Community Care Coordinators

This fall we will be expanding our aftercare program in three at-risk communities.  We will be working with faith based groups, community based organizations and congregations across Richmond to strengthen these communities.

 To assist with the expansion of this program we are looking to bring on several AmeriCorps members who have an interest in and a commitment to community development in the inner city.  The ideal candidate would possess experience in community development, case management, urban ministry, small group ministry or missions. 

The care coordinator would

• Follow up with clients moving out of the shelter into the community
• Facilitate gatherings to address the issues facing the community and include both residence and aftercare clients.
• Map the community assets and resources of the community
• Educate clients and community residence about resources available in the community
• Coordinate community based projects in partnership with other agencies, tenant council’s, and clients residing in the communities
• Coordinate community building activities such as community dinners, back to school celebrations, and other activities that bring the community members together

Communications Coordinator

The communications coordinator helps to capture the stories from our Embrace teams and to share them with the broader community through our news blog, our monthly newsletter, print materials, our website and video.  The ideal candidate for this position would have experience in web design and development as well as the ability to desisn and produce print materials and video’s.

All positions are part-time.   If interested, please send resume to Wendy McCaig at wendy@embracerichmond.org.

Wendy McCaig has entered into publishing contract with CASCADE Books to publish a book about the journey of Embrace Richmond along with the stories of the homeless men and women, volunteers, and co-laborers who helped to shape Embrace through the years.  To learn more about this project, you can visit Wendy’s personal blog at www.wendymccaig.wordpress.com.

As my time with Embrace draws to a close, I am happy to report this experience has taught me a lot, and I have enjoyed being here.

I have learned many things ranging from parallel parking, to how to relate to clients, to where the MCV Emergency Department is [to the left once you come out of the visitor parking deck if you were wondering], to how to back into a parking space and how to keep my mouth shut when the time calls for it.

I also learned some things about myself, about barriers and expectations and various realities. I have had to admit my own prejudices and come to terms with not being satisfied with charity but to step up into justice.

On a less emotional note, I also enjoy being a part of an office. I get a secret rush when I get to say things like, “a girl I work with,” or “I’m sorry I can’t. I have to be at work” it makes me feel adult. I like seeing the same faces each morning and learning their personalities.

Throughout this summer I have encountered many people, especially kids and teens who I will continue to think about. As my co – workers (again, a little rush) know I have a thing for babies and we’ve met a few who will be on my mind for a while. I’ll miss our Tuesday basketball days and our Thursday project days. Each of which allowed me to get to know certain kids well. I have hope for their futures and know they will succeed in whatever they do.

I do not know what the future holds, hopefully continued employment somewhere, but I know I will use the skills, knowledge and experience I have gained here at Embrace Richmond wherever I go.

Check out The Nehemiah Strategy at www.Unity-Works.org

We had a blast at National Night Out in Hillside Court last night! Lots of people showed up for food, fun, and to learn about comunity organizations. The police came out and although the kids were hesitant to talk to them at first, they soon were asking a million questions and peeking into the squad cars. The Tenant Council did a great job making this event a great success.

Jake from Eikon tying balloons to wrists.

Getting everything set up and getting acquainted.

Tiffany helping the kids put strings on the balloons they blew up.

This little girl talked to this police officer for what must have been an hour! She told me she was afraid of the police, but then she wouldn’t leave them alone!

There were lots of kids there!

Checking out the bullet proof vest.

One girl asked if he used his baton for hitting people. The officer replied, “No, I just use it to knock on people’s doors!”

Hillside kids and the policemen.

Bob Argabright said that he had gotten an ice cream truck to come! Waiting for it to arrive…

Checking out tables from the Libaray and other community resources.

Free hot dogs!

The hot dog line.

The ice cream truck arrived and gave the kids free ice cream!

Some of our Tuesday basketball buddies enjoying their frozen treats.

Hanging out and enjoying neighbors.

The unstoppable Ms. Mildred serving up hot dogs even after she just had surgery a week ago!

We brought out some basketballs to play with after the kids ate. The younger kids playing horse.

