Native American Entertainers Ring in New Year with Free Performances at Dowagiac Middle School

To ring in 2011, the Pokagon Band will offer a family-friendly, drug- and alcohol-free evening of Native music and laughter at Dowagiac Middle School’s Performing Arts Center, 57072 Riverside Drive.

Native American comedian Don Burnstick will begin the evening.

Burnstick is a Cree from the Alexander First Nation outside of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

After surviving a rough adolescence and drug addiction, Burnstick now promotes healing through humor and performance.

His message speaks to a proud heritage and his desire to leave a better world for future generations.

He has established himself as one of Canada’s best comedians, and his highly-acclaimed show You Might be a Redskin: Healing Through Native Humor, wittily portrays First Nations people, their habits, likes and dislikes.

Singer-songwriter Bill Miller, a Mohican citizen, will perform next.

Winner of six Native American Music Awards, including a 2007 Lifetime Achievement honor, Miller has earned three Grammy Awards, among them his most recent in for Spirit Wind North, which was named Best Native American Album in 2010.

Miller has become one of the Nashville community’s most respected talents, working with Vince Gill, John Carter Cash and other Music City stars.

www.dowagiacnews.com/2010/12/28/sobriety-at-the-center-of-free-concert/

A Christmas Day Editorial from the Kalamazoo Gazette

(Christmas Day), we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ — poster child for at-risk children everywhere.

Jesus was conceived out of wedlock and born to a teen mom who was homeless at the time of his birth. He was raised in poverty and belonged to a minority group marginalized by those in power.

Two thousand years later, that is a familiar scenario for many children. And as horrified as we are by the treatment of Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem, there isn’t much compassion today toward children in similar circumstances.

Almost one of four Michigan children under the age of 5 lives in poverty, according to census numbers released last week. The state’s youngest and most vulnerable residents have the highest poverty rate in the state — almost three times the rate, in fact, of Michigan residents over the age of 65.

www.mlive.com/opinion/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2010/12/column_if_jesus_was_born_today.html

"A person's a person, no matter how small."

- Dr. Seuss

A Christmas Tradition: Niles United Methodist Church Serves Dinner for the Poor or Lonely

For better than 20 years Wesley United Methodist Church in Niles has been offering a free meal and good company to those in need on Christmas Day.

The holiday tradition will continue this year with the meal beginning at noon at the church.

“It’s a free meal, directed to not only poor folks but also anybody who is alone on Christmas and would like some company for a meal,” said the Rev. Edward Slate.

In recent years, the free meal draws a crowd of about 100 from the community, according to Slate.

It takes 10 church volunteers to make the holiday meal happen, not including Slate, who says he takes on the role of “maitre d’” for the day.

www.nilesstar.com/2010/12/22/no-such-thing-as-a-free-lunch/


"God bless us every one."

CNN Report: The Faces of Hunger, 14% of Households Are Food Insecure

Edison Church Plans: A Kalamazoo Christmas for the Homeless

On any given Sunday, 70 or so people attend service at Stockbridge Avenue United Methodist Church.

But on this particular Sunday, the tiny church will fill up with hundreds of people — including more than 300 volunteers — for a major Christmas event to help the homeless and people struggling financially.

“It’s going to make for a pretty crowded venue,” said the Rev. Ron Slager, the church pastor. “That adds a little excitement.”

From 3 to 7 p.m., the event — A Kalamazoo Christmas — will offer people a hot meal, warm clothes and Christmas presents for their children at the church located at 1009 E. Stockbridge Ave. in Kalamazoo’s Edison neighborhood.

Little ones will also get the opportunity to pick out gifts to give to their family.
The event will be run by volunteers who will give away items collected from nine Methodist churches in the Kalamazoo area. The other churches also are providing volunteers.

“What God calls us to do is to love our neighborhoods,” Slager said. “We need to be more compassionate to those either unemployed or underdemployed. Basic needs aren’t being met.”


www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2010/12/edison_church_plans_a_kalamazo.html

what's it worth to ya? financial choices

In our working lives we exchange our time and energy for money. We then use our money to support our lifestyle, which includes covering the costs associated with maintaining our income. If our lifestyle costs adds up to more than our income, we can choose to take on debt—if we can find a lender, or we can change our lifestyle.

For most people, taking on debt (sometimes known as using credit) used to be the preferred method. Now it’s both harder to do and less attractive for long-term prosperity. This leaves us with lifestyle choices.

In the higher socio-economic levels, making lifestyle changes is easier: renting movies at home versus going to the movie theater; camping for vacation rather than flying to a beach resort; eating dinner at home instead of at a restaurant.

For people living with a poverty level income, the ability to make lifestyle changes that have an economic impact is more difficult. The decisions are more along the lines of buying groceries versus buying gas to get to work; buying shoes that fit for your youngest child versus a warm coat for your eldest.

