ChosenFast.com

Via email:

Greensboro Urban Ministry Presents
When Helping Hurts

DATE: September 14
TIME: 12:30-2:00 PM
LOCATION: Weaver House Classroom
MORE: Tuesdays for 10 Weeks

The Rev. Frank Dew, chaplain at Greensboro Urban Ministry, will facilitate a discussion of the book “When Helping Hurts: Alleviating Poverty Without Hurting the Poor… and Ourselves.”

“Churches and individual Christians typically have faulty assumptions about the cause of poverty, resulting in the the use of strategies that do considerable harm to poor people and themselves. When Helping Hurts provides foundational concepts, clearly articulated general principles and relevant applications. The result is an effective and holistic ministry to the poor, not a truncated gospel.”

The class begins at 12:30 p.m. at the service for the guests at Greensboro Urban Ministry (map) and then transitions into a time for discussion.

THE FOLLOWING IS A GUEST POST, WRITTEN BY DONNA NEWTON OF THE GREENSBORO NEIGHBORHOOD CONGRESS. It contains important information about RUCO, and how you can take action in support of RUCO. (Slightly edited for the web from original emails.)

The focus of the Greensboro Neighborhood Congress is the preservation and improvements of our neighborhoods in terms of quality of life, property values and safety. As we all know, sub-standard housing undermines surrounding property values — even one substandard property can undermine the property values of an entire neighborhood. Also, we know that sub-standard properties invite crime into our communities.

Other organizations that are partnering in support of the pro-active aspects of RUCO, such as the Greensboro Housing Coalition and the Human Relations Commission, are focused on the human rights issues of improving sub-standard rental properties, in that renters have a right to live in safe housing and that many of them won’t complain about substandard housing out of fear of retaliation from their landlords.

RUCO is a sucessful program

• Since RUCO was implemented, known sub-standard housing in Greensboro has been reduced from 1679 units in 2003 to 705 in 2010;
• Since RUCO was implemented, complaints about sub-standard housing have been decreased 77%;
• Since RUCO was implemented, inspections staff have been reduced by 22%.
• Since RUCO was implemented, inspections staff have been more successful in getting deteriorated housing to the Minimum Housing Commission more quickly and the number to go has steadily increased from 17 in 2003 to 105 in 2010.

RUCO is reasonable

• Once inspected and a certificate is issued, the RUCO is good for the life of the property unless there is a complaint on the property or violations are found during the sampling inspections and not repaired within the prescribed time frame.
• The time frame in which a violation must be repaired is 45 days from the written notice of the violation and can be extended as long as in the judgment of the inspector, progress is being on the repairs.
• The sampling inspection process applies only to a random 2% of rental properties.
• Rental properties that have not yet been inspected that come on the rental market are required to pass inspection and be issued a RUCO before they can be rented.

Opponents of RUCO plan to propose an elimination of the pro-active portions of RUCO, and as they couch it: “target problem properties”. Their proposal will in effect eliminate RUCO.
Continue reading Guest post: Donna Newton on RUCO and how you can take action

At the YES! Weekly blog, Jordan Green is keeping up with the latest proposed changes to the City of Greensboro’s RUCO ordinance, governing inspection of rental units. Housing advocates insist on keeping proactive inspections that protect tenants — particularly low-income and poor tenants who often fear retaliation if they report bad landlords. But the task force is discussing eliminating required inspections. The City Council will vote on any proposed changes to the ordinance.

From YES! Weekly blog:

08/27/2010: Draft revision of RUCO ordinance advances to advisory board

08/25/2010: RUCO task force plods forward

» Previously on ChosenFast.com

What if everyone in Greensboro read the same book… and then set out to build a stronger community?

One City, One Book
Book discussions, art exhibits, theater, concerts, films and more
Sept 19 – Nov 19, 2010
Sponsored by Friends of the Greensboro Public Library
2010 Selection: “The Soloist: A Lost Dream, an Unlikely Friendship, and the Redemptive Power of Music,” by Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez

A moving story of the remarkable bond between a journalist in search of a story and a homeless, classically trained musician.

Summary: When Steve Lopez saw Nathaniel Ayers playing his heart out on a two-string violin on Los Angeles’ skid row, he found it impossible to walk away. More than thirty years earlier, Ayers had been a promising classical bass student at Juilliard — ambitious, charming, and also one of the few African-Americans — until he gradually lost his ability to function, overcome by schizophrenia. When Lopez finds him, Ayers is homeless, paranoid, and deeply troubled, but glimmers of that brilliance are still there. Over time, Steve Lopez and Nathaniel Ayers form a bond, and Lopez imagines that he might be able to change Ayers’s life. Lopez collects donated violins, a cello, even a stand-up bass and a piano; he takes Ayers to Walt Disney Concert Hall and helps him move indoors. For each triumph, there is a crashing disappointment, yet neither man gives up. In the process of trying to save Ayers, Lopez finds that his own life is changing, and his sense of what one man can accomplish in the lives of others begins to expand in new ways. Poignant and ultimately hopeful, The Soloist is a beautifully told story of friendship and the redeeming power of music.

