we finished the 4 external asset groups. Today we will look at the first of the internal asset groups. These are assets that we help develop in our youth.

The Commitment to Learning group is mostly about school or after school programs, but our programs can reinforce the importance of learning and support young people's school success. Youth today have a harder time finding any meaning for their life in school, I believe. We can help motivate them to learn and see how school connects to their lives. We can also strengthen the connections between school and familes.

Tips:

Provide a good atmosphere for learning
Provide access to good books and magazines and reading areas.
Allow time for reading
Set up tutoring environments with snacks, individual attention, etc.
Provide learning opportunities such as field trips to libraries, etc.
Show youth what education can do for them
Acknowledge school success
Coordinate efforts with parents and teachers
Talk to youth about their attitudes toward school and help them turn negative attitudes into positive ones
Advocate in the schools for youth welcoming and caring environments

What do you all do in your programs to help your youth be connected and motivated in school?

Till tomorrow,

LA

Constructive Use of Time

2008-04-28T18:52:00.002-04:00

Hello Everyone!

What a funny title for a group of assets. This one includes creative activities, youth programs, religious community, and time at home.

We can definitely learn about activities and youth programs!

The idea is not just to structure time, but to make the time rich. We have game night at the shelter on Monday evenings. A couple volunteers their time to play group games with the youth there. They play Gestures and games in which the teens must think and act out. Lots of our youth have never played games like this before, so they learn good teamwork and how to get along well with others in competition.
They also have a lot of fun.

Tips

Provide a variety of activities
Arrange for local artists to come in and do creative activities
Have as much one on one time with youth as possible
Display teen's artwork and talent
Tell the parents what their youth can do and are doing
Help find community resources for youth to participate in outside the program

It is a funny thing at our shelter, but the teens will usually say no if you ask them if they want to play a game or do art, etc. But if you get the game out or the art supplies, pretty soon there are teens wanting to participate.

Any ideas on what has worked for you all?

LA

Boundaries & Expectations

2008-04-25T18:07:00.004-04:00
Hello,

We are up to the third set of assets. This is what is said about this area.

Youth benefit from clear boundaries and expectations that steer them toward positive choices. Boundaries are internalized when they are consistent across settings such as the family, school and neighborhood. ...Moreover youth know they are valued and respected when adults hold high expectations for them. ... Youth programs can involve youth in setting limits and consequences and communicate expectations clearly.

This is a hard area, I think. First of all, we have no control over what families and schools are doing. We can work with the youth in our programs and sometimes their families too.

We used to have a point and level system in our shelter. If a teen didn't follow the rules, he or she would lose points and possibly a level that had priviledges such as playing pool and getting a coke. We decided a few yesrs ago that we would give all the youth the same priviledges when they first entered the program. Then if they acted out, we would have their counselor work with them. We also use peace-making circles to resolve conflict. Of course this doesn't always work...yesterday we had to ask 2 teens to leave the shelter. But our incidence reports have dropped drastically.

Here are the tips for building these assests:

Provide clear rules and consequences
Involve youth in developing rules and consequences
Use positive techniques to reinforce good behavior
Model repectful behavior
Enlist youth in modeling positive behavior for theie peers
Work with parents and schools to create boundaries and expectations.
Tell youth your high expectations for them
Structure your activities to support the youth in meeting those expectations
Inspire youth

Any stories about this? I would love to hear them.

LA

Empowerment

2008-04-23T18:58:00.003-04:00

Hi ya,

Today we will look at the empowerment assets. This is the second group of assets. Just today at work we were talking about the assets and how 40 seemed like a lot to remember. So remembering the main eight groups seems like a good goal.

The Search institute says that empowerment is more a philospphy than an activity. If so, then these assets would fit well with the Advancing Youth Development work. (I am trying to write with a cat on my lap again)

So the following are ideas for increasing empowerment:

Provide opportunities in a safe environment
Provide emotional safety
Listen
Encourage input
Enlist youth in forming the rules and consequences
Use elected representatives from the youth in their programs
Work with youth to decide on service-learning projects
Involve youth in community presentations
Set up real partnerships with youth and adults
Respectfully bring attention to power imbalances
Look for ways youth can serve in decision-making and policy-making roles
Educate the community on models of shared leadership
Find ways for civic engagement skills to be reinforced in schools, churches, communities, etc.

Wow. I guess all of that is definitely empowering.

Are there any ways that you have empowered the youth in your agencies that you could share with us?

LA

The Support Assets

2008-04-22T21:05:00.003-04:00

Hi All,

I think I will spend this week on more assets ideas. Today we will talk about the Support Assets.

As Search Institute says, " Supportive relationships provide the conduit for all other asset building."

The support assets refer to providing young people with love, affirmation, and acceptance throughout their environment. While parental support is most influential, the combination of support from all aspects of a young person's life is crucial. Simple ways for youth programs to provide support include making youth feel welcome by all adults greeting them, paying close attention to them, and actively listening to them. Youth programs can also involve and coordinate efforts with families and schools.

So what are ways to build support assets?

Notice & welcome every young person.
Appreciate & build on their strengths & postive behaviors.
Listen, listen, listen.
Build supportive relationships through shared activities.
Urge parents to become involved with their youth.
Create ways for community members to get involved with youth.

An example of this last one here at Oasis is taking our shelter youth to the assisted living home every Tuesday night to play bingo. The elderly love the teens and the teens feel their support.

What are ways that you build support with the youth you serve?

LA

Real Examples

2008-04-21T19:49:00.003-04:00

Hello Everyone!

I am back from vacation. It was great to sleep late and read a novel and eat fresh fish and shrimp. Yum.

Thanks Polly for your incredible examples of being an asset builder! Wow. Those are amazing and awesome changes in people's lives. You go girl!!!

I too would love to hear from all of you out there. What are some victories you have had so far this year as an Americorps member?

Large or small....like the starfish story I related way back in our blogs, it matters greatly to the one you help.

This blog is really for you all to be able to celebrate your work together. Polly has started the ball rolling....

Who is next? What are some of your experiences?

LA

Ps The photo is of some of our shelter staff here at Oasis.

Be an Asset Builder

2008-04-14T16:22:00.002-04:00

Hello, Let's look at what we can do to be an asset builder.