How does your income affect your own financial decision making process? Do you think about each purchase or do you spend more or less freely without thought? As a VISTA, my $900 month pre-tax stipend affects my financial decision making more than my previous variable income levels ever have. Here’s an example:

This week my coworkers had a farewell lunch for our VISTA colleague Kevin, my predecessor, at a wonderful local restaurant. The restaurant is one of my favorites and it was even my suggestion to go there (just so you know in advance that there’s no resentment).

A day or two afterward, while thinking about my Christmas budget, how much gas would cost for the nine-hour drive to my hometown next week, and how much I could afford to spend on groceries in between now and then, I remembered a concept I learned from the book Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin.

My really basic interpretation of one of the book’s nine steps to financial independence is to evaluate expenditures by the satisfaction value they provide for the number of hours worked to attain them. (There’s more to this than dollars earned per hours worked. For the calculation process, check out the book from your library or buy a copy.)

At my current income, that fabulous lunch cost about three hours of work. (It was worth it.) Is it something I can do every day? Absolutely not. Every week? Certainly not. Every month? Maybe, but probably not. More like once every three months. However, the $1 menu at the hamburger place down the block, I can most likely afford every day, if I want to. Such is life. It will help me appreciate the times I do visit my favorite "luxury' places.

As my VISTA year progresses, I may seem to walk around with dollar signs in my eyes. It’s not that I am money-hungry. It’s that I’ll be calculating the satisfaction value I’ll receive, in highly personal terms, of each expenditure I make. I'll decide yes or no based on my state of well-being, the amount of cash in my pocket, and the amount of energy I have at the time.

The good news is that a smile is always free, but has infinite value, and is easily exchanged. Over the year, I might be tired or hungry and not feel like smiling, but I’ll appreciate it when you do, and will probably smile back. If I don't, don't worry, it's not personal.

Final Days as a VISTA: My Reflection

When I began as an AmeriCorps VISTA in 2008, I had little exposure to the true realities of what poverty was. Being raised in a middle class family where all my basic needs were taken care of, I never had to worry about finding food, shelter or clothing. The years of 2008 and 2009 provided me a jolt of experience that shook the foundations of my core and gave me an new outlook on life.

In this time period, I not only learned about poverty through the experiences of others, but I also had several life crises of my own. For the first time in my life, I struggled to support myself through periods of unemployment and then learned what exactly a minimal spending budget was when I joined the AmeriCorps. To support myself, I also applied for and used Electronic Benefits to pay for my food.

In addition, I saw my first serious relationship of over 4 years come to an end, and watched a friend struggle through a health crisis because they didn't have medical insurance. I also became a Big Brother volunteer for an African American boy who lived on the Eastside Neighborhood in Kalamazoo and began a wonderful friendship.

You could say that while working at the Poverty Reduction Initiative, my experiences built me into the adult that I am today. Through all of my hard times, I had the support of friends, family and coworkers who went all the way to make sure I was comfortable, happy and able to pick myself up again.

Not all of us are so fortunate to have these kind of supports in our lives. Though what I went through during these years felt very hard, it pales in comparison to those who don't have shelter, food, clothing, transportation, or medical insurance. It compares little to those who struggle with mental and physical disabilities, mental health crises or those who simply cannot afford their prescriptions.

I hope that while working at the PRI that I was able to lay the foundation for years to come. The organization looks little like it did when I arrived in 2008; we have innovated so many new programs and initiatives that will have a real impact on the lives of residents in our communities.

The is one of the few organizations in Kalamazoo that truly innovates new strategies to actually reduce poverty. Through projects such as Project Connect and the Kalamazoo Bank On Initiative, the PRI will continue to provide support to families struggling to meet their basic needs. Through the Poverty Simulations Workshops, more Michigan residents will be aware of the realities of what it is like to endure the plight of poverty. Through the Voices for Action work, the PRI will continue to tell the story of those in poverty and what can be done to better serve them.

It's been a pleasure working with everyone and I am thankful for all the beneficial experiences I have had while working here. If you would like to stay in touch, you can reach me at lignellk@gmail.com.

Thank you for all of the support you have given me.

Warmest,

Kevin Lignell

Two Stories About Michigan's Homeless

'Tis the season. Two stories about the homeless in Michigan caught my attention yesterday in the midst of one of the strongest winter storms we have had in a long time.

According to Michigan Radio,

"More Michigan families are seeking out homeless shelters and warming centers this winter. And the need will likely continue to increase as temperatures fall below zero...

The Michigan Coalition Against Homelessness says last year there were 100,001 homeless people in the state. That's up from 90,286 in 2008."

www.publicbroadcasting.net/michigan/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1737072&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+michiganradio+%28Michigan+Radio%3A+Michigan+News%29&utm_content=Twitter

And West Michigan's TV Channel 8 reports:

With the temperatures and windchills hovering between bitter cold and unbearable, the Grand Rapids police added an extra patrol to help get homeless people off the street and into shelter at Mel Trotter Ministries.

