Central Outreach & Advocacy Center

Central OAC

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13 Years at the OAC

by Kimberly Parker

August 24, 2004

No, I didn’t get the date wrong! August 24, 2004 was my first day as a part-time employee of Central Outreach & Advocacy Center! Thirteen years ago! Who would have thought a new Columbia Theological Seminary graduate who was seeking a call in a parish would end up at Central OAC? I didn’t, and I also didn’t think I would be there very long, but after a few months, I was offered a full-time position and after a few more months, I knew that I had been called to the OAC. My parish was simply going to look a little different than the typical high, holy hour of 11 am on a Sunday morning.

During my thirteen years …  

  • I have worked under three different Executive Directors.
  • The OAC Board has had six different Chairs.
  • Two different Leadership Atlanta teams have completed projects for the OAC.
  • The Main Frame Job Readiness Program was created.
  • Three strategic plans have guided the programs and services.
  • The first Development Director was hired.
  • The first Director of Public Policy Advocacy was hired.
  • The budget has been sustainable and the budget has been in crisis.
  • Two annual fundraisers have been established: Cheers for Change and Central ArtWorks.
  • The staff has been as large as nine members and as small as three.
  • My own role has changed five different times:
    • Outreach Advocate
    • Assistant Program Manager
    • Director of Outreach Services
    • Acting Executive Director
    • Executive Director

It has been an amazing thirteen years! I have worked and continue to work with great people: staff, volunteers, interns, and Board members. I have sat with guests and heard their difficult stories. I have cried with some. I have laughed with some. I have been angry with some.  I have watched some of our guests struggle for thirteen years, something I wish were not the case. I have seen others move out of their dire situations. I have had guests come back and thank me for the work we do. I have had guests yell at me because we can’t do enough to assist them. The work has never been easy, but it has been rewarding.

I have come to understand that people experiencing homelessness are no different than you and I and with certain changes in our own circumstances, we too could be walking in their shoes. I have come to understand that the issue of homelessness is extremely complex and the solutions are not quick and easy. It takes a lot of different organizations working together, each focusing on what they do well to truly make a difference in the numbers of those experiencing homelessness. It takes resources to make it work and not all funders want to support this type of work.

I am certainly not the same individual that I was thirteen years ago, when I first walked in the doors of Central OAC. I have grown and changed as a person. As I said earlier, I never dreamed I would still be here thirteen years later. There were certainly times when I thought I couldn’t do this work one more day and there are still days like that. However, throughout these thirteen years, people have been there to support and encourage me. Without each person (and there are too many to individually thank), I would not still be here. I often say that I hope when it is time for me to leave Central OAC that I will clearly know that. For now, however, I am still serving and I am grateful for the dedicated staff, volunteers and board members whom I work with each day. It truly is a privilege to serve in this place as we all work together to open doors to overcome and prevent homelessness!

Kimberly isn’t the only one celebrating an anniversary: Central OAC is celebrating 20 years of service in downtown Atlanta! In honor of both Kimberly’s time at the OAC and Central OAC turning 20, please consider giving to support our continuing work.  Visit our donations page for more.

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Hearing from the Source

by April Campbell

A couple of months ago, Ahren, our Main Frame Coordinator, came to the team with the idea of putting together a focus group with the goal of discussing the issues people experiencing homelessness face.  The focus group would also serve to improve how we, both as an agency and individually, could help advocate for everyone who comes through our doors. Everyone on the team thought it was a wonderful idea to provide a space for us to speak to our guests and gain firsthand knowledge of the problems they have experienced. The group was planned for December 13th, and I had the pleasure of being asked to co-facilitate the group with Ahren. I don’t think either one of us knew that by facilitating this focus group we would be introduced to so many personal tragedies, triumphs, and such a sense of community between the people in the room.

We began the group by having each person introduce themselves, if they felt comfortable, by saying just their first name. The group was quiet at first – no one said much more than what they were asked to share. Ahren and I then introduced ourselves and explained to the group how important advocacy is to the values and morals of this agency and how their stories can help us to fight the social injustices they face. We then opened the floor to anyone who wanted to share. Hands slowly began to rise, and the more people talked, the more energy was added to the room. It was amazing to watch! People were able to share their hardships with others who understood what they are going through.  People were able to share different resources they have found over the years, and in turn, helped others in the group.  People were also able to laugh together and forget, if just for a moment, what faced them when they left our doors. By the end of the focus group, our guests had come up with nineteen challenges that people experiencing homelessness face. Some of the challenges they mentioned were: affordable housing, stress and tiredness, evictions, job availability, addiction, medical care, mental health, and safe & clean shelters. One particular item that was on their list was lack of storage. When this was said, everyone in the room nodded or voiced their agreement. When the particular guest who brought it up was asked to explain what he meant, he stated, “I stay at a shelter at night and have to take all my stuff with me in the morning. I’m not able to leave my bags there. Do you really think people want me in a store or at a job interview with all my stuff? It just makes it known that I don’t have anywhere to go.” This was so eye opening to me. Everyday guests come through our doors to receive services, many times with bags upon bags in their hands. I never thought about where they would place their items if they needed to complete a task that did not allow for them to bring their belongings.

I write about this experience to say that everyone has a story.  I write about this experience to remind myself that every person who walks through our doors deal with daily challenges that I cannot even fathom. I write about this experience to say how important is it to understand what we are advocating for – to hear it from the people experiencing it and not just assuming we know their needs.  It’s because of stories like the ones we heard in our focus group that the OAC continues to advocate until all of our guests  have a place to call home at the end of the day.

