BATC Foundation: Making a Differenceâ€¦One Home at a Time

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Volunteer News Volunteer News is published quarterly for volunteers, donors, staff and the community. Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has. ~ Margaret Mead -2- Human Service and Public Health Department Community Services Area Volunteer and Community Partnership Program (VCPP) Mission and Vision Statements Mission Statement To develop and match volunteers, donors, and community resources to the unmet needs of HSPHD clients. We envision... • A community in which volunteers, donors, and community partners are engaged in improving the lives of HSPHD clients by investing their time, talents, and/or resources. Connecting community resources to HSPHD staff to enhance the services provided to our clients. Partnerships that identify and create opportunities for regional involvement to enhance or support county services. Volunteer & Community Partnership Program Staff ROWE and Volunteer Services Manager Debra Truesdell 612-348-5897 Supervisor of Volunteer Program Kara Terry 612-543-8652 Office Support Specialist III Dianne Szach 612-348-7601 Transportation Programs and Omniciye, Little Earth Linda Bloomgren 612-348-8048 Befrienders, and Staff Assistants Rosemary Carpenter 612-348-4749 Parent Aide and Mental Health Programs Jackie Connolly 612-348-2875 Special Friends and Physical Disabilities Judy Corrao 612-348-7481 READY Mentors and Everyday Management of Money Nigel Denis 612-348-9062 Marketing and Recruitment Kristine Poelzer 612-348-5835 Newsletter Staff Writers Tequia Brown Jessica Sigfrid Mark Riley Photographer Lili Korbuly Editors Jackie Connolly Susan and Phil Gulstad Design & Layout Linda Bloomgren A Service of the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners District 1 Mike Opat District 2 Mark Stenglein District 3 Gail Dorfman District 4 Peter McLaughlin District 5 Randy Johnson District 6 Jan Callison District 7 Jeff Johnson HENNEPIN COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR Richard Johnson
The Spotlight is on... Step-Up student, Zekia by Phil Gulstad Sixteen-year-old Minneapolis high school student Zekia’s summer employment experience is a shining example of the great benefits to students and employers offered by the Step-Up Achieve program, the strategic nonprofit partner of the Minneapolis School System. For more information on Achieve Minneapolis, please visit their website: www.achievempls.org Zekia is one of 900 of this year’s 3,500 applicants who were selected for available summer employment opportunities. Over 700 of those students were matched up with jobs. A total of 170 employers, of which Hennepin County was one, hired one or more students. It is interesting to note that 96 percent of Step-Up Achieve supervisors report that the program is a great success at their organizations. Kristine Poelzer, a Sr. Coordinator of Volunteers with the Volunteer and Community Partnership Program (VCPP), was ebullient in describing her experience supervising Zekia, exclaiming, “It was a wonderful experience and far exceeded my expectations! It is hard for me to believe that Zekia is just 16, as she could easily be taken for 20something because of her technology skills and her ability to make independent decisions regarding the completion of her work tasks.” This summer’s program ran from June 20 to August 19 and offered positions with 20 to 25-hour work weeks. Zekia’s position started at 25 hours and was increased to 30 hours because of her excellent work ethic and the skills she brought to the job. Her job was also extended to Sept. 2 for the same reasons. According to Kristine, Zekia adjusted rapidly to a “results only” work environment, which was not the typical office job but rather a flexible multi-site position that required Zekia to learn to estimate the time needed for various tasks and to set priorities and manage her time productively—all real-life skills that will help her in her future. Among Zekia’s many activities during the summer were: learning how to construct spreadsheets in Microsoft Excel and setting up Excel databases and summary reports with graphs for decision-making use by a community partner’s board of directors working at Century Plaza with the Northwest Regional Center’s Customer Service Assistant volunteer program assisting Rosemary Carpenter and Linda Bloomgren with organizing and distributing supplies for the Hennepin County Backpack Challenge Photographer, Lili Korbuly attending a meeting of the Hennepin County Gerontology Alliance, made up of county employees, and providing it with an Excel database file complete with current information. According to Kristine, Zekia has already applied to work for her again next year, and she is looking forward to supervising Zekia again. Adds Kristine, “I would encourage other department employees to submit applications for Step-Up students through their own supervisors when applications open in March.” Thanks, Zekia, for all your help! -3-
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BATC Foundation: Making a Differenceâ€¦One Home at a Time

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