VETERANS WHO SERVED THEIR COUNTRY NOT BEING HIRED, ESPECIALLY MANY BLACK MALE VETS (AGE 50+), VET DISCRIMINATION

VETERANS WHO SERVED THEIR COUNTRY NOT BEING HIRED, ESPECIALLY MANY BLACK MALE VETS (AGE 50+):

VET DISCRIMINATION IS RAMPANT YET OFTEN IGNORED.

JOBLESS AND HOMELESS REMAINS THE PLIGHT OF MANY HONORABLE US MILITARY VETS........THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE.

NON-PROFIT AGENCIES ARE NOT USING FEDERAL MONEY TO ASSIST BLACK MALE US MILITARY HONORABLE VETS.

JOBS FOR HARDWORKING, RELIABLE VETS ARE GOING TO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS AND UNSKILLED WORKERS.

YET COMPANIES ARE STILL RECEIVING FEDERAL MONEY TO HIRE VETS WHEN THEY ARE REALLY NOT HIRING VETS.

AND MANY COMPANIES WHO DO HIRE VETS PAY THEM VERY LOW WAGES.

WHERE ARE THE FEDERAL AUDITS FOR EMPLOYERS AND NON-PROFIT VETERANS' AGENCIES??


Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics



****** Employment Situation of Veterans Summary

For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Wednesday, March 22, 2017



~ EMPLOYMENT SITUATION OF VETERANS -- 2016

The unemployment rate for veterans who served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces at any time since September 2001--a group referred to as Gulf War-era II veterans--
edged down to 5.1 percent in 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.

The jobless rate for all veterans also edged down over the year to 4.3 percent.

About 36 percent of Gulf War-era II veterans had a service-connected disability in August 2016, compared with 22 percent of all veterans.

This information was obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly sample survey of about 60,000 households that provides data on employment and
unemployment in the United States.

Data about veterans are collected monthly in the CPS; these monthly data are the source of the 2016 annual averages presented in this
news release.

In August 2016, a supplement to the CPS collected additional information about veterans on topics such as service-connected disability and veterans' current or past Reserve or National Guard membership. Information from the supplement is also presented in this release.

The supplement was co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of
Veterans Affairs and by the U.S. Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training Service.

For more information, see the Technical Note, which provides definitions of terms used in this release.


Highlights from the 2016 data:

--The unemployment rate for male veterans overall was not statistically different from the rate for female veterans in 2016.

The unemployment rate for male veterans (4.2 percent) edged down over the year, and the rate for female veterans (5.0 percent) changed little.

--Among the 453,000 unemployed veterans in 2016, 60 percent were age 45 and over,
36 percent were age 25 to 44, and 4 percent were age 18 to 24.

--Veterans with a service-connected disability had an unemployment rate of 4.8 percent in August 2016, about the same as veterans with no disability (4.7 percent).

--Nearly 1 in 3 employed veterans with a service-connected disability worked in the public sector in August 2016, compared with about 1 in 5 veterans with no
disability.

--In 2016, the unemployment rate of veterans varied across the country, ranging from 1.8 percent in Indiana to 7.6 percent in the District of Columbia.


The Veteran Population:

In 2016, 20.9 million men and women were veterans, accounting for about 9 percent of the civilian noninstitutional population age 18 and over.

About 10 percent of all veterans were women. In the survey, veterans are defined as men and women who have previously
served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and who were civilians at the time these data were collected.

Veterans are more likely to be men than nonveterans and also tend to be older.

In part, this reflects the characteristics of veterans who served during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam era, all of whom are now over 55 years old.

Veterans who served during these wartime periods accounted for 41 percent (8.5 million) of the total veteran population in 2016. Just over one-third of veterans (7.3 million) served during Gulf War era I (August 1990 to August 2001) or Gulf War
era II (September 2001 forward). Another quarter (5.2 million) served outside the designated wartime periods.


Gulf War-era II Veterans:

In 2016, there were 3.9 million veterans who had served during Gulf War era II (September 2001 forward).

Eighteen percent of these veterans were women, compared
with about 4 percent of veterans from World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam era.

Seventy-one percent of all Gulf War-era II veterans were between the ages of 25
and 44.

Among Gulf War-era II veterans, the unemployment rate for men was not statistically different from the rate for women in 2016.

The unemployment rates for both men (5.0
percent) and women (5.6 percent) were little changed from the prior year.

The unemployment rate for male Gulf War-era II veterans (5.0 percent) was little different than the rate for male nonveterans (4.8 percent) in 2016.

Among men age 25 to 34, Gulf War-era II veterans had a higher unemployment rate (6.6 percent) than did nonveterans (4.9 percent).

For the other age groups, unemployment rates of male Gulf
War-era II veterans and nonveterans were not statistically different.

Among women, the unemployment rate for Gulf War-era II veterans (5.6 percent) was not statistically different from the rate for nonveterans (4.6 percent) in 2016.

By age, unemployment rates for female Gulf War-era II veterans and nonveterans were not statistically different.

Employed Gulf War-era II veterans were about twice as likely to work in the public sector in 2016 as employed nonveterans--28 percent and 13 percent, respectively.

Among the employed, 16 percent of Gulf War-era II veterans worked for the federal government, compared with 2 percent of nonveterans.

In August 2016, 48 percent of Gulf War-era II veterans reported serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, or both locations.

These veterans had an unemployment rate of 4.8
percent, not statistically different from Gulf War-era II veterans who served elsewhere (6.0 percent).

Gulf War-era I Veterans:

Of the 3.4 million veterans who served during Gulf War era I (August 1990 to August 2001), 15 percent were women. Nearly all (98 percent) Gulf War-era I veterans were
age 35 and over in 2016, compared with half of Gulf War-era II veterans.

In 2016, the unemployment rate for male Gulf War-era I veterans was 3.5 percent, lower
than the rate for their Gulf War-era II veteran counterparts (5.0 percent).

The difference in the unemployment rates reflects, at least in part, the older age profile
of veterans who served during Gulf War era I. Younger people--whether veterans or nonveterans--tend to have higher unemployment rates.

Among women, the rates for Gulf
War-era I veterans (4.2 percent) and Gulf War-era II veterans (5.6 percent) were not statistically different.


Veterans of Other Service Periods:

In 2016, 5.2 million veterans had served on active duty during "other service periods," mainly between the Korean War and the Vietnam era and between the Vietnam era and Gulf
War era I.

All veterans from this period of service were 40 years or older at the time of the survey.

Twenty-six percent of these veterans were age 45 to 54 in 2016, another 34 percent were age 55 to 64, and another 39 percent were age 65 and over.

In 2016, 1 in 10 veterans of other service periods were women. Among veterans of other service periods, the unemployment rate for men was 4.1 percent, little different than
the rate for women (4.9 percent).


Veterans with a Service-connected Disability:

In August 2016, about 4.6 million veterans, or 22 percent of the total, had a service- connected disability.

Veterans with a service-connected disability are assigned a
disability rating by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the U.S. Department of Defense.

Ratings range from 0 to 100 percent, in increments of 10 percentage points, depending on the severity of the condition.

The unemployment rate for veterans with a service-connected disability was 4.8 percent in August 2016, about the same as veterans with no disability (4.7 percent).

The labor force participation rate for veterans with a service-connected disability (46.4 percent)
was lower than the rate for veterans with no disability (50.7 percent).

Among veterans with a service-connected disability, 30 percent had a disability rating of less than 30 percent, while another 37 percent had a rating of 60 percent or higher.

In August 2016, veterans with a service-connected disability rating of less than 30 percent were much more likely to be in the labor force than those with a rating of 60
percent or higher (54.7 percent and 29.9 percent, respectively).

The unemployment rate For veterans with a disability rating of less than 30 percent was 4.4 percent, not
statistically different than for those with a disability rating of 60 percent or higher (3.8 percent).

Among veterans who served during Gulf War era II, 36 percent (1.4 million) had a service-connected disability.

Of these, 76.0 percent were in the labor force in August 2016, lower than the 86.6 percent for veterans from this period with no service- connected disability.

Among Gulf War-era II veterans, the unemployment rate for those with a service-connected disability was 5.4 percent, little different from those with no disability (5.7 percent).

In August 2016, about a quarter (901,000) of veterans who served during Gulf War era I had a service-connected disability. Their labor force participation rate (64.0 percent)
was lower than the rate for veterans from the era who did not have a disability (86.7
percent).

The unemployment rate for Gulf War-era I veterans with a service-connected disability (5.3 percent) was not statistically different than that for Gulf War-era I
veterans without a service-connected disability (4.2 percent).

Among the 1.6 million veterans with a service-connected disability from World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam era, 14.1 percent were in the labor force in August
2016 , lower than the 25.3 percent of veterans from these periods who did not have a
service-connected disability.

The unemployment rate of veterans with a disability from these wartime periods was 3.7 percent, about the same as their counterparts with no disability (3.8 percent).

About 669,000 or 13 percent of veterans who served during other service periods reported a service-connected disability in August 2016.

The labor force participation rate for these veterans (37.8 percent) was lower than their counterparts without a
service-connected disability (50.3 percent), while the unemployment rate was not statistically different for veterans with a service-connected disability (2.0 percent)
and those with no disability (4.8 percent).

Regardless of period of service, many veterans with a service-connected disability worked in the public sector. In August 2016, 31 percent of employed veterans with a
disability worked in federal, state, or local government, compared with 19 percent of
veterans with no disability and 13 percent of nonveterans. In particular, 20 percent of employed veterans with a disability worked for the federal government, compared
with 7 percent of veterans with no disability and 2 percent of nonveterans.


Reserve and National Guard Membership:

In August 2016, about one-third of Gulf War-era veterans (August 1990 to present) were current or past members of the Reserve or National Guard.

Labor force participation rates were higher for veterans who were current or past members of the Reserve or
National Guard (83.6 percent), compared with veterans who were never members (80.6
percent).
Among Gulf War-era veterans, those who were current or past members of the Reserve or National Guard had an unemployment rate (4.0 percent) that was not
statistically different than those who had never been members (5.6 percent).

VETERANS REMAIN JOBLESS & HOMELESS, COMPANIES CHEAT FEDS, RECEIVE FED $$$ & TAX BREAKS BUT WON'T HIRE VETS (AUDITS??)

VETERANS REMAIN JOBLESS & HOMELESS.......WHY??

