Central Outreach & Advocacy Center

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Mindfulness in the Midst of Chaos

by Clinton Mayo, OAC intern

When I began my social work internship at the OAC in August of 2020, I was enthusiastic about helping other people yet apprehensive because of the challenges of COVID-19. Talk of 2020 and the effects of COVID-19 are everywhere right now, and the over-saturation can be nauseating. Most people want to find some sense of normalcy in a changing world. As a senior at Georgia
State University, I wonder how effective my training during a pandemic will be in teaching me how to best serve others. However, at the OAC, I feel as though I’m in the right place and feel appreciated by the OAC staff and the people we serve. I try to keep this in mind as I go through my day. The hardship experienced by our guests can be daunting. I sometimes wonder if I can properly meet their needs while adapting to the chaos of our world. It’s easy to get flustered, but thankfully, I have a choice about how to respond to all of this chaos. The intentional choice to focus on the positive possibilities can be a helpful motivator, for me and for us all. No one can deny the existence of yesterday, but we can choose how we proceed. A small amount of resiliency can come naturally for most people, and life finds a way even in the most adverse conditions.

Each morning before I enter the OAC, I take a moment for mindfulness. Mindfulness means becoming self-aware of our body, thoughts, situation, and environment – staying present in the current moment. Mindfulness improves resiliency by enabling us to live for every moment and becoming less overwhelmed by past circumstances and future stresses, from the mundane repetition of getting out of bed to the complexity of deciding on what to make for quick weeknight dinners. Take a moment for yourself just to be _____. You fill in the blank with whatever you find yourself needing. A mindful moment doesn’t need to take long or be life-changing. It serves to provide a connection to who you are, giving you a clear head, calm mind, and relaxed body. Take some time to research different methods of mindfulness this week and figure out how to incorporate it into your schedule. We all need a little more mindfulness right now, and with the tranquility it yields, we can all work toward making the world a better place.

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Ask and it Will Be Given (and Sometimes You Don’t Even Have to Ask)

by Kimberly Parker

What a year 2020 has been!

I know that many people have said or written these same words. I’m sure none of us ever thought that in January of 2020, we would be facing a pandemic that would shut the world down and change the ways in which we work, socialize, and live life. Even in March when all of this hit, I never thought that in December, things would still be as bad as they are. 

Life has changed, and I don’t know that it will ever go back to what it once was or what we perceived it to be. I also don’t know if that’s all bad. Hopefully, there are some good things or positive changes that we can hold on to rather than falling back into a rut of going through the motions of life without truly appreciating what life can bring. 

Life in the midst of a pandemic is hard on everyone, but it’s harder for some than others. I am extremely grateful that I have not missed a paycheck, gone without eating, or lost everything that I owned. I know many who can’t say the same thing. I don’t want to take my privilege or the things I have for granted because I, too, could be one of those who loses everything.

The people we serve on a daily basis have been hit hard by the pandemic. Their day to day routines have changed. Many organizations have closed. Others have modified how they operate. Shelters take fewer people. Our guests have had to change the ways they survive. Soup kitchens and clothing closets are not operating as usual. 

The OAC has also changed the way it operates. We are currently only open three days per week. We limit how many people are in the lobby at one time. We only have our staff and two interns working with us and no volunteers. We only allow people to check and pick up their mail at our doorway, where we keep the door wide open for air to circulate. There are no longer 60-75 people in our lobby at one time nor people coming and going as they please. 

When everything changed for us earlier in the year, I felt strongly about being able to offer snack and hygiene items to everyone who came to our door. This was different for us. In the past, we only had snacks and hygiene items available for those we saw for actual services with a case manager. And there were times when we didn’t have anything to offer our guests. For the last several months, we have been able to offer snack and hygiene items to everyone who comes to our door, and the number isn’t small. We have had approximately 5,381 visits to our door for guests to either check or pick up their mail which means that a snack and hygiene bag was offered at least 5,381 times since April 2020. 

Central OAC has not spent a dime purchasing these items. We have been able to do this because approximately 100 individuals have donated the items we need. In addition to the individual in-kind giving, we have also received donations from 18 different groups (churches, government, non-profits), who shared with us when they had an abundance of their own.

When I look at these numbers, I am blown away by the generosity of others! At times we have asked and it has been provided. At other times, we didn’t even ask and the items were provided. 

Thank you to everyone who has helped our guests keep moving forward! We’re grateful for you each year, but especially in 2020. Happy Holidays! 

