The Importance of Internet Access

54: The number of minutes I spent on the phone with IT people during the resource fair yesterday.

I like resource fairs. It's nice to get out of the office for a while, and it's always satisfying to work directly with people who are looking for help. They're a lot of fun.

Let me clarify.

I usually like resource fairs. When everything goes smoothly, it can be a lot of fun.

And now I'll explain.

Kaitlyn and I were scheduled to do a resource fair in Dayton from 12-5 yesterday, so at about 10:15 we loaded up my car with the usual candies, literature, tri-fold and laptops and drove out there. And while we drove, we became more aware of the fact that this particular resource fair is being held at the Dayton Dragons baseball field. Outside.

This is when we start to get a little anxious. We were already cold just from walking from Shared Harvest to my car in the parking lot. Here are some of the things that were said on the drive:

"I am so glad I brought my jacket."
"What if it rains on our laptops?"
"Oh crap, we only get two chairs per booth. ... I guess people can just stand."
"I'm still not sure where to park. If I get a ticket, can I expense that?"

Finding the stadium was no problem. Figuring out where to park took a couple of drives around the same block, but we got there eventually. We also learned that we wouldn't be on the baseball field itself; we would be in that area where they sell hot dogs and baseball caps and whatnot. So at least we wouldn't get drenched if it rained. (Which it didn't!)

BUT when I went to set up my laptop (after Kaitlyn asked around for an extension cord), my broadband card would not allow me to connect to the internet. And even though we were there 30 minutes before the resource fair was set to start, people were already lining up at the booths. Poor Kaitlyn had to manage everyone who came to our booth, which was definitely one of the most popular booths there, while I spent nearly an hour talking to different people working in IT. It turns out my registration number doesn't match the serial number. It's all a great big complicated technological wiry mess.

Eventually we gave up on my computer and did whatever we could to make the process easier with only one laptop. I never realized how dependent I am to Internet access. I felt completely helpless. I fielded as many questiosn as I could and Kaitlyn did Quick Checks and Site Finders. I also grabbed a few YES cards and went around to some of the other nonprofit organizations who had booths there and asked them if they were interested in becoming a Benefit Bank site (which was actually pretty successful, woohoo!). But the whole ordeal would have been so much easier had we had two functioning laptops.

By the way, I meant to take pictures. I even had my hand on my camera at one point, but then a new wave of people came in and I completely forgot. I was simply too busy. And forgetful. But anyway.

All in all, it was completely worth it. It always is. We had a lot of people coming in who had just been laid off and had no idea where to go for help. We directed several to different Benefit Banks around Dayton. And almost no one had ever even heard of the program, so we're getting the word out.

And yes, it was cold and windy and our fingers were getting pretty numb. But we powered through.

And we'll bring gloves next time.

And maybe a thermos of hot chocolate.

The Dreaded Tax Season

147 million: The number of dollars the Benefit Bank has returned to Ohio's economy

I wasn't in the office all last week, which is why I am finally getting around to updating my blog. It has been pretty busy around here.

The dreaded tax season is upon us, so last week us Vistas went into Cincinnati to observe Meredith doing a tax training class. It was actually kind of relaxing to be on the student side of the training for once. No public speaking necessary. Take a look at the room where we were trained. ... We all felt like we were in the U.N.



We all felt pretty important sitting at those fancy round tables.

I have not been looking forward to doing these tax trainings AT ALL. My knowledge on taxes is pretty limited. But I feel like I was more prepared to sit in on this training than I was for the benefits one I did back in July. All I can remember from observing Meredith do the benefits trainng is that I was incredibly confused and overwhelmed. And now I am completely confident when it comes to training counselors about benefits.

I feel like this whole tax training thing is going to go along that path. I'm overwhelmed right now, but I'll get the hang of it. It just takes patience and preparation. Lots of patience. Lots of preparation.

So what the Benefit Bank does for taxes -- If you have a household income of $56,000 or less, you can file your income taxes for free. Or we can do it for you, at no charge. The Benefit Bank screens for different tax credits that often go unclaimed, unlike some other tax programs. And our clients can e-file directly to the IRS. Thing is, we get really busy during tax season. So hopefully people don't wait until the last minute.

