Get to the Point, Volume XIX, Issue 17

GET TO

THE POINT T H E N E W S L E T T E R O F T H E N C C C A T L A N T I C R E G I O N

T H U R S D A Y , A U G U S T 1 , 2 0 1 3

V O L U M E X I X , I S S U E 1 7

Alumni Spotlight

Kaylea Bridwell, Class XVII

North Central Region

Health & Wellness

Using family experience to

address mental health

Life After AmeriCorps

Apply to be a Team

Leader for Winter 2014

2 AUGUST 1, 2013 | GET TO THE POINT

I’m a member of the National

Civilian Community Corps,

an AmeriCorps Program.

N-Triple-C members are 18 to 24 and spend

10 months getting things done for America

while developing their own leadership. We

serve on teams to help communities prepare

for and respond to disasters, build homes,

and help the environment.

To learn more, visit NationalService.gov or call 1.800.942.2677

CONNECT WITH AMERICORPS NCCC ATLANTIC REGION

Sam McKenzie, Community Relations Specialist (CRS)

Phone: 410.642.2411 Ext. 6244 ● Email: [email protected]

Mona Hillstrand, Assistant Community Relations Specialist (ACRS)

Phone: 202.815.4259 ● Email: [email protected]

Ben Dillon, Community Relations Support Team Leader (CRSTL)

Phone: 443.995.7940 ● Email: [email protected]

Facebook.com/NCCCAtlanticRegion

@AmeriCorpsNCCC

NationalService.gov

03 Gallery

Images from Round 3 projects

05 Bulletin Board

Update of Independent Service

Hours & Team Reminders

06 Alumni Spotlight

Kaylea Bridwell, Class XVII

Southern Region Corps Member

08 Health & Wellness

Shannon Herr, Buffalo 4 Health

and Wellness Liaison, applies her

family experience to Mental

Health First Aid

10 Life After AmeriCorps

Apply to be a Team Leader

11 Shout Outs

12 Team Project Map

About the cover

NCCC Team Leaders

visited West Virginia’s

New River Gorge

Overlook with Wendy

Spencer (center), CEO

of the Corporation for

National and

Community Service.

ISSUE IN THIS

CONTENTS

↑ Laura Mahoney,

Moose 5, and Brock

Barbosa, Raven 5,

overlook West

Virginia’s Bluestone

Gorge at Pipestem

Resort State Park

while working on the

Reaching the

Summit Initiative, a

five-day community

service event that

engaged nearly

40,000 Boy Scouts.

http://www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps/americorps-nccc

mailto:[email protected]



http://www.Facebook.com/NCCCAtlanticRegion

http://www.twitter.com/americorpsnccc

http://www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps/americorps-nccc

GET TO THE POINT | AUGUST 1, 2013 3

G ALLERY

Rounding Out Round 3

↑ Moose 4 practices a team building activity in preparation for

Activate, an educational youth camp organized by Project

Crossroad in Elkton, Md.

→ Utilizing their environment at Tanglewood 4H Camp in Lincolnville,

Maine, members of Raven 4 do physical training on a suspension

bridge spanning one of the camp’s creeks.

↓ Raven 2 members Jeremy Flores and Skylar Larsen take a break

atop a boulder near Summersville, W.Va.


G ALLERY

FEMA Corps Team Leaders to be inducted Friday, August 2 After four weeks of Team Leader Training at the Perry Point campus,

the Atlantic Region would like to officially welcome Class XX FEMA

Corps Team Leaders to the NCCC family! These 18 Team Leaders will

be supervising Corps Members on emergency management projects

across the Atlantic Region and the nation for 10 months. With the

addition of FEMA Corps at all five campuses, NCCC is now one

program with two options, both committed to “getting things done!”


BULLET IN BO ARD

Contributions for HAWL Logo

Bryan Lundholm, Moose 2, is working with Laura Tuck to design our HAWL logo. He

has done a marvelous job. What we need from each team or any Corps Member are quotes to “grow on” (inspirational quotes or quotes about the eight spheres of health). The roots of our tree logo will be labeled with quotes contributed by our Corps.

