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Clients learn ways to "get ahead"
March 2010 graduate DeAnn presents her action plan to her classmates at graduation. |
HOPE's Getting Ahead in a Just-Gettin'-By World ©
training series is a precursor to a traditional financial literacy
class and empowers participants to create a personalized action plan
for building economic stability and getting out of poverty. Getting Ahead not
only facilitates change in financial decision-making skills, but in
other attitudes and patterns of behavior as well. The training series
helps participants better understand their circumstances related to
living in poverty, enlarge their network of existing resources, and
develop concrete plans for moving forward with confidence and a greater
sense of purpose. Along the way, participants learn many "soft skills"
necessary for success in today's job market.
The
40-hour educational workshop is made up of 15 modules held twice
weekly in the evenings for approximately eight weeks, with
childcare provided. The course is co-facilitated by HOPE volunteers
Denise Porter and Dick Stonich. As of our tenth Getting Ahead series in March 2010, HOPE has graduated 86 participants from the program, and 72% of them report that
they continue to actively work on their action plan for getting out of
poverty and have reached at least one of their goals.
Our next Getting Ahead course begins on May 11. Do you know someone who might benefit from the lessons of Getting Ahead? Have them fill out this simple form on our website to refer themselves to HOPE and we will get in touch to see if they qualify for the program.
April is...
Has
it been too long since you reviewed your financial priorities
or revised your spending plan? Do the terms "financial priorities" and
"spending plan" send you into a tailspin? It's easier than you think to
take charge of your finances and get ahead with these simple Tools for Success from Money Management International©. |
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The week is almost over, but it's not too late to make a
volunteer commitment! You could pray about it this weekend
then sign up as a volunteer on Monday.
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| Mentor and staff present at conference | |
Manager
of Programs Jeffrey Fairley, Senior Family Service Coordinator Tracy
Banks, and volunteer mentor Kelli Rogers describe HOPE's Family
Mentoring Program at the Louisiana State Homeless Conference in Baton
Rouge on April 21, 2010.
HOPE Executive Director Renee Craft, not pictured, also spoke.  |
We are always excited to share our work with other social service
agencies. Earlier this week, HOPE staff members and one of our
volunteer mentors led a workshop at the 16th Louisiana State
Homeless Conference in Baton Rouge hosted by the Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless.
The HOPE team used the opportunity to describe our unique Family
Mentoring Program and highlight ways that volunteer mentors have
contributed to many of HOPE's best client successes. To find out more
about how mentors help other people excel, take a look at our video. |
| Food donations needed! |
 | | Picture
originally occupying this space now unavailable. Original caption read:
members of Star Hill Baptist Church with the huge food donation they
collected as part of a special mission outreach called "Pack
the Pickup" last year. They're doing it again on May 23, and
their goal is to donate 2,010 pounds of food to HOPE! Can your
church help, too? |
HOPE's Client Choice Food
Pantry is in need of food now more than ever. Due to increased
demand and decreased funding to both the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank
and HOPE, your generous donations of food are vital to continue feeding
the hungry. In 2009, HOPE served 242,000 pounds of food to
just over 14,000 people through the food pantry. The number of
persons served increased by 12% during the first quarter of 2010.
The pantry is currently in need of the following items: For more information about sponsoring a food drive, please contact Janet Simmons at jsimmons@hopebr.org or 225-355-0702 ext. 22.
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| Upcoming training open to the public | |
Understanding the Dynamics of Poverty is a one-day training for case managers, social workers, counselors, teachers and anyone working with people in poverty.
Participants learn about:
- what causes poverty
- how to work with people in poverty
- how to identify local resources
- what instigates changes in the community
- hidden rules of economic class
An upcoming training is
scheduled for Tuesday, May 18. The training will be held from
9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Louisiana Resource Center for
Educators on Florida Boulevard in Baton Rouge. Please visit our website for cost information and to register. You may also contact Janet Simmons at 225-355-0702 ext. 22 or jsimmons@hopebr.org.
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| Support HOPE:
Change a family's life with your pledge! |
Dear Friends:
At HOPE Ministries, we take Jesus' mandate to assist the poor one step further.
We help people help themselves.
You
can help us break the chains of poverty one family at a time. What may
seem like a small monthly amount to you tells a family "I believe in
you" and has an incredible impact on them and our community.
- $84 a month
buys a lifetime of independence for a family like Doretha's through our
Family Mentoring Program. Doretha went from a low-wage job to a
management position that lets her put a roof over her children's heads
and money in the bank for their future. Find out more about Doretha on our video.
- $50 a month puts a person like Valerie through Getting Ahead in a Just-Gettin'-By World,© an
eight-week course that improved her ability to manage her
finances and helped her increase her credit score by over 200
points. Valerie just bought her first house in January.
Over the past few years, 82% of our
clients have succeeded by meeting their financial and housing stability
goals. We've stepped up our impact in the community each year,
consistently increasing the number of families we serve. In 2010, we
will help even more people learn the life skills necessary to become
self-sufficient in our Family Mentoring Program and create their own
action plan to build economic stability in our Getting Ahead courses.
Your monthly gift will help change someone's life.
Thanks in advance for helping us
prevent homelessness and promote self-sufficiency and dignity here in
the Baton Rouge community.
Kindly,
Renee Craft
Executive Director |
| Support HOPE:
Apply for a Capital One Affinity Card! |
Click one of the cards to find out how you can support HOPE every time you go shopping!
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| Support HOPE:
Make a donation online! |
It's easy to make a one-time donation online. Just click on the "doors of HOPE"
to make a safe, secure donation with PayPal! | |
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