From Requirement to Empowerment
Toledo, Ohio

The Problem

What do you do when a local housing project calls you for help, saying its residents are now each required to perform nearly 100 hours of federally mandated community service?

The United Way of Greater Toledo ran into such a problem when the Housing Act of 1998 went into effect. Passed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Housing Act requires residents of public housing to commit eight hours to community service each month to maintain their residency.

They started to place these new volunteers just like they’d place anyone else, but they ran into problems. The residents didn’t know how, where or when to serve; issues such as lack of childcare and lack of self-esteem held back many potential volunteers. Additionally, local agencies weren’t enthused about bringing on a group they viewed as unreliable, unskilled and unmotivated volunteers.

The Solution

The United Way of Greater Toledo started by making connections — and ended up with a program that helps do much more than fill a leasing requirement. Jeanette Hrovatich, who serves as the Volunteer Center manager at the United Way of Greater Toledo, was already working with the Toledo community when her agency got the call from Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority (LMHA). Although HUD had decided to require community service, there was no system to help all the new volunteers find places to serve.

Hrovatich realized that before she could make successful volunteer connections, she needed to help people on both sides of the volunteering gap — both agencies and residents — to change their perspectives. So she organized trainings, both for the organizations who needed volunteers and for the residents themselves, and taught them all how volunteers from low-income communities can make a difference.

How They Did It

The United Way planned a series of one-hour luncheons for the community’s residents. During the sessions, Hrovatich spoke with residents about how giving back to their communities could really help improve their lives. She also mentioned how the residents were already engaging in community service without realizing it: “We showed actual examples of when you take care of your neighbor’s child, when you plant flowers in front of your housing unit,” she explained. Hrovatich also used a skill inventory worksheet to help strengthen the residents’ self-perception, so that when agencies asked them about their abilities, the residents would have a confident and clear answer to give. A free, catered lunch, as well as childcare and door prizes provided incentives for residents and eliminated potential barriers for attending.

While they were training residents, the United Way also took time to help local agencies better understand the issues facing low-income families. According to Hrovatich, “Agencies are only effective if the leaders themselves embrace all people, whether or not they need to be trained.” By teaching organizations to provide childcare, offer flexible hours, and be tolerant of men and women who were still flexing their new community service muscles, Hrovatich and the United Way helped provide a welcoming and receptive environment for housing project residents as they began their service hours.

The Results

Spearheaded by Hrovatich, the programs are still being offered by the United Way to local agencies and low-income volunteers who aren’t sure how to find common ground with one another. And the program’s benefits are reaching beyond the simple act of service. For example, after seeing the lack of grocery stores in the area that offered produce, Hrovatich’s former intern encouraged her business-owner husband to start stocking fresh fruits and vegetables at his local convenience stores. Hrovatich calls this “in itself a success.” And spurred on by their skill development and service success, a few residents have stopped volunteering at certain organizations because they’ve been hired as full-time staff there — including one resident who’s now employed in the maintenance department at the United Way itself.

Lessons Learned

• Sit down with the group you’ll be engaging to discover their needs and interests. You can adapt their message for the organizations you’ll be placing the volunteers with; it’s much harder to do the opposite.

• Spend time with your volunteers. Learn what they’re good at and what they’re passionate about. It’ll create a more personal connection, and help you find an agency where they’ll be the most effective.

• Learn about the issues unique to the low-income community through research, asking questions and simply observing. “I’ve just learned so much about what people have and what people don’t have and how it has an impact on your life,” said Hrovatich. Make sure not to decide what your low-income volunteers need without asking them — hands-on experience is invaluable, and will help you approach your volunteers with respect, dignity and a better understanding of their goals.

Resources

• The “Celebrating Your Strengths” worksheet was handed out to housing project residents during the United Way’s meetings. The worksheet helped the residents identify their skill sets, so they could have a better idea of how to serve effectively.
  
  
• When the United Way of Greater Toledo designed this flyer, they made sure to point out the meeting’s free lunch, childcare and door prizes. Making these services clear to the residents helped draw more attendees to the meetings.
  
  
• Hrovatich, used Ruby K. Payne’s Bridges Out of Poverty to learn more about low-income communities like the housing project she worked with. Whether you’re just beginning to engage low-income community members or you already have an established program, Bridges Out of Poverty can help strengthen your knowledge of the unique struggles that come along with socioeconomic status.

Contact Information

If you’re looking for more information on the United Way of Greater Toledo’s programming for low-income communities, contact Jeanette Hrovatich at jhrovatich@uwgtol.org.