 

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The Link Between Poverty and Crime (It’s not what you think!)

by Brenna Lakeson

A lot of guests show up at our door because their identifying documents have been stolen. I’ve heard guests say countless times, “I don’t have anything. It was all taken.” This makes it so hard to start over. To get an ID, you need a birth certificate and a Social Security card. To get a birth certificate, you need an ID. It can feel like a relentless cycle for our guests who have nothing to go on. Thankfully, we’re able to help them break out of this catch-22.

Why do so many people on the street have their things stolen, though? More likely than not, their things are stolen by other people experiencing homelessness. Sometimes this notion is used as proof that people living in poverty, people of color, and people living outside are inherently more violent or more likely to commit crimes.  In reality, though, their experiences are what lead to crime. Our society is set up in a way that prevents them from getting everything they need so they feel forced to take what they need to survive. The reason our guests’ things get stolen is because desperate people turn to desperate measures to survive.

If you were cold, without a jacket or a blanket, and you saw an opportunity to take one from someone else, you might take that chance. If you hadn’t eaten in a day or two and your only option was to take someone else’s wallet while they were sleeping and unaware, you would do what you had to do. It’s tempting to say we would “do the right thing” in these situations, but what is the right thing? Is it better to survive by taking or suffer while sitting back?

While our guests are often upset by the fact that their documents get stolen, I rarely ever hear them complain about having other items stolen. They might be disappointed that some of their cash or clothing was stolen, but, usually, they let these things slide. They know what it feels like to take desperate measures. They know that when they have to make the decision to commit a crime or meet their most basic needs, it’s hard to say no to taking something.

People experiencing homelessness aren’t inherently violent or immoral. It’s their compounded trauma and desperation that causes them to lie, cheat, or steal. The systems that cause poverty create circumstances in which people make risky and rash decisions because they feel trapped. Our goal at the OAC is to help reduce these circumstances so that our guests are no longer caught in a cycle of poverty and, instead, move toward self-sufficiency.

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Ripples of Hope

by Kimberly Parker

In January, I carpooled with six other people to an overnight retreat. We had only met each other one other time before the trip, so we were all a bit apprehensive about why we were being asked to go on this retreat together and what it would entail. Everyone was wondering why we were being thrown into the wilderness together and left to survive, or at least that’s what it felt like to us!

We had each been invited to participate in Ripples of Hope, a non-profit organization that accelerates the healthy, meaningful growth of organizations that believe business should be a force of good. The non-profit organization was created by Jeff Hilimire, Central OAC Board Chair. Jeff and another leader in Ripples of Hope, Rachelle Kuramoto, met us at the house where we would be staying. They had lunch with us, went over the agenda, and then they left us. I think we were all still a bit hesitant about what was going to happen over the next several hours. But, we got started. We hiked and got lost. We began sharing our stories of what led us to do what we do. We cooked dinner together. We played games. We laughed and some of us cried as we spent time together. 

It was a pretty intense 12+ hours, but it was amazing! From that time at the end of January until the beginning of March we were paired with others and spent a lot of time together, continuing to share our stories and receive mutual feedback. We were working on visioning our personal purpose for life. Things were moving along nicely, but then March 13th hit. Life as we all knew it changed. A good part of the curriculum for Ripples of Hope is meant to be done together, in person, and we could no longer do that. We were also all trying to figure out how to run our organizations (Synergies Work, Love Not Lost, JOYVIALl, College Aim, NewCrew, Sparke Women, and Central Outreach and Advocacy Center) in the midst of a pandemic. 

We received an email that our time together would be put on hold for a while because of COVID. We were going to meet via Zoom to further discuss how to move forward together. I remember joining that meeting with mixed feelings. I felt relieved that we would not have to focus on the readings and the extra work required. I didn’t feel like I had anything else to give, as all my energy was going toward figuring out how Central OAC could possibly operate during COVID. I was stressed! At the same time, though, my heart hurt with the thought of not being able to meet with this group of people who had come to mean a lot to me in a very short amount of time. Being a leader can often be lonely and this group became a support for me. So, we met; we talked; we were open and honest. It was agreed that we would continue meeting once per month via Zoom, but with a different focus. We would have guest speakers each month to talk with us about relevant topics. We would be able to check in each month and offer support to one another. As I write this blog, I’m planning to join a Ripples meeting later today.

The past few months have been hard and I know I am not alone in that statement. All of us, no matter what we do, have had to shift the way in which we live and work and play. I have felt the struggle of leading an organization that serves those experiencing homelessness, knowing how important our services are to our guests, and balancing our work with also keeping everyone as safe and healthy as possible. Continuing to be a part of Ripples of Hope has been invaluable to me and to Central OAC. It’s helped keep me balanced and it’s given me people to talk through issues with as they arise. I know that no matter what happens, this is a group of people that will continue to be a part of my life. I am so thankful for that overnight retreat back in January. It was the beginning of a very good thing!