You are probably wondering what exactly goes on at our offices every day, so we would like to fill you in on just one of the many things we do! Every Tuesday for about an hour and a half or so, we go to Hillside and play games with the kids in the neighborhood, just to get to know them. We have met countless youth simply by playing basketball, and they come back every Tuesday to play with us. Some of these youth are the same ones that come to our building to do projects or go on fun outings. It’s a great way for us to figure out which kids want to be involved with us, and how they interact with other kids. Our favorite thing to play (and particularly theirs) is a basketball game called Knock Out! It’s tough to get them to play anything else! Come of the girls also really like to play with people’s hair, so I let them do mine once a week. Here are some of the photos from our adventures with the kids today:

Outside of Fox Horn Stables

On Friday, July 31, we were invited to bring a few of our friends from Hillside to Fox Horn Stables to ride horses. We were able to bring four of our youth from Hillside Court, and the daughter of one of our Americorps members along on our adventure. None of us had ever ridden a horse before, so we were all a bit hesitant at first, but by the time we had to leave, everyone wished we could stay longer! Here are a few of the photos from our adventure.

We got to brush and pet the horses first…

and clean their hooves!

Then we took turns riding Smoke and Bo. This is Janelle riding.

Yasia riding on the Western saddle.

Jocelyn riding. Cute helmets right?

Jennifer riding.

Jean settling in on the horse.

Janelle and Jean became fast friends.

The whole group and the wonderful people who made it all possible!

Tiffany and I had never been horse back riding either, so we had a great time riding as well!

Tiffany giving a big thumbs up after her ride!

Me riding the horse. It was so relaxing!

After we rode, we enjoyed pizza and homemade lemonade and brownies! Then we got a chance right before we left to feed the horses some carrots. We might have eaten more than we actually fed them though.

Chowing down on some pizza.

Feeding the horses some carrots.

Every year on Hillside’s Community Day, the Tenant Council does a raffle which is free for the residents to enter. If they are selected, the children receive a bookbag full of school supplies and the adults receive laundry baskets full of cleaning supplies. We would like to help out by providing some of these things for the raffle, so we need your help! If you can donate school or cleaning supplies, we will pass them on to the tenant council for their big event. Also, if you know of a bulk distributor of any of these items that could donate or give any sort of discount, let us know! Contact Tiffany at tiffany@embracerichmond.org to donate today!

Here are the sorts of things that are needed:

• book bags                                                          -laundry baskets
• pencils                                                                -brooms
• pens (black, blue and red)                             -washing powder
• markers                                                              -dish soap
• highlighters                                                      -sponges
• colored pencils                                               -bleach
• crayons                                                              -all-purpose cleaner
• white school glue                                           -glass cleaner
• pencil cases                                                      -dusters/dusting cloths
• rulers                                                                   -furniture polish
• notebooks                                                         -mops
• loose leaf paper                                               -buckets
• tissues                                                                -disinfectant (Lysol)
• writing pads                                                     -air freshener
• 3 ring binders                                                  -toilet bowl cleaner
• folders                                                                -toilet wands
• safety scissors                                                 -plungers
• composition books                                       -toilet paper
• index cards                                                       -paper towels
• dividers                                                              -hand soap
• calculators                                                       -shower cleaner
• book covers                                                     -shower curtain liners

The 2nd Annual CARITAS Furniture Bank Chair Affair will be held on November 14, 2009 at Charles Luck Studio at 7 p.m. For more information, you can visit www.caritasworks.org and also, start keeping your eyes peeled for www.CaritasChairAffair.org which should be up with all the information you need soon!

On Saturday the 18th, Eikon came to the 3rd Ave. house to finish up the painting and for a cook out! They did a wonderful job adding the finishing touches to the work the Impact Richmond group had done. The cookout launched our new partnership with one of Eikon’s missional communities. The community Flicker of Hope will be joining Charles Fitzgerald, one of our Americorps members who lives in the house, in doing homeless outreach. Thank you to all who came to help and to enjoy the cookout together! These photos were taken by Christy Casler, and we are grateful to her for letting us share them with you.