by Brenna Lakeson
Every August for the past six years, the OAC has closed its doors for services for one week. To many, especially our guests, this can seem strange, indulgent, or even selfish. Why, then, do we take a week off from providing services every August? There are several reasons!
- Lack of case managers – This is probably the most practical of reasons. In August, our summer interns have finished their hours, usually leaving us with three or four less people on deck. In addition, August is a time when many of our regular volunteers take vacation. Most days in August, we only have one or two case managers working when the ideal is four or five. This can get taxing and overwhelming.
- Organization and catching up – Our week without services gives staff time and space to reorganize, take inventory of what we need, and catch up on lingering projects. Without the continuous piling up of new work and with the addition of three more hours per day to do work outside of case management, our staff can do things that usually take a back seat.
- Team building and goal setting – This is perhaps this most important aspect of our August retreat time! Sometimes, the staff goes on a short trip together. Other times, we stay in Atlanta but do activities together around the city. This time together always involves evaluating the previous year and planning for the year ahead. What needs work? What big dreams do we have for the OAC? The staff also spends this time building comradery and friendship, crucial for a high stress job like social services!
Hopefully this gives all our supporters a helpful glimpse into what we do during our mysterious week off in August! We believe this week makes our team stronger, more productive, and more prepared to tackle the everyday challenges of the OAC.
We are closed for services August 26-September 2, 2019. We will reopen with regular hours on September 3, 2019.