You can BE an Asset Builder

Be an open, honest, & active listener
Be committed to the positive work
Be hopeful & optimistic about young people & their future
Be self-aware
Be appreciative of youth's strengths
Be supportive
Be reliable & trustworthy
Be willing to share your assets with youth (time, caring, etc)

What you can DO as an Asset Builder

Say hello to all youth
Build relationships with the youth who live near you
Respect & affirm youth
Believe in youth
Attend youth's events
Look for the good in youth
Have meaningful conversations with youth
Model positive behavior
Forgive people when they make mistakes
Encourage youth to succeed in school and be a resource in their community
Use the asset framework.

So those are just ideas from Search Institute on how to be an Asset Builder.

Hope you have a great week and I will see you next Monday after my vacation!

Bye for now!

LA

Even More About Assets

2008-04-13T21:06:00.002-04:00
Hiya,

Tonite I will discuss some more about the assets that the youth said they did have.

63% said that they had positive peer influence. That is interesting because peer influence gets a feally bad rap, doesn't it. We refer to peer pressure as a bad thing. Youth are saying that it is a positive influence on their lives.

65% of youth say that they are motivated to do well in school. I don't know who they surveyed, but here in Tennessee we have a lot of youth who drop out and do poorly in school.

63% say they accept personal responsibilty.

The research also showed that youth need to have 31 out of the total 40 assets to be really prepared for a successful adulthood.

This is the breakdown:

17% of youth have 0-10 assets total
42% have 11-20 assets
32% have 21-30 assets

and only 8% have 31-40. That is huge! Now it would be good if the youth that we see in our shelters and on the streets had 21-30! But it is sobering to realize that most of our youth need these assets in their lives.

Tomorrow we will look at what we can do about it.

LA

More about Assets

2008-04-12T16:22:00.004-04:00

Hello!

The boy in the cartoon is saying, "I use to have a lemonade stand, but this pays better". Not much developed in our youth with lectures is there?

I wanted to mention some more assets and their percentages that you might find very interesting.

This is puzzling to me: even though 68% of youth claimed that they have family support, only 28% claim positive family communication.

Only 29% of youth feel that school is a caring environment and 37% felt that their neighborhood was caring.

51% of youth feel safe at home, in school and neighborhood. So 49% don't feel safe. Another reason to be giving your youth safe exit plans.

Only 27% of youth say they have positive adult role models.

Only 29% of youth say they know how to plan ahead and make choices.

Only 26% of youth say they are given useful roles in the community.

What is good about this study, is that you can plan your programs to help develop these assets in the youth you serve. Some of the assets will be developed just because you care about them and are a positive role model to them.

Tomorrow, we will look at some more of the assets that youth say they do have.

Have a great Saturday,

LA

40 Assets Con't

2008-04-11T18:26:00.002-04:00
Hello!

I am going to try to upload the other photos this weekend. I will be on the blog this weekend and Monday and then will be on vacation until Sunday. I am going to Aruba and can't wait. We have been drenched with rain here. Tornado warnings today and they are calling for snow on Sunday. That's right...snow!!! It was 80s today and tomorrow will be 40s.

okay today I will let you know the answers to the assets questions.

Which three developmental assets were present the most with youth?

The highest present in our youth is Positive View of Personal Future which means that 72% of youth are optimistic about their future.

The second and third highest assets are actually tied at 68%. Our youth said they had integrity which means that they feel that they have convictions that they act on and that they stand up for their beliefs. And 68% said that they have family support.

So we can build on those strengths in our youth: a positive view of the future, integrity and family support.

Okay, now which assets are the lowest in our youth?

21% of our youth have creative activities which means that they spend 3 or more hours a week playing music, doing art or a similar activity.

Again we have a tie for the second and third lowest.

22% of youth read for pleasure 3 or more hours a week.

22% of youth believe that community (adults) values youth.

Whoa! Only 22% of our youth feel valued by the community! by adults! That is something we can help change. You are changing that by giving your year to valuing youth.

I also decided to say hello to youth on the street when I heard that only 1 out of 5 adults even makes eye contact with them. That way I am helping youth to feel valued.

Have a great evening!

LA

Photos? again

2008-04-10T18:51:00.006-04:00

Hello Everyone,

I am wiped out. Today we had a big event here in Nashville. It is around improving the quality of our programs and training of youth workers. I was the set-up person and then did a training in the afternoon. So not only am I exhausted, but I forgot to get my Developmental Assets materials from work. I was there early this morning, but got distracted with getting supplies for this event which was held at one of our community centers.

So I will have to give you the percentages tomorrow. And I thought I would at least upload the photos that Jesse took first.

Now if your photo is on here, let us know who you are! I think this is Project Lighthouse.

Cool!

LA

40 Assets

2008-04-09T19:10:00.004-04:00

Hello Everyone,

These red bud trees are blooming here in Nashville.

Today we will explore the 40 assets philosophy of working with youth... I train youth workers on this and the Circle of Courage and Advancing Youth Development. That third one, I believe you will be trained in by John at some point.

The 40 assets is a very easy way to look at what youth need to become successful adults. It was developed by the Search Institute.

What is an asset?
Here is a definition: A useful or valuable quality, person, or thing; an advantage or resource:

So check out the link here to see the list of all 40 developmental assets.

You can see that they are divided into two categories: external and internal.

I have information that tells us what percentage of youth have each asset. (At least by their research)

Guess which three assets are the lowest? (In other words, which three assets do youth say are the lowest in their lives?)

Guess which three assets are the highest?

I will tell you tomorrow.

Meanwhile, I ask youth workers to think of a person, activity, group etc (Just like I did for Circle of Courage) and this time go through the list of the 40 assets and check the ones that they acquired because of that person or group, etc.

Try it if you want. It is really cool to see what assets you got from just one person or experience. It helps us to realize how we can develop these assets in the youth at our agencies.

Tomorrow I will go through the external assets as well as tell you what the highest and lowest are according to the youth surveyed.

(I did look at your photos and wish i could meet you all!)

LA

Photos?

2008-04-08T19:47:00.004-04:00

Hello! Today I am going to try to get the photos that Jesse has been taking of you all up on this site. Yay, Jesse!

Ok, let me try this....

Maybe this....

Ok that didn't work. I think i will send them to John who can get them up on the site. Right, John? I haven't the mastery to do it.

I love to take photos too. I know Jesse does and some of the photos are pretty funny. I like to take photos of nature and buildings mostly. I put one of my favorites that I took in New York City.

I am rambling because this has been an exhausting day! I have important parts in two events...one is Thursday and the other is Saturday. I am so tired but need to work into the night....

Reminds me of self care. That is an awesome topic for our blog.