COMPANIES RECEIVE FEDERAL TAX BREAKS FOR HIRING VETS YET MILLIONS OF VETS REMAIN JOBLESS & HOMELESS.

WHY ARE SOME COMPANIES RECEIVING FEDERAL MONEY & TAX BREAKS FOR VETS WHO ARE NOT ACTUALLY ON THE PAYROLL??

WHY DOESN'T THE VA CONDUCT AUDITS OF COMPANIES THAT RECEIVE FEDERAL MONEY FOR HIRING VETS??


Sources: SBA, US Veterans Magazine



***** Tax Credit for Hiring Veterans


~ Besides honesty, loyalty, and responsibility, veterans may bring you a tax cut.

Many employers have come to learn that veterans make excellent employees.

They usually are easily trainable and possess desirable characteristics, such as honesty, loyalty, and responsibility.

If these attributes were not enough to induce employers to hire veterans, the tax law offers even more.

The tax law encourages employers to hire certain targeted groups of workers by offering a tax credit tied to the wages of these new employees, and certain veterans are treated as a targeted group.

Here are the special rules to know when hiring so that you may take credit where credit is due.


Which veterans qualify?


As a small business owner, you qualify for the work opportunity tax credit (WOTC) if you hire a veteran who falls into any of the following categories:

• Having a service-related disability
• Unemployed for a specified period
• Receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits

However, even if a veteran does not fall within any of these categories, he or she may still be a member of another targeted group.

This would still allow you to take a tax credit. For example, a veteran who has been a member of a family that received TANF payments for at least 18 consecutive months is treated as a member of a targeted group for long-term family assistance recipients.

What is the tax credit amount?

The tax credit reduces your tax bill dollar-for-dollar, so each $1 of WOTC saves you $1 in taxes. The credit is based on the amount of wages paid to an eligible veteran in the first year of employment.

The maximum tax credit is based on a set percentage of maximum first-year wages, which is fixed by law, and the number of hours worked. For example, for veterans, the basic percentage of first-year wages is 25 percent for those who worked at least 120 hours but fewer than 400 hours; it is 40 percent for those who worked at least 400 hours.

The maximum credit for a veteran working at least 400 hours is:

• Service-related disability and unemployed at least 6 months in the year ending in the hiring year: $9,600 ($24,000 in wages × 40%).
• Service-related disability and hired within 1 year of discharge or release from active duty: $4,800 ($12,000 in wages × 40%)
• Unemployed at least 6 months: $5,600 ($14,000 in wages × 40%)
• Unemployed at least 4 weeks: $2,400 ($6,000 in wages × 40%)

• Receiving SNAP benefits: $2,400 ($6,000 in wages × 40%)

There is no limit on the number of eligible employees you can hire for the credit.

For example, if you hire 3 veterans with service-related disabilities who are unemployed at least 6 months, your credit is $28,800 ($9,600 × 3).

The WOTC is set to run through 2019, and you can take the credit year after year as you expand the size of your staff. Thus, even if you take a tax credit for hiring a veteran in 2016, you can do so again next year.

Other rules:

Being eligible for the credit isn’t enough to claim it on your return. To take the tax credit, you must submit IRS Form 8850 to your state workforce agency within 28 days of the first day of employment.

Also submit ETA Form 9061, or ETA Form 9062 if the employee has already been conditionally certified as belonging to a targeted group at the same time.

The purpose of these submissions is to confirm that your new employee is indeed a member of a targeted group.

The credit is claimed on IRS Form 5884, which is attached to the employer’s income tax return.

Something to think about:

When hiring, keep the WOTC in the back of your mind.
While it may not be a primary factor in making a hiring decision, it may just be the tipping point in favor of one applicant over another.

Reciprocity Foundation Helps Homeless & Gay Youth: The Next Generation

The Reciprocity Foundation


Each year, up to 2.8 million youth experience homelessness—a group roughly equivalent to 1% of the U.S. population. The causes of homelessness are numerous and range from being orphaned, fleeing chronic abuse or simply escaping economic problems. Some youth are called “throw-aways” because their parents and guardians force them out of the home because of sexual orientation or beliefs.

Taz Tagore and Adam Bucko founded the Reciprocity Foundation to enable homeless and high-risk youth and young adults to permanently exit the social services system and start meaningful, sustainable careers in the Creativity Economy (e.g. fashion, design, marketing, PR). The Reciprocity Foundation aims to build a national network of programs to enable homeless youth to enroll in college, secure hands-on work experiences and build a professional network in their field of interest. Currently, their work is focused on the thousands of homeless youth in New York City; in the future, the Reciprocity Foundation plans to expand into cities such Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco, Seattle and Austin.



View Larger Map

Sources: CBS News, Reciprocity Foundation.org, Youtube, Google Maps

Pres. Obama Advocates Change & Real Help For Vets

Sources: Whitehouse.gov, Youtube

Charlotte Says No To Affordable Housing 3rd Time This Year!

Charlotte City Council Says No To Low-Income Housing Again


The latest attempt to find a site for low-income housing failed Monday night when the City Council rejected a move that would have allowed 90 units in the Ayrsley community in southwest Charlotte.

The council voted 6-4 to reject a request that would have given the Charlotte Housing Partnership a waiver from rules guiding the location of public housing.

It was the third time in a year that efforts to locate affordable housing have failed.

In February, the Charlotte Housing Authority pulled out of a project in Ballantyne after neighborhood protests.

Last year the Housing Partnership scuttled plans to put low-income housing in Berewick after local opposition.

Monday's vote followed emotional arguments from Ayrsley residents and housing advocates alike.

Residents argued that their already diverse neighborhood is not stable enough to accommodate more low-income housing.

They opposed the Housing Partnership's request for a waiver from a rule that bars putting a low-income housing development within a half-mile of another.

The partnership wants to build 90 low-income apartments near Westinghouse Boulevard.

Advocates argued for the waiver.

"The bottom line is we need more affordable housing," said Bert Green, director of Habitat for Humanity and a board member of the Housing Partnership. "We need it now and we need it spread throughout the entire community."

Democrat Warren Turner, whose council district includes Ayrsley, argued against the waiver.

"The fact of the matter is we have more than our share of affordable housing," he said. "I'm not against affordable housing. What we are against tonight is a policy issue."

Jerry Meek, an attorney for the residents, cited the council's ongoing re-evaluation of its housing location guidelines. The city plans a series of public hearings on the guidelines this summer.

"Why go through the charade?" Meek asked council. "If you waive it under these circumstances you can waive it under any circumstances."

Mayor Anthony Foxx appeared to appeal for a delay in the vote. He cited statistics showing that 8,000 Charlotteans are homeless, including more than 3,200 children.

"No argument can be made that will overcome the emotion," he said. With no agreement, "then we end up where we are right now - 3,000 kids without a place to sleep."

But council went ahead and voted.

"I'm pleased they upheld the policy," said Chris Stulginsky, 30, an Ayrsley homeowner. "We all hope the CMHP is able to find a site for their project within the guidelines of city policy."


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Sources: McClatchy Newspapers, Google Maps

Anthony Foxx Silent While Charlotte's Unemployed Voters Struggle In Cold Weather

Charlotte citizens are struggling, hurting and trying to survive one of the worst Winters in 20 years.

Due to the current Recession and high Regional Unemployment, many Charlotteans are now Homeless or without Heat and Electricity.

Why?

North Carolina's Energy and Gas Monopoly companies have no heart.

Gov. Bev Perdue allows Duke Energy and Piedmont Gas Execs to do as they please, even if it means cutting off Customers' Electricity and Gas in Freezing temperatures.

However....

Since Charlotte is now Mayor Anthony Foxx's city and since he made such BIG promises to help his hurting Charlotte Constituents, including Homeless citizens...

Why has Foxx been so quiet during this crisis?

Didn't he and the City of Charlotte receive almost $3M in Stimulus Funds to help with Heating Bills and Homelessness Prevention?

I'll ask again, why has Mayor Foxx been so quiet during this crisis?

Anthony Foxx doesn't care.

Why?

He thinks Pres. Barack Obama has his back no matter what.

Foxx really believes in his heart of hearts Pres. Obama is going to continue overlooking anything WRONG or Corrupt he does without consequences.

This includes wasting Stimulus Funds Federally allocated only for certain purposes. i.e., Homelessness Prevention, Energy Bill Assistance, etc.,

If you can recall while on the campaign trail Anthony Foxx blasted the Republicans for "not doing enough to help Charlotte's Homeless".

If you can also recall there's ONLY three things Anthony Foxx has done since he's been elected Charlotte Mayor:

1) Sign the Climate Agreement (for Partisan Political Brownie Points),

2) Get a full time Job as Attorney with a company that manufactures Buses for the City of Charlotte.

3) Establish a program to help Unemployed Bankers obtain No Interest Loans to start Small Businesses. (more Political Brownie Points)

That's It!!

Don't forget he also earns an additional $40,000. a year as Mayor.

What has Foxx actually done for his "Regular", Loyal Voters or Constituents??

You know the ones who went to the Polls for him and voted Straight Ticket.

Such as the Middle Class, Low Income, Senior Citizens, Recently Unemployed, etc.,

You know the same Voters who are now sitting in the Cold and Dark...

That's right NOTHING!

I didn't vote for Foxx because I knew he was a Self-absorbed man who ONLY appears to care about himself, NOT his Constituents!

Now by his latest actions (refusing to help Charlotte's Unemployed, Underemployed and Homeless citizens in Freezing Weather) he's proving me to be correct.

Any man regardless of his Ethnicity or Political Affiliation, who chooses to intentionally ignore hurting people in this Recession and Freezing Weather, doesn't deserve to serve in Public Office.

Its Politicians like Anthony Foxx who give Democrats a bad name because they LIE and don't care if you know that their lying.

No Politician can humanly possible keep every promise they make while running for office but it wouldn't hurt if they darn near tried!

Here's a few words of Political Wisdom for Charlotte Voters:

When candidates are running for Public Office don't get caught up in the hype of their speeches. Instead closely review their Public Service Records.

Prior to being elected President Barack Obama had a proven record of helping the less Fortunate, Anthony Foxx did not.

And...

STOP allowing the Charlotte Observer (community nickname: "Charlotte Disturber") to tell you how to vote at the Polls.

Last but certainly not least, next time you visit the Polls (2011) forget about that foolish, Partisan Straight Ticket Voting mess and vote Responsibly.

Anthony Foxx I'm praying for you.







