The past couple of days I have had meetings in the morning. This causes me to come into the office after counseling hours have started. The biggest problem with this is that I have to circle the parking lot to find a space. Our busiest time of the year has not even started yet. I am not one to complain, but our building is too small to do all the services we do, 3 of our staff members office from home, and the conference room is a multi function room. We have to close down our computer lab and classes in December so we have the space for Christmas, and our pantry has no place for people to move. We could do so much more if we had the space to do it in. One volunteer recently equated the food pantry line coming out the door to the bread lines of the great depression. Fortunately, our food resources are much better than they were then.
So I say all of this to say we need more space. Space takes money. Our board has opted not to borrow money for a larger space which means we need to raise the dollars through individual donors and possibly some foundation grants. If you would be interested in helping us to find ways to expand, please e-mail me at sandi@christianhelp.org. Our services make a real difference for job seekers, for the underemployed, and for people in need.
Thank you for your prayers and support.
Sandi
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Moving forward
I remember reading a post on facebook from a client who was unhappy with us. I responded to her privately and asked her how we could fix the situation. It turned out that she had just been having a really bad day and was not prepared for the feedback the counselor had given her. I spent some time working with her on her job search as did some of the other counselors. As she came in several times over her 18month search, we began to call her a friend.
We were so thrilled when the bell rang up front (our symbol of someone landing a job) as she shared that not only was her search over, but she would be making her previous salary. This lady went through some tough times. She nearly lost her home, she lost her mom, and she was just lost. We were so happy to be able to be there for her.
This is something we could not do with out you. It is through the support of our donors including those in our "Fruits and Veggies monthly giving program" that help women like our client, sustain while they job search. Being able to have fruits and vegetables is such a blessing for families in need.
At Christmas in July, we honored some of our Fruits and Veggies monthly givers. After the event, S came up to me and asked how she too could join the club.
It is because of your prayers and support we are able to see clients move forward and give back.
Sandi
We were so thrilled when the bell rang up front (our symbol of someone landing a job) as she shared that not only was her search over, but she would be making her previous salary. This lady went through some tough times. She nearly lost her home, she lost her mom, and she was just lost. We were so happy to be able to be there for her.
This is something we could not do with out you. It is through the support of our donors including those in our "Fruits and Veggies monthly giving program" that help women like our client, sustain while they job search. Being able to have fruits and vegetables is such a blessing for families in need.
At Christmas in July, we honored some of our Fruits and Veggies monthly givers. After the event, S came up to me and asked how she too could join the club.
It is because of your prayers and support we are able to see clients move forward and give back.
Sandi
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Closer than you think
Yesterday I had an opportunity to share about how we are working together with the community of Casselberry to end hunger and homelessness and break the cycle of poverty in the city. As part of a task force of over 30 members we are taking action to meet the immediate and long term needs of the families of Cassleberry Elementary and the surrounding area.
I was speaking to a group of Rotarians and they had some great questioned for me. At one point Beth Davalos of Families in Transition said that many families would rather live in a hotel than move in with friends. I took this opportunity to make it personal. Over the past year I have known families who have had their homes foreclosed on (one was renting and the homeowner did not pay the mortgage), lost their jobs or had hours cut and had to move quickly. We even had family friends move in with us for 4 months.
I can tell you these families are not lazy, for the most part they didn't make bad choices, they were just going along in their lives and became victims of a rather brutal economy.
Over 1 million people in Florida are unemployed. We have the 3rd highest unemployment in the NATION. People want to work. They want full time jobs with benefits that will keep them from losing their homes, their health, and in some cases their families.
Christian HELP is committed to really helping people move forward. We want to provide a safe environment for our clients to share their stories, shed their tears, and get the resources they need.
Thank you for your support. We still need you to help us HELP them.