Tomorrow I will introduce the 40 Assets philosophy and when we are done that, we can talk about self care. This work can be draining even though it is meaningful and fulfilling. So what do you do to de-stress?

Right now I am just trying to get enough sleep!

So see you tomorrow!

LA

Circle of Courage Answers

2008-04-07T18:17:00.003-04:00

Hello Everyone, I hope you had a good weekend. I went to Baltimore to see my parents and brothers. It was nice.

So what are the answers to the quiz?

If you guessed:

Generosity
Mastery
Belonging
Independence

you are right!

I use this philosophy in my new staff and volunteer training. I ask them to think of a person or event or activity or something from their teen years that helped them to become the person they are today.

Then I ask them to talk about it and place it (they have written it down on a post-it note) onto the circle of courage that I have on the wall. They choose which need was met, although often there is overlap.

For example, some people have a club, team, scouts, youth group or band or some kind of group they belonged to. It would fulfil the belonging need, but it could also fill the mastery or generosity need.

My story that I told you of how one of my 10th grade teachers organized a group of us to go tutor kids in the Baltimore inner city every Saturday morning is an example of meeting the need for generosity for me. It really changed me in a way that lectures would never have done.

What would be the answer to that question for you? What influenced you to be the positive caring person you are today?

Post a comment and share it with us all!

LA

Need #4

2008-04-04T16:53:00.003-04:00

Hello Everyone,

Today is the third rainy day here...and I mean rain...pouring rain. The rivers are going to flood for sure.

Before we talk about the last need, we can take a moment to honor MLK on this 40th year of his death. I remember that day clearly...i was 15 years old. I lived in Baltimore and we had a city curfew of 5pm. the day after his death for a number of days. There were hundreds of fires and lootings in the city. It was sad and scary. So much hatred and hostility. Such a loss for our world.

Need #4

The characteristics of this need when unmet are:

submissive
lacking confidence
feeling inferior
irresponsible
helpless
undisciplined
easily led

The characteristics of this need when it is met in negative ways is:

ditatorial
reckless, macho
bullying
sexually exploitative
manipulative
rebellious
defiant of authority

Wow. We see a lot of youth in our shelter who exhibit these traits. Knowing what need this behavior reflects would be helpful.

So what are the needs? #1, #2, #3, and #4.

Go ahead and take a guess.

Monday we will wrap up the Circle of Courage. Meanwhile I hope you have a good weekend. I am off to Baltimore to visit my family.

Take care,

LA

Need #3

2008-04-03T17:00:00.003-04:00
Hello Everyone,

I am waiting until each need in the quiz is written, before I give the answers for 2 reasons:

1. Maybe one of you will guess
2. By process of elimination, if I give the right answers each day, the quiz will be easier and easier each day! See I am smarter than I look. :)

So today, we are Need #3:

These are the characteristics when this need is unmet:

unattended
guarded
rejected
lonely
aloof
isolated
distrustful

These are the characteristics when this need is met in negative
ways:

loyal to gang
craving attention
craving acceptance
promiscuous
clinging
attracted to cults
overly dependent

So if any of your youth display any of these characteristics, which need should you look at?

It is said that this need is the most important of them all. That the other three build on this one. And if this need is not met, it will effect the others.

Till Tomorrow,

LA

Need #2

2008-04-02T18:01:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone, I just finished 3 days of peace circle training...very cool, but I am wiped out.

Ok now for Need #2.

A youth who is not getting this need met exhibits one or more of these characteristics:

nonachieving
oriented to failure
risk-avoiding
fearful of challenges
unmotivated
easily discouraged
feeling inadequate

A youth who is getting this need met in a negative way exhibits one or more of these characteristics:

overachieving
arrogant
risk-seeking
workaholic
presevering
cheating
skillful at delinquent behavior

Which need is this?

Do any of the youth in your agency show these traits? I think the boys in our society are especially susceptible to these. Because they are supposed to look capable and macho. But we have girls showing these traits in our programs as well.

Till tomorrow,

LA

Need #1 Quiz

2008-04-01T20:45:00.002-04:00

Okay...now for some fun with this:

Each day for the rest of this week, we will look at one of the Circle of Courage needs again. I will list the characteristics of what it looks like for that need to be met in a negative way or not met at all.

You guess which one it is. Got it? Good.

So this week.....NEED #1

When this need is met in a negative way, a young person might have these characteristics:

condescending
overinvolved
playing or acted martyred
servile
exploited or used

When the need is not met at all:

selfish, narcissistic
lacking affection
disloyal
hardened
antisocial
exploitative

Okay, so which need is not being met or being met negatively? It is good to recognize these behaviors so you know which need to address.

Oh, and I was wrong about Tennessee not having a team...Memphis!

LA

Circle of Courage lV

2008-03-31T21:45:00.003-04:00

Ok Everyone, we are down to the last need in the Circle. Gererosity. I love this definition....the habit of giving. wow. I would put that in another color font, if i could find that toolbar...

The habit of giving....is that really a need for our youth? Really? Here they are with unsafe homes or living conditions and anger and depression and poor social skills and lack of success in school, and more. Why would they need generosity?

Let me tell you about Tuesday nights at the Oasis Center Emergency Shelter. The youth staying in our shelter go play bingo with the "old people". That's right, they all play bingo together. And our youth help the elderly hear the numbers called and find them on their bingo cards. How does that make these youth feel?

If you said: important, helpful, and good about themselves, you are right.It is a simple thing that the youth can do and feel really good about.

Just as you ought to feel good. Because this year for you all is one of generosity. You are giving of your time and energy to help youth. I hope you feel good just as our youth do when they can help and give.

Generosity is not solely based on one's economic status, but instead, includes the individual's pure intentions of looking out for society's common good and giving from the heart.Generosity should reflect the individual's passion to help others.

I love that. Giving from the heart...passion to help.... And when we do that, miracles occur.

Till tomorrow,

LA

Independence Revisited

2008-03-28T11:30:00.004-04:00

Hello Everyone!

Are you all watching basketball? I am a football fan, but I like to watch the basketball games when it gets near the Final Four. Vanderbilt and UT are out. Who should I watch and hope to win?

Independence. I thought I would look up what the orginators of the Circle of Courage say about this need.

Autonomy combined with responsibility and self-control; self-reliance; empowerment and controp over one's self and one's destiny.

WOW

Now I get it. Responsibility and self-control. That is a huge task.
Empowerment. We don't hear that word as much now as we used to. It was in our Oasis mission statement in the 80's.

