Tiger GPS: Government and Public Service Blog

Month: February 2020

TO BE OR NOT TO BE A VOLUNTEER by Dillon Ficca

February 21, 2020

I work at Housing Up, a non-profit affordable housing developer that provides both housing and case management services to over 800 families at risk of or recovering from homelessness in Washington, DC. At 6 of our affordable housing locations we provide a variety of nightly programs that families living in these buildings participate in. I have a dual responsibility of designing those programs and managing volunteers to help run them.

I got an email from a new volunteer who felt like nothing went the way she had expected. Suzanne (not her real name), a well-educated, thoughtful, energetic, woman in her early 50’s, left her first night attending homework helper with frustration. What she expected to be a “classroom” like setting was a lot less structured, and she didn’t receive much gratitude from the kids for simply showing up. I realized that Suzanne’s expectations, and the reality of the situation she was volunteering in, were far apart.

Providing meaningful youth enrichment programs to children in families recovering from an episode of homelessness requires taking into account the many complexities of their life experiences. For many Housing Up residents, stable housing has allowed children to become familiar with a structured routine for the first time in their lives. All too often “routine” previously revolved around disappointment, moving from shelter to shelter, constantly changing schools, and the trauma of not having a place to call home. Homework helper was designed to offer a safe space for children after school while building a positive experience around regularly completing homework. It is not supposed to be a free for all, but it’s not SAT prep either.

I had a conversation about this with Suzanne after her email, and with a new framework in mind, she reaffirmed her commitment by pledging to attend every Monday. The regularity of coming every week created trust with the children. Many of the kids in homework helper had trouble pronouncing Suzanne’s name, often referring to her as “Shazam”. Instead of correcting them, she ran with it. Not only did kids think this was funny, but they began to appreciate her attendance more each week.

Now every Monday kids look forward to seeing “Shazam,” listen to her instruction, and make significant progress on their school work. Shaping Suzanne’s understanding of the context homework helper was designed around helped better frame her expectations. This has enabled her to foster greater bonds with the children, which has made a meaningful impact on both the children’s lives and the success of the program.

What I’ve learned about the volunteers who come to work with Housing Up families is that they often do not initially take into account the intricacies involved with recovering from homelessness. Being able to convey a framework for insight into the lives of our families and how we design programming for them has been crucial in shaping volunteer expectations. By doing so, volunteers discover new approaches and strategies to improve their own experience, which in turn, improves the overall success of our programs.

ON BUTTERCUPS AND FREE COLLEGE by Amanda Hawkins

February 21, 2020

2020 Presidential Candidates continue to call for free college tuition, in at least some circumstances. Public schooling is free from K-5 to grade 12. Some suggest that public colleges and universities should also be free. I disagree, higher education is a privilege not a right. Just like having a driver’s license, it is a privilege. I agree that everyone should have the opportunity to go to college, but that is where scholarship and grants come into play. The American tax payers cannot afford to send anyone who wants to go to college for free. We already pay enough in taxes as it is right now. After you graduate, you get a job and then guess what, now you are paying for all of these people to go to college on your hard-earned money. Next, if you flood the college system with hundreds of thousands of new students, you devalue the degrees. Now everyone can have the same education as you. How are you going to be marketable for a job when you have the same degree as everyone else that is applying for the same position? You can only go so high in the education system.

I say all of this to let people know that if you want something in life you have to go and get it. Nothing is free in this world. Everything comes with a price. So when people are complaining that college is too expensive and they can’t afford to go to school, I agree, but in order to get ahead in life you have to make sacrifices.

There are many solutions to going to college for free or for a reduced price. You can apply for scholarships and grants. However, many of these need to be revised. College tuition has risen so much over the past 10 years, now scholarship and grant processes need to catch up with the times. You can work for a company that offers college reimbursements. Many employers will help pay for your college tuition if you just ask. Then, there is the military. They truly offer free college tuition, but just like everything else in life, it’s not really free. You have to serve our county in order to come out with a college degree. So the moral of the story is if you want a college degree, “suck it up buttercup” – you have to pay for it just like everyone else.

MAKING WATER by Andrew Hayes

February 21, 2020

In mid-September of 2019, I returned from the Bahamas after helping with the early disaster relief efforts on the ground in Abaco, where the eyewall of Hurricane Dorian passed through the area with record-level winds and storm surge. Our team was able to make over 1,000 gallons of drinking water and nearly 5,000 gallons of clean water for hygiene and sanitation for a community of Marsh Harbour residents that lost almost everything they owned.

When we arrived, there were almost 250 people in a shelter set up at the local primary school that had not had access to clean water in several days. We were able to purify fresh water that was stored in a cistern located in a utility building next to the school, meeting an urgent need for those in the shelter and in the surrounding community. Over the days we were there, the population in the shelter dropped nearly to zero, but the people in the surrounding neighborhoods started coming to get water from us.

I can truly say that I have never seen such widespread destruction in all my life. The entire town of Marsh Harbour was destroyed along with other communities on Abaco. While some better-constructed structures were still standing, none escaped without at least some damage. Electric utility poles were snapped. At the town’s water treatment plant, one of the large water storage tanks was shifted off its foundation while the other had its top ripped off. The trees that were still standing were stripped of their greenery. Water made it all the way into the second stories of most houses during the storm. Cars, boats, and debris were transported by the high waters and deposited in places where they didn’t belong. Several poorer communities (primarily consisting of Haitian immigrants) where the houses were not necessarily built to withstand even moderate hurricanes were wiped completely off the map. The extent of the loss of human life will likely never be fully known. Bodies were still being recovered as I was departing.

Most people had a story involving the personal loss of a family member or friend. The most extreme case I encountered involved a pair of brothers (around ages 15 and 13) who had lost their father in the storm. Their mother was no longer around, either. They were trying to decide whether to evacuate with at least one younger sibling to Nassau (the capital city, located on another island about 100 miles to the south) or to stay in their home. While the answer seemed obvious to me, the shock of the situation, the uncertainties surrounding evacuation, and the boys’ relative lack of life experience all conspired against them to create confusion and doubt. I spent some time talking with them, encouraging them to consider their younger brothers’ and/or sisters’ health and safety. At the end of our discussion, they seemed convinced that evacuation was the right answer, but I was unable to confirm whether they made it out or not. I did not see them return to our water point before I departed.

Despite all the misery and suffering, I also encountered a number of stories of strength and resilience. People were generally helping one another in whatever ways they could. They talked about rebuilding and were hopeful for the future – even in the face of the total destruction of their community.

The trip was a swirled mix of contradictory feelings. It was heart-breaking and inspiring. Emotionally draining but spiritually filling. Exhausting and energizing, all at the same time. I am glad to be home, but I ache to be back there again, knowing that these wonderful people have a long road ahead of them in order to get their lives back to normal. Please don’t forget them as they will need continued prayers and support in order to rebuild and restore their communities.

Photos and videos documenting some of my experiences and in Marsh Harbour as well as links to selected outside resources with additional information about Hurricane Dorian’s destruction in the Bahamas can be found online at https://sites.google.com/view/marsh-harbour/home.