There's a dramatic increase in the number of homeless people, GRPD Lt. Theresa Budzelik told 24 Hour News 8.

"One of the things that I'm seeing that I have never seen in my 25 years is more homeless couples," she said. "We try to do this anytime the temps or windchills reach zero or below."

www.woodtv.com/dpp/news/local/grand_rapids/Patrols-find-take-homeles-to-shelter

Homelessness in Southwest Michigan, a persistent problem which we need to persist at trying to solve.

Jackson, Michigan Elementary Student Raising 486,400 Pennies to Help the Needy

When a story about Kylen Rowland collecting pennies ran in the Citizen Patriot a month ago, the fourth-grader at Frost Elementary School never dreamed her efforts would get such a boost.

She has been given 20,665 pennies since then. One person anonymously left a jug filled with 4,950 pennies outside the sanctuary doors at First Baptist Church, where her mother, the Rev. Gretchen Sanewsky, is pastor.

Kylen is now at 72 percent of her goal of raising 486,400 pennies, the number of poor children in Michigan. She got the idea after seeing reports of all the sad children who were losing their homes because of the economy.

www.mlive.com/news/jackson/index.ssf/2010/12/jackson_fourth_grader_getting.html

Mike Luckovich Editorial Cartoon - from Go Comics

Does change still count? Cents, charity, community

How will you fund your charitable and gift giving this holiday season? From your checking account, a separate savings account, a change jar?

If you're like many people, you have a container filled with loose change from your cash transactions. Depending on the size of your container, from a coffee can to a wine jug, you could have the metallic equivalent of some “greenback” Andrew Jacksons ($20) or the elusive Benjamin Franklins ($100). That could certainly buy some warm clothing or a good meal for some people who need it.

As an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer living on a poverty level income, my spare change is mostly pennies. I've used all my silver-colored coins for parking meters and library fines. At first glance the pennies look impressive, they feel solid and heavy, but they don't actually add up to much. Only a few businesses still believe in the capital power of those little copper coins. You can't use them in parking meters. They are bulky and take time to count. Some banks won't even exchange them for bills; they'll only take coins for deposit if you have an account with them.

In December 2009 CNN Money reported on a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) study finding that 17 million Americans don’t have bank accounts. That’s “nearly 20% of all U.S. households earning $30,000 or less per year” who save their pennies at home. Even if each household had a dollar’s worth of pennies in the cookie jar, that’s $17,000,000 not working in our bank-based economy. It’s not gaining interest, not being used to fund businesses, home loans, car loans, educational loans, non-profits. Spare change adds up.

Initiatives like BankOn Kalamazoo County are designed to bring some of that loose change back into the mainstream economy. BankOn gives qualified people with low-incomes and/or poor-credit access to a more prosperous future, helping them establish or re-build their credit scores, through financial literacy training and low-fee or no-fee bank accounts. (For BankOn financial literacy classes, check out the Kalamazoo Neighborhood Housing Services schedule.)

As for me, I’m not sure where I will donate my accumulation of coins this year. It will be for the common good of the community. It’s a personal choice, of course, as are all financial decisions. I’m thankful I have some change I can share.

Tax Refund Anticipation Loans: High Interest & Fees for the Working Poor

Tax season won't be underway until January, but there was a big line Thursday in front of one H&R Block branch (in Wyoming, Michigan).

The company has been pushing its line of credit called the Emerald Loan, (an income tax refund anticipation loan or RAL). Typically, the market for these products are low-income earners who often get tax refunds that can be used to pay off the loan, consumer groups say.

But there is some concern customers may be purchasing expensive tax preparation services they can't afford, or digging themselves deeper into debt.

www.woodtv.com/dpp/your_money/Loans-from-tax-prep-chains-Demand-up

The Better Business Bureau:

"... cautions consumers to consider the complete costs of a RAL and how these loans can wipe out a significant portion of a tax refund.

“RALs are short-term loans with exorbitantly high interest rates and hidden administration fees, so consumers are actually paying someone else to have access to their own money.

However, if the refund is less than anticipated or the RAL is not paid off in time, the fees can take a significant chunk out of the refund.”

A RAL is similar to a payday loan, with interest rates averaging between

50 and 500 percent.

They sometimes are offered by fly-by-night tax preparers. Consumers still can obtain income tax refunds, free of charge if they are willing to wait two weeks...

The fastest and most secure way for consumers to receive a tax refund directly is to file tax returns online and allow direct deposit of

the refund to their bank account. This can take as few as eight to 15 days."

ct.bbb.org/article/income-tax-refund-anticipation-loans-15231

Working Poor Lose Ground Under the Tax Compromise

When President Obama defended his tax cut compromise with the Republican Party, he insisted that he was helping working people avoid taking a pay cut. "I'm focused on making sure that tens of millions of hardworking Americans are not seeing their paychecks shrink on Jan. 1, just because the folks here in Washington are busy trying to score political points," Obama said.