How do we empower our youth?
How do we help them build self-control?
How do we help them build self-reliance?
How do we help them build a proper sense of responsibility?

(The Advancing Youth Development Training that SEN offers is great for helping us look at ways to meet this need in our youth.)

Good questions that need good answers....

And back to my other good question....

Which basketball game should I watch this weekend?

Have a good one!
LA

Circle of Courage lll

2008-03-27T19:29:00.003-04:00

Hello all! Hello John and Jesse, if you are reading this.

Today we are going to look at the third need in the Circle of Courage: Independence.

Well all the images I can find for independence are of the 4th of July, the flag, the declaration of independence or the movie poster for Independence Day (I loved that movie). The wikapedia definition is about a country's independence.

When i put in "personal independence" i get this wierd site that has a cool personal growth twist.

So where is the definition of independence for a youth or person?

(I'm trying to write with a cat on my lap wanting to be petted)

Hey...a cat. That (ouch! he bit me) makes me think! Cats are known for being very independent. What is it about them that is? Well, they can take care of themselves. They know how to amuse themselves, clean themselves, get what they need, etc. Anyway...

What do our youth need to be independent? A lot of our street youth and those who have struggled with dysfunctional families are very independent when it comes to taking care of themselves and often their siblings too. Is that what we mean?

I think we need to look closer at this need tomorrow....

LA

Circle of Courage lll

2008-03-26T19:42:00.002-04:00
Hello Everyone,

Today we will look at Mastery. What is mastery? This definition says, "possession of a consummate skill". What does consummate mean? Beats me. I need to look that up..."to realize, achieve, fulfill." So mastery means to have a skill. And be good at it. Like I can use this blog, but I would not say I have mastery over it. For example I lost the font colors toolbar and have no idea where it has gone or how to get it back.

Well, back to mastery as a need. What do young adults need to master? What skills? Certainly in this age, they need computer skills. I just read that the next generation will be "I" which stands for internet. Because these kids will never have experienced a world without the internet.

So computer skills are a must. What else? Life skills, social skills, personal skills, emotional skills, academic skills, decision-making skills, safety skills (like our safe exit work) and more.

It is hard to master something. I can do lots of things somewhat, but master few. For example, I have just begun tai chi class on Wednesday evenings which is why i am blogging so late. It is REALLY hard to learn. Each move has to be done just right with hands and feet and weight shifts, etc. It will take years to master this i think. But it helps me to remember how hard it is to learn new skills. It takes time and practice and support. Check out this You Tube of Tai Chi. I can do the first 3 steps and not so smooth like this dude.

Till tomorrow,
LA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLOWv8k78tw&feature=related

Circle of Courage ll

2008-03-25T19:30:00.002-04:00
Hello!

We will talk about circle of Courage again today. The four needs. What do you think? Do you think that these four needs sum it all up? Let's see what they mean to be exact.

Belonging
This site tells us that belonging is one of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. If you have never seen Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, please look at this link. You will hear about it all your life. Essentially, Maslow put our needs in order. He created a theory of what needs we have and put them in order.

Basic human needs for food, sleep, shelter, etc. come first. All of you who work in street outreach know that.

Then safety. Providing shelter, safe exits for our youth, etc. comes next.

Then belonging which he defines as love and being part of a group. Maslow rates the need to belong before the next ones of self-esteem and individual potential.

So we know that our youth need to belong. And we know that they might belong to groups that are not going to help them develop in a positive, successful way.

Do you have any youth in your programs that are not getting this need met? Or are getting it met in a negative way? (Peer pressure is another huge influence on our teens who need to belong.)

What do you think?

How do we help our youth meet this need to belong in a positive way? Any ideas?

Till tomorrow,
LA

Circle of Courage

2008-03-24T18:29:00.003-04:00

Hello Everyone,

I hope you had a good Easter weekend. It is cold here again today....40's. Brrrrrr. But the flowers are out and the trees are blooming, so it is really pretty.

Let's talk about Circle of Courage. This is a way of working with youth that was developed by 3 Native Americans. Go to the website to read more.

Notice the Circle of Courage at the top of this blog. Now even though it is used with youth, I think it can be used by adults too.

In fact, i want to use it with us first.

As you can see there are 4 areas:

Independence
Belonging
Mastery
Generosity

This philosophy states that youth (and I believe adults, too) have needs for each of these areas. That we have a need for each one of these. And we either meet our need positively, negatively or not at all.

The cool thing about this philosophy is that by looking at needs, there is no shame or criticism or judgment. We are all just meeting our needs the only way we know how.

For example, if a youth is a member of a gang, which need is he getting met? And is this a positive way to meet the need for belonging?

We love this model at Oasis. We will look at it more this week.

Think about it.

LA

What kind of community are we?

2008-03-21T15:48:00.003-04:00

Hello Everyone,

Happy Spring. Today is the Vernal Equinox....the first day of Spring.
An equinox in astronomy is that moment in time (not a whole day) when the centre of the Sun can be observed to be directly above the Earth's equator, occurring around March 20 and September 23 each year.

And today in Nashville it is 70 degrees and sunny. Supposed to be freezing for Easter morning...oh well....the weather here changes rapidly.

So what kind of community are we? What kind of people are we?

Caring
Compassionate
Connecting
Fun
Lively
Intelligent
Patient
Forgiving
Creative
Generous
Serving

What else?

Optimistic
Hopeful
Cool
Good listeners
Approachable
Fair
Concerned
Young at heart

and even more.....

We are a great community of people and together we can make a difference. Together we can support each other when times get rough and together we can celebrate the great things that happen. And together we can learn.

I would like to start exploring some tools that we can learn...like Circle of Courage and Asset Building.

So stay tuned!

And please comment! What would you like to learn about?

Have a great Easter weekend!

LA

Community

2008-03-20T16:12:00.003-04:00

Hi Everyone!

Our focus this week is community. And how cool that John has added the links to this blog that show us our community.

First of all....what is community? We love to use that word in our field. It is even in our mission statement here at Oasis Center.
To help youth grow, thrive and create positive change in their lives and in our community."
What does community mean? You know I am going to check wikepedia now...community

The definition there is:
A community is a social group of organisms sharing an environment, normally with shared interests. In human communities, intent, belief, resources, preferences, needs, risks and a number of other conditions may be present and common, affecting the identity of the participants and their degree of cohesiveness.

The word community is derived from the Latin communitas (meaning the same), which is in turn derived from communis, which means "common, public, shared by all or many"[1].

