Junk King to the Rescue...and, other Special Volunteers or Organizations

Keeping older residences (Most WHC residences are in the heart of Over the Rhine and were built circa 1880... yes, over 140 years ago) maintained is a constant battle. It keeps our inspector and office manager (thanks Dennis & Steve) busy to say the least.

Unfortunately, we occasionally are recipients of trash. Nice. Can you imagine that some people think it's just fine to leave old, used tires on one of our properties. To make it worse, how about leaving them leaning on a residence where a beautiful mural was dedicated in honor of a wonderful young woman who died way too early and volunteered to help feed and serve those experiencing homelessness. This residence is called, "Victoria's (Victoria Stolz) House of Hope."

WHC tries to be resourceful and exercise stewardship with our residences and financial gifts. As such, the idea of paying organizations to resolve trash removal led to a call to Junk King. After asking us about the WHC ministry, they offered to dispose of these tires for free!  Junk King to the Rescue...

And, it helps that we have many other individuals and organizations that provide free or discounted services... Special Mention Thanks as well to:

• We have volunteers who have helped build dozens of Habitat for Humanity homes or renovations (thanks Paul, Dave, big Mike, Preston, John and others...) on call to add porches, flooring, new rooms, framing, drywall, painting, electrical... you get the idea... most anything...

• Or, Dupont Plumbing who has helped unclog, restore and renovate extremely old drainage systems.... remember, most of our homes were built over 140 years ago... we need reliable, honest and quick responding teams stuff goes to @#^&... See: Home - DuPont Plumbing Inc.

As a reminder, WHC owns five residences that house 15-20 participants (we have space for families so the total number above can vary). Each residence can have three to six participants. We also have a sixth residence to be renovated.

Good Stewardship... from seeding to transformation of a community garden

Our Life Coaches are asked to watch over our participants lives... meeting, discussing, debating, encouraging, motivating and in the end, helping them to transform and grow. 

The Good Lord asks us to be good stewards of our land as was described and encouraged in Genesis 2:15, "The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it." (ESV)

On Saturday, May 25th, we planted four beds. Below, you'll see a group containing: participants, volunteers, and board members.... not to mention a spouse and their young son.

The Completed Beds...

Welcome Home Collaborative owns six old residences in OTR, Northside and Colerain. Some residences are fortunate to have some space to grow a garden that will reap: tomatoes (several varieties), hot peppers, spices (basil, oregano, chives, etc.), cabbage, and other vegetables. 

Volunteer, Board and Participant collaborating!

After planting, we also ask our participants to water, weed, monitor and manage what is grown. And, then they are able to eat and enjoy the fruits (and vegetables of course) of their work and stewardship or gift it to others!

All hands (and generations) on deck!

We look forward to other opportunities to allow the Holy Spirit to work in and through us! We will update this post in a few weeks and we will shed more light as well on the work of our Life Coaches and Participants as they play the role of Gardener, Roots, Vines and the offspring Fruits...

Managing Change

WHC Life Coaches meet with participants on a weekly basis to nurture a trusting and accountable relationship. The accountability aspect is key to building a mutually agreed upon Life Plan that uses components of the Arizona Self-Sufficiency Matrix (ASSM). 

The ASSM is a tool used to assess an individual or family's level of sustainable independence across various life domains. It evaluates factors such as income, employment, education, housing, health, and social support to determine their overall level of self-sufficiency. The matrix typically categorizes individuals or families into different levels ranging from "crisis" to "self-sufficiency" based on their strengths and needs in each domain. It helps us personalize services and discussions to address targeted key long-term areas to help individuals and families evolve to independent living.

Being a Life Coach is both “Art and Science.” Today’s blog focuses more on the Science aspect of charting and monitoring progress.

The Arizona Self-Sufficiency Matrix (ASSM):

The ASSM is a comprehensive assessment tool designed to evaluate and continually monitor the progress and self-sufficiency of individuals or families across targeted domains of life. Some examples include:

1. Income and Employment: This assesses the individual or family's financial resources and employment status. It examines factors such as income level, stable employment, job skills, and access to benefits or financial assistance.

2. Education and Training: This evaluates the individual's level of education, access to educational resources, and participation in vocational training or skill-building programs.

3. Housing and Environment: This examines the individual or family's housing situation, including stability, safety, affordability, and access to essential utilities and services.
   

4. Health and Well-being: This focuses on physical and mental health, access to healthcare services, chronic conditions, substance abuse issues, and overall well-being.
   

5. Support Systems: This assesses the individual's social support network, including family, friends, community resources, and access to social services.

Each domain is further broken down into specific indicators or factors that contribute to self-sufficiency within that domain. For example, under the income and employment domain, indicators may include employment status, income level, access to transportation for work, and financial literacy.

The ASSM typically categorizes individuals or families into different levels of self-sufficiency based on their strengths and needs across these domains. These levels may range from "crisis" or "emergency" at one end of the spectrum, indicating significant challenges and limited resources, to "self-sufficiency" at the other end, indicating that the individual or family has achieved stability and independence across all domains.

The Life Coaches at WHC use the ASSM to conduct assessments and develop personalized support plans for individuals or families based on their specific needs and goals. By identifying areas of strength and areas needing improvement, our Life Coaches guide resource allocation to empower individuals and families to become more self-sufficient and achieve their goals for stability and success.

While the ASSM is a tool that helps to identify current and past states in managing progress or regression, our Life Coaches also use Motivational Interviewing techniques to act as an impetus to change and hopefully, help make it a continuous lifestyle versus just a transactional milestone.  We will discuss that in our next blog which is more of the “Art” side of being a Life Coach.

If you have interest in volunteering as a Life Coach or other ways to help WHC, please see:

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