Jul 15, 2015 | Being a Social Worker, Blog, Community Change, Ending Homelessness, Having a Home, Homeless Outreach, Inspiration
Imagine if you will that you are sitting in your doctor’s office talking to him about an upcoming procedure and he tells you that you will need someone to be in the waiting room during the procedure and also someone to drive you home. For many of you, you have a...
Nov 10, 2014 | Being a Social Worker, Ending Homelessness, Homeless Outreach, Inspiration
I began my foray into homelessness in 2009 when I nervously began my social work career as an intern on Aurora’s Homeless Outreach Team. However, it didn’t take long for me to come out of my shell and jump right in to servicing our local homeless. Like an addiction, I...
Sep 11, 2014 | Blog, Community Change, Homeless Outreach
“If you can’t feed a hundred people, then just feed one.” This quote from Mother Teresa hangs in my office as a daily reminder. When we serve the homeless we are not serving an abstract concept or only trying to reduce some statistic (number of homeless in our...
Aug 26, 2014 | Being a Social Worker, Blog, Homeless Outreach
Pull out your ID. Take a look at it. I bet you are critical about the picture; would you really like it better if you could have smiled? Now embrace your ID. That’s right, hold it up to your cheek, gaze at it longingly, and truly appreciate it because most of you...
Apr 28, 2014 | Being a Social Worker, Blog, Homeless Outreach
As case managers, we are encouraged to “meet people where they are.” When I met with Darla, we sat on the floor of a storage room within the House of Bread and Peace. The room, not only was crowded with Thanksgiving donations ready to be sorted, but it was also the...
Apr 13, 2014 | Blog, Community Change, Homeless Outreach
I have had the pleasure and joy the past few months of being an intern at Aurora with the Homeless Outreach Team. I have learned so much about our community, those who find themselves in a homeless situation, and how Aurora helps in so many ways. I wish everyone would...
Feb 12, 2014 | Blog, Homeless Outreach, Inspiration
The past three months have been one of the most humbling and rewarding experiences of my life. It has made me realize just how truly blessed I am. The term “homeless” has now taken on new meanings for me. From the conversations I’ve had on the phone...
Nov 20, 2013 | Blog, Having a Home, Homeless Outreach, Inspiration
“What and who is Aurora and why were they speaking at my church’s Alter Society meeting????” Little did I know, the big Man upstairs had it all planned out. That night changed my life. I lived in my own little world and I thought that we only had a few...
Jun 27, 2013 | Blog, Having a Home, Homeless Outreach
I grew up on a farm in Western Kentucky in a very self-sufficient lifestyle. We raised our own vegetables that we either canned or were frozen for future use. My Dad raised cattle and hogs and at least one of each of them was processed for our freezer. We were...
May 9, 2013 | Blog, Homeless Outreach, Inspiration, Social Work Education
A client asked me this question as we spent 6 hours together moving his things out of storage. He had commented a couple times about how I was making time and a half helping him move. Then he asked, “Are you getting paid time and a half, or are you salary?” I...
Apr 4, 2013 | Blog, Having a Home, Homeless Outreach
We all need a place to call home. When I think of home I reflect on a place that provides comfort and security. The security home provides is not only from the weather, but home is also a place that buffers the impact of the outside world. Home is a place to...
Feb 7, 2013 | Blog, Homeless Outreach, Inspiration
I have never blogged before and I’m not sure what makes a good read, but I was told to look inward and speak from the heart. I don’t always know how to put what my heart says into print, so I began looking through some quotes to help get my mind and soul working...