Charlotte's Homeless Families Hit By Recession Struggle To Stay Warm In Brutal Weather


One of the worst cold spells in 30 years has become the latest reminder that Charlotte has a new definition of needy.

From families evicted to the streets for lack of a job, to low-income homeowners trying to pay utility bills, thousands of Carolinians have been struggling to stay warm.

Among them are people like Lesia Weeks, 37, a mother of four, who dodged the cold by sitting for hours in an 18-by-20-foot waiting room at the Salvation Army Center of Hope.

Retha Carriker, 42, another homeless mother, has spent her days sitting in the shelter's parking lot, huddled in the Mercury Villager that had served as her home until October.

Suffering along with them is a new strata of working- and middle-class people hit hard by the recession: those who can't afford their utility bills or repairs to their heating units.

"I heat my house with a wood stove because the HVAC has been broken since the recession started two years ago," says one small-business woman, who declined to give her name. "It's 52 degrees inside in the morning when I wake up, and at best it gets up to 60 degrees before bed."

The impact of the cold was nowhere more apparent than at Crisis Assistance Ministry, which offers help with utility bills. On Friday, a typically slow day, 74 people showed up hoping to get help to keep their utilities from being turned off, says Carol Hardison, executive director of the agency.

"There's a group of people who were making it without water, without electricity," she says. "But this prolonged cold has worn out their resources. ... When they get to a week like this, they have to figure out a way to get help."

Ruby Adams, 57, of west Charlotte says she is an example, having lasted without electricity since November.

She's raising her late daughter's three children, but sent them to live with neighbors weeks ago. She spends days at a friend's house. At night, she returns to her frigid home and sleeps next to a kerosene space heater.

When she shuts it off, she burrows beneath five comforters.

"I've never in my life experienced something like this," says Adams, who is unemployed. "I've just been devastated."

Yet to come: a weekend with some of the coldest temperatures this winter.

Shelters at capacity

No deaths in Charlotte have been blamed on the cold. But at least nine people have died in other parts of the country, including Kenneth Hammett, 55, of Gaffney, S.C., whose body was found in a tent behind a gas station.

He was homeless, a group most at risk during extreme weather.

For nearly a week now, Charlotte shelters have reported capacity crowds, including 500 at the men's shelter, and nearly 300 women and children at the Salvation Army Center of Hope.

Lesia Weeks says she has tried her best not to set foot outside the center all week, because the cold worsens complications from her chest surgery. Her best option is to sit in the shelter's cramped waiting room, where at any given time, you'll find two dozen women in winter garb, fending off gusts of cold muscling in through the front door.

Weeks and her children were locked out of their apartment for overdue rent in September, and they came to the shelter with only the clothes on their backs.

"If the shelter hadn't taken me in, I had a plan to give up my three children to Social Services," says Weeks, whose health problems cost her a job as a bus driver. "They were mad at me. But there's no way we could have lived on the streets in weather like this."

Retha Carriker says she moved to the shelter in the fall only because she had gotten custody of her 8-year-old daughter. Frigid nights spent living in her van were not a problem, she says, but this is a different kind of cold.

"For as long as this has lasted, I'd be dead by now or in the emergency room," says Carriker. "When it starts getting into the teens, you don't sleep. You just sit up all night and shiver."

She still prefers the van, for the peace and quiet.

But she says it's not where she wants to die.

Expensive heating repair costs

Anne Gannon, general manager of the Morris-Jenkins heating and air firm, says employees have been working overtime this week to handle hundreds of daily service calls, two or three times the level they usually see in January.

Often, when the technicians tell customers the cost of repairs, they'll say they can't afford them because they've lost their jobs or fear they're about to.

"We run into this more than 10 times a day," she says. "It's heartrending."

The cold snap comes as the region and country struggle to pull out of the worst recession in a generation. Mecklenburg had more than 10,000 home-foreclosure filings in the first 10 months of 2009. The Charlotte metropolitan region still suffers double-digit unemployment, and the professional and business services sector has shed nearly 5,000 jobs in the past year.

Winter's icy fingers have reached working- or middle-class people who once thought themselves immune. When the Observer asked for insights from people struggling to stay warm, a Department of Social Services worker, a small-business woman and a cook for a large local church were among those who responded.

The DSS employee e-mailed that his family has been heating its 2,000-square-foot home with a space heater since October. He added that his spouse lost her job due to a life-threatening illness, and the family hasn't been able to make ends meet.

He says he hears similar stories from other working people who come to DSS. Many, he says, are newly unemployed, whose income hasn't fallen low enough for them to get the full range of assistance available. (Hardison says the cutoff at Crisis Assistance Ministry is roughly $55,000 for a family of four.)

The church cook, a grandmother who didn't want to identify herself further, says that's been the case with her. She heats her Charlotte home with several space heaters because she can't afford to fix her furnace, which went out about two months ago.

"You work," she says, "but you have just enough to get by because you're living paycheck to paycheck."

After the bitter cold of the weekend, meteorologists are predicting a moderate warming trend next week. But that's little comfort for Ruby Adams.

Her heat pump died months ago, and she couldn't afford to fix it. She says the power company cut off her electricity in mid-November after the unit crashed.

With the rest of the house so cold she can see her breath, Adams confines herself to one dark bedroom, where she cooks meals in a frying pan atop the space heater.

She says Crisis Assistance Ministry agreed to pay about $600 of the $900 she owes on her power bill but told her she would have to raise the rest. She got commitments from her church and the Good Fellows, a charitable group that helps the needy.

Still, days passed and nothing happened.

Finally, she says, she called Friday and a Crisis Assistance worker told her the agency had paid its share. The Good Fellows paid as well, leaving only her church's contribution to get her lights on. She's hoping that can happen sometime this weekend.

Then, she says, she's hoping an assistance program will fix her heat pump. She'll need it. The National Weather Service's meteorologists are predicting an unusually cold and wet winter in the Southeast.

"I'm so grateful," she says, referring to the assistance she's received. "I've been through hell and high waters."







Anthony Foxx Takes Hand-off From McCrory



A crowd of hundreds watched as Anthony Foxx was sworn in as Charlotte’s new Mayor Monday night, after which Foxx gave a solemn speech noting the city’s tough economic climate and the need to create jobs.

Foxx mentioned some of the city’s struggles, such as the region’s 12 percent unemployment and “even higher levels of unemployment.” He talked about the region’s declining home values and high rate of foreclosures.

Foxx listed a number of proposals he wants the Charlotte City Council to enact, such as changing a small business loan program to target new businesses in fields such as finance and green energy.

He also issued a call to help the city’s Homeless population.

“Charlotte has always had a conscience,” Foxx said during a speech after he took the oath of office. “We have to address housing … in particular, homelessness. We live in a city in which, in any given night, 3,000 young people wake up not knowing where they will go to sleep at night.”

Foxx is the city’s first Democratic mayor in 22 years. He takes office with a council dominated by Democrats, who hold an 8-3 majority – the biggest advantage one party has had on the council since the late 1970s.

Democrats Patrick Cannon and David Howard also became new at-large council members Monday night.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center was flooded with an estimated 700 onlookers, who not only filled the council’s chambers, but the lobby and at least three conference rooms, where they watched the ceremony on television.

Much of the night was introspective – as former Mayor Pat McCrory and council member John Lassiter were honored for their service.

McCrory served as mayor for 14 years, and was first elected to the council in 1989. Lassiter, who lost the mayoral election to Foxx, served six years on the council. He also served on the Board of Education.

Democrat Susan Burgess, who was unanimously chosen by her colleagues as Mayor Pro Tem, thanked McCrory for his service, and then gave him a collection of DVDs from the television show “24″ – a joke about McCrory noting during Monday night council meetings that he was missing the show.

McCrory, who occasionally choked up, told a story about President George W. Bush visiting the city earlier this decade.

McCrory said the Secret Service had mistakenly taken him for U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, and asked if he needed a ride to the airport. Not wanting to turn down a ride in the presidential limo, McCrory said yes.

When they arrived at the airport, McCrory remembers the president walking up the stairs to Air Force One and Burr leaving in another car to his plane.

“I get out, and the stairs pull away and the limo drives off,” McCrory said. “I’m stranded on the runway by myself. You are in the arena, you are in the car … and then you are out of the car.”

McCrory later said he’s proud that Charlotte isn’t confused any more with Charleston and that people don’t have to refer to it as Charlotte, North Carolina.

“We’re known as Charlotte throughout the world,” McCrory said.

Lassiter, a fellow Republican who has known McCrory for more than two decades, said:

“He has a knack for complicated issues and long-term issues. His legacy will be in transportation and hospitality and tourism.”

McCrory presented Lassiter with an award named for former Mayor Richard Vinroot, which honors people who have given years of public service to the city.






View Larger Map


Sources: McClatchy Newspapers, Charlotte Observer, WCNC, Daily Kos, Youtube, Google Maps

America's Homeless Citizens Struggle To Keep Warm During Cold Recession

In Winter, Some Homeless Choose Between Independence, Warmth


The heat isn't working in the house, so Brook does what he can to keep warm for his night's sleep. He wears a thick coat and about five layers underneath, with a hat covering the hood that he draws close to his face.

He covers up with a donated blanket and rests his head on a bag where he keeps his belongings. The heat isn't working because he's not paying the bills. In fact, it's not his house -- it's abandoned, and he's not supposed to be there.

Brook, a 42-year-old homeless Atlanta man, is describing one of what he calls his many "catholes" -- places he's found to sleep and that provide some refuge from the elements. Standing on a central Atlanta sidewalk on an unusually bone-chilling Southern night on Tuesday, he says homeless shelters generally aren't for him. He doesn't trust the men who stay there, and he thinks he's better off alone.

"It's an environment where you can't keep your eyes closed," says Brook, who declined to give his full name and says he's seen too many men stealing from others in shelters.

Brook is among the thousands of Atlanta-area homeless choosing where to keep warm this week as a cold snap blisters much of the nation, including Southern states not used to an extended period of freezing temperatures.

Sherman Vickers, 63, also prefers to sleep on his own, usually using shelters and other homeless services only for meals and showers. On fair-weather days, he sleeps in parks, resting on a mat of inch-thick foam that he rolls up after using it.

But on Tuesday, a night when temperatures were in the 20s and wind chills were worse, Vickers was gratefully resting at The Shepherd's Inn, an emergency men's shelter run by Atlanta Union Mission, a Christian ministry.