Sandi
I was speaking to a group of Rotarians and they had some great questioned for me. At one point Beth Davalos of Families in Transition said that many families would rather live in a hotel than move in with friends. I took this opportunity to make it personal. Over the past year I have known families who have had their homes foreclosed on (one was renting and the homeowner did not pay the mortgage), lost their jobs or had hours cut and had to move quickly. We even had family friends move in with us for 4 months.
I can tell you these families are not lazy, for the most part they didn't make bad choices, they were just going along in their lives and became victims of a rather brutal economy.
Over 1 million people in Florida are unemployed. We have the 3rd highest unemployment in the NATION. People want to work. They want full time jobs with benefits that will keep them from losing their homes, their health, and in some cases their families.
Christian HELP is committed to really helping people move forward. We want to provide a safe environment for our clients to share their stories, shed their tears, and get the resources they need.
Thank you for your support. We still need you to help us HELP them.
Sandi
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Providing Hope and Encouragement, Love, and Prayer
When John D'Amelio from CBS Sunday Morning came to Christian HELP he said "This agency is different, and I have been to a lot of agencies." He meant it in a good way. In a time of automated voice mail and take a number mentalities, Christian HELP is truly focused on what matters. Clients, Volunteers, and donors are so important to us. Our team is devoted to making the experience of visiting Christian HELP a good one for anyone who might need our help. Someone said Hope, Encouragement, Love, and Prayer sounds like we just give a hug to the unemployed. In a sense we do, but there is so much more.
What makes us different than other agencies? Is it our book knowledge, degrees and expertise? Is it the combination of our services? Is it our longevity? I believe, we are unique because we live our passion to serve God and others daily. We hold people accountable, but we deliver services in a loving way. We are compassionate, yet tough. We are willing to work with anyone who needs our services, but we expect they will help themselves as much as we help them. We give respect and we expect it in return.
God has blessed us with resources to help job seekers. He brings us volunteers. He uses regular people to accomplish his mission. We are so thankful to be able to lean on Him.
Sometimes people ask if you have to be Christian to come to Christian HELP. The answer is no. We do offer everyone prayer, but we do not force anyone to pray. Our job is to love our neighbors and to help them move forward.
Jackie our Ministry Development Director summarized our services this way:
"We have had 20 years of collecting resources, 20 years of meeting with clients one on one, 20 years of discerning who is looking for hand outs and who is genuinely in need…we move people forward by sowing the seed of the gospel, by EDUCATING those who come to our doors of what resources are in this city and how to go about applying for them AND THEN tracking what tools they have been given and when they return what they have done with these tools.
We continue to feed, we continue to educate, we continue to supply job leads; however our expertise is in providing God’s love to those who are drowning in our society, not judging but providing tangible tools to use to navigate and survive in this environment."
Christian HELP is able to HELP because our desire is to be a light in people's lives when they are walking through the darkness of unemployment, hunger, and despair.
Christian HELP starts with you. To learn more about how to be more involved, come to one of our monthly luncheons and see what we are talking about. The next one is June 6th. For more information, contact jackie@christianhelp.org.
In His Service,
Sandi Vidal
Executive Director
What makes us different than other agencies? Is it our book knowledge, degrees and expertise? Is it the combination of our services? Is it our longevity? I believe, we are unique because we live our passion to serve God and others daily. We hold people accountable, but we deliver services in a loving way. We are compassionate, yet tough. We are willing to work with anyone who needs our services, but we expect they will help themselves as much as we help them. We give respect and we expect it in return.
God has blessed us with resources to help job seekers. He brings us volunteers. He uses regular people to accomplish his mission. We are so thankful to be able to lean on Him.
Sometimes people ask if you have to be Christian to come to Christian HELP. The answer is no. We do offer everyone prayer, but we do not force anyone to pray. Our job is to love our neighbors and to help them move forward.
Jackie our Ministry Development Director summarized our services this way:
"We have had 20 years of collecting resources, 20 years of meeting with clients one on one, 20 years of discerning who is looking for hand outs and who is genuinely in need…we move people forward by sowing the seed of the gospel, by EDUCATING those who come to our doors of what resources are in this city and how to go about applying for them AND THEN tracking what tools they have been given and when they return what they have done with these tools.