# # #

One City, One Book — Coming soon to Facebook! For all the details on OCOB, go here or email Steve Sumerford.

Post content courtesy of the Greensboro Public Library.

Homeless children living in motels is not a new phenomenon, but it was news to some High Point teachers:

“Groups of teachers from Oak Hill Elementary went door-to-door in their students’ neighborhoods to meet parents and remind them that Wednesday is the first day of class at their school.

The effort took teachers into some of the most impoverished areas of High Point, including a motel, a fact that surprised even veteran teachers.

‘That was a big shocker. I didn’t know you could just live there,’ said Catherin Howard, a fifth-grade teacher who left Pilot Elementary after 14 years to join the staff at Oak Hill.

Pilot has its share of poor students, too, but the reality that some might live at a motel, surrounded by a high fence and razor wire, was something new and saddening for Howard.”

It is a very sad reality, and one that many people don’t know or think about. Approximately 1.5 million children — 1 in 50 — experience homelessness in America every year. And North Carolina ranks 44th in the nation in child homelessness. Many of those kids are living in motels.

Speaking of all the school’s students, Howard added:

“I just want the children to feel loved. They’re going to be successful if they feel that way.”

Beautiful. All kids need love. And a supportive school environment with teachers who care (like Howard) can be a refuge of stability for a homeless child.

The City of Greensboro began the Rental Unit Certificate of Occupancy (RUCO) program in 2003. Landlords are required to receive a certificate — verifying that there are no code violations — for every rental unit.

Since RUCO began, there has been a dramatic decline in the number of violations. (See graph at Greensboro Housing Coalition’s web site.) But now, the future of this successful program is in jeopardy.

City Council member Nancy Vaughan has suggested that RUCO change from a mandatory program to self-report. (She has since seemed to be reconsidering her position.) Representatives from TREBIC (Triad Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition) and the Greensboro Landlords Association would like to see RUCO abandoned. Housing advocates, such as Greensboro Housing Coalition and Greensboro Neighborhood Congress, fiercely oppose any changes.

City staff (Engineering & Inspections and Fire Department) also argue for keeping RUCO. The Greensboro Human Relations Commission has an interest in the outcome of the fight. Council member Robbie Perkins supports keeping the program. (source: Jordan Green)

Meanwhile, landlord Bill Burkley, who’s worked as a paid political consultant to some Council members, is appealing fines for code violations, and has just had his case continued before the advisory board which is pursuing the elimination of RUCO (source: Amanda Lehmert, via Fec) Five Council members who were contacted for a news story say they weren’t contacted or lobbied by Burkley.

I oppose self-report on code violations, because I know that some tenants won’t report, for fear of landlord retaliation, including losing their housing. Just recently, I’ve seen three examples of renters who fear retaliation and/or have already been retaliated against for reporting code violations. (Update: In all three cases, these were serious violations requiring immediate attention, that likely would have resulted in a 48-hour vacate notice, if not fixed within that time period.)

I could not obtain permission to share the stories of any of these renters. I was told: “Do not blog about this.” “Don’t tell anybody.” “You can’t say anything.” It’s frustrating, but their refusal to even allow me to share their stories anonymously proves the point that self-report doesn’t work. RUCO’s mandatory inspection system has been proved to work, by decreasing code violations markedly.

I understand why TREBIC and the Greensboro Landlords Association oppose RUCO. It forces landlords to meet code, levies fines for violations and prevents rental of units without certificates. In other words, it costs landlords money, and both those organizations represent landlords. But that doesn’t make their opposition right.

The worst part about the push to go to elimination of RUCO and self-report of violations is that it pits power and money (TREBIC, Greensboro Landlords Association) against poor people who are most likely to live in substandard housing and fear reporting housing code violations.  Power vs. poverty is an unfair fight. Too often, power wins. I’m hoping and praying that many advocates — and renters! — will step up and fight for the continuation of this successful program.

Be one of the voices in support of RUCO! Email Council members. Speak during the public comment period at a Council meeting. Write a letter to the editor — News & Record, YES! Weekly, Rhino Times. Blog, Facebook, Twitter. Say something!

Also posted at CaraMichele.com

UPDATED, 08/28/10: My landlord friends tell me via the comments below, and in private conversations, that the power vs. poverty analogy is not accurate.  I’m still listening. Meanwhile, there’s more.

Bad news for North Carolina’s oldest and largest private, non-profit mental health advocacy organization:

“…[T]he financially troubled Mental Health Association of North Carolina is one of the state’s largest private providers of group homes and treatment programs.