I don't think it will be too difficult. As long as people remember to bring in all of their W2s and whatever else. I'm hanging in there! :)

Frustrating Trainings

2: The number of people in attendance at my most exhausting training yet.

I'm really tired.

I feel like I have gotten used to speaking in front of people at the trainings (I'm on a break for my third one right now). But that doesn't keep me from feeling completely drained by the time I begin the drive home.

These trainings can be really frustrating at times, and I feel like my patience is getting an extreme workout. I haven't snapped at anyone or anything like that, and I don't think I ever will. I am generally an easygoing person who tends to bottle up trivial things like frustration, anger and impatience. Writing is always a good outlet. Plus, I am literally too introverted to draw attention to myself by using a harsh voice. But anyway.

While these trainings are rewarding in the long run, knowing that I am helping people helping others, I tend to get a little frustrated with no-shows, rude counselors and those people who are completely computer-illiterate. So far I have never had a training with perfect attendance. There were supposed to be seven people in today's training. Three had the good grace to call or e-mail ahead of time to let me or Meredith know that they wouldn't be able to come. Two just didn't show up. So a class of seven turned into a class of two.

Which, really, is fine. As long as there is one person who wants to learn the program, I am more than willing to show them how to use it. But they are having a little trouble today. One of them forgot her glasses, so she can't really read the benefit guide. The other one isn't computer literate. He's the type of person who needs to look down at each individual key on the keyboard before pressing it. Needless to say, the training is going very slowly today.

In my training last week, I had to deal with a couple of rude individuals who seemed to think I was the person to blame for not rounding up and arresting illegal immigrants. They thought I was at fault, too, for giving incarcerated individuals the opportunity to apply for benefit programs. I think I handled that well, though. I just told them, "That's just the way it is," and Meredith was there to back me up.

Oh, the life of a community trainer. So many obstacles, so little recognition. Hopefully, so very rewarding at the end of the year.

First training

5: The number of people who came to my very first training.
11: The number of people who will be at my second training tomorrow!

Yesterday was my first training! I have to admit, I was realllly nervous the night before. There is so much information to learn. I felt like I had all the information I needed, but none of it was organized. I therefore spent most of Tuesday preparing what I was going to say.

There were six people who were supposed to be in my class, but only five people showed up, which I've heard is not very unusual. The training goes from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and in that time I explain to everyone what the benefit bank is, we practice the Quick Check program a couple of times, we go through a booklet of all of the different types of benefits the OBB offers, and we practice using the benefit bank program. Everyone has an additional booklet that introduces Alice Nelson, a woman living with her grandson who wants to apply for some benefit programs. All of her information is listed in the book, and the trainees can go through the program step by step so they have a feel for it.

There were a couple of people who weren't quite as computer literate as I would have liked, but everyone made it through the training. Afterward, Meredith gave me some great tips that I'm going to be sure to use tomorrow for training #2. I have already printed off my own schedule, like a little mini-script for myself, so I know exactly where I am and what I still need to cover at all times. I feel better with a cheat sheet.

P.S. I've added pictures to previous blog posts "Quick Checking" and "Painting by Numbers"! Check them out!

Success Stories

500,000: The number of Ohioans eligible for, but not receiving, food assistance.

Part of my Vista Assignment Description (VAD) is to drive to Warren County United Way in Lebanon once a week to help them with their marketing campaign. I am supposed to be over there at 9:00, but I start at Shared Harvest at 7:30. It is about a forty-five minute drive, so yesterday I showed up at Shared Harvest, started up my laptop, printed off directions, shut down my laptop, and headed over to Lebanon.

There wasn't too much for me to do on my first day, but I'm really excited to get started. Sandy, the communication/marketing director, told me that the success stories presented on the United Way Web site are really outdated and asked me to find some new stories among the agencies that United Way financially supports. This is the job for me. I did a lot of writing in college for my school newspaper, The Post. I've been missing journalism a lot, and I don't want to get rusty, so I figure this will be good practice.

I sent out an e-mail to all of the agency directors and staff asking them to either write a success story of their own or just send me some basic information so I can put it together. I figure if I don't hear back from anyone by next week, I can start calling them and conducting brief interviews. I just wanted to plant it in their minds so they can start thinking of some good success stories.