"This time of year, you need to be somewhere out of the cold," Vickers, a homeless Atlanta resident, said Tuesday at the shelter.

This week, with morning temperatures in the teens, more people have flocked to The Shepherd's Inn than usual. The shelter, which normally takes in about 250 men nightly, took in more than 400 on Monday night, with cots and mats put in the kitchen and cafeteria to help with the increase, Atlanta Union Mission CEO Jim Reese said. An AUM shelter for women and children also saw an increase.

Though the cold weather strains resources at the emergency shelters, Reese said he sees the influx as an opportunity for the staff to invite more people into its life-skills and other programs, which provides reserved beds at other buildings.

How to help the homeless this winter

"I think what we would see is that might break a habit of being comfortable [sleeping] under a bridge," Reese said. "And maybe this environment ... gives them a chance to see it really is different."

More than 21,000 people in Atlanta and Fulton and DeKalb counties were projected to be homeless sometime last year, according to the Metro Atlanta Tri-Jurisdictional Collaborative, a group that addresses homelessness in the area.

Even this far south, the weather can be cold enough to kill. In February 2008, four apparently homeless people were found dead on one day in Atlanta, and authorities suspected below-freezing temperatures were a factor, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported then. In Fulton County, which includes part of Atlanta, two homeless people in 2006 and one in 2007 died of hypothermia, according to the county medical examiner's office.

Though shelters expand their capacity and other groups such as churches may offer makeshift refuge in extremely cold weather, not every homeless person who'd want to stay at a shelter can. In 2007, the U.S. Conference of Mayors reported that 12 of 23 U.S. cities surveyed said they had shelters that at least sometimes had to turn people away because of a lack of capacity.

Brook, who says he's been without a regular job for two years and on the streets or in jail for much of the time since he moved from New York in 2001, prefers to go it alone.

He hints he breaks the law to make money for food: "I don't sell drugs, but ... I'm in what you could call creative independent marketing and distribution -- I acquire things for low and I sell high." He says he's also a barber, having acquired clippers he uses to cut people's hair at a price he says is lower than area barber shops.

He says his catholes are many, from regular haunts such as certain abandoned houses and parking-garage stairwells, to those he'll improvise on the fly, such as Dumpsters that he'll line with cardboard.

Where he sleeps depends on where he is, what he can find unoccupied and the weather. On a cold week like this, an abandoned house is the choice spot, though he doesn't want to always use the same one for fear he'll get caught. Each morning he departs a sleeping place, he takes his bag with him and stashes it somewhere else, trying to leave no trace where he's slept.

The worst, he says, is when it's cold and raining. Two weeks ago, he said, he reluctantly went to a shelter because of rain. Fearing a theft, he didn't sleep.

"You sit in a chair with a light on, so you can't really rest, but you get off your feet," Brook said.

Brook says he'd prefer a place of his own and hopes to one day make and save enough to have one. But while he's homeless, he'll take his catholes over a shelter.

Vickers, who says he's been homeless for much of the time since the late 1980s after he suffered a hit-and-run injury and lost his Atlanta-based trucking job, may prefer the outdoors, but he'll take no chances in the cold. He's been at The Shepherd's Inn daily since mid-December, he said.

"Being here at the mission is a good thing. It's well-staffed, it's comfortable, clean, the food service is good, and they're safe," he said. "It's good being out of the cold."








What Happened To Charlotte's Hall House?


There are nearly three-thousand homeless children in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system.

This time last year, many of those kids had a place to stay when the weather was cold. Here, at Hall House.

This year, though...that's not an option.

Hall House is still standing in uptown Charlotte. But it's vacant -- totally empty.

That means many of those kids and their families are back on the streets...braving the 20-degree temps...and searching for help.

Our calls and e-mails to the Charlotte Housing Authority went unanswered today, but in weeks like this one it's easy to understand why the need is so great.

You may remember that it was once for sale...and not in the best of condition. And the community came to the rescue.

Volunteers showed up with tools and paint brushes to get this building in shape for the new arrivals. Folks really had to work hard to make this place livable.

It was home for more than 60 families, but after just a few months, of those families went packing, and some we understand have drifted back into reality of being homeless again.

A number of agencies did step up to the plate including the Salvation Army's women's shelter.

We found one place in Dilworth that also opened its doors to the displaced.

Some of those youngsters ended up at least for awhile at The Relatives in Dilworth.

Staffers here are aware issues that affect homeless children.

It is a group they call Charlotte's hidden population.

The children who stay here range in age between seven and 17, and

over the last year they've had to give more than 300 local children a place to stay.

"They find places to sleep sometimes behind bridges under buildings wherever they can go.

They're out in the cold. When the temperature goes down you wonder how the kids are keeping warm. It's kind of scary. "

The need is great and especially when you see an empty building like this that was once full of life.

Many people are asking the question...why. WBTV will continue to ask that question until we get answers.



View Larger Map


Sources: CNN, WBTV, Google Maps

Charlotte Leaders Keep Homeless Shelter Closed In Freezing Weather

As people are struggling to keep warm this Winter, here's a thought about helping the less fortunate and another example of hidden Gov't Corruption.

Why is it that as Charlotte Officials receive more and more Federal money earmarked for Homelessness Prevention, Charlotte's Homeless numbers are continuing to rise?

Charlotte's has very few shelters to house its Homeless citizens and Children.

There's hardly any Affordable, Decent Housing available for Charlotte's Low Income citizens, so....

Where or what is the Federal Funding ($3Million in Stimulus Funds, etc.) to help combat this crisis being used for?

Inquiring minds would like to know why are Charlotte-Mecklenburg City/ County Officials sitting on this money or wasting it instead of helping people get off the street?

Where did the $3 Million dollars in Stimulus Funds disappear to? How was it spent? To Whom? For What projects?

Charlotte Voters and Inquiring minds would like to know now!








What Happened To Charlotte's Hall House?


There are nearly three-thousand homeless children in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system.

This time last year, many of those kids had a place to stay when the weather was cold. Here, at Hall House.

This year, though...that's not an option.

Hall House is still standing in uptown Charlotte. But it's vacant -- totally empty.

That means many of those kids and their families are back on the streets...braving the 20-degree temps...and searching for help.

Our calls and e-mails to the Charlotte Housing Authority went unanswered today, but in weeks like this one it's easy to understand why the need is so great.

You may remember that it was once for sale...and not in the best of condition. And the community came to the rescue.

Volunteers showed up with tools and paint brushes to get this building in shape for the new arrivals. Folks really had to work hard to make this place livable.

It was home for more than 60 families, but after just a few months, of those families went packing, and some we understand have drifted back into reality of being homeless again.

A number of agencies did step up to the plate including the Salvation Army's women's shelter.

We found one place in Dilworth that also opened its doors to the displaced.

Some of those youngsters ended up at least for awhile at The Relatives in Dilworth.

Staffers here are aware issues that affect homeless children.

It is a group they call Charlotte's hidden population.

The children who stay here range in age between seven and 17, and

over the last year they've had to give more than 300 local children a place to stay.

"They find places to sleep sometimes behind bridges under buildings wherever they can go.

They're out in the cold. When the temperature goes down you wonder how the kids are keeping warm. It's kind of scary. "

The need is great and especially when you see an empty building like this that was once full of life.

Many people are asking the question...why. WBTV will continue to ask that question until we get answers.






Could Apartments For Charlotte's Homeless Open This Year?


Advocates for the homeless believe an apartment complex recently bought by Charlotte Housing Authority could be put to use a year sooner than expected, to fill gaps in sheltering the homeless.

Deronda Metz of the Salvation Army Women and Children's Shelter said she's been talking to the Housing Authority about the possibility.

"They're looking into it -- whether it would even be possible to get some units ready this year," said Metz. "If it's possible, I think that they can make it happen."

The apartments, off Wendover Road, have 230 units total. About 60 of those would be designated for homeless families, once they are renovated. The plan is to give the families who live there not just shelter, but job training and other social services.

Kathy -- she didn't want us to use her last name -- knows what it's like to need the help.

"I've slept outside before, and it's no fun," she said. Kathy is disabled from a back injury and pins in her neck, and lives at the Salvation Army Center of Hope while her social worker helps her qualify for disability payments and housing.

She's grateful for a bed at the shelter, because she knows space is tight. "I don't know where I'd be without them," she said.

Metz said this is the soonest the Center has filled up when compared to other winters. All 200 beds are taken and another 27 people are sleeping on mats on the floor. With temperatures dropping below freezing at night, Women with children continue to show up, and Metz doesn't want to turn anyone away.

"That's what makes our job hard, because we're dealing with people," said Metz.

There's still a lot of talking and a lot of work to be done to make the apartments available so soon, she said. But there's always hope.

"It would make a lot of families happy," she said.






Charlotte Cold Snap Sends Crowds To Shelters


Predictions of yet another week of sub-freezing temperatures have emergency shelters bracing for overflow crowds in coming days.

The Men's Shelter of Charlotte reports that it's taking in about 531 men a night - a jump of 31 in the past week. And the Salvation Army's Center of Hope is housing 294 women - 94 more than its bed capacity. Of that 294, 114 are children.

Dealing with an influx during cold snaps is nothing new to either. But charities say the recession has changed expectations. It's possible that Charlotte has more homeless this year, and they'll soon be standing in line at the door.

"Last year in cold snaps, we averaged about 520," said Carson Dean of the men's shelter. "But because we're seeing so many people we've never seen before, we're bracing for the average to start creeping up to 600. I am worried: What will we do if the number gets consistently over 600? We'll have to draw up a new plan."

At the Center of Hope, preparations are being made to find beds for at least an extra 50 women a night. The center sends those it can't serve to the Urban Ministry Center's Room in the Inn program, which puts the homeless in local houses of worship.

But an increasing number of women are showing up too late in the day to qualify for Room in the Inn, said Deronda Metz, director of social services at the Center of Hope.

"If they show up at the door after 3 p.m., we need to find a place for them on the floor," Metz said. "The question is: When will even the floor space be too crowded?"

It's not just the homeless shelters that are feeling the impact of the cold. The frigid temperatures come at a time when more people are struggling to pay utility bills. Duke Energy officials say the number of electricity cut-offs from January to November of last year increased 6.7 percent over the same period in 2008.

Duke declined to say how many accounts were shut off, citing customer privacy. However, of the 131 people standing in line Monday at Crisis Assistance Ministry, 15 had no utilities and 54 others were losing their utilities that day.