Chandler Ballentine, Operations Support Team

Leader, gives a lift to Courtney Strother, Program

Office Support Team Leader, to show her how the

world looks from his vantage point.

After several weeks in second

place, the Moose Unit has

surpassed the Raven Unit as the

leader in Independent Service

Project (ISP) hours.

Percentage of ISP Hours Complete

Moose: 74.55

Raven: 72.62

Buffalo: 68.23

“Trust is knowing that when a team member does push you, they're doing it because they

care about the team.”

- Patrick Lencioni

Sporting color-coordinated hard hats, Emily Tiffany,

Moose Unit Support Team Leader, and Dave

Beach, Deputy Region Director for Unit Leadership,

tour the new Atlantic Region campus in Baltimore.


ALUM NI SPOTL IGHT

How did you hear about the program? I had always been interested

in joining the Peace Corps but heard you needed a degree in order to join.

Having just graduated high school, I didn't have a degree. While talking

to different people in my community I heard AmeriCorps a couple times

and decided to look into it. I applied, went through the interview process

and soon got an acceptance letter.

Why did you join? I decided to join because I've always loved to travel.

I like to see the world I live in. I like the things I can learn from new plac-

es. I also love helping people. I love putting a smile on someone's face. I

like adventure and teamwork and a challenge. AmeriCorps seemed like a

perfect fit for me. I could do the things I enjoy and experience a whole

new type of lifestyle and receive an education award that would help my

future. Not to mention the amazing new résumé I would have.

What did you learn from it? After being in the program I realized

that community work pays off. Not only to the community you assist, but

also to yourself and those you work with. You are able to physically see

the difference you can make in someone's life and its mind blowing. It

brings people together. When people work hard together amazing things

can be accomplished.

Kaylea Bridwell

Class XVII

North Central Region

Oak 1 Member


ALUM NI SPOTL IGHT

Advice for future Corps Members: My advice

for future Corps Members would be to keep an open

mind. You run into a lot of situations that make you

feel frustrated or uncomfortable or they just seem

challenging. The end result is worth all the struggles.

Do the things you’re asked to do. Make time for your-

self. Bring out the good in yourself, your team, and

the communities you work with.

Your expectations of the program before en-

tering: Before I came into the program I tried not to

make any expectations. I wasn't sure if I would be

physically able to do the work. I wasn't sure if I was

socially able to make the friends. I didn't think I

would be mentally or emotionally able to last

throughout the program without questioning or

doubting my decision. And though there were plenty

of times throughout my adventure when I truly be-

lieved I wouldn't make it, I did. And the feeling when

I graduated outweighed all the bad feelings I had.

Your actual experience: I don't even know how to

put my actual experience into words. It was such a

roller coaster. I had to be really flexible as I had to

change campuses, and then had five different team

leaders, I was in multiple disasters, we had to work in

extremely humid/hot conditions, etc. Overall, my ex-

perience was extremely gratifying. I spent hours driv-

ing through the fields of the Midwest to work on

houses with Habitat for Humanity, to help the

preservations at Western Michigan University, to put

on a kids camp in Indiana, to muck and gut homes

destroyed by a flood in South Dakota and much more

in between. My team was truly lucky to have such

amazing sponsors who put on dinners for us, gave us

tickets to events like the Brickyard 400, took us fish-

ing and so on. Like I've said, words can't truly explain

the feeling when you lie on your cot in the middle of

the woods with thunder and lightning all around you.

The moment when you finally realize you're not in

your own house anymore, but you can still feel like

you're at home wherever you are.

Some of your most prevalent memories: Play-

ing ultimate Frisbee with my team in the rain, swim-

ming with kids from camp, getting lost while using

GPS.

“After being in the program I realized that community

work pays off. Not only to the community you assist, but

also to yourself and those you work with.”


By Shannon Herr, Buffalo 4

B eing a Health & Wellness

Liaison (HAWL) for Buf-

falo 4 has been an amaz-

ing, rewarding experience for me.

I've always been the kind of per-

son that loves helping people and

I’ve never had a choice but to be

that way.

I have a sister at home who is

three days younger than me. Due

to Cerebral Palsy, a muscle disease

that can affect the whole body, she

has the mental capacity of a three

year-old. She can't walk unless

someone's holding her and only

has use of her right arm. She has a

wheelchair to get around the

house, but when she's out of it, she

crawls around “soldier style.”