But as tax experts look at the proposal more closely, it has become clear that the working poor will actually end up losing money under the new arrangement.

"Single working people with earnings below $20,000 and married couples with earnings below $40,000 are worse off under the payroll tax cut proposals in the compromise between the president and the Republicans," explains Bob Williams, a senior fellow at the Washington, D.C.-based Tax Policy Center.

www.dailyfinance.com/story/taxes/working-poor-pay-more-obama-gop-tax-compromise/19752400/?icid=fbuzz|working-poor-pay-more-obama-gop-tax-compromise/19752400/

Photography exhibit puts a face on clients served by Ministry with Community

An exhibit at the WMU College of Health and Human Services displays photographs and stories of a few clients who receive services at Ministry with Community. On exhibition in the second floor gallery of the WMU College Health and Human Services Building on Oakland Drive, the display was to end after Dec. 20 but now will be up through Jan. 10.

The portraits and stories are getting attention at the college, said Gay Walker, coordinator for the college’s Holistic Health Care Program and coordinator for the exhibits that appear in the gallery.

“It’s very different than a typical exhibit. There’s a purpose here,” Walker said. “My intention has been to bring in not just exhibits for their beauty but ones that say something, they say something important.”

Wojtyniak’s project features photo portraits that are overlain with the written stories of those captured in the picture.

Visitors to the display will see two layers over the picture that they can open to read the person’s narrative, captured in interviews by a Ministry with Community staff member.

Originally, these portraits were taken and provided to the Ministry clients as a gift, funded by a ChangeMaker grant from the Kalamazoo Community Foundation.

But Wojtyniak said they needed a wider audience.

“This exhibit is offered as a gift. Not from me, but from the members in the portraits,” Wojtyniak said in a news release.

“The members shared their stories and themselves with me, resulting in many engaging portraits. However, the powerful stories and portraits begged for a wider audience.”

The exhibit can be viewed from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday. For more information contact Walker at 269-387-3839 or gay.walker@wmich.edu.

Read the full article: http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2010/12/photography_exhibit_enduring_s.html

Panhandling by the Side of the Road: "It's Too Embarrassing"

Teresa Connors sits in a single-wide trailer at a (Northern Indiana) mobile home park, worrying. Sparsely furnished with a secondhand sofa, a coffee table from her mother and a decade-old television, she calls it home.

She has no work income, and two daughters, ages 2 and 4.

Steven Connors, her husband, is in the county jail, still waiting placement in a state prison where he'll remain, even with good behavior, until at least 2017.

A year ago, Teresa could be found standing at the corner of Brick and Gumwood roads, holding a sign that begged passing drivers for money. Sometimes her daughter, then 3, would join her. Steven, with his own sign, would beg nearby.

But now, she said, no level of desperation will move her to hold that sign again and feel the stares of passing drivers.

"It's too embarrassing," Teresa said.

www.southbendtribune.com/article/20101205/News01/12050310/-1/XML

The Poor Frequently Spend Time in Jail When They Cannot Post Minor Bail $$

Thousands of people arrested on low-level crimes in New York City spend days languishing in jail, not because they have been found guilty but because they are too poor to post bail, according to a report to be released on Friday.

The report, which examines the bail conditions for people charged with nonfelonies like smoking marijuana in public, jumping a subway turnstile or shoplifting, found that the overwhelming majority of defendants in cases in which bail was set at $1,000 or less were unable to pay and were sent to jail, where they remained, on average, for more than two weeks.

The report comes as the number of arrests for low-level misdemeanors, often referred to as quality-of-life crimes, is rising.

www.nytimes.com/2010/12/03/nyregion/03bail.html?_r=2&ref=nyregion

What does a living wage look like in America?

Moving towards a living wage

What would a living wage in American look like? The Alternatives Federal Credit Union put together this analysis on what it costs to live an affordable lifestyle in the United States. On average, to live sustainable life requires roughly $23,000 a year for an individual. Divided by 40 hours, that amount becomes about $11/hour.

Comparatively, the poverty line for an individual in the United States is roughly $10,000 a year. Under that, and you are eligible for a variety of benefits to supplement your income. The disparity between the two comparisons should provoke some interesting thoughts.

What exactly happens to those who live between the gap of $10k and $23k per year?

