Thursday, April 23, 2009
Preparing for Project Homeless Connect
As you prepare for Project Homeless Connect, reflect on your expectations for Friday’s event. What do you think the day will be like? What do expect to learn? What have you already learned about homelessness or poverty that you think prepares you for volunteering? What did you learn from the volunteer training session? If you’re feeling any anxiety, apprehension, or nervousness about the day, please reflect on these feelings, too. Why do you think you feel that way?
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I am a little bit nervous for Project Homeless Connect. I am eager to learn from the person that I spend the day with, but I am not sure how to be a researcher, equal, and volunteer all at the same time. I want to engage in dialogue with the person that I am assigned to, and I hope that there will be a valuable personal exchange that takes place. I expect the day to be hectic at times, and tedious at times. Since we have been talking about poverty and homelessness in class, I've learned that the issue is very complex. Each person's particular circumstances affect their ability to have access to services or opportunities. I hope that even though I will have a specific agenda for tomorrow, I will establish a personal connection, and that by the end of the day there will be no barriers separate me from the person I am assigned to.
ReplyDeleteAs you prepare for Project Homeless Connect, reflect on your expectations for Friday’s event. What do you think the day will be like? What do expect to learn? What have you already learned about homelessness or poverty that you think prepares you for volunteering? What did you learn from the volunteer training session? If you’re feeling any anxiety, apprehension, or nervousness about the day, please reflect on these feelings, too. Why do you think you feel that way?
ReplyDeleteI have no idea what to expect for Friday’s event. I expect that I will arrive at the gymnasium in the morning and be very nervous. I have a feeling I will be uncomfortable eating in front of them. I expect to learn a lot about the client I am paired up with, as well as a lot about the system/initiative to end homelessness. Hopefully I will be able to incorporate my research question into my conversations with my client. I have already learned from my research, that the homeless often feel that they are objectified and infantilized by service providers. Hopefully I can approach tomorrow as a way to reach out to a person that I would not normally have the opportunity to reach out to. I hope to also make an impact in their lives and give them endless opportunities. I do not feel that I am adequately prepared for volunteering, because I have only heard about the logistics of the day, not the people that I will be dealing with. I will adapt to my situation when I arrive in the morning, and make observations from there. The training session prepared me with a map (which I have trouble reading and is different than the map they presented on the slideshow), as well as the different services provided at each station. I am a little nervous and apprehensive, but I can only truly assess tomorrow after completing the day. It will be interesting to say the least. I think I feel that way, because there is no way to specifically describe a volunteer event. The person volunteering, myself, may have a completely different experience than the person describing the volunteer work. I think the only way to learn about volunteering is to do it, so I will!
I think the day is going to be interesting and eye opening. It will be a situation that is new to me and will require some exploration of my task. I will be spending some time walking individuals through the process, but for most of my time at PHC I will be collecting information and helping vendors/ groups that need assistance. I am working with Jamie Van Leeuwen, so my job will be much more along the lines of organization. I feel as though this makes me more apprehensive because I am not quite sure of my tasks and how it will effect my ability to write a good reflection about PHC. The research that we have been doing and our readings have showed me my misconception of homelessness. Many of the homeless are families and have nowhere else to go. As a volunteer, this knowledge will make me more aware of certain problems or issues I should be prepared for.
ReplyDeleteI am extremely excited for PHC. I believe that it will be a learning experience and I will be in situations I have not been in before. I have volunteered one-on-one with homeless people before and I had a life-altering experience from it. My past experience makes me more eager to help out tomorrow at PHC. I expect the day to be extremely busy and crowded. I want to learn about each individual's story, that I help, and find them the resources that they have been lacking. The volunteer training session was very helpful. I was previously scared about not knowing what to do with my client or what to ask them. The training session explained what I needed to do as a volunteer and put my mind at ease. Overall, I am feeling excited about tomorrow and hope that I can learn a lot from this experience.
ReplyDeleteTo be perfectly honest I have no idea what to expect on friday because I feel like we have read and learned and researched about these people, but now it is actually time to meet them, and listen to what they have to say. As empathetic as I can be, especially having seen many of these situations I have never been able to say I can fully understand or relate so I am very anxious and excited to see what they day will bring.
ReplyDeleteI honestly don't think anything I have learned or read, or heard about can prepare me for this volunteering session. More than anything I think it has created this false understanding in my own head and I really want to go into it like a sponge, just really ready to learn and soak in as much of the experience as I can.
I am a little nervous because I don't know the situation I am going into and to be honest I wish I had a little background information on the person I am going to work with, because it is going to be a challenge to be sensitive and cautious of what I say if I have no understanding of how they would perceive it. I am excited, anxious, and ready and I can't wait because I truly feel like something special will happen tomorrow!