So what does all that mean? We share an environment...

SEN
Americorps
Youth work agencies
Youth

We share intent and beliefs as we work with youth to help them with safe exits and some tools to live more successfully. We are working with similar resources in our agencies. We share the resource of this blog and other positive inputs from SEN.

What else makes us a community?

And what are the benefits of community? Why is it more helpful to be a part of a group than alone?

This work is hard. It has its struggles and ups and downs. We need each other. We can encourage and help each other.

We welcome you to make use of this community blog for your needs. Is there anything you need to learn about? Anything you want to share?

This is your blog....your community.

A cyberspace on-line social networking community!

LA

What's up?

2008-03-19T11:28:00.002-04:00
What's up? Yes, I bet all of you wondered where I have been. I hopped a plane to New Orleans ans celebrated St. Patrick's Day here. Yes I am stuck in the airport with a delayed flight. And yesterday the hotel's server was down.

New Orleans is still not operating up to speed. It is sad. It looks fine, but there are fewer service people around. Long waits in the restaurants because there are less waiters (waitresses). Fewer taxis. And the service isn't as competent.

I read that the homeless population is now 1 out of 25 people in New Orleans. wow. I don't know what street outreach programs they have here, but that is a ton of people who are needy. In the paper I saw that the books in the library branches were soggy and they were working on reopening. I never even thought of the libraries. This city talks and lives the devastation of Katrina.

I did a training on Saturday for our new staff here at Oasis and our interns too. I am reminded as I always am when I do these trainings how much I like people who love working with youth. We are great people!

So I think this next section of blogs will be about community. What is it? How to build it?

And yes, Jesse, I have photos and will upload them this week onto our blog. I want to have everyone's photos up....our community.

So send the photos! And be thinking of what makes community.

Till later,

LA

More heros

2008-03-14T17:52:00.003-04:00

Thanks John, for that write-up about Stetson Kennedy. Wow. He certainly is a hero.

What makes a hero? How do we define hero? Does this person have to be famous?

Let's check....hero

hero (male) and heroine (female) came to refer to characters that, in the face of danger and adversity or from a position of weakness, display courage and the will for self-sacrifice, that is, heroism, for some greater good, originally of martial courage or excellence but extended to more general moral excellence.

So someone who displays courage at the risk of their own comfort? Usually for the good?

Of course we have super-heros...those fantasy figures who have extra powers to save others. Those movies about superheros are really popular now....like Spiderman. Now that's a hero, right?

But what about us? We have power to help youth and make a difference in their lives. Seems powerful to me.

Who are some heros in our modern day world? I described some in the Secret Service Hero Game.

But more than that I wonder who your heros are....a family member? a teacher? a coach?

I have one and will share that next time. I don't know that she has done stuff for the "greater good". But she is my hero all the same.

So who is yours?
LA

My hero

2008-03-13T16:22:00.002-04:00
Well I told you today that I would tell you about my hero.
I actually have 2. One is famous and the other is a youth.

The famous one is Rosa Parks. Her middle name is close to mine: Louise. I like the quote about her that says, "She was sweet and soft spoken, but made a statement that screamed so loud".

Rosa was active in civil rights before the bus incident. It is also interesting that she was already in the black section of the bus, but the law stated that she would have to give up her seat if there were more white people than seats and they needed the middle of the bus too. It was then that she didn't move. I love this quote too.

People always say that I didn't give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn't true. I was not tired physically, or no more tired than I usually was at the end of a working day. I was not old, although some people have an image of me as being old then. I was forty-two. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.

Anyway, she reinforces my belief that one person CAN make a difference. Amazing.

I want to hear who your heros are. You might very well be a hero to others this year. Cool. Have you ever thought of yourself as a hero?

Till tomorrow,

LA

What next?

2008-03-11T18:49:00.003-04:00
Well, I hope you will guess the Secret Service Heroes. I have decided not to give the answers in hopes that we will have some guesses by you all soon.

I would like this blog to be a place to get inspired and encouraged and build a sense of community. I know it is hard since we don't know each other and it takes more time out of our busy days/ evenings/ weekends.

What would you like to get from this blog?

I am constantly reminded of our american motto of "do it yourself". We just don't get much encouragement to ask for help or get support.

But I think we are losing out...missing out. It is the community that gives us a sense of not being alone....not having so much stress. It is what we give our youth...and we need it too.

So that is what i am hoping for this blog. A place where we can share, support and learn from each other....like learning who Bob Graham is...thanks John.

In fact I bet you all might have a hero that you know. Who is it?

I will share mine next time.

LA

Secret Service Hero #6

2008-03-10T15:48:00.003-04:00
Hey Guys, I realized this weekend that I could not leave this person out!

And to John's comment about Bog Graham....I am sure he is great. My middle name is Graham. But tell us, John what is great about him?

Ok. On to the last hero:

This person is changing lives every day.

This person works for the domestic peace corps.

This person is helping our youth.

This person is giving a year of their life to serve others.

This person is committed to service.

This person values young people.

Who is this????

Anyone want to guess?

Try it!

LA

Secret Service Hero #5

2008-03-07T15:31:00.002-05:00
Hello Everyone,

Once again we are supposed to get snow! They say we will have 3-5 inches. We will see. I just saw my first robins this spring....boy are they in for a big surprise.

Well, John guessed Bob Graham. Who is that? Then he guessed, Melinda Gates....which is VERY close!!! Try again, John.

Okay, today is Hero #5

This person was the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.

This person was stabbed in the chest with a letter opener.

This person was inspired by one of our other Secret Service Heros.

This person spoke strongly against the Vietnam war.

This person was constantly wiretapped (bugged) by the FBI.

This person is the second most admired person in the 20th century.

This person has streeted names after them in 730 cities as of 2006.

This person said:

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.

Any guesses?

Have a great weekend!
La

Secret Service Hero #4

2008-03-06T16:31:00.002-05:00
Hello everyone!

Any guesses on Hero #1 or #3?

Today is Hero #4:

This person serves with their spouse.

This person founded the largest charitible foundation in the world.

This person's aim (among others) is to reduce poverty.

This person was named person of the year in 2005.

This charity donates 1.5 billion a year at least.

This person said:

When I was growing up, my parents were involved in various volunteer things. My dad was head of Planned Parenthood. And it was very controversial to be involved with that... My mom was on the United Way group that decides how to allocate the money and looks at all the different charities and makes the very hard decisions about where that pool of funds is going to go.

This person was in the scouts.

I am trying not to give this one away....

