Fall 2010 Issue 17
From The Director
On Sept. 22 I attended a press conference at the State Capitol Hunger Garden. The Hunger Garden is a cooperative project DDB Mission: established earlier this year to grow fresh produce for food banks, Feed the hungry & pantries, and soup kitchens, and to raise awareness on hunger provide services for issues outside the Capitol Building. Downtown Daily Bread played the homeless of an active part in the project since its inception. Harrisburg. After the press conference, the Under Secretary of Food, Nutrition and Consumer Inside This Issue: Services, Kevin Concannon, along with Senator Brubaker, Rep. Susan C. Helm, and officials from the Food Bank, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Feeding America, and • Hunger Garden members of the Hunger Caucus, toured Downtown Daily Bread. Our guests also helped • Kitchen Face Lift Brenda prepare lunch by peeling, slicing, and dicing assorted vegetables from the Garden • Client Attacks to be used in a salad for that day’s lunch. It was fun watching dignitaries don aprons and • Lunch Plus Report seriously begin their prep work. • New Caseworker During my DDB talk, I was asked how long I had been at Downtown Daily Bread. I had • Wish List • Advisory Board News to do a quick calculation to verify that this June I began my 15th year. The time has gone • Client Report by quickly. I told the delegation how DDB has evolved over those years. The dining room was not the modern, bright, welcoming place it is now. There was no substitute Downtown cook, no counselor, no mail delivery, no clothing, no showers, no haircuts, no Daily Bread employment counseling, no health checks, no legal advice, no veterans’ services, no 310 N. Third Street homeless services, and no mental health referrals. All those pieces of our Lunch Plus Harrisburg PA program came from listening to our clients and trying to fill their needs. 17101 On an interesting note, a photographer for the event told me that in 1983, when www.downtowndailybread.org Downtown Daily Bread opened, he took pictures of the facility for the Patriot News. He remembered the dining room and kitchen in the Boyd gym. I asked him to tell me more Elaine Strokoff about those first days. His recollection was fuzzy but one thing he did remember, “I was Executive Director so surprised to see that there were hungry people in Harrisburg. I had not realized that 717-238-4717 before and it was a real awakening for me.” I could say the same thing for me 15 years Brenda Ervin ago. We have all come a long way. Kitchen Manager 717-238-4718 Blondie Doleman Weekend Cook 717-238-4718 Christine Patrick Client Caseworker 717-238-4718 Linda McGuire DDB News Editor
Elaine
Introducing New Caseworker: Christine Patrick
“Hi, my name is Christine Patrick and I’m the new case manager at Downtown Daily Bread. I have worked with the homeless in Harrisburg for about 15 years. Before coming to DDB, I worked with homeless women at the Brethren Housing for many years. I started at DDB on May 10th and I enjoy my work very much. I have two children, a 31 year old son and a 28 year old daughter. I also have three beautiful grandbabies. In the months I have been at Downtown Daily Bread, I have met with many clients and human service providers, as well as the great DDB volunteers. Brenda Ervin has been a wonderful We welcome your resource because she has introduced me to everyone who walks into DDB. suggestions, comments, The DDB clients who I have come in contact with have been some very special people. Most of and feedback. them are very humble and thankful for our services. I have also met with some people from the “Tent City” and worked with them to plan for their future. I helped one young pregnant woman Quote: and her boyfriend find an apartment. I also worked with a young homeless man who lived in Tent City for 8 months while attending HACC. I am currently working with him to find a place “Act as if it were to live and to help him find a college counselor and mentor. impossible to fail. The I have learned during my short time at DDB that most of our clients just want someone to listen best is yet to come.” A to them. I am happy to hear them and their stories and to earn their trust. Downtown Daily Bread thought we share with offers a vital service to them and I feel blessed to be a part of this program. I think Anne Frank clients and volunteers summarized the way I feel about our clients when she said, “In spite of everything, I still believe alike. that people are good at heart.” I want to thank Elaine Strokoff for offering me this opportunity to join the DDB staff and to become a part of this wonderful family at Downtown Daily Bread.”