As I reflect on what I think the experience of project homeless connect will be like, I am a little nervous however I am more excited to go about the days events. I honestly have no idea what I expect to see. I have a picture of just loads of people all gathered into one place and thats the only thing that gives me a little anxiety because it just seems like it will be so crowded that it will be hard to get to know the person that I am with or accomplish whatever they need to accomplish. I have worked with homeless children and people before, but that was in a different country (nicaragua) so I think this experience will feel pretty new and different to me. One thing that I took away from the volunteer training session is to just be open to whoever I am "connected with". By this I mean be open to listening to their story, be open to whatever personality they have, and the situation they have come from. I hope to just be a easy-going and approachable person that they feel comfortable with and I can in turn feel comfortable with them. I'm not sure what I'm going to learn because I really have no idea what the experience will be like, however I just hope that I can get insight into these people's true lives and hear their story at its most basic level. Rather than reading about their lives or situations I just want to hear about it first-hand because I feel like it will give me a better picture and understanding of who they are and where they come from and what its actually like to be homeless. I hope that whoever I get paired up with will be wiling to share this information with me.
ReplyDeleteAs a volunteer for project homeless connect for the past two years. It has been a wonderful experience every year. I enjoy myself working with clients. The first year of project homeless connect was extremely stressful because it seems everyone doesn’t have much clue of what is going on. The event was organized but not well enough, there were a lot of flows such as running out of certain type of food, there was not enough clients and too man volunteers. The second year of project homeless connect, the services were much more organized. Clients were able to get what they need as far as services go. I was working with an old lady last year, she had taught me so much about life in general. She was able to receive the services she need, however it is not a long -term solution for her. I wonder everyday if she had access to long-term housing instead of staying in shelters. I hope this year project homeless connect could help more people to solve their problems in more of long-term goal instead of short term. Tomorrow is going to be a brand new experience , I am really looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteI think that Project Homeless Connect will be a very rewarding experience. I think it will probably be a very busy and chaotic day, but I honestly don't know what to exactly expect. I think the training session provided a better understanding on what we will be doing and how the even will be run. I am glad there will be a leadership team and a mental health team there to help out if I get over my head somehow.
ReplyDeleteI am really looking forward to talking with and getting to know the people I am helping, although I am kind of worrying about being able to portray to the homeless people at the event that I am interested in learning about their situations without seeming rude or condescending in some way. I am white, and I do come from a middle-class background, so I know I won't be able to understand fully where they are coming from; however, I think the work that we have done in this class, in addition to some of the other classes I have taken and community service I have done have given me a bit of an insight into the struggles of people in poverty. I expect to learn a lot from conversing with the different clients throughout the day, and I am hoping that they will see that I am someone who cares and wants to help out as much as I can.
Here's Briana's comment:
ReplyDeleteI expect the day to be absolutely chaotic, and I expect to be able to learn a lot through both interaction and observation. I will be interested to see the identifying gender of the person I work with. I believe that my experience will differ greatly depending on the gender, age, and current income status of the person, though I may not know these particulars. I believe that their presence and the presence of other people in need of resources will give me a more holistic understanding of the Denver population. I expect to learn a lot about the people, the service providers, and the complexity of the services provided. I also anticipate gaining a deeper respect for the individuals who use these services. I believe that by having the opportunity to observe individuals, I will be able to learn a lot about the accessing community as a whole. Thus far in the class, I have learned about how the urban homeless access employment and struggle to deal with the many expenses, whereas before I only knew about the more simple rural aspect of homelessness. I am excited to experience tomorrow, both because I will hopefully be helping someone, and because I will help me further understand and aide a formerly alien community.
I am not really sure what I expect from tomorrow’s event, which is not very helpful for a reflection. I am going into this event without many preset expectations. I have heard what others who have participated in the past have said, and I listened in my training session, but I don’t think that these helped me get a clear picture of what to expect. You could describe flying on airplane to someone but they won’t really understand it until they fly. If I had to put down some kind of explanation I guess I expect it to be a little bit overwhelming at first, but to then move into a more comfortable pattern as the day goes on. I think that I will have the opportunity to vicariously experience a few different walks of life when the clients share their stories (if they choose to). I think that a lot of the discussions that we have had in class have served well to prepare me for volunteering. Already I have heard a lot of different views of homelessness which will help me to keep an open mind, to keep all of those different perspectives in mind while I go through the day. A lot of the reading in the class so far has shown me many different experiences of homelessness and poverty which I think will be useful in that I can hopefully be a more understanding and receptive listener to my clients. One thing I learned from the volunteer training session is that there will be a lot going on (which is probably where my ideas on it all being a little overwhelming at first stems from). But more importantly, hearing the story of a homeless man gave me a taste of what the experience will be like when I work with a client. I have to admit that there is some lingering anxiety or nervousness, but I am pretty sure that these feelings come from facing something that is somewhat unknown. I have a vague idea of what it will be like but it is not completely clear to me what my personal experience will be like. Once I get in there and acquaint myself with the situation I think everything will go well.
