Around the Network with Linn Benton Food Share

Around the Network – July 2015

Linn Benton Food Share

St Vincent de Paul volunteers demonstrate shopping in
the newly remodeled pantry (note the terrific new cart!).

Another shopping-style conversion.  Things are bustling at St Vincent de Paul Pantry in Corvallis!  The intrepid Pantry Board really, really wanted to convert to a shopping-style pantry, so they undertook an entire remodel of their current pantry space in order to accommodate their dream!  Their beautiful “new” pantry now boasts wide aisles with shopper- friendly, labeled shelving, spiffy easy-to-operate carts and an entire wall of commercial freezer and refrigerator units – obtained with help from a NSF Shopping Style Conversion grant!  Pantry Manager Olive Davis reports very happy clients and volunteers.  She urges her crew to “Err on the side of more food!” when assisting people as they shop.  

                                                                                                 

Bob, with Mid-Valley Gleaners,
proudly displays his prolific tomato plant.

Patio Project in 3rd Year.  When Susan James, Food Share’s Gleaning Program Coordinator, first had the idea for a Patio Project – providing containers with a few donated plants to housebound elderly and disabled gleaning program members – she thought she would be lucky to get donations of a few hundred bedraggled end-of-season plants.   Now in its 3rd year, program is a resounding hit with both nursery staff donors and recipients.  By the end of June, Susan had scored 4,565 beautiful donated veggie plants from area nurseries, secured discounted potted soil,  and  – with the help of Deb from Food For Lane County – came up with the 5 gallon pots to plant the veggies.  Food Share’s 14 non-profit gleaning groups went to work potting and distributing.  Soon, fresh home-grown veggies will be just a step away for many delighted people.

OFB Muesli, a key ingredient in Stephanie’s
Pie Cherry Muesli dessert  for June!

Food demos hit the spot in Jefferson.  The community of Jefferson straddles Linn and Marion counties and boasts a relatively new but thriving food pantry at the local Methodist Church.  The Jefferson Community Food Pantry has a Leadership Team that is always looking for better ways to assist the people they serve.  A couple of months ago, they started hosting food demos – cooked up by a pantry supporter who loves to make healthy meals from scratch for her 3 teenagers.   For each dinner demo, Stephanie uses ingredients available during that day’s distribution and these products are cleverly indicated on the pantry shelves for shoppers to easily find.

Community Services Consortium Lebanon Office Relocating Services

Community Services Consortium (CSC) will be relocating services from their Lebanon office located at 380 Market Street, effective Wednesday, June 24, as the building has sold. CSC’s priority is to make programs and services convenient for our clients, so all services will be available through CSC’s offices in Albany and Corvallis, as well as partner agencies in Lebanon.
If you are in need of services, please call or visit:

HOUSING
CSC Albany Office
250 Broadalbin St. SW, Suite 2A, Albany
Connie Barkdull at (541) 704-7645

ENERGY ASSISTANCE
CSC Albany Office
250 Broadalbin St. SW, Suite 2A, Albany
(541) 926-7163

YOUTH SERVICES
Lebanon WorkSource Oregon
44 Industrial Way, Lebanon
Denise Downer at (541) 704-7820

EMPLOYMENT
Lebanon WorkSource Oregon
44 Industrial Way, Lebanon
(541) 259-5787

CSC Lincoln County Head Start Celebrates Anniversary

On May 19, members of the Lincoln County community, including Lincoln County commissioners Terry Thompson and Bill Hall, gathered to plant a rose bush in recognition of the 50th anniversary of Lyndon Johnson's announcement of the formation of Head Start.



Head Start, which provides comprehensive early childhood education, health, nutrition and parent involvement services to low-income children and their families — has benefited numerous individuals. Head Start has been a part of CSC for 20 years, with locations in Newport, Toledo, and Lincoln City.



We are so proud of the positive impact Head Start has had on the Lincoln County community. Thanks for everyone that has supported us over the years!

CSC Greeters Develop Skills; Discover Great Opportunities

If you walk in to Community Services Consortium’s Corvallis office, you will see a friendly face greeting you behind the desk. What you might not see is the story behind that friendly face.

Community Services Consortium has been working with the Department of Human Services to provide opportunities to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients to get job experience. The program requires recipients to get 20 hours per week of “CORE activities” – which is work experience, on-the-job training, or vocational training.

For some TANF recipients, this is difficult to achieve. Lack of job skills prevents them from finding work, which becomes a vicious cycle. CSC’s greeter program aims to give them an opportunity to develop job skills and gain experience in an administrative role without any previous experience required.

Greeters learn customer service skills by helping to direct clients that come in to the office. They also have the opportunity to learn important administrative skills like computing and software by working on small projects for CSC’s various departments. Additionally, they learn the important soft skills essential for job success that are sometimes overlooked.