Kitchen Facelift In addition to feeding clients, DDB has embarked on a facility maintenance project. One fix-up included painting with a new paint product designed to make future maintenance easier. In addition, a stainless steel counter top will be added to the kitchen and the restrooms will be refurbished. Though the building may change, the DDB mission remains the same “feed the hungry and provide services for the homeless in Harrisburg.” The fact that we are able to continue this mission is truly a credit to our volunteers for their generous donations of their time and to our staff for their diligence in controlling expenses and working to maximize the impact of every dollar donated.
A Message From Hunger To Hope
The number of DDB clients served every month continues to be around 3,000. While our recent numbers remain steady, there are many new faces and an increase in women. Statistics from the charitable food system across the state show a strong increase in first-time participants. Over the past decade, recessions, natural disasters, and an increase in the number of working poor have challenged DDB’s capacity to provide hunger Hunger Garden The Capitol Hunger Garden was started in Spring relief. As these demands grow, we of 2010 by the Legislative Hunger Caucus and the respond. But we can’t do it alone. Now is the time to act. When you PA Food Bank. Spearheading the project were contribute, your generosity and Representative Dwight Evans (Philadelphia) and compassion will make our city and Senator Mike Brubaker (Lancaster). Volunteers community a better place for all of us!
from legislative offices, state agencies, Penn State Cooperative Extension and other groups harvested the products, some of which were donated to DDB. Matt (DDB Support Staff Person) made a number of trips across the street to the garden to bring back fresh vegetables to be cooked for lunches. DDB would like to extend a warm Thank You to everyone involved in this practical and creative effort.
Remember your friends and loved ones with a holiday donation to DDB made in their honor. A lovely certificate will be sent to your honoree for a “joyful holiday and many blessings in the coming year.” DDB Van “The other evening I had a meeting in downtown Harrisburg. As I was driving home over the Harvey Taylor Bridge, I looked to the left lane and caught sight of the DDB logo on the back of a white van. There it was, clearly marked on the back and side of the van along with the logo of the YWCA. It is the little things in life that surprise and delight us. I was smiling from ear to ear as I saw the DDB van doing its business of transporting an individual to or from work that evening. I was delighted and proud.” Elaine
United Way Designation Does your employer offer automatic payroll contributions to United Way? If so, you can specify DDB as your charity of choice. Check with your company’s Human Resources Department or with the United Way to make your selection to support DDB.
“40 Under 40” We are pleased to announce DDB Advisory Board Member, Nathan Mains, is being recognized as one of the individuals honored in Central Penn Business Journal’s “40 Under 40” program. This distinction is for significant leaders/citizens under the age of 40. DDB Executive Director, Elaine Strokoff, will be attending the October 20th celebration honoring Nathan and his fellow nominees. Congratulations, Nathan!
Special Assistance Needed, Special Assistance Given Many DDB clients need assistance beyond a hearty meal. Christine Patrick, DDB caseworker, works with clients privately to help them on an individual basis. For the past three and a half months, Chris has worked tirelessly to help a sick client who is wheelchair bound. “Robert” was homeless and living outside when he learned that he has MS. As he became more sick, he was unable to walk steadily and needed a wheelchair to get around. Robert’s medical condition required treatment and personal care. This proved challenging as he had been shuttled between Harrisburg Hospital and Hamilton Health Center in search of a full diagnosis and treatment plan. Chris began working with The Area Agency on Aging and lobbying on Robert’s behalf. Social Security benefits for Robert have finally been obtained after months of work. Most important, after three and a half months of intensive one-on-one work with the counselor, Robert is on a list for the first available bed in an assisted living facility. With the determination and hard work of a dedicated caseworker, Robert now has temporary shelter until permanent housing and care can be arranged. At Downtown Daily Bread, we believe “To save one person is to save the world.”
Feeding Harrisburg’s hungry since 1983!