The association lost its accreditation Monday, cutting off the group’s access to federal Medicaid reimbursements.

That’s on top of severe financial problems in recent months that led to employee layoffs and wage cuts for those who remained.

State director of mental health Leza Wainwright says her agency is trying to shift the care of the association’s clients to other providers with as little disruption as possible…”

» Keep reading N.C. Mental Health Association loses accreditation : News-Record.com

I contacted the Mental Health Association in Greensboro to ask if the closing of the state agency would have an impact on them. The response:

“While the closing of MHA-NC is a sad event it does not impact the operations of MHA-Greensboro. We are an independent organization with our own Board, budget and oversight.”
~ Paul Evans, Executive Director, MHA-Greensboro

MHA-G offers support groups, peer support specialists, the Compeer Program, and much more. Learn about MHA-G here.

Mark Stinson

This is a guest post from my friend, Mark:

Hello,I’m Mark Stinson I was once a Homeless man here in Greensboro,N.C.. But now I’m living in and Oxford house and I’m sober an Off the street’s. Thank’s to the Help from my now Loving friend’s and family of StreetWatch G-Boro.. I’m also a memember,and love speaking on behave of Them and homelessness. If I can be of any help please let me know. mstinson60@yahoo.com Thank You!

Mark is also on Facebook. And he appears in this Fox8 video on Facebook (no longer available on Fox8 site). The woman who appears in that video is also housed now.

Back On My Feet is a nonprofit organization that promotes the self-sufficiency of homeless populations by engaging them in running as a means to build confidence, strength and self-esteem.

We do not provide food or shelter, but instead provide a community that embraces equality, respect, discipline, teamwork and leadership.

Currently, there are BOMF chapters in Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC. In 2011, BOMF will expand to Dallas-Fort Worth, Atlanta, Minneapolis-St. Paul and two more cities. We want Greensboro to be one of those cities!

Susan Griffin is heading up efforts to bring BOMF to Greensboro. You can help! Download, print, sign, date and mail the letter below to BOMF. Help us help homeless people in Greensboro get back on their feet!

» Download BOMF-for-Greensboro letter

» Visit BackOnMyFeet.org

A social experiment with food…

image credit: Samantha Celera

“As the first crowd of customers filed into Panera’s nonprofit restaurant… only the honor system kept them from taking all the food they wanted for free.

Ronald Shaich, Panera’s chairman, admitted as he watched them line up that he had no idea if his experiment would work. The idea for Panera’s first nonprofit restaurant was to open an eatery where people paid what they could. The richer could pay full price — or extra. The poorer could get a cheap or even free meal.

A month later, the verdict is in: It turns out people are basically good…”

And it’s feeding some people who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford it:

“…Anna and Bennie Ward heard about the pay-what-you-wish model on the news. Anna thought it was too good to be true, so she researched it on the Internet before driving over for lunch with Bennie their two kids.

It was a rare chance for the couple to dine out, Anna said. Bennie is laid off and her only income is from disability checks. The family ordered sandwiches, iced coffee drinks and bread to go.

‘Near the end of the month is difficult for us. If it was not for help from friends and community, I don’t know where we would get our last meal,’ Anna Ward said after the meal. ‘To be able to go there and eat an actual meal and feel full is such a blessing.’”

» Read article “Panera to open more pay-what-you-wish restaurants” on USATODAY.com.

So, I know, it smells like socialism. It also smells like fresh-baked bread and muffins and cookies and coffee and soup. And I like it. I want one here. Yes, please.

Have a fun fourth and help support Greensboro’s homeless day center:

The IRC will be making a splash in the Fun Fourth parade this Saturday, July 3!  The parade begins at 9:30 a.m. at the corner of Greene and Bellemeade and goes down Greene Street and up Church Street to end at the Children’s Museum.

Want to cheer us on in the parade and enjoy the rest of the Fun Fourth festivities?  You are invited to park your car at our future location at 407 E. Washington Street where we’ll be having a car wash and cookout from 10:30 to 3:00 — the car wash is donations-only and the cookout is absolutely free.

» Visit the Interactive Resource Center online
» Map of 407 E. Washington Street

“Many summer food programs have been slashed during the recession leaving low-income children with fewer options, a report by the Food Research and Action Center said Tuesday.The budget cuts reduced participation in summer school food programs across the nation over the past years, the anti-hunger group said.This drop in participation comes at a time when more and more families need these food programs, the Center said. ‘When summer food participation needed to be rising, there instead was a dip of 2.5 percent — or 73,000 low-income children — from July 2008 to July 2009,’ the Center said in a statement… ‘While 17.5 million low-income children received school lunch during the 2008-2009 school year, only 2.8 million children got summer food when school was out,’ the Center said.That means only 16 percent of low-income students got the summer school meals in 2009.”

» continue reading Study: Fewer low-income kids getting summer school meals – CNN.com