The agency also kept three households from being evicted.

Crisis Assistance is helping 25 percent more people pay for rent and utilities than last year, said Carol Hardison, the agency's executive director.

"These families have no place else to turn. They are desperate," said Hardison. "We're the point of last resort before a family sleeps in the cold, or worse yet, becomes homeless. Warmth and shelter are two of the most basic needs of life."

The average amount required to prevent eviction and utility disconnection is $320 per household.

The recently re-launched Critical Need Response Fund will help in coming months, if the cold persists or worsens. The fund, which is managed by Foundation for the Carolinas, has already given out $450,000 since Dec. 18.

The money went in equal shares to Crisis Assistance Ministry, the Men's Shelter of Charlotte and Loaves & Fishes food bank.








Charlotte-Mecklenburg Gets Another Federal Grant For Homeless


Charlotte-Mecklenburg Area Mental Health will get more than $2 million in Federal money to provide services and housing to homeless people, U.S. Rep. Larry Kissell announced this week.

The “shelter plus care” grant is designed to offer long-term support to homeless people with mental illness, addiction or AIDS.

Piedmont Behavioral Healthcare, which serves Cabarrus, Davidson, Rowan, Stanly and Union counties, also received an $84,744 grant.






Stimulus Money Will Aid Struggling Charlotte Renters</span>


An initiative to help people facing a housing crisis in outlying counties has received $1.4 million in Federal Stimulus money.

Charlotte-based Community Link will oversee the project, which focuses on both the homeless and struggling renters in Cabarrus, Davidson, Rowan, Stanly and Union counties. All but Union have unemployment rates higher than Mecklenburg, with Rowan the highest at 12.8 percent.

Floyd Davis, president of Community Link, says aid should start by mid-November. The money, awarded through the Department of Housing and Urban Development, is expected to help at least 150 individuals and families annually for the next three years.

"We have many people today who find themselves unemployed, not because they weren't a good worker, but because the business they worked for closed or they were laid off," said Davis, who applied for the HUD grant through the state in September.

"This program is to help them maintain housing and support services until they can get back on their feet. ...We can pay for their entire housing costs for up to 18 months."

Community Link will divide the recipients into two categories: 45 of them each year will be homeless who need housing; and 105 will be tenants who can't keep up with rent and utilities. They can stay in the program for no more than 18 months. Those who qualify will be given a case manager and other support, Davis said. Community Link, which helped 7,000 struggling people find affordable housing last year, will add two staffers for the program.

To find candidates, Community Link is partnering with six agencies in the five counties, all of which meet needs ranging from emergency shelter to help with utilities and rent.

One of those partners, Rowan Helping Ministries, runs a shelter in Rowan County. It recently saw a good candidate for the new assistance program in a family of six.

"The parents lost their jobs, lost their home, and had no place else to go," said Penny Bowman, program director for the ministry. "They stayed in our shelter for six months, until the dad did get a job."

Stanly County, where unemployment is 11.9 percent, just got its first emergency housing shelter in September. It has eight beds and was started by Homes of Hope, a partner in the new housing effort.

"We have a lot of average people in this county who are about to be homeless and if we could just find a way to get them through this next year, they could make it back," said Executive Director Skeet Ayscue.

In Cabarrus, the new program could put a dent in the estimated 240 families a month that face a housing crisis, said Ed Hosack, executive director of Cooperative Christian Ministry in Concord, another of the groups participating.

"We have three foreclosures a day and over eight eviction notices served a day," said Hosack. "We do not have the shelter and transitional housing facilities to respond to that. We know this program can have a tremendous impact in keeping some families in their homes, and helping others get back into a place rather quickly."

Cabarrus' problems with unemployment go back years, he says, citing the closing of Pillowtex in 2003, which wiped out 4,000 jobs in Cabarrus and Rowan counties.

The HUD money comes from the same federal pool that helped launch Project Hope in Charlotte in August. That $2 million project is crafted as a long-term solution for homelessness, proposing to pull Mecklenburg families and individuals from shelters, put them in apartments and stabilize their lives over 18 months.

Davis sees Community Link's program as a regional extension of the goals championed by Project Hope.

"It makes much more sense in my mind to help people stay in housing, as opposed to letting them become homeless and suffer all the disruption to their lives in a time of crisis," said Davis.

"I'm happy that HUD is finally looking at prevention, and I think it will be more efficient and effective."




Charlotte Strategy Goes Beyond Housing Homeless


Project Hope – a groundbreaking program that could change the way Charlotte deals with homelessness – is expected to be unveiled tonight as part of a Charlotte City Council vote to back the project with nearly $2 million in Federal Stimulus money.

Crafted to be a long-term solution rather than a quick fix, the program calls for pulling families and individuals from local shelters, putting them in rental apartments, and stabilizing their lives over 18 months with education, job skills, counseling and support from social workers and teams of volunteers.

The start-up plan calls for 100 families to be helped over the next three years. However, organizers predict hundreds more could be recruited if plans for another $2 million in stimulus money from the state fall into place in the coming months. Steps are also being finalized for a campaign to raise further money from local donors.

“It's a very exciting time,” says Roxianna Johnson, head of the Homeless Services Network, a coalition of 37 nonprofit, government and faith-based programs devoted to ending homelessness in Mecklenburg County.

“These dollars have created an opportunity to try things that we've talked about for years, things that we know work, but we never had the funding to implement on this kind of scale.”

The council will vote to contract with Crisis Assistance Ministry and the Workforce Initiative for Supportive Housing (WISH). Those groups will manage Project Hope on behalf of the Homeless Services Network. A small portion of the stimulus money will also go toward short-term homeless prevention, including help with rent.

How the participants will be chosen is still being worked out. But the goal is reaching the most vulnerable of the homeless.

“Lives will be changed,” says Carol Hardison, director of Crisis Assistance Ministry. “They'll move from the fear of sleeping in a car or on a cot, to having an opportunity for financial stability.”

The ultimate goal, she says, is to keep participants from returning to homelessness once their time in the program ends.

That is the basic philosophy of WISH, which has helped 70 homeless families (including 130 children) work toward financial stability since being launched 18 months ago.

Sarah Covington, 28, is among them – and an example of what WISH hopes to accomplish in Project Hope. She lost her job last year as a certified nurse's assistant and spent the winter in a homeless shelter with her daughter. WISH found her a home, helped her find a job, and gave her a chance to enroll in college to become a registered nurse.

Better still, she says, the program showed her how to save for a down payment on a car, eliminating six hours a day riding the bus to work and school.

“If I keep working hard, everything is going to come through for me,” she says. “I was at a low point, worrying about where my child would lay her head at night. But I was truly blessed to get into this program.”

The Salvation Army's Center of Hope, a homeless shelter near uptown, will direct families and individuals to Project Hope. Center director Deronda Metz has already identified a few dozen families that she hopes will qualify. The center currently has 310 women and children, some of whom have been homeless for more than a year.

“We had a resident meeting on Wednesday and I grabbed the mic and I surprised them with the news on Project Hope, and they cheered and applauded,” said Metz. “One lady started crying. She said, ‘I didn't think anybody was listening.'”

Organizers say one of the most innovative parts of the project is the partnerships from all segments of the community. In addition to Crisis Assistance and WISH, Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services will assign three social workers to the project, more if the additional money comes through. The nonprofit Foundation for the Carolinas has worked behind the scenes to organize regular meetings of the partners.

Also key is an endorsement by the Greater Charlotte Apartment Association, which is encouraging apartment companies to participate on a case-by-case basis.

WISH Director Darren Ash believes a key to the program's success will be in matching homeless people with teams of volunteers.

“Social workers are there to lay out a path and hold people accountable, but what creates significant change is … when these families bond with people who have a different past,” Ash says. “They break away from other role models to a new set of role models.

“One of the biggest gifts Charlotte has is a sense of volunteerism, and this is a model that takes advantage of that.”



View Larger Map


Sources: WBTV, McClatchy Newspapers, Charlotte Observer, WCNC, A Child's Place, Charmeck.org, Charlotte Rescue Mission, Yahoo, Youtube, Google Maps

Charlotte Officials Sit On $3M Stimulus Funds Earmarked For Homelessness Prevention

As people are struggling to keep warm this Winter, here's a thought about helping the less fortunate and another example of hidden Gov't Corruption.

Why is it that as Charlotte Officials receive more and more Federal money earmarked for Homelessness Prevention, Charlotte's Homeless numbers are continuing to rise?

Charlotte's has very few shelters to house its Homeless citizens and Children.

There's hardly any Affordable, Decent Housing available for Charlotte's Low Income citizens, so....

Where or what is the Federal Funding (Stimulus Funds, etc.) to help combat this crisis being used for?

Inquiring minds would like to know why are Charlotte-Mecklenburg City/ County Officials sitting on this money or wasting it instead of helping people get off the street?

Inquiring minds would like to know now!










Could Apartments For Charlotte's Homeless Open This Year?


Advocates for the homeless believe an apartment complex recently bought by Charlotte Housing Authority could be put to use a year sooner than expected, to fill gaps in sheltering the homeless.

Deronda Metz of the Salvation Army Women and Children's Shelter said she's been talking to the Housing Authority about the possibility.

"They're looking into it -- whether it would even be possible to get some units ready this year," said Metz. "If it's possible, I think that they can make it happen."

The apartments, off Wendover Road, have 230 units total. About 60 of those would be designated for homeless families, once they are renovated. The plan is to give the families who live there not just shelter, but job training and other social services.

Kathy -- she didn't want us to use her last name -- knows what it's like to need the help.

"I've slept outside before, and it's no fun," she said. Kathy is disabled from a back injury and pins in her neck, and lives at the Salvation Army Center of Hope while her social worker helps her qualify for disability payments and housing.

She's grateful for a bed at the shelter, because she knows space is tight. "I don't know where I'd be without them," she said.

Metz said this is the soonest the Center has filled up when compared to other winters. All 200 beds are taken and another 27 people are sleeping on mats on the floor. With temperatures dropping below freezing at night, Women with children continue to show up, and Metz doesn't want to turn anyone away.

"That's what makes our job hard, because we're dealing with people," said Metz.

There's still a lot of talking and a lot of work to be done to make the apartments available so soon, she said. But there's always hope.

"It would make a lot of families happy," she said.







Charlotte Cold Snap Sends Crowds To Shelters


Predictions of yet another week of sub-freezing temperatures have emergency shelters bracing for overflow crowds in coming days.