Category	Month (2006)	Month (2008)	Percent Change	Year (2008)	Comments	Source
Rent	$628	$763	21.50%	$9,156	Fair market rent, single BR incl. utilities	HUD
Food	$180.95	$203.25	12.32%	$2,439	Average of low-cost food plan for males/females 19-50	USDA
Transportation	$164.22	$167.52	2.01%	$2,010.24	Weighted average of amount spent on cars and public transportation	ACS, BLS, EIA, TCAT
Communication	$56.48	$61.49	8.87%	$737.88	Local calling plan, 30 minutes long-distance and Internet	BLS, Verizon
Health Care	$122.62	$143.53	17.05%	$1,722.36	Employee's share of premium and out-of-pocket medical expenses	BLS, Alternatives
Recreation	$100	$100	0.00%	$1,200.00	Arbitrary	Claritas
Savings	$56	$59.81	6.80%	$717.72	Adjusted for inflation	BLS
Miscellaneous	$105.08	$111.13	5.76%	$1,333.56	housekeeping supplies	Claritas
Net (Subtotal)	$1,413.35	$1,609.73	13.89%	$19,316.76
Payroll Tax	$130.42	$147.29	12.93%	$1,767.45
Federal Tax	$118.58	$117.95	-0.53%	$1,415.39
State Tax	$41.83	$50.35	20.36%	$604.15
TOTAL	$1,704.18	$1,925.31	12.98%	$23,103.75
hourly@40 hrs/week	$9.83	$11.11*

* The Tompkins County Workers Center/Living Wage Coalition figures that the hourly living wage without health insurance is $12.11 an hour.

See the full report at: http://www.alternatives.org/livingwage2009notes.html.

Compare this to the current guidelines for the Federal Poverty Line:

Persons In Family Or Household	48 Contiguous States and D.C.	Alaska	Hawaii
1	$10,210	$12,770	$11,750
2	13,690	17,120	15,750
3	17,170	21,470	19,750
4	20,650	25,820	23,750
5	24,130	30,170	27,750
6	27,610	34,520	31,750
7	31,090	38,870	35,750
8	34,570	43,220	39,750
For each additional person, add	3,480	4,350	4,000

SOURCE: Federal Register, Vol. 72, No. 15, January 24, 2007, pp. 3147-3148

A Young Pastor Speaks to the Importance of the 2010 Hunger Report

At church on Sunday, a homeless fellow came in midway during our service. I had snuck off to use the men's room just after the sermon. As I was returning from the church basement, this fellow opened the church doors. He had been sleeping outside all night, "sleeping" in sub-freezing temperatures. His coat was more of a jacket and certainly was not adequate for a walk on a cold evening, let alone sleeping outside all night.

I welcomed him inside. Helped him to a bench in the back of the church. Covered him with a few of the used coats that we had in a box and which the church is collecting for the needy. I stood with him as he prayed. Eventually, he warmed enough to join the rest of the congregation. After services, one of our church members took the fellow to a truck stop to get a hot shower. Someone else bought him some clean clothes at Goodwill.

As I am typing this tonight, I sit in a warm house. My wife is in the other room watching TV. My cat and dog are lounging lazily. I can hear the freezing rain outside and am wondering:

where our homeless friend is bedded down for the night.

And he is just one. According to a Kalamazoo Gazette report from July 18, 2009, "Kalamazoo County's homeless population jumped more than 40 percent from 2007 to 2008 at the same time that Michigan's homeless count remained virtually unchanged, according to a federal report." And that is just Kalamazoo. SW Michigan encompasses Benton Harbor, Battle Creek, Niles, Allegan, Sturgis, and many other communities.

It is all rather overwhelming.

So, I needed some encouragement. And I think I found it in the message of this young African American pastor in a Twitter message that I got this evening from Bread for the World:




Amen.

CNN: Hungry Mothers Cook for Hundreds

Berrien Springs High School Gives Thanks by Celebrating Racial and Ethnic Diversity

Berrien Springs may be unique in SW Michigan. A small town home to Andrews University, a school which attracts students and faculty from many countries of the world. Diversity of racial and ethnic background is the norm in the community because of this unique relationship.

Carrying on with tradition at Berrien Springs High School, students started their Thanksgiving observance a day early by celebrating the school's rich cultural diversity.

Wednesday morning's program featured students performing everything from African and Nicaraguan dances to a traditional Russian folk song and the theme from the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

The assembly in the high school gym opened as it does every year with the procession of flags representing nearly 40 countries students hail from followed by the U.S. national anthem. The students' families are drawn here by Andrews University.

Students then performed dances and songs from a variety of countries and cultures ranging from Mexico to Korea, northern and southern Africa to Russia and China. The assembly ended as it always does with the singing of "God Bless the USA."

During the 90-minute assembly, students were also treated to a fashion show developed by senior Jedidiah Ayivor, who is of Ghanian heritage. He has carried the Ghanian flag in previous years and sang a song from "The Lion King" with a group last year.

www.heraldpalladium.com/articles/2010/11/25/local_news/2567145.txt

A Brief Introduction to Poverty - An Opportunity to Learn

Hi, One Southwest Michigan community. My name is Paula Adams. I am a new AmeriCorps VISTA with the Poverty Reduction Initiative based in Kalamazoo County. This means I am volunteering to live with a poverty level income allowance for 12 months while I work for PRI. (With the exception of the executive director, Jeff Brown, PRI is staffed by VISTA volunteers.)