Any guesses?

LA

Secret Service Hero #3

2008-03-05T18:19:00.003-05:00
Hi all,

Well I see someone guessed Albert Sweitzer for the Hero #2. And they are right!!! Good job!
Does anyone know who Hero #1 is?

Today we will go to #3.

This person was an advocate for the homeless and poor.

This person also won the Nobel Peace prize.

This person left home at 18 and never saw their mother or sibling again.

This person used to be a school teacher.

This person rescued 37 children out of a building during a war.

This person was criticzed a lot.

This person kept working even after 2 heart attacks.

This person founded an organization that has 600 service programs in 120 countries.

Who is it?

LA

Secret Service Hero #2

2008-02-29T16:41:00.001-05:00
Hello Everyone,

Ready for our second secret service hero?

This person studied philosphy and music in Paris. (lucky!)

This person had a piano delivered in a dug-out canoe.

This person believed that respect for life is the highest principle.

This person was left-handed, vegetarian and a cat lover.

This person won the Nobel peace prize.

This person worked against nucleur weapons.

This person established a hospital in Africa.

This person said,

"Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing."

so here it is......anyone want to take a guess?

till Monday,
LA

Secret Service Hero #1

2008-02-26T18:32:00.002-05:00
Okay, Ready?

I will give you clues to this person and you have a few days to guess who it is.

This person is known for peaceful civil disobedience.

This person wore glasses.

This person spent time in jail.

This person ispired movements for civil rights around the world.

This person made their own clothes.

This person was married at age 13.

This person was assasinated.

This person was runner up for Person of the Century in 1999.

This person said,

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world".

So who do you think it is?

LA

Secret Service Heros

2008-02-25T17:57:00.003-05:00
Happy Monday...or is that an oxymoron? Just kidding. I am still trying to shake the crud which I have had since last Wednesday.

Love your comment, John. Grand gestures or grilled cheese? And sometimes they are the same! A grilled cheese with safety and respect IS a grand gesture to a young person who has had a diet of neglect, abuse and/or anger. That is what our programs are about. Gestures that we often think are little meaningless ones turn out to be grand to hurting and needy youth.

I wanted to look at some of our service heros...these people have or are doing incredible things in our world. And you are a part of the solution just like them.

I also want to have fun with this. So.....

I am going to play a game where you guess the service hero. Each day this week I will give you different hints and you get to guess who I am referring to. Maybe I can drum up a prize for whoever gets the most correct.

It is important to have heros and these folk are certainly inspiring for us who value service.

so I hope you will join me tomorrow for the:

Secret Service Hero Game

Coughingly yours,

LA

Service V

2008-02-23T18:02:00.003-05:00
Hey, everybody,

I think next week we will look at some famous people who are known for their service.
People like Mother Teresa, Albert Schweitzer, and others.

And us. You and me. Each person that you connect with in a positive way is changed for the better. Each time you respond to a young person with respect and patience instead of anger and disappointment.... Each time you show up for service when you don't feel like it.

There IS so much need. What can we do? We might feel that we aren't making a difference like those people!

This story has a message for those of us who might feel that way:

The Original Starfish Story

There was a young man walking down a deserted beach just before dawn. In the distance he saw a frail old man. As he approached the old man, he saw him picking up stranded starfish and throwing them back into the sea. The young man gazed in wonder as the old man again and again threw the small starfish from the sand to the water. He asked, “Old man, why do you spend so much energy doing what seems to be a waste of time.” The old man explained that the stranded starfish would die if left in the morning sun. “But there must be thousands of beaches and millions of starfish!” exclaimed the young man. “How can you make a difference?” The old man looked at the small starfish in his hand and as he threw it to the safety of the sea, he said, “It makes a difference to this one!”

That kind of says it all, don't you think?

Who made a difference in your life?

LA

Service IV

2008-02-22T17:32:00.003-05:00
Hey, how do you like the dots? I love John's comment about Independence Day. What a fun movie that is. There is defintiely power in numbers and there is power in one person doing something meaningful as well. Cool.

I am reading a book called Happy for No Reason and one of the Hppiness Habits she mentions is "Contribute to Something Greater Than Yourself". In other words , service to a great cause. In fact research shows that those of us who give to others are happier. Knowing that every day I go to work helps young people is so fulfilling. Even on the days when everything seems to go wrong or it doesn't seem like I make any difference....my being there IS important to others.

A lot of us may be in this line of work...helping youth...because of our own childhoods. I have interviewed many people who wanted to become volunteers with teens because they had a troubled youth themselves. They know what it feels like to have no one there for them, and they want to make sure that they are there for a hurting youth.

Is that true for any of you? Looking back on my youth, I believe that I suffered from depression. But as long as I wasn't getting into trouble, no one seemed to care. My self-esteem was so low, you would have had to get down on your hands and knees to find it. I was alone a lot and now I wish I could have come to a shelter like Oasis.

So why are you serving youth? I would love to know your stories.....

I'll end wtih this cool quote about service:

I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I do know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.

Albert Schweitzer

And you all have found how to serve......

LA

Service III

2008-02-21T19:10:00.002-05:00
Hello Everyone,

Let's get into service as a value. I think just about everyone agrees that someone doing service is to be:

respected
admired
appreciated.

Why? What is it about people who give of themselves to serve? Why do we value them? Why do we value service?

What is a value anyway?

The dictionary gives lots of meaning for the word value....notice the one in red.

val�ue ��
(vly) KEY
�NOUN:
An amount, as of goods, services, or money, considered to be a fair
and suitable equivalent for something else; a fair price or return.
Monetary
or material worth: the fluctuating value of gold and silver.
Worth in
usefulness or importance to the possessor; utility or merit: the value of an
education.
A principle, standard, or quality considered
worthwhile or desirable: "The speech was a summons back to the patrician
values of restraint and responsibility" (Jonathan Alter).
Precise meaning or
import, as of a word.
Mathematics An assigned or calculated numerical
quantity.
Music The relative duration of a tone or rest.
The relative
darkness or lightness of a color. See Table at color.
Linguistics The sound quality of a letter or diphthong.
One of a series
of specified values: issued a stamp of new value. TRANSITIVE VERB: val�ued ,
val�u�ing , val�ues
To determine or estimate the worth or value of;
appraise.
To regard highly; esteem. See Synonyms at appreciate.
To rate according to relative estimate of worth or desirability; evaluate:
valued health above money.
To assign a value to (a unit of currency, for
example).
ETYMOLOGY: Middle English, from Old French, from feminine past
participle of valoir, to be strong, be worth, from Latin valre; see wal- in
Indo-European rootsOTHER FORMS: valu�er (Noun)
Thesaurus:
synonyms for value
So we are saying that we hold service as a principle...a standard that is highly desirable.
Do you?
Research shows that those people who valued service were much happier than those who didn't.
Why?
Next we will look at some famous people and check it out.
Till tomorrow.
LA

Service II

2008-02-20T16:02:00.003-05:00
Well, Everyone:

I missed yesterday, so I will blog on Saturday this week. There is a lot of sickness going around here and I seem to have picked up my share....brain fog seems to be a symptom as well as the sore throat, cough and head congestion. Hope you all escape it.