The Men's Shelter of Charlotte reports that it's taking in about 531 men a night - a jump of 31 in the past week. And the Salvation Army's Center of Hope is housing 294 women - 94 more than its bed capacity. Of that 294, 114 are children.

Dealing with an influx during cold snaps is nothing new to either. But charities say the recession has changed expectations. It's possible that Charlotte has more homeless this year, and they'll soon be standing in line at the door.

"Last year in cold snaps, we averaged about 520," said Carson Dean of the men's shelter. "But because we're seeing so many people we've never seen before, we're bracing for the average to start creeping up to 600. I am worried: What will we do if the number gets consistently over 600? We'll have to draw up a new plan."

At the Center of Hope, preparations are being made to find beds for at least an extra 50 women a night. The center sends those it can't serve to the Urban Ministry Center's Room in the Inn program, which puts the homeless in local houses of worship.

But an increasing number of women are showing up too late in the day to qualify for Room in the Inn, said Deronda Metz, director of social services at the Center of Hope.

"If they show up at the door after 3 p.m., we need to find a place for them on the floor," Metz said. "The question is: When will even the floor space be too crowded?"

It's not just the homeless shelters that are feeling the impact of the cold. The frigid temperatures come at a time when more people are struggling to pay utility bills. Duke Energy officials say the number of electricity cut-offs from January to November of last year increased 6.7 percent over the same period in 2008.

Duke declined to say how many accounts were shut off, citing customer privacy. However, of the 131 people standing in line Monday at Crisis Assistance Ministry, 15 had no utilities and 54 others were losing their utilities that day.

The agency also kept three households from being evicted.

Crisis Assistance is helping 25 percent more people pay for rent and utilities than last year, said Carol Hardison, the agency's executive director.

"These families have no place else to turn. They are desperate," said Hardison. "We're the point of last resort before a family sleeps in the cold, or worse yet, becomes homeless. Warmth and shelter are two of the most basic needs of life."

The average amount required to prevent eviction and utility disconnection is $320 per household.

The recently re-launched Critical Need Response Fund will help in coming months, if the cold persists or worsens. The fund, which is managed by Foundation for the Carolinas, has already given out $450,000 since Dec. 18.

The money went in equal shares to Crisis Assistance Ministry, the Men's Shelter of Charlotte and Loaves & Fishes food bank.








Charlotte-Mecklenburg Gets Another Federal Grant For Homeless


Charlotte-Mecklenburg Area Mental Health will get more than $2 million in Federal money to provide services and housing to homeless people, U.S. Rep. Larry Kissell announced this week.

The “shelter plus care” grant is designed to offer long-term support to homeless people with mental illness, addiction or AIDS.

Piedmont Behavioral Healthcare, which serves Cabarrus, Davidson, Rowan, Stanly and Union counties, also received an $84,744 grant.




Stimulus Money Will Aid Struggling Charlotte Renters</span>


An initiative to help people facing a housing crisis in outlying counties has received $1.4 million in Federal Stimulus money.

Charlotte-based Community Link will oversee the project, which focuses on both the homeless and struggling renters in Cabarrus, Davidson, Rowan, Stanly and Union counties. All but Union have unemployment rates higher than Mecklenburg, with Rowan the highest at 12.8 percent.

Floyd Davis, president of Community Link, says aid should start by mid-November. The money, awarded through the Department of Housing and Urban Development, is expected to help at least 150 individuals and families annually for the next three years.

"We have many people today who find themselves unemployed, not because they weren't a good worker, but because the business they worked for closed or they were laid off," said Davis, who applied for the HUD grant through the state in September.

"This program is to help them maintain housing and support services until they can get back on their feet. ...We can pay for their entire housing costs for up to 18 months."

Community Link will divide the recipients into two categories: 45 of them each year will be homeless who need housing; and 105 will be tenants who can't keep up with rent and utilities. They can stay in the program for no more than 18 months. Those who qualify will be given a case manager and other support, Davis said. Community Link, which helped 7,000 struggling people find affordable housing last year, will add two staffers for the program.

To find candidates, Community Link is partnering with six agencies in the five counties, all of which meet needs ranging from emergency shelter to help with utilities and rent.

One of those partners, Rowan Helping Ministries, runs a shelter in Rowan County. It recently saw a good candidate for the new assistance program in a family of six.

"The parents lost their jobs, lost their home, and had no place else to go," said Penny Bowman, program director for the ministry. "They stayed in our shelter for six months, until the dad did get a job."

Stanly County, where unemployment is 11.9 percent, just got its first emergency housing shelter in September. It has eight beds and was started by Homes of Hope, a partner in the new housing effort.

"We have a lot of average people in this county who are about to be homeless and if we could just find a way to get them through this next year, they could make it back," said Executive Director Skeet Ayscue.

In Cabarrus, the new program could put a dent in the estimated 240 families a month that face a housing crisis, said Ed Hosack, executive director of Cooperative Christian Ministry in Concord, another of the groups participating.

"We have three foreclosures a day and over eight eviction notices served a day," said Hosack. "We do not have the shelter and transitional housing facilities to respond to that. We know this program can have a tremendous impact in keeping some families in their homes, and helping others get back into a place rather quickly."

Cabarrus' problems with unemployment go back years, he says, citing the closing of Pillowtex in 2003, which wiped out 4,000 jobs in Cabarrus and Rowan counties.

The HUD money comes from the same federal pool that helped launch Project Hope in Charlotte in August. That $2 million project is crafted as a long-term solution for homelessness, proposing to pull Mecklenburg families and individuals from shelters, put them in apartments and stabilize their lives over 18 months.

Davis sees Community Link's program as a regional extension of the goals championed by Project Hope.

"It makes much more sense in my mind to help people stay in housing, as opposed to letting them become homeless and suffer all the disruption to their lives in a time of crisis," said Davis.

"I'm happy that HUD is finally looking at prevention, and I think it will be more efficient and effective."




Charlotte Strategy Goes Beyond Housing Homeless


Project Hope – a groundbreaking program that could change the way Charlotte deals with homelessness – is expected to be unveiled tonight as part of a Charlotte City Council vote to back the project with nearly $2 million in Federal Stimulus money.

Crafted to be a long-term solution rather than a quick fix, the program calls for pulling families and individuals from local shelters, putting them in rental apartments, and stabilizing their lives over 18 months with education, job skills, counseling and support from social workers and teams of volunteers.

The start-up plan calls for 100 families to be helped over the next three years. However, organizers predict hundreds more could be recruited if plans for another $2 million in stimulus money from the state fall into place in the coming months. Steps are also being finalized for a campaign to raise further money from local donors.

“It's a very exciting time,” says Roxianna Johnson, head of the Homeless Services Network, a coalition of 37 nonprofit, government and faith-based programs devoted to ending homelessness in Mecklenburg County.

“These dollars have created an opportunity to try things that we've talked about for years, things that we know work, but we never had the funding to implement on this kind of scale.”

The council will vote to contract with Crisis Assistance Ministry and the Workforce Initiative for Supportive Housing (WISH). Those groups will manage Project Hope on behalf of the Homeless Services Network. A small portion of the stimulus money will also go toward short-term homeless prevention, including help with rent.

How the participants will be chosen is still being worked out. But the goal is reaching the most vulnerable of the homeless.

“Lives will be changed,” says Carol Hardison, director of Crisis Assistance Ministry. “They'll move from the fear of sleeping in a car or on a cot, to having an opportunity for financial stability.”

The ultimate goal, she says, is to keep participants from returning to homelessness once their time in the program ends.

That is the basic philosophy of WISH, which has helped 70 homeless families (including 130 children) work toward financial stability since being launched 18 months ago.

Sarah Covington, 28, is among them – and an example of what WISH hopes to accomplish in Project Hope. She lost her job last year as a certified nurse's assistant and spent the winter in a homeless shelter with her daughter. WISH found her a home, helped her find a job, and gave her a chance to enroll in college to become a registered nurse.

Better still, she says, the program showed her how to save for a down payment on a car, eliminating six hours a day riding the bus to work and school.

“If I keep working hard, everything is going to come through for me,” she says. “I was at a low point, worrying about where my child would lay her head at night. But I was truly blessed to get into this program.”

The Salvation Army's Center of Hope, a homeless shelter near uptown, will direct families and individuals to Project Hope. Center director Deronda Metz has already identified a few dozen families that she hopes will qualify. The center currently has 310 women and children, some of whom have been homeless for more than a year.

“We had a resident meeting on Wednesday and I grabbed the mic and I surprised them with the news on Project Hope, and they cheered and applauded,” said Metz. “One lady started crying. She said, ‘I didn't think anybody was listening.'”

Organizers say one of the most innovative parts of the project is the partnerships from all segments of the community. In addition to Crisis Assistance and WISH, Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services will assign three social workers to the project, more if the additional money comes through. The nonprofit Foundation for the Carolinas has worked behind the scenes to organize regular meetings of the partners.

Also key is an endorsement by the Greater Charlotte Apartment Association, which is encouraging apartment companies to participate on a case-by-case basis.

WISH Director Darren Ash believes a key to the program's success will be in matching homeless people with teams of volunteers.

“Social workers are there to lay out a path and hold people accountable, but what creates significant change is … when these families bond with people who have a different past,” Ash says. “They break away from other role models to a new set of role models.

“One of the biggest gifts Charlotte has is a sense of volunteerism, and this is a model that takes advantage of that.”




Charlotte City Council Uses MY 2007 Project H.O.P.E. Idea To Eliminate Homelessness & Win 2009 Elections (Here are the forwarded e-mails as proof.)


