Posted on November 30, 2010
This week’s blog was written by VSH’s volunteer program coordinator, Alison Jones-Nassar.
Watching School Pride last Friday night, I had an epiphany about the importance of our property projects. Environment matters. I’m not really a TV watcher and we don’t have cable, so I have never seen channels like HGTV and DIY that others rave about. In addition, we don’t own a home so I could care less about shows like Extreme Makeover. But even with the recent housing crash, home ownership is still at the heart of the American Dream, and entire industries have developed around the idea of transforming one’s house into The Dream Home. From books and magazines to tools and accessories to contractors and designers, we are ready to invest fortunes into our personal spaces. For some it’s merely irresistible but for others it’s downright addictive.
At the core of it all is a fundamental psychological truth: we need beauty, color, symmetry, light, harmony, and balance in our physical surroundings….It’s a fact. A wealth of research confirms our intuitive understanding that environment affects everything from mood and behavior to cognitive performance. Although Maslow’s hierarchy assigns the importance of shelter to the bottom of the pyramid, the importance of securing, personalizing, and decorating one’s shelter represents an act of self-actualization that fulfills our deepest needs for esteem, achievement, and belonging.
Environment really does matter.
And yet it somehow feels wrong, too self-absorbed, to fluff our personal nests in these days when so many are going through foreclosure and bankruptcy, when family homelessness is on the rise and personal wealth only underscores the widening gap in our country between the minority haves and the majority have nots.
School Pride comes along at a perfect time, combining two hardwired instincts – our selfish desire for beautiful spaces with our selfless need to help those around us who are less fortunate – to create a “reality” show that actually seems worthwhile. Public school systems are facing unprecedented budget crises and kids are suffering as a result. Enrichment classes are getting cut, buildings are crumbling, and teachers are struggling to make do with minimal resources.
But can we really change lives with a fresh paint job and new desks? The answer comes from the kids themselves: “It made me feel for the first time like somebody cared.” “I felt like I mattered.” “I felt like we weren’t so forgotten.” “It made me feel like we belonged.” Subjective statements are one thing. Objective measurements are another. The show ends by documenting the grade point increases and test score improvements that resulted from the cosmetic upgrades.
So what does this have to do with VSH’s volunteer program? We offer many opportunities for volunteers to paint and clean and landscape throughout the year. These are opportunities that virtually anyone can take part in, and they are really fun. More than that, they accomplish real work that needs to get done at properties that our formerly homeless clients call Home. But what I have realized is that the real value of these projects goes even beyond that, back to those feelings so well-expressed by the students.
It matters that our clients don’t feel forgotten.
It matters that they feel like someone cares.
It matters that they have a sense of belonging to our community.
For many VSH clients, the emotional support that volunteers provide simply by sprucing up one of our supportive housing properties is in fact a critical element of the healing, recovery, and reintegration process. And in case you’re wondering, our clients not only notice these acts of kindness, but they deeply appreciate them as well. So the next time you question the value of painting walls or raking leaves in the Big Picture scheme of things, just remember one thing: it really does matter!
Posted on September 21, 2010
Are we really doing a disservice to people who are experiencing homelessness by renovating the park or are we making it a nice place for everyone to visit and use?
If you’ve walked through Monroe Park lately, I think you would agree with me that it is in sad shape and in bad need of a facelift. After having walked through or by the park numerous times in the last few years, I’m ready for this makeover. I now have a granddaughter who started her freshman year at VCU and I’ve told her to stay away from the park, especially at night. Deteriorating and poorly lit places breed crime.
It seems to me the issue isn’t about whether the renovations should happen but whether the renovations will discourage people who are homeless from using the park and in some cases sleeping in the park. Once the park is renovated, it should be a great place for anyone, regardless of their housing situation. And, call me crazy, but I don’t think a park bench is a safe place for anyone to sleep. People who are experiencing homelessness should be inside if at all possible – in housing, preferably permanent housing – but if this is not available, in an emergency shelter. We have 1000 emergency and transitional beds in this community and we have The Healing Place for folks with substance abuse issues.
Currently there is also a lot of concern over the weekend happenings in the park, where many well-meaning people from various congregations and groups come to provide food, clothes and bedding to those in need. This is not an organized effort (i.e., no one is in charge) and I have heard complaints that oftentimes trash and stuff that is not picked up by folks is simply left for the City to pick up.
