It was a beautiful day at 40° today. You missed my singing on the corner today but I was not playing hooky. I was taking steps toward becoming employed.
In this article, I need to discuss IMPACT Community Action. I met their representatives at a job fair a couple weeks ago. I put on my “think positive hat”, grabbed my resumes, and went booth to booth. Like most people I started toward the right side of the room (perhaps instilled by driving on the right side of the road in the USA). After scanning the booth directory I stopped at every booth with job listing for which I have qualifications (and a few I thought I could learn what I lacked). IMPACT was in the last booth on the left side of the room. By that time I did start to feel discouraged but I shoved out my hand and shook that of a tall, inviting, beautiful woman saying, “Hello I’m Pati Shambaugh.” She told me about their program “Employment Plus”.
I placed an application at their office a couple days later. “They’ll call you in a few days,” replied the building security officer who took the applications. Honestly, my thoughts were, “I’ve heard that line before.” I ended up calling the number on the sheet to check on my application after the usual 5 business days. I was one of 82 invited to the class orientation (only 64 showed up).
You may think I got into the program… not so fast. The orientation today was informational for both the applicants and the counselors. We were given options at a few different times to leave or continue. Those who continued were given a drug test, an interview and a time to return for computer testing on Wednesday. So, I am not in the program yet, but I am going back.
The important part of this program is that it too is in danger of being discontinued with the Obama Administration’s proposed 50% reduction to the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG). Please follow my link to IMPACT to see more specific statistics on their services and how to help keep the funding.
What does that mean to me personally? This class runs 7 weeks to prepare 15-24 participants to be gainfully employed, providing a small stipend and help in their other temporary needs during training. The vote in Washington DC will determine whether this will be their last class and will it be completed with all 7 weeks.
Since this is federal funding it is not limited to the Community Services in Ohio… It will affect services nationwide. The lack of these services will only increase homelessness and desperateness. So write, call, email, fax AND text your representatives in Washington DC, asking them to support continued funding for Community Services. You might ask, “Would you rather support programs proven to turn the downtrodden into income tax paying professionals or supporting prisons to house the ones turning to crime out of pure desperateness?”
Thank you for any help.
Today's Tally:
Monday, February 14, 2011 Time: 9AM – 3PM
Location: IMPACT Employment Plus offices
Temp: N/A
Newspapers sold: 0
Viable job postings: 0 (1 in Cincinnati)
Filled or baiting job posted: 8
Resumes/Job Applications sent: Attended Orientation, Interview & Drug Testing
Love your point about prison funding versus job funding... it's so true, unfortunately. While not all crime is caused by poverty, of course, so much of it could be reduced if we just tried harder to give people opportunities to better themselves.
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