Tomorrow is my very first training -- eep! I am a little nervous, but I have all of the necessary materials packed up and I have scribbled countless notes to myself in my benefit and software guidebooks. Plus my supervisor, Meredith, will be there to make sure I stay on the right track and to respond to any questions I'm not sure how to answer.

Social note: So how about that Kanye West? Sheesh.

Quick Checking

35: The number of Quick Checks performed at the resource fair this weekend.

Saturday morning found Kaitlyn and me at my first resource fair at the Evangel Church of God in Dayton. At first I was a little annoyed to have to wake up early on a Saturday, but I actually slept in a little compared to my usual bedtime routine. Ever since I started this job I have had trouble waking up past 8 a.m. Maybe this means I've truly entered adulthood. But I digress.

This fair was designed to be a one-stop place for struggling families to find support and resources within their community. Needless to say, the Ohio Benefit Bank program fits this description perfectly. Kaitlyn and I were eager to bring in as many people as possible to use the Quick Check program, so in the week preceding the event we put together a colorful tri-fold, packed up as many informational leaflets as we could carry, and bought plenty of candy, the better to lure people to our booth. Check out our homemade trifold below!

I made the two middle posters myself!

By the way, the Quick Check program is a Web-based tool that tells you what your potential eligibility is for benefit programs such as food stamps, child care assistance, medical assistance, HEAP, etc. It asks for some really basic information and only takes about five minutes to complete. After doing that, we would ask for our client's address so we could find a benefit bank site near him or her so they could work on their application, which is also really easy to do through the Benefit Bank. So if you want to check out what YOUR eligibility is, go to http://www.governor.ohio.gov/Default.aspx?alias=www.governor.ohio.gov/obb and click on "Check on your potential eligibility for supports," the link on the righthand side. Moving on.

The fair itself looked awesome, though we didn't spend much time outside. Our booth was inside, because we needed to use our laptops. I think it worked out well because we would be asking people personal financial questions, and it might have been more difficult for them to open up if they were surrounded by people and balloons. But we could definitely hear someone shouting out numbers to Bingo cards, and there was a lot of music (inconviently located, I might add. I sometimes had to shout to my clients to be heard above the noise). I think they also had pony rides, but don't quote me on that. Pictured below is Kaitlyn at our booth:

The church's event planner, Pam, was incredibly helpful. About once every hour, she announced what we did and where our booth was, so we had a lot of people coming in. Also, she brought us lunch so we didn't have to leave our booth, which was really thoughtful of her.

We had about 35 people come in to use the Quick Check program, and almost all of them were eligible for at least one benefit. A lot of people had absolutely no idea that they would qualify. One woman nearly cried with relief when I told her she didn't have to pay school fees if her kids were on free lunch. It felt amazing to be able to help people like that.

It was, without a doubt, the best day I have had this year as a Vista. I feel like I really did make a difference.

Definitely worth waking up early on a Saturday.

Painting by Numbers

8: The number of years since September 11, 2001.

Because yesterday was the anniversary of the attack on the twin towers, Kaitlyn and I drove up to Columbus to meet up with the other Ohio Vistas and participate in a different kind of service. We have a lot of Vistas and only one site with which to work, so we were separated into two groups of about 30 people. Group A would begin the job and group B would try to finish it. Kaitlyn and I were in group A, so we met at a building that was once used as a convent. Our job was to paint and touch up some of the rooms so we could turn the building into a shelter for women and refugees. True, our painting supplies were somewhat meager -- we are a nonprofit organization, after all -- but everyone made up for it with enthusiastic optimism.

Our painting supplies

I was actually pretty impressed with the whole building. It was pretty well maintained, and had a certain charm about it. Kaitlyn and I were assigned to a small bedroom/sewing room. Check it out:

The "Before" shot

We eventually referred to this room as "the magical wishing room." Before we set to work we heard the sounds of a stray cat outside, and we both wished aloud that we wished the cat was with us, for more company. Less than five minutes later, the friendly cat found its way into our room! It didn't stay very long, but it was absolutely precious.

There wasn't much room to move around, but we shoved the furniture to the center of the room and taped around the light switches and the sink (Yes, this room had a sink). We found ourselves wishing we had something to step on so we could tape around the ceilings; the only chair in the room didn't look very durable. And what do you know -- a step stool appeared in the closet. Another wish granted by the Miracle Room. Finally, we were ready to paint!