PROJECT CHARLOTTE H.O.P.E. PROPOSAL / Please also forward to Mr. Rodney Hood and Mrs. Sarah Stevenson
Tuesday, May 8, 2007 2:10 PM
From:
"Laurel
Add sender to Contacts

To:
malachigreene@gmail.com, gdunlap@bellsouth.net, sjohnston@tueforumclt.org, TueForum@tueforumclt.org, jennifer.roberts@mecklenburgcountync.gov, phelms@helmshenderson.com, dan@danramirez.com, karen.bentley@mecklenburgcountync.gov, normanam@aol.com, 2woodard@bellsouth.net, dumontclarke@mvalaw.com, dan@votedanbishop.com, wjames@carolina.rr.com, ddixon@pridecommunications.net, SBurg346@aol.com

Cc:
FoxxCharlotte@aol.com, JamesDistrict2@aol.com, patmumford@bellsouth.net, 71170.3036@compuserve.com, dwlochman@yahoo.com, district3_turner@yahoo.com, Lassiter@bellsouth.net, pkinsey@carolina.rr.com, adulin1@carolina.rr.com, barnesdistrict4@aol.com

Bcc:
yvonne.m.evans@nccourts.org, malachigreene@gmail.com, Charlied@ncleg.net, superintendent@cms.k12.nc.us, Maurice.Green@cms.k12.nc.us, washingtonbureau@naacpnet.org, actso@naacpnet.org, youth@naacpnet.org, torrey@pridecommunications.net, ncnaacp@gmail.com, RThames@charlotteobserver.com

Message contains attachments
project hope REVISIONS 1.rtf (67KB)
(Please also forward this e-mail to Mr. Rodney Hood
and Mrs. Sarah Stevenson.)


May 08, 2007

Dear Charlotte-Mecklenburg City/ County Officials and
Fine Citizens:

It was a pleasure meeting most of you during the Tuesday
Breakfast Forum this morning. I look forward to
perhaps speaking with you again in the future.

Thank you in advance for taking the time out of your
busy schedule to read this COST EFFECTIVE,
SELF-SUPPORTING Project Proposal that I am presenting
to you.

This COST EFFECTIVE, SELF-SUPPORTING Program is
designed to:

Help ELIMINATE POVERTY in Charlotte, STOP Gang
Activity, IMPROVE CHARLOTTE-MECK's ECONOMY, improve
Charlotte's DIVERSITY dynamics, Help to eliminate
Homelessness and improve the QUALITY OF LIFE FOR
CHILDREN living in this region.

This program can also be used to REPLACE the
MECKLENBURG COUNTY WOMEN'S COMMISSION EMPLOYMENT and
TRAINING PROGRAM, which appears to be NO LONGER
effective.

We should ALL want to help improve the Quality of
lives for our Children/Youth and help Low-Income
people to become productive citizens in this
community.

I hope this Project will provide answers for some of
the problems that are currently plaguing
Charlotte-Mecklenburg AND that this Project will be
the Catalyst for change needed to make Charlotte, NC a
UNIQUE, WORLD CLASS CITY.

(Please notify me if the attached document wasn't
accessible when you try to open it.)(The Attachment IS
Virus-free.)

THANKS and God Bless:)


Regards,



From:
"Laurel
Add sender to Contacts

To:
gflack1@bellsouth.net
Message contains attachments
project hope REVISIONS 1.rtf (67KB)
May 08, 2007


Dear Dr. Foloke:

It was a pleasure meeting you during the
Breakfast Forum this morning. I look forward to
perhaps speaking with you again in the near future.

Thank you in advance for taking the time out of your
busy schedule to read this COST EFFECTIVE,
SELF-SUPPORTING Project Proposal that I am presenting
to you.

I only request that the people for whom this project
is truly intended are the ones who are ACTUALLY
helped.

This COST EFFECTIVE, SELF-SUPPORTING Program is
designed to:

Help ELIMINATE POVERTY in Charlotte, STOP Gang
Activity, IMPROVE CHARLOTTE-MECK's ECONOMY, improve
Charlotte's DIVERSITY dynamics, Help to eliminate
Homelessness and improve the QUALITY OF LIFE FOR
CHILDREN living in this region.

This program can also be used to REPLACE the
MECKLENBURG COUNTY WOMEN'S COMMISSION EMPLOYMENT and
TRAINING PROGRAM, which appears to be NO LONGER
effective.

We should ALL want to help improve the Quality of
lives for our Children/Youth and help Low-Income
people to become productive citizens in this
community.

I hope this Project will provide answers for some of
the problems that are currently plaguing
Charlotte-Mecklenburg AND that this Project will be
the Catalyst for change needed to make Charlotte, NC a
UNIQUE, WORLD CLASS CITY.

(Please notify me if the attached document wasn't
accessible when you try to open it.)(The Attachment IS
Virus-free.)

THANKS and God Bless:)



"THE CHARLOTTE H.O.P.E. PROJECT": (TO BE UP AND OPERATIONAL BY 2008.) ONLY SERIOUS APPLICANTS NEED APPLY!

(CHARLOTTE Helping Others Progress Excellently) FOR SINGLE PARENTS/ ALL ELIGIBLE LOW-INCOME CITIZENS

(THIS IS A SHORT-TERM PROGRAM (12 TO 30 MONTHS/ CASE-BY-CASE BASIS) THAT REQUIRES EACH ELIGIBLE APPLICANT TO FULLY COOPERATE AND BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR OWN PERSONAL RESULTS.)

“There is no higher religion than human service. To work for the common good is the greatest creed.”
Albert Schweitzer

“The high destiny of the individual is to serve rather than to rule.”
Albert Einstein

“It's not only children who grow. Parents do too. As much as we watch to see what our children do with their lives, they are watching us to see what we do with ours. I can't tell my children to reach for the sun; All I can do is reach for it myself.”
Joyce Maynard


I. PROGRAM OBJECTIVE:

A Pilot Project COMMITTED to assisting Single Parents/ Low-Income Citizens in Charlotte-Mecklenburg, into becoming realistically, totally self-sufficient within a 12 to 30 Month period, on a Case-by-Case basis.

The program will be mainly funded by grants as to request very minimal financial assistance from the city budget and will operate with GREAT ACCOUNTABILITY in order to prevent wasting of precious funds and abuse by participants.

Participants will be required to follow ALL components of the program in order to remain active in the program and to benefit from the project. (NO EXCEPTIONS!) PARTICIPANTS WILL BE GIVEN THREE GRACE-PERIODS FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY BEFORE BEING TERMINATED COMPLETELY FROM THE PROJECT, WITH NO CHANCE TO RE-ENTER!
(NO EXCEPTIONS!)

ALL PARTICIPANTS MUST AGREE TO RANDOM DRUG TESTING WITHOUT OBJECTIONS.
FAILURE TO PASS A DRUG TEST WILL RESULT IN EXPULSION IN THE PROGRAM. NO EXCEPTIONS!!

THIS PROGRAM IS ONLY FOR SERIOUS PARTICIPANTS COMMITTED TO IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF THEIR LIVES AND THE CHARLOTTE COMMUNITY; NOT WASTING PROJECT MONEY!!

The program will promote diversity within the community by encouraging applicants of all races/ BOTH genders to apply.

It is to be considered that only ONE to TWO HUNDRED PARTICIPANTS will be selected in the beginning stages of the project as to prevent program overcrowding and case loads that are too heavy for proper accountability.

A WAITING LIST WILL BE MAINTAINED AND KEPT CURRENT DUE TO PARTICIPANTS LEAVING THE PROGRAM VOLUNTARILY AND INVOLUNTARILY.

The time frame of 12 to 30 months is due to the fact that poverty can’t be cured overnight. It has been proven that short-term solutions have not been successful instead only creating more waste of valuable funds.

The purpose of this project is to not only assist our community in eliminating the poverty-stricken state of so many Low-income/ Single Parent homes and their children, but to also provide Low-income Single Parents with the necessary tools to become TOTALLY productive, positive members of society.

(This project can be used as guide in assisting other Metropolitan cities experiencing the same needs.)

Single parents/ Low-Income Citizens must not be treated as though they are a “thorn in the side” within the community.

However, they must also not be encouraged to continue to create more poverty by just receiving hand-outs without any real accountability. This project will also positively discourage more children from being born out of wedlock without placing a stigma on the parents or the children.

The total success of this program will require the assistance of the ENTIRE Charlotte-Meck. community as to encourage the participants, to ensure that the requirements of the program are being followed, to ensure that no funds are being mismanaged and to encourage the building of strong, non-dysfunctional families.


II. BENEFITS OF THE PROGRAM WILL INCLUDE:

A. Counseling- (Counseling (by LICENSED MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS NOT SOCIAL WORKERS!) regarding self-esteem and self-image issues as to create new mindsets for the participants) (You can’t pour new wine into old wineskins.) Participants needing assistance with drug/ alcohol abuse or domestic violence counseling will be referred to programs or agencies for long- term counseling.

B. HOPE Seminars- (Required monthly seminars taught by guest speakers) that the participants must attend to remain encouraged in their endeavors

C. Mentoring- Parental mentoring/ Life Coaches and long- term Mentors for the children.

D. Life Skills training- (Parenting skills, long term financial counseling/ realistic budgeting, housing assistance (rental assistance will be allowed (if needed) only three times during the duration of their time in the program), assistance with finding safe, affordable housing, proper nutrition and menu planning, home economics (basic housekeeping/ basic cooking skills (cooking classes taught by Culinary school student volunteers (Johnson & Wales)

E. Long-term (16 weeks) Technology training- Participants will attend computer training classes for two hours every other Saturday. During the last three weeks of these sessions they will build their own PCs to take home and keep at the end of the training.
This component of the program will help to eliminate the digital divide within our community, assist the participants with completing school assignments and to assist their children with being able to pass the North Carolina Computer Competency exam in the future which is a state graduation requirement.

F. Child Care- The program will provide an on-site, five-star child care (using the CMS Bright Beginnings Curriculum) center for young children of the participants for children ages 6 weeks to 4 years. The parents of these children MUST remain active (full-time) in the program in order for their children to continue receiving care. The program will also assist with funding for off-site child care. The on-site center will include a summer program.

ALL CHILDREN WILL ATTEND APPROPRIATE AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS.
THIS INCLUDES CHILDREN AGES 12 TO 14, AS TO PREVENT THEM FROM JOINING GANGS AND TEEN PREGNANCIES.

The parents must also make time once a month (five hours) to visit and volunteer in their child’s classroom(s) whether it is in the Child Care Center or in their child's Public School classroom (this will be documented and signed by the child’s teacher). The parents must also join their child’s school PTA program if their child is in regular school (The HOPE project will provide such funding if needed). In order to receive this funding the participants will be required to provide documented, signed proof to their social worker or case worker on a monthly basis that they are in fact attending school AND passing their ALL of their classes.

The Project H.O.P.E. Child Care Center will be staffed by a highly qualified Program Director/ Assistant Director, some outside qualified candidates, qualified program volunteers and eligible program participants.
(THE CENTER WILL IMMEDIATELY STRIVE FOR NORTH CAROLINA'S CHILD DEVELOPMENT FIVE- STAR STATUS.)