She's capable of putting herself in

bed, getting out of bed, sitting on

the couch, and feeding herself.

With assistance, she can get into

her wheelchair, on her chair at the

table when it's time to eat, and on

her shower chair. She also has a

very limited vocabulary. Her fa-

vorite word is “hi” and she'll wear

that word out because she loves

saying it. She's someone who can

never be left alone, so with my

parents being working people, she

goes to an adult day program so

she can get out of the house for a

couple of hours and have interac-

tion with other people outside of

the family. Prior to this year, I was

her primary caretaker when my

parents were working or had other

commitments. Until I came to

AmeriCorps, I had been living that

life for 20 years.

After taking care of my sister,

it’s natural to take care of other

people, even my entire team. I

take care of them before I even

take care of myself, which is why

I'm paying for it now health-wise.

This whole time, I needed to learn

to take care of myself before tak-

ing care of others. I know as a

HAWL, I have to monitor the sev-

en dimensions of the team’s well-

ness: physical, social, environ-

mental, vocational, spiritual, emo-

tional, and intellectual. I know

that, being certified in Mental

Health First Aid, the role also re-

quires me to be more alert to signs

of mental illness and stress and to

be ready to jump in to help when

it's needed. But I cannot be effec-

tive as a HAWL until I address my

own health and wellness first.

HEALTH & WELLNESS

DRAWING FROM FAMILY EXPERIENCE TO HELP OTHERS


HEALTH & WELLNESS

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 cups chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper

1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 (16-ounce) cans stewed tomatoes

2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed

1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed

1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, rinsed

and drained

PREPARATION (45 MINUTES)

1. Heat the oil in a deep pot over medium-

high heat.

2. Add onion, bell peppers, and garlic;

sauté 5 minutes or until tender.

3. Add sugar and remaining ingredients,

and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover,

and simmer 30 minutes.

Chunky Vegetarian Chili

There’s a history of mental ill-

ness in my biological family. My

mother has schizophrenia with a

severe learning disability. Due to

her disability and mental illness,

she was a loner as a child and very

quiet. When she was 15, she want-

ed to grow up and be a nurse's

aide or a teacher's assistant, but

because of the illness, she wasn't

able to achieve that goal. She's a

passive, depressed woman and has

gone through many relationship

difficulties and suicidal attempts.

She's extremely dependent, has

very few living skills, lacks self-

confidence, and had a very rocky

marriage with her husband.

My father presented problems

of paranoia, threats of bodily harm

to his self and others, and was di-

agnosed with a disabling personal-

ity disorder. Because of his mental

illness, he also had deep-seated

fears of abandonment which re-

sulted in anger and hostility, and

he acted on his anger by making

threats to others and himself. Due

to his illness and behavior, he

spent his life in and out of jail. It

was noted, however, that his intel-

lectual skills were a bit higher than

my mother's. However it was ap-

parent that his emotional prob-

lems had a disabling effect on him.

I know my younger biological

sister inherited schizophrenia and

suffers with it time to time, and I

inherited asthma, because my bio-

logical parents abused drugs and

alcohol when I was in the womb.

Although I never had to take care

of any of them, I'm very aware of

mental illness and know that

awareness of mental health issues,

especially Mental Health First Aid,

is important for anyone. Overall,

my purpose in being a HAWL is to

look out for the others and help

them in any way I can. I hope that

I can use what I’ve learned from

my family’s struggles with mental

health to help others in need.


L I FE AFTER AMERICORPS

All interested applicants must submit a TL application on the

my.americorps.gov portal before the September 1 deadline. No

applications will be accepted past this date. Please note that a new

application must be submitted so you cannot resend your CM

application when applying for a TL position.

If you are applying for an STL position, you need to let that staff POC or

Unit Leader know. You can apply for both a Field TL and STL position.

Winter 2014 TL applications will also be screened by the Vinton and

Vicksburg campuses as they are on the same hiring cycle.

Each applicant must have two online references included in their

completed applications. We strongly recommend that one of these

references to be from your current TL. Even if your TL hasn’t submitted a

reference online, ULs will be contacting them for feedback.