We continue to feed, we continue to educate, we continue to supply job leads; however our expertise is in providing God’s love to those who are drowning in our society, not judging but providing tangible tools to use to navigate and survive in this environment."
Christian HELP is able to HELP because our desire is to be a light in people's lives when they are walking through the darkness of unemployment, hunger, and despair.
Christian HELP starts with you. To learn more about how to be more involved, come to one of our monthly luncheons and see what we are talking about. The next one is June 6th. For more information, contact jackie@christianhelp.org.
In His Service,
Sandi Vidal
Executive Director
Thursday, April 21, 2011
A Legacy Remembered
Recently one of our founders went on to Heaven. Madge Wilson started the food pantry for Christian HELP back in the early days of the ministry. She stepped out on faith, and along with her husband Dick, heeded a call by God to leave the retail gift business and go into ministry.
She battled with diabetes all her life. Diagnosed at age 6, she would later have a kidney transplant. While her body was not so healthy, her spirit and work ethic were. Madge made sure the pantry ran smoothly, everything had a place, there was a rhyme and reason for why things were done the way they were.
A meticulous record keeper, Madge made sure things were done fair and equitably. She made sure the employees and volunteers were good stewards of all that came in. Clients were always put ahead of everyone else.
One of the things that struck me when I came was the loyalty of the volunteers who worked in the pantry. We have volunteers who have been with Madge since the beginning. Gwen, Eva, Miss Annie May, John, and Ron have all been volunteers for years and they have been fiercely loyal to her.
I love that. I love that her legacy will live on. The building is named in her honor, and donations that have come in will be used to upgrade some of our freezers with a brand new one. She would have liked that.
Sandi
She battled with diabetes all her life. Diagnosed at age 6, she would later have a kidney transplant. While her body was not so healthy, her spirit and work ethic were. Madge made sure the pantry ran smoothly, everything had a place, there was a rhyme and reason for why things were done the way they were.
A meticulous record keeper, Madge made sure things were done fair and equitably. She made sure the employees and volunteers were good stewards of all that came in. Clients were always put ahead of everyone else.
One of the things that struck me when I came was the loyalty of the volunteers who worked in the pantry. We have volunteers who have been with Madge since the beginning. Gwen, Eva, Miss Annie May, John, and Ron have all been volunteers for years and they have been fiercely loyal to her.
I love that. I love that her legacy will live on. The building is named in her honor, and donations that have come in will be used to upgrade some of our freezers with a brand new one. She would have liked that.
Sandi
Thursday, April 7, 2011
CFEC/Christian HELP on CBS Sunday Morning
Christian HELP/CFEC was recently used as the backdrop for this CBS Sunday morning story on unemployment over 50.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/04/03/sunday/main20050117.shtml
•The national unemployment rate is currently 8.8%, the lowest it has been since March 2009; however, Florida still lingers behind
•Florida, currently, holds the 3rd worst unemployment rate in the country at 11.5%
•In the past month, approximately 23,000 jobs were added in the customer service and hospitality industry
•Recent job reports reveal the average unemployment time period increased in March to 39 weeks
•Laid off workers under the age of 34 have a 36% chance of finding a new job within a year; in their 50’s, it’s only 24%, and past 62, just 18%.
•Christian HELP holds job fairs in Orlando every two months. During the most recent job fair, over 2,000 job seekers showed up in search of employment
•Despite improving job data, older unemployed workers are having more trouble finding work, as companies favor less-experienced, cheaper candidates. Tracy Smith looks into what it takes to find a job for an unemployed baby boomer
•Statistically, persons 50 and older are less likely to be laid off…
•In joint study from Boston College and Rutgers, researchers discovered that a growing number of people over 50 are involuntarily working part time jobs or just quit looking for jobs.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/04/03/sunday/main20050117.shtml
•The national unemployment rate is currently 8.8%, the lowest it has been since March 2009; however, Florida still lingers behind
•Florida, currently, holds the 3rd worst unemployment rate in the country at 11.5%
•In the past month, approximately 23,000 jobs were added in the customer service and hospitality industry
•Recent job reports reveal the average unemployment time period increased in March to 39 weeks
•Laid off workers under the age of 34 have a 36% chance of finding a new job within a year; in their 50’s, it’s only 24%, and past 62, just 18%.