So, is this the best way to feed people on the weekends? For those of you who don’t know, Freedom House serves a meal on Saturdays at 3:30 and a brunch on Sundays until 2pm. They will also give bag lunches on Sundays to folks who need them. The meals are served at the Conrad Center, which is at 17th and O Street. Meals are also served there during the week in the morning and evenings. Lunches are served every day by the downtown churches. So why do people feel compelled to bring food and other things to the folks who are experiencing homelessness who gather in Monroe Park?
Are we as a community doing this because the folks who gather there need food, clothes or bedding? Or are we doing it because we need to feel like we are doing something to help?
I don’t mean to disparage anyone who has helped people experiencing homelessness in Monroe Park, but I know that Freedom House could use more volunteers to help serve meals. To find out more about opportunities with Freedom House, please contact Christy Ellis, Community Resource Director at 233-4064, est. 209. VSH also has plenty of opportunities available and would welcome individual and group volunteers who have a passion for helping people in need.
We’ve worked very hard in this community to develop a system of helping people in crisis and I think it works fairly well most of the time. It is accessible and treats people with respect and dignity. I don’t think we need to continue to use the park as a place to sleep or as a feeding program on the weekends. I think it should be a beautiful place where my granddaughter and anyone, including people who are experiencing homelessness, can enjoy all of the time.
Posted on April 20, 2010
I have asked Alison Jones-Nassar, VSH’s Volunteer Program Coordinator, to write this week’s blog. Thanks, Alice
Affordable Housing Awareness Week was launched on Monday morning with a symposium at the Jepson Alumni Center focused on issues surrounding the topic of affordable housing. The first speaker looked around the room, filled primarily by housing awareness advocates, and asked, “Why should we learn about housing affordability?” And indeed, the events scheduled throughout this week are designed to answer that very question. Ultimately, I think the answer to that question depends on another question. Does everyone deserve a safe and stable place to live?
Affordable housing is not an abstract issue for me. It is not something that I only think about during business hours. My family lives in an affordable rental community with income qualifications in Chesterfield. Living in this community has made it possible for my children to attend quality public schools and receive an excellent education.
We have lived in the same building with many of the same neighbors for six years, and so I can feel secure knowing someone is watching out for my kids when they let themselves in after school. The grounds are well-kept and the buildings are well-maintained. And we have easy access to libraries, fitness centers, and many other services and activities that most people would consider necessary for a decent quality of life. More communities like this are desperately needed.
Just last week I drove through a neighborhood across town where clusters of grown men stood together on street corners and small children played among spilled garbage cans and strewn glass. Yards were abandoned, windows were broken, and cracked gates hung off hinges. I was astonished to see entire houses collapsing from years of structural neglect. For too many people, especially single parent families, this is what “affordable housing” really means: unsafe drug-infested neighborhoods, poor schools, and a lack of even basic services.
Does everyone deserve a safe and stable place to live? For me the answer is a resounding yes. I believe that all mothers, not just me, want safe neighborhoods and good schools and places to play for their children. Everyone, not just people in award-winning Chesterfield, wants decent transportation systems and convenient grocery stores with fresh produce and jobs that pay the rent.
So … Why should we learn about housing affordability? Because when you get right down to it, the issues that surround the subject of affordable housing are issues that lie at the very heart of the concepts of fairness and equality on which this country was supposedly founded and to which we all supposedly subscribe.
Affordable Housing Awareness Week was designed to help ordinary people not only understand more about housing affordability, but to take action. This week, fifteen area non-profits including Virginia Supportive Housing are welcoming community volunteers who would like to build, paint, rake, weed, plant, clean and make a visible difference in the community we all call home. It’s a great opportunity to volunteer and it’s also a great opportunity to learn. Because we can’t afford to be ignorant about affordable housing issues any more.
Posted on December 8, 2009
What makes a volunteer experience meaningful? A feeling of connection to the community? A sense of contributing to a cause you feel passionate about? An awareness that your action is a real response to a real need?
At Virginia Supportive Housing, we seek to transform the lives of our community’s homeless population by providing permanent housing and support services, and volunteers can play a critical role in that mission. A variety of opportunities are available at VSH for both individuals and groups that promote meaningful connection, engagement, and action.
Whether you are landscaping one of our affordable housing properties, collecting food & toiletry items, assembling move-in packages, or helping to serve a holiday meal to our clients (see the photos on our Facebook page!), VSH is a place where volunteers can transform and be transformed by their service.
Ready to be transformed? To apply or find out more, contact the volunteer coordinator at 804-836-1061 or [email protected].