During my VISTA year I will be doing PRI's communications and public relations. Our organizational mission is to reduce poverty by collaboration, education and economic activity. My goal is to build and strengthen relationships between PRI and our local, state and national partners. Please visit haltpoverty.org for more information about the Kalamazoo PRI.

I am grateful to have this opportunity, both personally and professionally. If any of you have seen the movie "Inception" written and directed by Christopher Nolan, one way to know you're not dreaming is by asking "How did I get here?" It's probably something many of the 43+ million Americans who live in poverty ask themselves every day. Unfortunately, they are not dreaming.

Here's the short version of my own answer:

Three months ago I had no idea that AmeriCorps existed. (AmeriCorps is the "stay-at-home" domestic sister of the global more "popular" Peace Corps.) In September the contract for my temporary workforce development position was ending and my own future was uncertain. I wanted to go back to marketing and communications work, but jobs are scarce and competition is tight. One lucky email from a colleague with this job posting changed my future, opening the AmeriCorps door, so to speak. Here I am today, my first week in the office, sworn into national service and just beginning to learn about poverty related issues.

Choosing AmeriCorps service was an easy decision and a difficult one. Is the work needed? Yes. Poverty rates have been increasing, not decreasing, up to 14.3% in 2009, according to the Census Bureau. We want to change that. But after all, who chooses to live in poverty? This is a big question on many levels. Do people actually choose poverty? Is our society choosing poverty? If so, why? What exactly is poverty, anyway? Is poverty merely living on a small income or is it something else?

These are some of the questions I have starting out. Maybe you share some of these questions. I'd like to hear from you. I see this blog as a forum to discuss the questions, answers, and explore potential solutions to the very real problems that result from poverty - hunger, homelessness, difficulty getting and/or keeping a job, the inability to provide opportunities for our children.

I believe we can only solve these problems together, as a community - local, national, global. I'd love to hear what solutions work in your area, in your household, in your state, in your nation. How can we help and empower each other to be prosperous and successful, whatever that means to us as individuals? I invite you to share your successes and your lessons learned. If you'd like to contribute a post, let me know.

Thank you for allowing me my voice as a "temporary" resident here. I am honored to do this work, and have a lot to learn. I will be challenged into new ways of thinking, of relating, and of strategizing in this job. As I learn, I will share with you whatever insights I gain, whether they be wise or foolish. I hope that you, my reader, will comment, contribute, and teach me in return. I am grateful to have you as a reader and a teacher.

Happy Thanksgiving. May you experience bounty and abundance for the day and the upcoming year.

A Detroit News Editorial: Food Banks Help Michigan's Needy

"Recently, my family and I were trying to decide what we wanted to have for dinner. We debated back and forth on where to go and what type of food we wanted. We considered all the various restaurants down the street on our side of town but nothing "sounded good."

After spending what seemed like an eternity trying to decide, given all the options available, we decided to stay home and eat leftovers. After dinner, I started thinking about the people who aren't debating where or what to eat, but how to put food on the table for their families. It's so easy to get caught up in the day-to-day bustle of life and forget that there are many people who are struggling to make ends meet"

From The Detroit News:

detnews.com/article/20101123/OPINION01/11230340/Food-banks-help-Michigan’s-needy#ixzz168EFURYf

Southwest Michigan teens help lead discussions on race as part of Kalamazoo Valley Museum exhibit

Southwest Michigan Teens are working together to address the issue of race as part of Kalamazoo Valley Museum's RACE exhibit. A total of 50 teens from the ages of 12 to 18 have attended the five public sessions held at KVCC’s downtown campus and two private sessions held by the Girl Scouts of America and the Jack and Jill Club.

Courtney Asselin, 14, of Paw Paw, commented on the bones display in the exhibit that discussed anthropological forensics. “You can’t determine race by bones.” She added, “Discrimination doesn’t have a point. It’s like having a black dog and a white dog. They’re all dogs, just different colors.

NATIONAL RACE EXHIBIT

What: "RACE: Are We So Different?" exhibit.

Who: The installation, created by the American Anthropological Association and The Science Museum of Minnesota, is designed to spur a national dialogue on race. It explores the subject from biological, historical and human points of view, using photographs, movies and interactive displays.

Admission: Free.

Where: Kalamazoo Valley Museum, 230 N. Rose St., downtown Kalamazoo, near the Radisson Plaza Hotel & Suites.

Run dates: Through Jan. 2.

Museum hours: 9 a.m. -5 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays; 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Fridays; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturdays; and 1-5 p.m. Sundays.

For group tours: Call the museum at 269-373-7990.

