Daemen College, Department of Community Service

The Department of Community Service at Daemen College is a student program, its primary objectives are to educate and provide students the opportunity to volunteer their services, skills and abilities to assist the needy and less fortunate in western New York and globally.

Since its inception in 1987, the program has recruited 1,053 student volunteers out of an annual student body of about 2,000. In the past year, students served more than 15,000 volunteer hours in more than 1,000 placement sites in and out of western New York. Each week students serve the elderly in nursing homes, serve the homeless and poor in soup kitchens and serve the sick in hospitals. The students also adopt needy families for Christmas and work with the Red Cross in emergency and relief projects. In addition, they serve in charitable fundraising events and work with Oxfam America, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating solutions to hunger, poverty and social injustice, to help feed the hungry people of the world.

The operational costs of the program are fully supported by Daemen’s central budget funds. Two paid staff (the director and the secretary) and four work-study students run the office.

Data collected by the office shows that the program has successfully affected the lives of more than 195,000 needy people. The program has also significantly helped to educate and elevate the awareness of many young people and the community-at-large about the social problems confronting society and how they can contribute to solving those problems.

Green Mountain Prevention Project’s Teen Leaders

Since its inception in 1982, Green Mountain Prevention Projects (GMPP) has trained teens to be peer educators and leaders in substance abuse prevention in their schools and communities. Teens are selected from their schools to attend residential training retreats where they learn the skills and information necessary to carry the prevention message to their peers.

Teams from each school work with a school advisor to initiate or implement projects to discourage substance use and encourage a drug free lifestyle. The teens devise projects that are appropriate to the particular needs for their community. These projects range widely including such activities as: peer support groups, mentoring and tutoring programs, Drug Awareness Days/Weeks, cross age teaching, community dialogue nights and other learning opportunities.

Through the GMPP programs, approximately 400 teens are trained each year to be leaders in prevention. Each school group initiates at least three or four activities and each participant touches at least 75 peers with the prevention message. The volunteer educators connect with thousands of their peers each year and log more than 16,000 volunteer hours.

Our Kids Are Okay

The “Our Kids” project, also known as “Our Kids Are OK,” provides assistance to Baxter Country Area children who need medicine, medical treatment or other necessities when no other source of assistance is available. The objective of the program is to make sure that no child goes without life’s necessities.

“Our Kids” began in 1992 and is co-sponsored by the Mountain Home Kiwanis Club and The Baxter Bulletin newspaper, in cooperation with the local Department of Human Services, the Baxter County Health Unit and area schools. The program is funded by donations from the community.

The “Our Kids” project serves the children of the Baxter County, Arkansas area who are not eligible for services under other existing programs. These are usually children of the working poor. The parent or guardian of any child completes a simple application and returns it to the supervisor of the Baxter County Department of Human Services. The supervisor uses the information on the application to establish eligibility for existing programs; if the child is eligible, services are expedited. If ineligible, existing community resources are tapped. For example, a child may be referred to the Lions Club for vision services. If no other help is available, the applicant is considered by the “Our Kids” committee at a meeting held every other week. Members of the committee are representatives of the sponsoring agencies and community volunteers.

At the committee meeting, the need is discussed and a decision made on each case. The committee’s activities are reported in a regular newspaper column, called “Our Kids,” this is published on the front page of The Baxter Bulletin. The names of the applicants are not disclosed, but the situations and the remedies are described to let the community know how the needs are being met. The column is also used to request donations of specific items from the community. The community donates money and/or services to cover the need. The child receives the service and “Our Kids” pay for the bill.

Since the project’s inception in February 1992, “Our Kids” has helped more than 1,053 children. A neighboring county has begun a similar project modeled after “Our Kids”.

KIDS HOPE USA

KIDS HOPE USA, a program of International Aid in Spring Lake, Michigan, helps a church link its members who have love to share with children who need that love. The nonprofit organization, International Aid, Inc. challenged Virgil Gulker, a 20-year veteran at organizing church-based volunteer programs, to look at how the church community could become directly involved in the life of a child to make a difference. Rather than the usual gifts of money or food, Mr. Gulker challenged church members to give of their time to a child in need. The result was the creation of KIDS HOPE USA in 1993.

Mr. Gulker’s idea was for churches to volunteer at public schools within their own communities, each church member working with one child, up to age 10. The work was initially intended to focus on literacy and other academic skills, but the volunteers found that building relationships was just as important. Armed with lots of praise and encouragement, each week approximately 250 adult volunteers from seven churches meet for about an hour with a child.

In order for a church to become a participating partner of KIDS HOPE USA, a network must be built to ensure the program’s success. Each of the churches that become involved agrees to hire a part-time coordinator to oversee its efforts. This guarantees constant supervision and monitoring of the volunteers, ongoing communication with the teachers to maintain an effective program and connection with the parents of the children who are being mentored. Additionally, the pastor must agree to become a volunteer as well. Church members commit to one year of service but many have gone on to work with their child for two and three years.

