Newspapers / Philanthropy Journal of North … / April 1, 1994, edition 1 / Page 21
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April 1994 Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina • 21 Homeless Continued from page 1 vices for the homeless. Where once agencies would com pete for clients, staff members from homeless shelters and other nonprof its now meet regularly to share infor mation and resources. Among the accomplishments of the all-volunteer council have been the development of minimum stan dards tor shelter providers and a clear division of which populations each shelter will serve. “In terms of minimizing duplica tion and overlap of services, it’s been a real success,” says Monica Lett, director of the city’s Department of Housing and Neighborhood Devel opment and a longtime council mem ber. “Anytime you increase collabo ration and cooperation between agencies, it can only be positive.” The idea for a homeless services council was sparked by the example of a ni^t shelter program sponsored by a group of downtown churches in the early 1980s. In response to a particularly harsh winter, the churches began offering emergency shelter to the homeless on a rotating basis. Those early attempts at coopera tion were recognized by a city and county-appointed task force, which recommended formation of a perma nent council to better coordinate ser vices for the homeless. The task force found 150 to 300 homeless fam ilies in need of assistance in Winston-Salem that year. “At first it was just awful because there had been so much turfism,” says Martha Martinat, an at-large member of the council. “But then everyone agreed on a plan to take on clients. The Salvation Army, for example, would take care of mothers and children and the Rescue Mission would take men. It’s really worked.” Coimcil members say community leaders such as Jules Spach - who served as chairman from 1990 to 1991 - and current chairman Charles Wilson played a key role in creating and maintaining a structure that could overcome turf barriers. Subcommittees were established to handle issues such as “Mothers and Children” and council member ship was expanded to include repre sentatives of area businesses and shelter residents, as well as social service workers. Winston-Salem has about 400 shelter beds for the homeless — approximately half of which are offered on a short-term, emergency basis, Lett says. In addition to improving existing services, council members have lob bied successfully for new programs, such as transitional housing and more job training for the homeless. A, The organi zation has also been a model for other local service net works, such as the Winston- Salem Afford able Housing Coalition, which began as a subcommit tee of the homeless coun cil. At the most recent meeting of the council’s shelter pro viders subcom mittee, mem bers discussed ideas ranging from forming a home less youth group to conducting a job skills survey of homeless clients. They reviewed services offered by The Bethesda Center — which host ed the meeting — and agreed on the need to share information about pro grams available from other agencies. The United Way of Forsyth County has been providing secretari al help to the homeless council since 1988. Projects such as a winter shel ter network and a council-conceived transitional housing program, have been funded by donations from indi viduals and foundations. L nytime you increase collaboration and coopera tion between agencies, it can only be positive. MONICA LETT Director Housii^and Neightwrliood Development While they agree on the need to seek ongoing sources of support, council members are divided over whether the network should have its own staff and budget. “With so many competitors out there for funding, I don’t know if the council would want to cut into that and take money needed for direct services,” says Pam Thombs, who works as problem center director for the Experiment in Self Reliance - a self-help group for low-income and elderly residents. “I think [having a budget] it would help because each of these groups that come in has their plate overflowing,” says Bobby Dan of the Winston-SaJem Downtown Develop ment Corporation. “I think there is some more that can be done to publi cize and make people aware” of the council’s work. Council supporters agree that the volunteer network has done much to improve the availability of services. The challenge now is to find ways to address the root causes of homeless ness and poverty. “Jobs is not the only answer because minimum wage won’t do you any good,” says Walter Little, a resi dent of the Bethesda Center shelter who is the homeless community’s representative on the council. “There are a lot of programs out there. The problem is, how to get them to the people.” Warning signs Study says giving to U.S. religious charities is falling A new study shows giving to church-related charities in the U.S. is declining. A study of church-related giving in the U.S. shows / 1 that church members across the theological spectrum are directing more of their dollars to con gregational activities and less to out side charities. The study, conducted by empty tomb, inc., an Illinois-based nonprof it Christian research