G. A Love for Literacy and Creative Arts Component- The program will supply books as gifts once-a-week to the participants as to encourage the parents to spend time with their children by reading to them. Participants will attend family creative arts workshops every two months (Saturdays for one hour) with their children as to also encourage family involvement and visit the Mint Museum, The New South Museum and Discovery Place at the expense of the program or by soliciting sponsors of these trips.

H. Home Visits- The program will also require that the participants allow program social or caseworkers to make quarterly home visits for approximately one hour to further assist them in meeting their goals.

I. Transportation- The program will assist with transportation by providing participants with monthly CATS bus passes or gas assistance (no more than $30.00 to $50.00 per month by completing a mileage form listing all of their daily activity) and to award program graduates (ONLY graduates who have completed ALL components of the program including earning an educational certificate or an Associate’s degree), with a quality used car. Their contribution will only be $500.00 to be paid in Installments.
(Each Transportation Awardee must possess a Valid N.C. DL and Automobile Insurance before being allowed to drive the car.)


J. Legal Assistance- This component will assist program participants who have Misdemeanor/ Felony offenses on their records that are eligible for expungment and to make participants aware of some of their rights such as Tenant rights, Custodial Parental rights, etc.,

K. Career Planning/ Education: Participants will be allowed to take Career tests making them aware of their strengths and weaknesses before registering for any Educational programs. This component will also assist participants with up-to-date realistic, professional resume/ cover letter writing skills and interviewing skills. Participants will also be required to attend job fairs twice a year to hone interviewing skills and will receive assistance for creating a career wardrobe from the Dress-for-Success program, etc.,
APPLICANTS WHO DID NOT COMPLETE THEIR HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATION WILL BE REQUIRED TO DO SO WITHIN THEIR FIRST 3 TO 6 MONTHS OF ENTRY INTO THE PROGRAM. NO EXCEPTIONS!!


L. Notary Public (Optional) Component- This component will be optional, however encouraged as to assist ELIGIBLE participants in becoming North Carolina Notary Publics as to make them more marketable in the workforce.

M. An Interpreter for Hispanic Participants: The program will provide Interpreters for the Hispanic program participants.

N. An Annual Mother’s Day/ Birthday Party Program: Each year on the Friday before Mother’s Day the participants with children will attend a MANDATORY Mother’s Day program with their children and will receive gift bags, make-overs, decorated food baskets and enjoy a meal with their children. During this event five participants of the program who have been in the program for at least one year and made substantial progress will receive Mother-of-the-year plaques.
THIS IS TO PROMOTE POSITIVE PARENTING.
ALL PARTICIPANTS WILL ATTEND AN ANNUAL PARTY TO CELEBRATE THE BIRTHDAYS OF PROJECT PARTICIPANTS.

O. Food and Clothing for Program Participants and their Children:
All program participants will more than likely be eligible to receive food stamps. However, the case worker or social worker assigned to assist each participant in achieving their goals will see to it that the food stamps benefits are NOT being abused and that nutritious foods are being purchased. Participants needing clothes will be referred to the Salvation Army or will receive Wal-Mart gift cards of no more than fifty to seventy-five dollars per quarter. Participants who receive gift cards must provide receipts of the purchases to their case worker or social workers as proof of not being sold or abused. Once a year during Thanksgiving and Christmas each family will receive dinner gift baskets. Sponsors (The Charlotte Bobcats or The Panthers) will be encouraged to “adopt” a family to assist with Christmas purchases.

P. Homeownership Component: Each participant will be required to volunteer once a year (TEN hours) in the building of a Habitat-for-Humanity home. The participants will also be strongly encouraged to participate in that program as to become “homeowner minded”.

Q. Commitment: The participants must be committed to remain in the program for the ENTIRE time frame and complete each component of the program. All participants will sign a bi-lateral agreement stating they will be committed to completing the ENTIRE program. The Project will commit to assisting them in this endeavor.


III. REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTERING THE PROGRAM:

A. Application: Each perspective program participant must complete an EXTENSIVE, COMPLETE Application which will include a signed criminal background and credit check form. (Participants with Felony offenses will be considered for program acceptance on a Case-by-Case basis, due to some Felonies NOT being expungable.)Participants with Misdemeanor offenses eligible for expungement will also be considered for acceptance into the program.

B. Interviews: The perspective participants must pass a three-stage Interview process. The first interview will be with a Case Manager or a QUALIFIED Social Worker. The next interview will be with a LICENSED MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONAL.
The last interview will be with the Program Board Members. During the LAST phase of the Interview process four to five candidates will be interviewed together in a group style setting.
CANDIDATES WITH CHILDREN WILL ALSO BE INTERVIEWED BY THE PROJECT H.O.P.E. CHILD CARE CENTER DIRECTOR AND THE AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS DIRECTORS, THEREBY COMPLETING A FOURTH INTERVIEW.

C. Skills/ Educational Placement Test: Each perspective applicant is required to complete a placement test to see what level they will need to begin to complete their educational goals.
If participants already posses an Associate’s degree and wish to complete the requirements for a Bachelor’s degree, this will be permitted as long as it can earned within the three to five year time frame.
However for those to whom this will apply EACH participant is required to earn an Associate’s degree as to ensure their marketability in the workplace.

D. Health Physical: Each participant will be required to complete a physical by a doctor however no participant will be denied due to reasonable health risks as allowed by law. (The program participants will also be required to have an annual physical to be performed by a board-certified doctor.)
PROGRAM CASE MANAGERS AND SOCIAL WORKERS WILL ENSURE THAT ALL CHILDREN/ YOUTH ATTEND REQUIRED DOCTOR VISITS FOR PHYSICALS/ UP-TO-DATE IMMUNIZATIONS. NO EXCEPTIONS!!


IV. PROGRAM FUNDING:

The program will be mainly funded by grants such as (these are all ACTUAL foundations/ philanthropists) (This is NOT a complete list of funders/ resources):

The Carneige Corporation
Bill and Melinda Gates
Bank of America
Wachovia Corporation
Soroptimist International (The Women Opportunity Awards)
The Gerber foundation
The J. Paul Getty Trust foundation
The Duke Foundation
The John Simon Guggenheim Foundation
The T.E.A.C.H. scholarship
The John D. and Catherine T. McArthur Foundation
The Mega Foundation
The Andrew Mellon Foundation
The Arts & Science Council
The Joan Mitchell Foundation
The Mellon Foundation
The Morino Foundation/ Institute
The MSMS Foundation
The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust
The John P. Murphy Foundation
The Messer Fund
The Mustard Seed Foundation
Wal-Mart
The Charlotte Bobcats
The Charlotte Panthers
Children's Defense Fund
Afterschool Alliance is a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness of the importance of afterschool programs and advocating for quality, affordable programs for all children. It is supported by a group of public, private and nonprofit organizations that share the Alliance's vision of ensuring that all children have access to afterschool programs by 2010.
Child Care and Early Education Research Connections (CCEERC) promotes high quality research in child care and early education and the use of that research in policy making.

Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) is a membership-based child welfare organization.

Children’s Defense Fund is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to Leave No Child Behind® and to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start, and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities.

Children Now is a research organization that utilizes research and mass communications to make the well-being of children a top priority across the nation.
Docs for Tots is working to develop, support, and grow a nationwide network of doctors who can respond to the requests of child advocacy organizations and others to participate in advocating for policies and practices that improve the well-being of our youngest children. Docs For Tots was formed to encourage more doctors to fulfill their important role as active advocates for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers on the national, state and local levels.

Fight Crime: Invest in Kids is a bipartisan, nonprofit anti-crime organization led by police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors, victims of violence and leaders of police officer associations. The organization reviews research about what keeps kids from becoming criminals and puts that information in the hands of policymakers and the public.

National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is the nation’s largest organization of early childhood educators and others dedicated to improving the quality of programs for children from birth through third grade.

National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) supports early childhood education initiatives by providing objective, nonpartisan information based on research.

National Center for Children in Poverty is a part of the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, whose mission is to identify and promote strategies that prevent child poverty in the United States and that improve the lives of low-income children and their families.

National Governors Association Center for Best Practices helps governors and their staff develop and implement solutions to challenges facing their states, including early childhood education policies.

National Head Start Association is a not-for-profit membership organization that provides a national forum for the continued enhancement of Head Start services for poor children ages 0 through 5, and their families.

Parents’ Action for Children is a national nonprofit dedicated to advancing the interests of families and young children. Parents’ Action develops parent education materials, connects parents with one another, and fights for issues such as early education, health care, and high quality and affordable child care.

Voices for America’s Children is a national organization committed to working at the state and local levels to improve the well-being of children, with member organizations in almost every state.
Etc.,

(As stated above only MINIMAL funding from the City of Charlotte/ County will be necessary.)


V. LOCATION:

The location(s) of the program must be in a central part of Charlotte in which the community(ies) demonstrates SIGNIFICANT need of the services that this project will offer.

A. Some Location suggestions are:

The Grier Heights community (off of Monroe and Wendover Rds.)
West Charlotte (Beatties Ford rd. area)
Southwest Charlotte (the Nations Ford rd. area)
North Tryon street area (near the Hidden Valley Community)
Belmont Community


VI. VOLUNTEERS:

All Volunteers including faith-based volunteers will be welcome, however ALL volunteers will be required to complete a Criminal background check and ALL volunteer names will be checked against the National Sex Offender Registry List.


VII. STAFF:

ALL STAFF WILL BE HIRED ON A CONTRACTUAL BASIS. NO EXCEPTIONS!!

ONLY CASE MANAGERS AND QUALIFIED SOCIAL WORKERS WITH PREVIOUS, SUCCESSFUL EXPERIENCE IN WORKING WITH SUCH PROGRAMS WILL BE CONSIDERED FOR EMPLOYMENT CONTRACTS.

CASE MANAGER AND QUALIFIED SOCIAL WORKERS WILL BE GRANTED FOR TWO-YEAR CONTRACTS,TO BE RENEWED ONLY WITH "EXCEEDS" EMPLOYMENT EVALUATIONS.

EVALUATIONS TO BE GIVEN ANNUALLY BY THE PROJECT H.O.P.E. BOARD MEMBERS.



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Sources: McClatchy Newspapers, Charlotte Observer, WCNC, A Child's Place, Charmeck.org, Charlotte Rescue Mission, Yahoo, Youtube, Google Maps