“When you don’t have much work experience, it’s hard to know how to prioritize. For example, we try to help our greeters balance work and family obligations. You can’t always take the day off because there is a family issue, so we try to help them figure out ways to deal with those issues so they can also be successful at the work they are trying to do.” said Susan James, Linn Benton Food Share Gleaner and Volunteer Coordinator.

The program has worked very well so far, with greeters finding local, well-paid administrative jobs. One greeter recently accepted an administrative position for Samaritan Health.

Current CSC greeter Anastasia Archie is enthusiastic about her new role and all of the things she is learning in her greeter position. Anastasia comes to CSC without prior office work experience.

 “I really wanted to do office work, but it was incredibly frustrating because every position I applied for required experience. I even asked if they could just give me a trial period to prove I could do the work. No one would give me a chance.” she said.

“Working here has been such a great experience. CSC has given me the chance to learn the office skills I need to get the job that I want, and I’m learning what it’s like to work in a professional office environment.”

Archie also noted that in addition to her job duties, CSC has provided her with additional training resources, such as software and computing basics, that she can work on to increase her skill set and employability.

CSC Youth Garden Partners to Teach Preschool Children About Gardening

The CSC Youth Garden Crew will lead the Old Mill Center Relief Nursery preschool children in a ground breaking to create a garden on the Old Mill playground. Ground breaking will occur at 2:00 PM, Tuesday, March 31, 2015.

The CSC Youth Garden crew, well-known for their innovative garden project, showcased at Corvallis Farmers Market, will share their knowledge and experience with the younger children of Old Mill. The CSC Youth Garden is a program of the Workforce and Education Department of Community Services Consortium’s Benton County office in Corvallis. Every season, four to ten high school youth who are enrolled in the federal workforce program are responsible for caring for 40 raised beds, without the use of herbicides or pesticides.  These young gardeners will bring plant starts and bushes to the playground at Old Mill Center where both sets of kids will “break ground” on a new endeavor for the smaller children. This is a unique pairing between the two non-profits, both serving local children.

This joint effort between the high school youth and the preschool youth is an extension of their existing collaboration formed to introduce the farm to classroom concept at the earliest age.

Old Mill Center for Children and Families Relief Nursery program is designed to prevent child abuse and neglect for children birth to 6 years of age.  It is one of 5 disciplines provided as a service to the local community aimed at building healthy and nurturing foundations for all children.

Energy Assistance Still Available

Community Services Consortium administers the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), a federally funded program which provides assistance to income eligible households once each heating season. The intent of LIHEAP is to help low-income households offset their winter heating costs. LIHEAP is not an entitlement program, and is dependent on available funds. 

To apply for the LIHEAP program in Linn, Benton and Lincoln County, contact Community Services Consortium (CSC) at the numbers below. To qualify, a household must have an income at or below the following limits:

To make an appointment contact CSC at:

LINN COUNTY 541-926-7163

250 Broadalbin St SW

(Two Rivers Market-Upstairs)

Albany OR 97321

BENTON COUNTY 541-752-2840

545 SW 2nd St (Upstairs)

Corvallis OR 97333

LINCOLN COUNTY 541-265-3293

120 NE Avery St (Upstairs)

Newport OR 97365

Appointments are necessary at each site, and take approximately a half an hour.

CSC Youth Garden Hosts Farm to Preschool Day

The CSC Youth Garden crew was thrilled to have the garden buzzing with preschoolers on Thursday, February 19. Students from the Old Mill Center Preschool learned how to plant vegetables, as well as how to harvest and clean them. They got to meet the new baby chicks at the garden, and even got to try jams and jellies during snack time, all prepared by the Youth Garden crew. Everyone had a great time and is looking forward to the next visit!

Socks! Socks! Socks!

20,000 kids and tens of thousands of others experienced homelessness last year, and we're going to do something about it. 

Oregonians are donating 20,000 socks to raise awareness about homelessness and push our policymakers to increase attention and resources to the needs of our community members. $20 million for emergency rental assistance and shelters is on the line.

Sock donations will be piled high on the Oregon State Capitol steps on March 11, the Housing Alliance's Housing Opportunity Day. Afterwards the socks will be donated to folks who need them because they don’t have a warm place to sleep at night.

Help by donating socks today. Every little bit counts! You can drop off donations at any of our office locations:

CSC Corvallis: 545 SW 2nd St., Suite A
CSC Albany: 250 Broadalbin St., Suite 2A
CSC Newport: 120 NE Avery St.

For more drop-off locations and information, visit: https://www.oregonhousingalliance.org/socks/

Thank you for your support!

Sincerely,

Martha Lyon
Executive Director, Community Services Consortium

Kick Off 2015 with a Resolution that Changes Lives!

You can do it!  This is your year!  How many resolutions have you made to improve your life, change your circumstances, make a difference in the world? CSC has an opportunity for you to resolve to make a difference in the lives of people right here in your own community. CSC’s monthly giving program allows you to make a gift each month to the CSC program of your choice or where your donation is needed most.

Don’t miss this opportunity to make a real difference to the people in need in your own community. Shine a light on someone’s future; keep a family warm this winter; put food on the table; help a senior live independently in their own home; educate a child; provide a work experience for a teenager; help an adult get a job.