You can still submit your TL application even if your references haven’t

yet submitted their recommendations.

If you hit submit and get an error message, you must contact your USTL/

UL. They will then get in touch with enrollment staff at HQ who will open

the portal to allow the application to be submitted.

Applications will be reviewed and members will receive notification of

the following:

1. Email indicating that they do not meet the requisite requirements to

move onto a TL interview.

2. Email indicating that they do meet the requirements and that a USTL

will be in touch to set up an interview.

Keep in mind that you may get contacted by the Vinton and Vicksburg

campuses for interviews as well.

Interviews are ALL telephonic and last approximately 1 hour. Interviews

are staffed by at least one Unit Leader and a Unit STL. The only time all 3

Unit Leaders will be present on an interview is if the interviewee is

applying for a USTL position.

The offer date for all TLs will be in either early or mid-October.

If offered a position, you will be given a set # of days (3-5) to accept the

offer. We give this time because you may also receive offers from Vinton

& Vicksburg.

If given an alternate status, you will also be contacted.

If you accept an offer at one campus and then change your mind, you

will be ineligible for both and ALL offers rescinded.

Team Leader training will begin at all three campuses in January 2014.

You can also apply for FEMA Corps TL, which will follow the same

deadline for the Sacramento and Denver Campuses.

APPLY TO BE A TEAM LEADER


Shout out to Stephen Silber for being

the gooey part of our STL s'more and

bringing it all together.

STLs

Raven 2

Raven 2: second to none. Happy Birthday

Laura! You’re the oldest best TL around!

Raven 4

Have fun on the

FOURce round.

Raven 3

Best of luck on Phoenix

4 Max, We will miss

your sassy self dearly.

Be safe out there!

Shout Outs? Shouts Outs are

short messages

submitted by

teams each week

to share with the

rest of the Corps.

Whatever it may

be, a Shout Out

is one little way

to keep the Corps

connected

throughout the

service term.

Raven 5

$4.75 is great for a

meal. Cool beans.

We decided that

as soon as our

entire team

reaches their 80

ISP hours we are

going to throw

an "all ‘80s"

party!

Moose 5

SHOUTS OUTS

Congratulations to Class XX FEMA Corps Team Leaders for

finishing Team Leader Training and officially being installed

this week! We look forward to meeting your Corps

Members next week!

Staff Members

This week, six teams will return from projects with the

Citizens Conservation Corps of West Virginia and begin

transitioning to Round 4 projects. An additional six teams

have already deployed to Round 4 projects throughout

the region. One team is assisting with disaster recovery

in New Jersey, one team is doing disaster mitigation

and preparedness work in

Connecticut, one team is

improving education facilities in

Massachusetts, and three

teams are doing a

combination of

environmental

stewardship and

urban development in

Baltimore.

Where in the Atlantic Region Are They? Round 4, Week 2

BUFFALO 1

Baltimore, Md.

Creative City Public Charter School

Urban & Rural Development

BUFFALO 4

Baltimore, Md.

Baltimore City Bureau of Parks


RAVEN 4

Baltimore, Md.

Baltimore County Reforestation

Environmental Stewardship

MOOSE 2

Toms River, N.J.

Jersey Cares

Disaster Services

MOOSE 4

Rockaway, N.Y.

St. Bernard Project


RAVEN 2

Hackensack, N.J.

Volunteer Center of Bergen County

Disaster Services

RAVEN 3

Queens, N.Y.

Respond & Rebuild

Disaster Services

RAVEN 1

Chelsea, Mass.

Phoenix Charter Academy


BUFFALO 3

Torrington, Conn.

Torrington AHD/MRC


PHOENIX 4

Suffolk, Va.

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Disaster Services

MOOSE 3

Sanford, Maine

City of Sanford


MOOSE 5

Newburgh, N.Y.

Habitat for Humanity Newburgh

Urban and Rural Development

MOOSE 1

Elk Township, Pa.

The Nature Conservancy


RAVEN 5

King of Prussia, Pa.

Valley Forge


Get to the Point, Volume XIX, Issue 17

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Transcript of Get to the Point, Volume XIX, Issue 17