Teachers have reported increased attendance, improved attitudes about school, improved self- esteem and improved academic skills. Volunteers have reported that the children realize that someone in the community cares about them and wants them to succeed.

The program began in West Michigan about four years ago with just two churches. It has now expanded in the Holland Public School area to seven churches that have adopted eight elementary schools.

Calvin Jones

Busbee Quarters is an area comprised of 50 family dwellings, 47 of which are occupied; there are approximately 70 children in the area. High crime, low income, high rates of illiteracy, low educational achievement levels and inadequate recreational facilities characterize the area.

Calvin Jones assessed the needs of the children living in Busbee Quarters and took it upon himself to take the first step in trying to improve their opportunities for a better chance at life. With no funding, no facility, no sponsors and no board of directors, Mr. Jones quit his day job and took on the Skill Day Center as his mission. With only the desire to help and the financial support of his family (wife and one working daughter), he began his crusade to provide hope for these children through improved education.

Mr. Jones created the Skill Day Center, an after-school, academic “safe house” for children living in Busbee Quarters. The Jones family volunteers their time every day to help the children with homework after school. Twice a week, they coordinate GED classes for area adults. In addition, the Skill Day Center serves as a distribution point for the local bread bank program and conducts sessions with motivational speakers to address social issues such as drug and alcohol awareness. Through a partnership with the Marion County Public Health Department, the Skill Day Center provides families and individuals with counseling sessions and lectures on health and hygiene practices.

Teachers report that the students are making better grades, that homework is being done and that the students are learning. With a homework assignment as the requirement to go to the Skill Day Center, many students actually ask their teachers for homework so they can go to the Skill Day Center after school. Mr. Jones has been recognized by the Ocala Police Department and the City of Ocala as a positive contributing factor to the decrease in crime and drug activity in Busbee Quarters.

After more than two years of service in Busbee Quarters, Mr. Jones opened a second center in Ocala in October 1996.

Peekskill Area Health Center

The Peekskill Area Health Center (PAHC) has been providing a comprehensive range of preventative health care service to more than 20,000 users annually for the past 20 years. PAHC’s mission is to provide quality, preventative, patient-centered medical and dental services; prevent and control disease; empower patients through knowledge; encourage healthy lifestyles and promote partnerships to health care.

Health in A.C.T.I.O.N. (Accessing Care Together in Our Neighborhoods) is a corps of trained volunteers involved in a broad range of community based health care initiatives, with a special focus on women, children and youth. Health in A.C.T.I.O.N. has spurred the development of numerous community projects that strengthen the physical, mental, social, intellectual and spiritual health of special populations

Health in A.C.T.I.O.N. programs include Project L.I.F.E. (Learning Information Fosters Empowerment), an educational and peer support program targeting the unique needs of pregnant and parenting teens and H.U.G.s (Health Unites Generations), an intergenerational program linking teen and the homebound elderly. Healthy Transitions is a life skills training program from homeless families and Community Care Partner Program links trained community volunteers to women in need of support during prenatal and postpartum period. Through Minority Health Awareness Project, Health in A.C.T.I.O.N. develops health fairs and Vida Latina is a youth group embracing the multiple concerns of Latino youth.

These programs illustrate the kinds of prevention initiatives that engage clients to participate in meaningful and valued activities and roles involving problem solving, decision-making and goal setting.

PAWS for Success

Approximately 25% of the students at T.C. Walker Elementary School live in disadvantaged homes. These students do not meet the criteria for Special Education, yet are at-risk or are currently performing below grade level. The PAWS (Positive Achievement with Students) for Success Program was developed to meet the needs of these students.

Students from Gloucester High School, less than one mile away from the elementary school, serve as tutors to the younger students. Their responsibilities are numerous. Tutors arrive at the elementary school and sign in with the Community Education Coordinator who provides them with a lesson plan from the students’ teachers. They then participate in a tutoring session that usually lasts approximately 45 minutes. The elementary school children then return to their classes to be dismissed for the day. Tutors attend anywhere from between one to three times a week, depending on the needs of the students. Tutors request a specific grade level they are comfortable with as well as subject matters they prefer.

Many of the tutors augment the lesson plan with educational games or activities that help present the lesson in another fashion to further demonstrate how the work can be completed. After the session is completed, the tutor returns the student to class and then completes a session note. The session note contains objective information on what material was presented to the student, how the student responded and any difficulties or successes that need to be communicated.

The tutor also acts as a positive role model for the student. The tutors learn about the students’ interests and dreams. They discuss sports, music or other areas of interest. Teachers report students waiting for tutors to arrive as well as talking about the session afterwards.

Last year, of the 17 students receiving services, four would have been retained had it not been for the intervention received. The remaining students were closer to grade level in reading and math. The program began in November of 1995 with 14 tutors and 17 students. Today more than 37 tutors are serving 40 students.

Allen Lowenberg

Allen Lowenberg, in his eleventh year of full-time service to the St. Joseph School District, is affectionately known as Edison Elementary School’s “guardian angel”.