For private facilitated conversations: Call Leah Catherman at the YWCA at 269-345-5595.

Read the full article: http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2010/11/southwest_michigan_teens_help.html

An Editorial Cartoon from Brian Duffy

This editorial cartoon from Brian Duffy of Daily Ink. and King Features more or less expresses pretty well what some of us already know: when the economy turns bad, the most vulnerable among us suffer the most.

However, Brian said it in a cartoon better than I just did.

Hint: If you are having trouble reading the cartoon, click on it for a clearer and larger view.

Migrant Workers in Michigan: An Invisible Population

• More than 90,000 (migrant workers) come to Michigan every year to harvest crops. That number includes family members - children, spouses, parents - who don't work in the fields but travel to keep the family together.

• An estimated 70 percent of them are in the United States on legal work visas or are U.S. citizens.

• Their average income: $12,000 to $16,000 for a family of five.

• Most live in one of 800 migrant camps around the state provided by the growers who hire them.

The Civil Rights Commission began investigating migrant working conditions in 2009 after a public forum in Kalamazoo raised some red flags about possible health and safety violations.

The commission decided to investigate further through a series of town hall-style meetings around the state where workers, growers and migrant advocates could testify about everything from wages to clean water.

Commissioners also visited several of the state's 800 licensed migrant camps.

Among their more startling findings:

• At one camp, there were three showers available for 35 women and children to share.

• At another camp, there was a single toilet and shower for all workers and their families to share with no curtain or other form of privacy.

• Several instances of overflowing or broken toilets and no running water.

After a (Civil Rights) report was released, Michigan Farm Bureau issued a statement lambasting it for casting a "damaging black eye" on all farmers. Now, a Farm Bureau representative is on the state task force and the Office of Migrant Affairs is publicly applauding farmers who take proper care of their workers. Even critics say they've witnessed farms where workers have access to on-site day care, schools and health clinics.

"This situation is not unlike others," Core said. "There are good apples in the bunch, and there are bad apples. We have to find a way to effectively deal with the bad apples."

Several state agencies have some responsibility for dealing with migrant farm workers, including the Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth, the Department of Agriculture and DHS.

www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20101121/NEWS01/11210505/Recent-report-cites-Third-World-like-living-conditions-for-migrant-workers

Early Estimate: Project Connect affects 1350 Kalamazoo County Residents

Yesterday, Project Connect went off without a hitch. The event served 800 individuals, which will in turn affect 1350 Kalamazoo Residents. One of the most significant improvements for this event was moving the registration process to another area, eliminating the congestion that plagued the event last May. Services such as haircuts, the free lunch and winter coats came in right in the nick of time, providing an exceptional benefit to the attendees of the event.

WOOD TV 8 also ran some exceptional coverage of the event yesterday: http://www.woodtv.com/dpp/news/local/kalamazoo_and_battle_creek/Kzoo-helps-all-with-Project-Connect




The next Project Connect event is scheduled for Wednesday, May 11th from 1pm - 6pm at the Kalamazoo Expo Center in at 2900 Lake street.

Berrien County Restaurants Host Fundraisers for the Homeless

"Four years ago a group of area agencies took on a huge goal — to end homelessness in Berrien County.

Alysia Babcock, executive director of the Benton Harbor Emergency Shelter, said that since the Housing Resource Network (HRN) wrote a 10-year plan to accomplish this goal, a lot of progress has been made.

And she is hoping a county-wide fundraiser during Homeless Awareness Week, which began Sunday, will continue the momentum.

Seven county businesses will be donating 10 percent of their customers’ bills to the Barrier Busters Fund, a county-wide fund that provides financial assistance to local families living in poverty.”The monies raised will be used for things grants usually don’t cover,” Babcock said. “IDs or birth certificates are hard to come by for somebody living in poverty.”...

... This year, HRN has helped three previously homeless families become homeowners.

The fundraiser began last Wednesday at the Niles Pizza Hut and continues today at The Nuggett in downtown Niles and Wednesday at Mancino’s and Blueberry Hill in Niles.

Personal donations can be made out to Emergency Shelter Services Inc. (with memo to Barrier Busters Fund) and mailed to 645 Pipestone Benton Harbor, MI 49022."

www.nilesstar.com/2010/11/15/restaurants-fundraising-for-local-homelessness-assistance/

Record Number of Americans Face Hunger

The number of Americans who struggled to get enough food last year remained at a record high, according to a report released Monday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

More than 50 million Americans lived in households that had a hard time getting enough to eat at least at some point during 2009. That includes 17 million children, and at least a half-million of those children faced the direst conditions. They had inadequate diets, or even missed meals, because their families didn't have enough money for food.

"Household food insecurity remains a serious problem across the United States," says Agriculture Undersecretary Kevin Concannon.

He says there's a reason the hunger numbers hit a record high in 2008 and stayed there in 2009: a struggling economy.