We are still talking about service. And really, what is the difference between service and work? You are obviously working hard at your agencies. You have a job description of your duties (I hope!) You may even appear to be doing the same things that some staff are doing.

So what makes it service?

1. Reward: Instead of a regular paycheck, you receive a living allowance. Your reward is in the actions you perform. You do not receive payment from the site. You do receive an educational reward.

2. Cause: You are dedicated to the youth you serve not the pay. You have a cause...to better the lives of those you serve.

3. Term: You have agreed to serve for a certain amount of time....usually one year, although you may apply for a second year.

4. Membership: You are members of an organization. This organization has a reputation for accomplishing amazing things in the community. Americorps has a Code of Conduct which you follow. You represent America at its best.

5. Iniative: You are part of a national initative even though you serve on a local level. You are meeting community needs as have thousands of others before you as members of our national service programs.

6. Commitment: You believe in and practice helping others....direct and meaningful service.

What do you think the difference is between service and work?

Till tomorrow.....lets' see.....where are my cough drops?

LA

Service

2008-02-18T17:05:00.003-05:00
Hello All!

Happy President's Day. If you are like me, you are at work today anyway. At least my phone didn't ring much.

Well, today I was going to tell you about how I got into service. My first volunteer activity was in 10th grade. I had a teacher who decided that a group of us immature girls needed to get interested in the community. So she started driving us into the inner city of Baltimore on Saturday mornings. We met in a community center and tutored 9-12 year old children in their school work. After we had worked on academics for a few hours, the youth put on music and we all danced. I did that all year.

How did that affect me? Well, I got that funny feeling. You know, the one you get when you help someone. And for a teenager like myself, I was amazed to see how others lived who didn't have what I did. (Before that I compared myself to others who had more than me.) I loved the feeling of helping. I enjoyed the kids. I got better at dancing too! It was a win/win.

I continued to volunteer through high school, college and thereafter. I have now interviewed and placed many many volunteers here at Oasis Center. Volunteers are the nicest people. You have to have a heart to want to serve. You have to have a heart to want to help young people....to care about the disadvantaged groups of our society enough to serve them. And young people are one of those groups.

As members of Americorps, you are committed to serving our youth. You care. You have a heart. And as one our international 14 year olds said,

Volunteering doesn't pay in your pocket, but it sure pays in your heart.

So not only do you have to have a heart to serve, but your heart grows larger and larger. Like the Grinch. And that is what our youth need....people in their lives with heart. That is what our community needs and our country and world.

Heart

Impact

2008-02-15T16:26:00.002-05:00
Happy Friday!

Americorps has obviously had an impact on the people and communities where the members serve. But what is the impact on the members themselves? The following are some of the findings:

Members were more connected to their community.
Members knew about the problems in their community.
Members participated in more community-based activities.
Members experienced increased work skills.

So basically americorps members become very active citizens.

So why did you join?

For the adventure? to put your heart for others into service?
For the experience? working with youth?
For the benefits? work? college award?

Whatever your reason, you will reap the benefits. And so will the agencies and the youth you serve.

which is a great lead in to next week's topic:

Service.

I can't wait! I first volunteered when I was in 10th grade and have been doing so all my life since. I will tell you all about it on Monday.

I'll end with this quote from Oprah.

I've come to believe that each of us has a personal calling that's as unique as a fingerprint - and that the best way to succeed is to discover what you love and then find a way to offer it to others in the form of service, working hard, and also allowing the energy of the universe to lead you.
Oprah Winfrey (1954 - ), O Magazine, September 2002

Have a good weekend!

LA

When & How?

2008-02-14T16:36:00.003-05:00
Hello Everyone!

So we are now at the how and when did Americorps begin? I was really surprised at this. I thought Americorps had been around for a long time.....and for me 1993 is not so long ago. On the other hand that is the year I moved south to Nashville, so I guess it is a long time ago. :)

Yes, President Clinton...Bill.... created Americorps in September 1993. It was the National and Community Service Trust Act. It was designed to allow Americans to better serve their own community. Serve America. Like you all are doing.

The first year of Americorps began in 1994 with 20,000 members. By 1999, Americorps had 150,000 members.

I came across what President Clinton said when he swore in the first Americorps members:

Service is a spark to rekindle the spirit of democracy in an age of uncertainty...When it is all said and done, it comes down to three simple questions: What is right? What is wrong? And what are we going to do about it? Today you are doing what is right- turning your words into deeds.

You all are turning your words into deeds each day as an Americorps member...helping youth.
I hope you are proud of yourselves. You deserve to be.

Till tomorrow!
LA

What IS Americorps?

2008-02-13T19:16:00.002-05:00
Let's look at what the organization of Americorps is. (First I will tell you that it is absolutely freezing here. We had ice and snow and they didn't even call a snow day.)

Ok. What is this thing that you are a member of?

AmeriCorps is an American network of more than 3,000 non-profit
organizations, public agencies, and faith-based organizations. It was created in 1993 by President Bill Clinton. More than 70,000 individuals join AmeriCorps each year. There
have been more than 500,000 members since 1994. The work done by these groups
ranges from public education to environmental clean-up.[1]AmeriCorps is a division of
the Corporation for National and Community Service, which also oversees the Senior
Corps and Learn and Serve America. Collectively, these three programs represent a total of more than 2 million members in service each year. AmeriCorps itself is split into three main
divisions, including AmeriCorps State and National, VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America), and NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps).

Ok. Now we are getting somewhere. (This is from Wikepedia which is my favorite way to get answers these days.)
Americorps is a part of the Corporation for National and Community Service.
Some people say that Americorps is like the Peace Corps but you get to stay in the States. Let's check to see what Americorps' website says about that.