organization, looked at giving patterns over a 20- year period among a set of Protes tant denominations representing 30 million members. The study concludes that denomi national structures which have his torically been the channels for church-related philanthropy are under stress. Among the study’s key findings: • When calculated in total dol lars, giving by church members gen erally increased between 1968 and 1991. But when calculated as a per centage of member Income, giving declined. • Giving as a percentage of income among a set of 11 denomina tions studied was lower in 1991 than in either 1921 or 1933 — at the height of the Great Depression. • If projected trends continue, by the year 2048, church members will be directing 0 percent of their income to “benevolences” — external church programs such as seminaries and international missions. The study, written by John L. and Sylvia Ronsvalle, was funded by a grant from the Lilly Endowment. Copies are available for $18 from empty tomb, inc., PO Box 2404, Champaign, IL, 61825-2404. Journal reporter wins awards I ^ atherine Noble, a reporting news fel- l\ low at the Phil- I X anthropy Journal of North Carolina, has won two first-place press awards tor stories she wrote for the Journal. The North Carolina Press Club, the state affiliate of the National Federation of Press Women, awarded Noble first place for news and features stories, each in the category of specialized pubhcations. Noble’s news story exam ined the rebound of local United Way fundraising in the wake of a national United Way scandal and a re cession. Her fea ture sto ry report ed on a national literacy program funded by the Will iam R. Kenan Jr. Charit able Trust in Chapel Hill. Both stories will be entered in the Federation’s national competition. Noble is the Z. Smith Rey- nolds-Josephus Daniels News Fellow, a position funded by the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation in Winston-Salem and The News and Observer Founda tion. Katherine Noble Job Opportunities ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT UNC School of Public Health General gifts development officer for the School of Public Health at the University of North CaroUna at Chapel Hill. The primary responsibilities will be to work with the Director of Development to identify, cultivate, sohcit and provide stewardship of gifts ranging in amounts fi'om $5,000 to $50,000. Will be expected to interact well with individ uals, alumni, faculty, corporate executive officers and research directors, and foundation executives and program officers. A willingness to travel will be an important requirement of the person filhng this position. QUALIFICATIONS DESIRED: Masters degree with two-to-five years of fundraising experience; ability to interact effectively in a comprehensive, research university setting; a record of fundraising accomplishments; good written and oral communication skills; mastery of the basic principles and techniques of successful fundraising. Review of applications will begin May 5,1994. However, position will remain open until filled. Completed apphca- tions will include a letter of interest along with a current resume and should be sent to the attention of: Charles J. Rasberry Jr. Director of Development, School of Pubhc Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB#7400, Chapel Hill, N.C. 27699-7400. Minorities and females are encouraged to apply. PRESIDENT AND COO Family Service of Winston-Salem A gency seeks a President and Chief Operating Officer to start July 1994. Manages budget of approximately $3 million and staff of 100. Core programs include child develop ment, family counseling, battered women's shelter and rape response. The agency pro vides such services as marriage and family therapy, foster home and adoption, crisis and sup port counseling, victim's assistance, travelers' aid and early childhood education through Headstart. Preferred qualifications are a master's degree in social work or related field, mini mum of 10 years senior management experience in a nonprofit family or children's agency. Experience should include fundraising, program development and evaluation, staff develop ment, community involvement. Closing date for applications is May 15, 1994. Send resume with salary requirements to: Betsy Annese, Chairman, Search Committee, P.O. Box 2959, 14 RB, Winston-Salem, NC 27102-2959. Equal Opportunity Employer Hugh Morton, Jr. Video Productions Broadcast-Quality Fundraising Videos and PSA’s for Nonprofits 720 Lake Boone Trail Raleigh, NC 27607 (919) 834-8444 ^Whitneylones INCORPORATE D w ' Specializing in fund-raising for non-profit organizations “Helping You Translate Visions Into Plans and Goals Into Achievements” ■ Long-Range Planning ■ Campaign Surveys (Feasibility Studies) ■ Prospect Research ■ Capital Campaign Management ■ Public Relations/Marketing ■ Donor Record Management ■ Special Events ONE SALEM TOWER • SUITE 302 119 BROOKSTOWN AVENUE WINSTON-SALEM, NORTH CAROLINA 27101 (910)722-2371 • FAX (910) 724-7381
Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina (Raleigh, N.C.)
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April 1, 1994, edition 1
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