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It’s Not About the Numbers


by Ahren Cassinari-Foster

As the Main Frame Coordinator, it can be discouraging when class turnout is small.  I recently ran into this issue.  Upon my wife and I’s return from vacation, staff at the OAC profoundly struggled to sign people up for the May Main Frame class.  After two orientation sessions and two weeks of trying we finally got one student!

At first, I was disheartened by the low turnout.  I know there are more people out there on the streets, in our lobby, and staying at emergency shelters who need the services we provide in the Main Frame.  I want them to come and work with us to find employment and begin the journey to self-sufficiency.

I still feel all of those things as we wrap up the second week of Main Frame class.  However, I feel something else as well.  I feel grateful for the one student I do have.  As with so many of the people we see, Mr. A recently became homeless due to a confluence of difficult circumstances.  A few months ago, Mr. A and his wife financially assisted a family member who had fallen sick.  When Mr. A lost his job shortly thereafter, they were unable to absorb the financial blow and were evicted from their apartment.  Despite these significant challenges, Mr. A has been a dedicated and conscientious student and a quick learner.  In his first two weeks of class he has completed a resume, revamped his computer skills, and applied for several jobs, three of which have contacted him for an interview!

It’s easy to get caught up in the numbers.  Numbers are easy to understand, they tell us if we are growing or shrinking, and many other useful things as well.  But what I was missing out on when I was focused on the number of people in the class was the quality of the one person who was actually taking the class.  There may just be one Mr. A in this class, but he is having a full class worth of success.

EDIT: Mr. A got a job!  The week after graduating from Main Frame, Mr. A was hired by a hotel downtown.  Mr. A has worked in hospitality for most of his life, so this is exactly the type of job he hoped to secure!  We are so proud of him and grateful that we were able to help him take steps toward employment.  We are excited that he and his wife are now back on the road to stability.

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What Brings You Back to the OAC Each Day?

Recently, we posed the question “What brings you back to the OAC each day?” to our staff and volunteers.  Because the work that we do here can be taxing and overwhelming, we wondered what about our organization and our work gives staff and volunteers the encouragement to keep coming back.  We received a variety of responses and wanted to share them with you.  Love for our guests and for each other, hope for a future without homelessness, and a deep desire to serve others dominated responses.  We are grateful to work with such an inspirational team!

Brenna Lakeson (Program Assistant)

There are a variety of things that bring me back to the COAC every day.  First, our coworkers and volunteers.  Every day, I feel loved and supported by my fellow outreach advocates.  Second, I know that the work we do is important.  Our guests need someone who will work with them one on one and who will advocate for them.  Their individual needs combined with societal marginalization drives my desire to serve them in the best way possible.  Lastly, redemptive stories of guests who have overcome situations of homelessness inspire me to be here each day.  Time and time again, we see how having ID or access to medical care can really change someone’s circumstances.  Often, guests come back to thank us for being there for them when no one else was.  I hope that this sort of stability can happen for all of our guests, and their gratitude inspires me to come to work each day ready to serve.

 

Ahren Foster (Main Frame Job Readiness Coordinator)

This may sound cliche or naive, but I believe that hope brings me back.  Every day I meet people who are trying, sometimes against all odds, to improve their lives in both small and large ways by getting medical care, a state ID, or some help with emergency food for the month. It is a wonderful feeling to both offer hope in the form of resources and to see hope begin to kindle in the eyes of a guest who has not had much to hope for in a while.  That is why I keep coming back.

 

April Campbell (Program Director)

The OAC is a place that values everyone who walks through the doors. This means that every guest that receives services is treated with respect and dignity and that every volunteer and staff member is consistently told how much they are appreciated.  Finding an environment that fosters so much hope, encouragement, and self-sufficiency has been such an amazing experience. Every morning I wake up excited to come do the work that we do. The other day a guest stated that the OAC is “heaven sent”; another guest stated that he would not know where to turn if the OAC was not here. Interactions like these are what inspire the work that we do. Our guests are our drive, for without them we would not be here. I am continuously amazed at their resiliency and I find myself learning something new about the human spirit and different ways to advocate for the individuals that I meet every day. So, why do I come back to the OAC every day? It is because I enjoy the work that I do, I enjoy my team, I believe in our services and our mission, and I enjoy working with the guests who come through our doors.

 

Charles Cantrell (Front Desk Volunteer)

–  A sense of community and worthwhile/common cause.

–  Slowly learning what the Biblical imperative of “service” actually means.

–  Observing Guests, who have so little, demonstrate faith, hope, patience, persistence, determination, courage, wisdom, even good humor.

 

Charlotte Holland (Art Volunteer)

I keep coming back to OAC for the Prayer Circle with such a wonderful, compassionate staff. I also come back for the peace and understanding that I find in our Art Circle with my regular “boys” and with all the others who pass through from time to time.  Each one accepting of the other in so many ways.  And I learn a lot from Mark, my cohort, each and every Thursday.  I am grateful to have found OAC.

 

Ann Hunter (Intake, Front Desk, and Social Work Volunteer)

I come back to the OAC each week because Christ calls me to “show up!” And it never occurs to me not to come back. I am so blessed by the men and women who share their deepest hurts and their fondest hopes as we work together to find their way out of homelessness. I also am grateful for the opportunity to share my particular gifts as a social worker, supervising social work students at the OAC. It’s sort of like a matching gift program – MSW students need a social work supervisor and together we are able to double our work with guests.

 

If you’re encouraged by these responses and want to become a part of the OAC team, please email April Campbell at [email protected] or call (404) 601-3173 for more information on how to get plugged in as a volunteer!