Is AmeriCorps like Peace Corps? Yes. AmeriCorps is often referred to as "the
domestic Peace Corps." Both agencies are committed to service, and both offer
challenging and rewarding full-time opportunities. Peace Corps assignments are
all overseas, and AmeriCorps members serve only in the US. While Peace Corps
Volunteers serve for two years, a stint in AmeriCorps usually lasts 10 months to
one year. (Some AmeriCorps projects also offer part-time opportunities, and some
AmeriCorps members serve more than one term of service.)

So that is what you are doing.....serving in the American "Peace Corps". Americorps. Wonderful. Wow. How cool is that?
Stay warm,
LA

What IS Americorps?

2008-02-12T19:16:00.001-05:00
Hello Everyone.....here in Nashville it is dreary, cold and rainy. I hope your weather is better than ours!

Today we will look at what Americorps is. Let's do what I always do when I want to know about something...surf the web! We will go to the Americorps web site.

Scroll down to the bottom of the main page and there is our question :"What is Americorps".

What Is AmeriCorps?

AmeriCorps is an opportunity to make a big difference in your life and in the lives of those around you. It’s a chance to apply your skills and ideals toward helping others and meeting critical needs in the community.
Wow. I don't know about you, but I believe that making a difference in other's lives and our own is what life is all about.

So there you have it...Americorps is an opportunity.

Tomorrow we will look at the organization, and I think a cool topic to come would be what it looks like to make a big difference in lives.

All for now,

LA

Americorps & Service

2008-02-11T19:47:00.000-05:00
Hello All,

This blogging is all new to me and I hope you guys get on here and start blogging soon, so I don't feel like I am writing to outer or rather cyber space!

I want to talk around a topic or theme for a week or two at a time. So please let me know what topics you would be interested in.

Since you are all Americorps members, I thought we would start with that.

What is Americorps anyway?

When was it founded?

How was it founded?

What has Americorps accomplished?

Why do people want to be a member?

Why do YOU want to be a member?

Check in tomorrow and we will start exploring the answers. Hope you have had a good Monday.

Louisa Avery

2008-02-08T10:16:00.000-05:00

Diggities, As a former Americorp National Service member I find myself in a spot to think to support your initiatives. I'll share with you more about my own adventure and will be in touch soon. Wrap your arms around this, your greatest opportunity. Jesse Jordan

Hello all. I am your blog coach.
I will be working with you all to support, inform, amuse and encourage you in your year of service. You are not in this alone. We are on an exciting journey together.

You may ask, "Who ARE you?". I have spent the last 10 years at Oasis Center in Nashville TN. http://www.oasiscenter.org/ Oasis Center is a youth-serving agency with many programs including an emergency shelter, transitional living residence and a street outreach program. My job has included being a volunteer coordinator, intern supervisor, and Safe Place coordinator with an office in the shelter. I have worked every day with the most wonderful people in the world....youth workers.

I am making it my mission to blog with you each day Monday through Friday. Just so you know, blogging is new to me and so I will be trying out new things as I go. I welcome all comments from you.

Please let me know what you want to know more about as well as any comments and good stories. Together we can build a great community and have a terrific year together.
LA

Safe Exit "Blog"inar

2008-01-28T12:58:00.000-05:00
Hello SENcorp members,

On our last call we discussed the importance of focusing our efforts towards assuring safe exits for young people involved in our programs. Whether you are volunteering at a street outreach center, a temporary shelter, or a transitional living program, we can all do something to help young people make choices that guide them towards a stable and supportive living situation and away from the streets and the many risks associated with living in a unstable environment.

During the late nineties I worked at a teen runaway shelter in Tallahassee, FL. We didn't use the specific language of "Safe Exits" at the time, but we knew the importance of making sure every youth had a plan for discharge from the program. In the event that a young person decided to leave the shelter, and there are many reasons a young person may wish to leave, we tried to mitigate the risks they would face. I called it the Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich solution. It went something like this:

Youth: "I'm out of here, I can't take this place!"

Me: "OK, where are you going to go?"

Youth: "Anywhere but here!"

Me: "Well, you're going to get hungry so why don't we take a few minutes to make some pb and j's for the road, and maybe find you a jacket."

My goal was simply to stall their departure, change the dynamic of the conflict they were experiencing and hopefully convince them to either stay or make an informed decision about leaving. Many youth chose to stay after a sandwich and a glass of milk, but others took their sandwiches out the front door, towards the risk of violence, exposure, substance abuse, and further displacement from a supportive community.

After each of these incidents, we would undertake a review of what brought the youth to such an either/or position and try to adjust our programming so that young people did not feel the need to flee into the night.

Many factors influence whether a youth is discharging your program into a safe or unsafe exit. There are also many interpretations of what safe exit may be.

The home of a family friend where the youth is welcome, but drug use occurs in the home? Safe or unsafe?

If your agency operates a drop-in center, runaway shelter, or transitional living program, then someone in the agency is responsible for entering data into RHYMIS, which stands for Runaway Homeless Youth Management Information System. RHYMIS is a national database that tracks the success and effectiveness of our efforts to help youth and families in need of our services.

If you are an SENcorp member, your assignment is to find this person in your agency, introduce yourself if necessary, and ask them how they record information regarding safe vs. unsafe exits.

Also, please consider the following ideas when working with young people to determine a plan for leaving care-

From the moment a young person makes contact with our programs we are preparing for a successful discharge. A successful discharge experience means the youth is moving closer to, or attaining a place of permanency and safe housing.

Work with each young person to identify realistic, attainable goals that promote positive, lasting changes in their living situation. Some important factors to consider are:

Youth’s abilities- Is the youth able to identify options available to them which may provide them with a safe place to stay and work towards permanence? What current factors in the youth’s circumstances may be interfering with this goal?

Youth’s family and community resources- Is this young person connected to others in the geographic area? Is the youth connected to a church or civic group of any kind?

Program limitations- Given the climate of constant change at temporary emergency shelter programs, will this youth be able to pursue attainable goals? What about TLP? Street Outreach?

Youth’s right to self-determination- Ultimately, we can not force young people to pursue permanency and safe housing. In the event of a spontaneous, unplanned discharge, do your best to leave communication open with the young person and request they contact you when they arrive at their next destination.

After that we will talk more about factors that determine a youth's likelihood of "Making it" in the short and long-term after leaving our programs.

What you do will make all the difference,

John

Welcome Members...

2008-01-14T09:17:00.000-05:00

This website is a place where we can convene and discuss our Americorps member experience, please bookmark the address-

Thanks, John