•Christian HELP holds job fairs in Orlando every two months. During the most recent job fair, over 2,000 job seekers showed up in search of employment
•Despite improving job data, older unemployed workers are having more trouble finding work, as companies favor less-experienced, cheaper candidates. Tracy Smith looks into what it takes to find a job for an unemployed baby boomer
•Statistically, persons 50 and older are less likely to be laid off…
•In joint study from Boston College and Rutgers, researchers discovered that a growing number of people over 50 are involuntarily working part time jobs or just quit looking for jobs.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Are you Re-Charged and Re-Energized?
One hundred and fifty people gathered at First Baptist Longwood for Christian HELP/CFEC's Re-Charge and Re-Energize your job search seminar. Most of the group were seasoned professionals and many were out of work over 6 months.
The participants were given information on creating a job search plan, networking, branding, using the Business Journal as a job search tool, and becoming the best possible you. Dipasqua Enterprises/Subway generously provided sandwiches for the event. Z88.3 positive hits brought the van and provided music during lunch.
Over and over again, people thanked us for putting the seminar on. They came in not knowing if it would be worth it to give up a sunny Saturday to spend time with us. Volunteers came out to offer resume assistance and just guidance through the day. I was so blessed at the generosity in the room.
I watched as Lisa Maile (www.LisaMaileSeminars.com) stayed and talked with every single person in line without rushing a single person. They were important to her and got her undivided attention. One lady was in need of dental work and Lisa gave her some information to follow up on.
I love these seminars because they give people great information to use in their job search and just have a positive feel. One of the volunteers told me she could just feel the compassion in the room from the team at Christian HELP and our volunteer family.
My prayer is the people who were there will take the information they learned and apply it to get a job. One of the volunteers told me he learned how important networking was when he saw a colleague land a job faster than he did because he was well networked.
At Christian HELP we work to equip and empower people to get jobs. We are not a staffing company and we don't send people off to work when they come in, but we teach them how to find a position on their own and give then job leads and help secure better resumes. By teaching people what they needs to know, they can know it was through their efforts they are landing their next job.
Until next time-
Sandi Vidal
Executive Director
The participants were given information on creating a job search plan, networking, branding, using the Business Journal as a job search tool, and becoming the best possible you. Dipasqua Enterprises/Subway generously provided sandwiches for the event. Z88.3 positive hits brought the van and provided music during lunch.
Over and over again, people thanked us for putting the seminar on. They came in not knowing if it would be worth it to give up a sunny Saturday to spend time with us. Volunteers came out to offer resume assistance and just guidance through the day. I was so blessed at the generosity in the room.
I watched as Lisa Maile (www.LisaMaileSeminars.com) stayed and talked with every single person in line without rushing a single person. They were important to her and got her undivided attention. One lady was in need of dental work and Lisa gave her some information to follow up on.
I love these seminars because they give people great information to use in their job search and just have a positive feel. One of the volunteers told me she could just feel the compassion in the room from the team at Christian HELP and our volunteer family.
My prayer is the people who were there will take the information they learned and apply it to get a job. One of the volunteers told me he learned how important networking was when he saw a colleague land a job faster than he did because he was well networked.
At Christian HELP we work to equip and empower people to get jobs. We are not a staffing company and we don't send people off to work when they come in, but we teach them how to find a position on their own and give then job leads and help secure better resumes. By teaching people what they needs to know, they can know it was through their efforts they are landing their next job.
Until next time-
Sandi Vidal
Executive Director
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