Although Mr. Lowenberg prefers working directly with students, he helps in many other ways. Office support, kindergarten screening and promotion of his special interest, “conflict resolution,” are a few examples. When many teachers are on summer vacation, Mr. Lowenberg tutors students at summer school. He donates more than 160 hours monthly, totaling more than 12,800 hours to date.

Mr. Lowenberg also shares his financial resources; birthday cakes and Christmas gifts arrive for children who would otherwise have none. In addition, he anonymously donates money to help kids and support educational goals. Students know that Mr. Lowenberg is there if they need a visit to the Clothes Closet, a ride home or a hug.

Mr. Lowenberg’s efforts do not stop with his own; he invites others to join him. His friends and family members contribute in his name in lieu of anniversary and birthday gifts. He is a community voice for children in poverty on the boards of St. Joseph 2000, Youth Alliance and The Social Welfare.

There are many results that the principal attributes to Mr. Lowenberg’s presence and work at Edison Elementary. A significant number of black students at Edison are performing in the top percentile of achievement in math and science, counter to national trends and students are learning how to solve conflicts and deal with anger in positive ways. Additionally, in 1996 Edison was the only school in the district that reported seven areas of significant improvement and none of significant decline.

Sandy Good

After receiving a B.S. in Nursing in 1976 from the University of Pittsburgh, Sandy Good received a M.S. in 1979 as a pediatric specialist from the University of Rochester, where she was invited to join the faculty. Mrs. Good declined the offer, however, and moved to Appalachia to provide community nursing. For the next 13 years, she provided home health nursing in rural Appalachia, for a salary of about $1,000 month. During this period, Mrs. Good also provided health screening of elementary school children, served as a preceptor for Eastern Kentucky University nursing students needing field experience in community health, was a volunteer trainer for a local hospice and taught nursing students in various outreach locations outside of Louisville.

In 1994, Vanderbilt University’s Maternal Infant Health Outreach Worker program (MIHOW), was awarded a grant from the Corporation for National Service to provide VISTA Volunteers to start new MIHOW programs. One targeted area was east Kentucky. Mrs. Good was immediately approached about working with this program.

Mrs. Good signed on as a VISTA worker, serving until mid-1995. She now directs Hazard’s MIHOW home visiting program; a community-based, low-cost intervention aimed at improving family health and child development for low-income rural families. In 1996, Mrs. Good established a MIHOW home visiting program, recruiting and training two community mothers who provide a non-judgmental listening ear and work to improve parenting skills through parenting education and parent support groups. The number of volunteers has grown to more than 30.

In 1995, Mrs. Good opened a Baby Pantry. The Baby Pantry has provided more than 275 low-income families with clothing, diapers, baby food and formula, beds, cribs, high chairs and car seats. Mrs. Good went on to purchase a program site with personal moneys to identify and better serve the needs of low-income families.

In the span of three years, Sandy Good has developed a thriving maternal-infant health outreach effort and provided service to those in need.

Reverend Herbert Lusk II

In 1989, the Reverend Herbert H. Lusk, II, a former Philadelphia Eagle’s football player, joined with several other Eagles and community residents to form People for People (PFP). The organization’s goal is to bring people together to break the cycle of crime, hopelessness and despair associated with inner-city poverty.

Rev. Lusk left the professional sports arena 17 years ago to study for the gospel ministry. After finishing college and earning his master’s degree in 1981, he became the pastor of the Greater Exodus Baptist Church in an impoverished area of North Philadelphia.

While most of PFP’s activities are geared toward low-income children and young people who are at high risk of dropping out of school and of being influenced by the wrong types of role models, adult services are also offered. The four major programs under the banner of PFP: a job training program, an after-school homework assistance program, a Saturday youth enrichment program and a Friday night enrichment program.

PFP’s Job Training Program trains welfare recipients, enabling them to move from welfare to the job market. Enrollees receive 24 weeks of classroom instruction, hands-on computer lab practice and employment/personal development sessions. Participants are involved in internships, job clubs, and supportive services development, followed by an intensive job search. Through the years more than 80 people have graduated from the job training program. Approximately 75% of the program’s participants have received full-time jobs. This program is funded by the Private Industry Council and the Ben Franklin Technology Center.

PFP’s After-School Homework Assistance Program, operated by two staff members and twelve volunteers, focuses on first through eighth grade students. Neighborhood school principals choose the students based on need. Vans bring students from area schools to the PFP building, located adjacent to the church. Volunteers provide mentoring and tutoring in efforts to improve the children’s grades, computer skills, and self-esteem. Participants are served a hot meal and are then escorted home. Annually, the program works with 70 children and there is always a list of children waiting to receive the services.

The 4,000 square-foot recreation room provides a safe place for the young people of the Friday Night and Saturday Youth Enrichment Program and other young people from the community to play. The building houses ping-pong tables, video games, computers and other recreational games. The two programs usually serve approximately 150 children each weekend.

People for People has recently received a Joli Grant, provided by the federal government, in the amount of $500,000 to run a three year program focused on self-empowerment. Through the program 60 individuals will be trained in all facets of running a manufacturing company. At the end of the three years, the individuals will be owner/operators of the manufacturing company.