Client Attacks A gentleman named Ty was attacked on the street and subsequently died from the injuries. Ty was a regular at DDB; he was killed by men who had used DDB services. Harrisburg PD detectives visited DDB and shared their thoughts on the homeless in the city. It was helpful to hear that the detectives did not consider those on the street to be a threat and were compassionate about many people dealing with mental health issues. The suspects in Ty’s attack were apprehended. Elaine wrote a letter to the editor at The Patriot-News thanking the police for their work. Law enforcement faces an alarming phenomenon - our clients getting assaulted. Reports indicate at least four additional incidents of client attacks over the past month.
DDB Wish List As costs rise and resources fall, DDB finds itself, along with other non-profit organizations, in need of additional support. An increase in staff along with ongoing building maintenance and repairs challenges the DDB budget. Please help us augment our income with a tax-deductible contribution. If you wish to provide more tangible gifts, please consider donating items on our Wish List:
#10 cans of soups, fruits, or vegetables; coffee; sugar; plastic forks and spoons; napkins; meats; turkeys; hams; and spices. The holidays are rapidly approaching and holiday food is needed as DDB prepares to serve its 27th Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. Can you imagine a holiday celebration without a delicious meal? Please help our friends living in poverty enjoy a festive holiday meal as we do in our own homes. You can be a part of the DDB holiday experience by donating items or making a pledge to pay $2 per meal to feed 100-150 individuals. Every little bit can make a big difference.
From our kitchen to yours, we wish you and your loved ones a Beautiful and Bountiful Fall Season and Thanksgiving Holiday! Client Report DDB Caseworker Christine Patrick shares her recent account of what’s been happening at DDB: “It’s been a real busy fall and with winter on its way a lot more of our clients have been coming to me to help them find shelter. I’ve noticed that more of our clients are getting into what the homeless call “my street family.” For example, an older homeless woman and her boyfriend have taken in two homeless youths and now call themselves a family. The younger two are the “children” and they call the woman and her boyfriend “mom and dad.” They look out for each other and often stay at the same camp and live as a family. It is not your average family, but a family just the same. Many of our clients long for the family they never had and they find comfort in their street families. These groups share food, money, and resources as a family. Clients are also talking about another camp set up in Harrisburg where the homeless are sleeping; but they don't want anyone in authority to know.” Welcome! The DDB Advisory Board is pleased to welcome a new member, Jean Lonie. Jean will serve as the liaison to Pine Street Presbyterian Church. Jean lives in Harrisburg and works for the PA Department of
Lunch Plus Report Utilization of the DDB Lunch Plus Program continues to grow. We are grateful to be able to offer DDB clients the services included in our Lunch Plus Program. Some of the current statistics for the program include: • • • • •
• • •
All 33 lockers are in use Showers are averaging 65 per week The YWCA is on-site every Wednesday Legal assistance is available two times per month Haircuts are offered monthly; 23 haircuts were done during the past month A nurse is available every other week Flu shots will be offered the end of October The clothing rooms are constantly being stocked
Agriculture where she serves as the Executive Assistant to the Secretary. We want to thank Jean along with all our Advisory Board Members and volunteers for getting involved!
Log onto www.downtowndailybread.org often to discover the latest news and info at DDB. We want to keep you informed about how your support of DDB is making a difference and impacting our operations.
Think Gifts!!! Entertainment Books are now available for $30 payable to DDB. Five ($5) dollars from each book goes directly to DDB. Please call 717-238-4717 to make arrangements for pick-up. This is an easy way to help with a little extra funding for Downtown Daily Bread.
Thanks to ACS (Art Communication Systems), for assisting us with the printing of this newsletter. We are pleased to have a partnership with ACS! Harrisburg’s Premier Commercial Printing Service offers printing, graphic design, sales and marketing, and web development. Contact Park Cook, ACS, at 717-232-0144.
Pine Street Presbyterian Church
310 North Third Street Harrisburg PA 17101
NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID HARRISBURG PA PERMIT NO. 293
Forwarding Address Requested