ReplyDeleteI find myself both very excited and somewhat apprehensive as I prepare for tomorrow. I am anxious to be apart of the program and happy to volunteer, but I also hope that the day will go as smoothly as possible, and I know I need to get ready to help the smoothness of the day. I plan to go over all of the definitions we were given just so that I can be knowledgable in case my person has a question - I want them to have full confidence and faith in me, and I know that I can be a reliable resource for them. As far as socially connecting with the person, I'm a people person (Cancer, baby!) and I love to do these types of things. I hope that my person enjoys my company tomorrow. I fully intend on giving them 100% of my attention.
ReplyDeleteFrom this experience, I expect to learn a different perspective on surviving in today's world. I do not come from a privillaged background (I use the term priillaged very loosely, because I have definitely been blessed and have a very supportive family and foundation), but I also have never experienced poverty or homelessness. I think to become a better person, it is necessary to know what other people go through in life, and I hope to take from tomorrow a deeper sense of understanding.
I think I've learned enough about homelessness/poverty in our class - particularly from Nickeled and Dimed and To Be Young and Homeless - to go about my business tomorrow with a realistic view on these circumstances. I would never just prance into the room with the arrogant air of someone who knows everything about homelessness, but I think that what I have learned about the homeless experience in this class should be enough to help me appreciate my client's story. The slight anxiety that I am feeling right now is mainly centered in my aspiration to be a decent host and make a strong connection with my client.
As I think about Project Homeless Connect, as I think about tomorrow, images of hordes of people fill my mind. I am expecting chaos, the sound of people shouting and talking over each other, the smell of sweat, and the exhaustion that comes with being in a crowd.
ReplyDeleteExpecting these circumstances, I feel prepared. Having volunteered at very different events but events of this magnitude, I feel good going into PHC because I feel that I can reach a place of patience and calm before going into the event that will allow me to best help my client throughout the day.
The volunteer training session was helpful. They gave us a packet of information and a basic idea of what steps we should take with our client and how we should approach the. I found their emphasis on having fun and making the client feel comfortable heart warming and very important. I feel like its easier to be a kind and caring volunteer when the event coordinators tell you that the number one priority is the making the client feel comfortable and welcome. This takes off any kind of pressure to obtain results like getting every single part of the questionaire filled out or making sure the client gets their entire life sorted out, right then and there.
Before previous volunteer opportunities, I use to feel really nervous, very unsure of myself and scared of my own inadecuacy when it came to completing the task at hand. Through building projects and esl volunteering, I have learnt that I no longer feel so fearful at not doing something right or at being inadequate. I realize that the day is for the clients or the students or the future homeowners, and that any mistakes I make will not matter or wil not be judged so harshly. I am grateful that tomorrow I will go into PHC with a sense of trust that everything will work out.
My expectations for Friday are hopeful. I really want to help people specifically youth. A major concern that I have developed over my first year here is access for homeless youth to education in relation to the McKinley Act. I know that I won’t be able to focus my energy specifically into this area but I hope that by helping parents this will then spill over to help their children. My fear is that, “what if I can’t help enough?” or that I do not have the answerers for them. Sometimes it feels like no matter how much you try it is never truly enough. Also, I have tendency to cry and I am a little afraid that I will cry tomorrow. I know that this can sound a little dramatic but homelessness is a very real thing for me. I guess homelessness is just a very real tangible experience for me, and I can relate. Moving beyond that, the training session just stressed letting who your parried up with control what he or she needs. For example, if the homeless person that I am with does not want to fill out the survey that is fine and to not push the subject. I felt that the orientation wanted to convey the necessity for delicacy when dealing with homeless people. They did not stress “political correctness” but more so an emotional awareness. I can respect this because at the end of PHC these are not forms and surveys but people.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I have participated in the training and we have discussed a lot about homelessness, I am not necessarily sure what to expect at Project Homeless Connect. There has been so much preparation for the event, so I cannot imagine that it will be too chaotic but there will still be a lot of people trying to access services. In addition, I imagine that there will be many emotions flowing throughout the Ritchie Center as people become frustrated as they try to access certain services. Hopefully this experience will provide some relief for the homeless participants though. I think I will learn a lot from the homeless client I will be paired with. I hope to get a more in-depth look at his or her experiences. I understand that the client may not be willing to share everything, but I hope that I can create a comfortable enough environment so the client can open up to me. This will be my first experience working so closely with a homeless person, so I think this will further develop my understanding of homelessness and of the difficulties that homeless people face. By reading the Denver Voice for my first paper and completing the readings for this class, I think I am better prepared for this experience. Some articles in the Denver Voice highlighted specific struggles as well as stories of people finding homes and getting themselves out of poverty. While these are not my own firsthand experiences, these will help me develop a level of empathy for the homeless client. Our discussions related to Nickel and Dimed have also prepared me by raising my awareness about experiences related to poverty. We have been discussing poverty and homelessness for a while, but I am still somewhat nervous about relating to the homeless people because I have never experienced what they have. I want to do everything I can to help this person and I hope that I will be able to accomplish this goal while making them feel comfortable with me.
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