Be the hand up for someone that really needs it. Sign up today!

http://communityservices.us/how-can-i-help/donate/

Training Teens for Tomorrow Program Provides Alternatives

Community Services Consortium has partnered with the Boys & Girls Club of the Greater Santiam and the Lebanon School District to give at-risk students the support needed to complete their educations and a chance to gain valuable job and leadership skills in an innovative new program aimed at stopping cycles of poverty.

Photo courtesy Mark Ylen/Albany Democrat-Herald

The Training Teens for Tomorrow Program kicked off this month with 33 students participating. The program is made possible by a grant from the State of Oregon. The students were identified by the Lebanon School District as having a risk of dropout, as well as having potential for success in an alternative program.

Students complete mostly online classes at the Lebanon High School Alternative Education Center each morning, where instructors are available for support. The self-paced program works well for many students, with an attendance rate of 85%.

After working on classes, students focus on the job skills training portion of the program. Each student completes a 60-hour work experience, either volunteering at local businesses and schools or working at a job. The program provides pre-employment training, teaching good work habits and how to be a good employee.

After completing the Training Teens for Tomorrow program, students can transition to a workforce program where they create a post-secondary plan. The Beyond LHS program involves a paid 120-hour work experience and opportunities to earn college credits.

“The goal is for every student to complete their education and get the skills they need to participate in the workforce, which is critical for nipping poverty in the bud.” said Denise Downer, Principal Youth Advisor with Community Services Consortium.

To learn more about the program, click here to read the feature story in the Albany Democrat-Herald.

To support this CSC program please visit www.communityservices.us and click donate or contact Dee Teem at 541-574-2277 to talk about volunteering or other opportunities.

Working Together with HP to Spread a Little Joy

The holidays were much brighter for five families that were the recipients of some unexpected and abundant generosity.

The HP Corvallis Women’s Network reached out to Community Services Consortium (CSC) to see if they could spread a little holiday cheer in the lives of some local families in need. CSC connected the HP Corvallis Women’s Network with five families in CSC’s Transitional Housing and Supportive Housing programs, which help to place families in to housing that are homeless or at risk of homelessness. The families were located in Philomath, Corvallis, Albany and Sweet Home.

Once the families were identified and there was a list of needed items, a site-wide communication was distributed to all Corvallis HP employees. The entire HP Corvallis site rallied. A surplus of gifts, including food for a complete holiday dinner, games, clothes, diapers, bicycles, gift cards, Christmas trees with decorations, and cash was donated.

Their Women’s Network only had one request: to meet and connect with the families. The Women’s Network hoped to have a stronger connection to the community and see first-hand the impact they could have through their efforts. They wanted to meet with the families and experience the joy and gratitude the families felt at receiving the contributions. The experience lived up to what they hoped for.

“I was privileged enough to get to deliver the gifts and tree to the Philomath family. They were extremely grateful for the kindness and generosity everyone showed. The best part was when 4-year-old Justin came running outside and started squealing with delight over the Christmas tree (and he hadn’t seen any of the presents yet!)” said Michelle Thompson.

The original plan was that each family would receive a tree, a food box, and gifts for the children and family. But once the HP Corvallis Women’s Network heard that these families had some additional needs, they sprang into action, rounding up items like firewood, a couch, and even a washing machine and dryer for some of the families.

“I helped deliver to one of the Sweet Home families. The family was extremely grateful, wanting to know the names of all of the folks who donated (we had to say the whole HP site!). We drove up and delivered a load of firewood in their driveway, and helped rearrange the dry and wet firewood. We brought in the presents, and then helped set the tree up. The Mom just couldn’t get over the “smell” of Christmas with the tree being in the house.” said Lauren Burkum.

Besides the amazing donations from HP Corvallis employees, generous donations came in from other businesses in the community as well.  At Home Furniture donated a couch and dresser, Sunrise Tree Farm donated the Christmas trees, and North Coast Electric donated the Christmas decorations.

 “The women from HP were so enthusiastic throughout the whole process. We are so thankful to have such great community partners that support not only CSC, but the individual families in need in our community.” said April Hein, CSC Housing Case Manager.

One of the missions of the HP Corvallis Women’s Network is to “Matter to our Community.” The purpose of the group is to create a strong, connected network in support of women reaching their potential. They seek to make a difference in the community where they live and work, and to increase HP’s visibility and impact in our local community. By enabling activities in which the women of HP Corvallis can participate, they create meaningful links to the communities in which they live.

Community Services Consortium (CSC) is the Community Action Agency serving Linn, Benton and Lincoln counties with housing, nutrition, economic stability, and educational assistance programs since 1980.

To support any of CSC’s poverty-fighting programs and services, visit our website at www.communityservices.us. Donations may be made through our website or mailed to our main office: Community Services Consortium, 245 Broadalbin Street, Suite 2A, Albany, OR 97321.