We were told that the painting supplies were downstairs, but when we got there there were only a few more cans available: Gray, white, and green. We were also told that, because of our low resources, we would have to paint two walls one color and the other two walls a different color. We chose white and green and set to work.

After we touched up the paint around the taped areas of the room, we went in search of rollers and those whatchacallits (the pan you put the paint in? I'm blanking). Anyway, we quickly found that there were none available. Wanting to make the most of our two-hour drive, we painted as much of the room as we could with regular paintbrushes, anyway. We didn't get as much done as we would have liked, but another group of Vistas was on their way, and we did do a fantastic job with what we were able to paint (as far as we know).

All in all, it was a pretty fun trip. It was nice to do some direct service, but I wish we could have stayed in our own communities. There are places all around Ohio that need assistance, and I feel like we could have accomplished more by saving ourselves the four hours of driving time. I did like seeing some of the other Vistas, but we were separated into two groups and therefore didn't really have the opportunity to socialize with everyone.

Today Kaitlyn and I are at a resource fair in Dayton, but stories about today are going to have to wait until later.

Gus the Bus and Us

37: The number of times Kaitlyn and I squealed in terror/adrenaline as we drove the truck for the first time to our first food drive pick-up.

I knew coming into this position that being an AmeriCorps*Vista would require a wide variety of skill sets. I fully expected to encourage people to apply for benefit programs, drive all around southwestern Ohio to train people to use the Ohio Benefit Bank, and generally work hard in our mission to eradicate poverty.

I did not realize that driving the Careening Van of Chaos was one of my obligations.

Keep in mind that this van is not really a van; it is a truck, about the size of a U-Haul, with no rearview mirror and no way to merge onto a highway without feeling a great deal of anxiety. It is a large, intimidating vehicle, one that fellow Vista Kaitlyn Baker and I now fondly refer to as "Gus the Bus." We chose to refer to it as a bus because no one around here can seem to come to an agreement about what it is. Said vehicle is pictured below:

Our mission was to pick up a barrel of food from a PGA tour in Maineville from a food drive they had been holding for the past week or so. Kaitlyn and I had been dreading this trip, our first time driving the truck that is just small enough that you don't need an extra license to operate it. We decided to split up the driving time; Kaitlyn would drive there, I would drive back. The first 20 minutes in the truck consisted of the two of us squealing as we drove over small, and not so small, bumps in the road.

• 

We finally arrived in Maineville, slightly shaken but otherwise unharmed. As we had no idea where to go to pick up the barrel, Kaitlyn parked the truck across two or three vacant parking spaces. We went inside the main building and asked the woman behind the desk where we could find the barrel of food from their food drive, and she pointed to a barrel near the front door. We thanked her and peeked inside, where we found exactly two products: a jar of peanut butter and a package of cookie mix. We decided to consult the lady behind the desk again.

"Is this it?"

"Yep!"

"Is there another barrel of food you wanted us to pick up?"

"No, that's all of it!"

"You're sure?"

"Yeah!"

"O...kay."

We didn't need the dolly we had brought along to lug out the food we were expecting, or the 10 banana boxes, or even the truck, really. We stored the groceries in a random box in Gus the Bus, anyway, and began to drive back to Shared Harvest. We weren't even on the highway, though, when we decided to call the person who had requested us to pick up the food, just in case. Sure enough, there was another barrel full of food in a closet that needed to go back to the warehouse. So we pulled into the nearest parking lot empty enough for us to turn around and drove back to get the other barrel, which ended up containing 130 pounds of food. Much better. Even though the dolly we had brought along had a flat wheel, so it was completely useless and we ended up carrying boxes of food back to the truck one by one.

Driving Gus the Bus was really intimidating at first, despite the constant stream of tips and reassurances Kaitlyn and I listened to prior to clamoring into the truck. But once we got used to being several meters higher than the rest of traffic and ignoring the hard stares from drivers speeding around us on the highway, we didn't mind it so much. And the next time we go on a delivery, we will have a much better idea of what to expect. I'm looking forward to the next adventure.

Lesson #1: Be sure to check that the dolly is fully functional before struggling to lift it into Gus the Bus.

Lesson #2: Don't be afraid to go five or 10 (or 15) miles below the speed limit.

Lesson #3: Always have a fellow Vista with you.