"It is a considerable reflection of what is going on in the economy," he says. "So jobs, employment, the overall economic health of the country are a major portion of it."

www.npr.org/2010/11/15/131328286/record-number-of-u-s-households-face-hunger

Number of homeless students up 41 percent in the last two years

A WWMT news story covers the struggle that local families must adapt to after losing their homes:



Watch it at: http://www.wwmt.com/articles/sure-1383727-homeless-west.html

Kaiser Family Foundation Asks Serious Questions About Cutting Entitlement Programs for the Poor

Well before we have any clarity on the impact of the election on health reform, the pundits are handicapping the prospects of efforts to make a serious dent in the national debt and deficit. Three national commissions are hammering out recommendations for reducing the debt and reining in entitlement spending, putting two giant health programs that serve the elderly, disabled and low-income Americans, Medicaid and Medicare, as well as Social Security, in the crosshairs of a new policy debate...

Nearly half (47%) of all elderly and disabled people on Medicare have incomes below twice the federal poverty level (less than $20,800 for an individual and $28,000 for a couple in 2008). Poverty rates are even higher among women, African American and Latino Medicare beneficiaries. And two-thirds of the 8 million disabled people on Medicare who are under age 65 have incomes below twice the poverty rate; beneficiaries with disabilities face more serious access problems than others on the medicare program...

If new policies are proposed to rein in entitlement spending and reduce the deficit, it seems only reasonable to include the following criterion among others for evaluating proposals: do no harm to the financial security or access to care for elderly and disabled beneficiaries living on low and modest incomes. Indeed, given the high out-of-pocket costs these groups have, and the large share of their incomes they already pay for health care, a comprehensive approach might well seek to improve circumstances for these most vulnerable groups, while also advancing "hard choices" for entitlement programs to reduce the deficit.

www.kff.org/pullingittogether/People-Behind-The-Entitlement-Debate.cfm

Benton Harbor Seeks Promise Zone Designation from Lansing

Benton Harbor Area Schools officials say they are hoping to send their outgoing students to college for free in the near future.

Although still in its preliminary stages, Leonard Seawood, the district's superintendent, said officials are putting together a plan to present to the state in hopes of approval for such a program.

"We've had to go through the hurdles," he said.

The idea was first started in Kalamazoo a few years ago. It's called the Kalamazoo Promise and provides for any high school graduate in Kalamazoo's public school system accepted into a Michigan college or university to receive free tuition. The program, which has since been implemented in other districts around the state, is privately funded.

Seawood said there are 18 other sites around the state that are in the same boat as Benton Harbor and attempting to receive backing from the state, which is required. He added the most important question is how the district will raise the money to pay for the tuition.

www.southbendtribune.com/article/20101110/News01/11100360/1052/News01

WWMT 3 Report: Shocking levels of poverty in Kalamazoo County

Last week, Poverty Reduction Initiative Director Jeff Brown interviewed with Channel 3 about the rising poverty levels in Kalamazoo. Watch the story here: http://www.wwmt.com/articles/county-1383511-kalamazoo-mich.html

Story transcript:

With the unemployment rate in Michigan sitting at 13 percent, we know people are suffering, but numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau show the poverty level in Kalamazoo County is shocking.

Jasmine Conley and her two children are staying at the women's shelter in Kalamazoo, trying to find a job and a place to call home. Conley is definitely not alone, according to numbers recently released by the U.S. Census Bureau, Kalamazoo County ranks fourth in Michigan for the number of families living in poverty.

93 percent of single moms are also finding it hard to make ends meet. In the City of Kalamazoo, 75 percent of black children under the age of five are living in poverty.

“It's hard when you're pregnant, cause nobody wants to hire you,” said Conley. “I put in over 20 applications and I still haven't gone in on any of them.”

The Poverty Reduction Initiative believes a downturn in manufacturing and a large increase in unemployment for people who have less than a college degree are to blame, and the ones most affected are the kids.

“Kids, by and large, that grow up struggling in poverty are the ones that struggle through life,' said Jeff Brown of the Poverty Reduction Initiative, “and their kids struggle as well.”

Stores like Rescued Treasures in Kalamazoo help people get by on smaller budget, and the money raised goes back to helping low-income families. Experts say such families need more education and jobs accessible to them, not miles away from poor neighborhoods.

For Conley, she says she's using her surroundings as motivation.

“I just look at them and see how hard it is, which pushes me more to get out of here,” said Conley. “It's sad seeing everybody in here.”

For those who need extra help, there's a program called Project Connect. On November 17th it's hosting an event at the Kalamazoo County Expo Center and Fairgrounds. From 1:00 to 6:00 pm 75 different agencies will be on hand to offer some 50 different services.

Read the full article: http://www.wwmt.com/articles/county-1383511-kalamazoo-mich.html