New Hope Housing - Newsbriefs Page 1

Newsbriefs Volume 19 Issue 1 January 2, 2015

New Hope Housing, Administration Office 8407-E Richmond Highway,

Alexandria, VA 22309 703-799-2293

Rethinking Homelessness since 1977

The New Year is full of promise, though you may also get a fair share of tough times. With each progressing year, you find yourself growing confident, experienced, and wise. That's the gift of the New Year. Raise a toast to the year that holds many promises. Make this year an inspiring one to remember! Enjoy reading the Top 5 New Year’s Resolutions below. I’ve already spotted a couple that I have on my list. 1. Spend More Time with Family & Friends Recent polls conducted by General Nutrition Centers, Quicken, and others shows that more than 50% of Ameri-cans vow to appreciate loved ones and spend more time with family and friends this year. Make plans to meet up with friends for an evening. 2. Fit in Fitness The evidence is in for fitness. Regular exercise has been associated with more health benefits than anything else known to man. Studies show that it reduces the risk of some cancers, increases longevity, helps achieve and maintain weight loss, enhances mood, lowers blood pressure, and even improves arthritis. In short, exer-cise keeps you healthy and makes you look and feel better. 3. Tame the Bulge Over 66 percent of adult Americans are considered overweight or obese by recent studies, so it is not surprising to find that weight loss is one of the most popular New Year's resolutions. Setting reasonable goals and staying focused are the two most important factors in sticking with a weight loss program, and the key to success for those millions of Americans who made a New Year's commitment to shed extra pounds. 4. Quit Smoking If you have resolved to make this the year that you stamp out your smoking habit, over-the-counter availability of nicotine replacement therapy now provides easier access to proven quit-smoking aids. Even if you've tried to quit before and failed, don't let it get you down. On average, smokers try about four times be-fore they quit for good. Start enjoying the rest of your smoke-free life! 5. Enjoy Life More Given the hectic, stressful lifestyles of millions of Americans, it is no wonder that "enjoying life more" has become a popular resolution in recent years. It's an important step to a happier and healthier you!

Courtesy of Albrecht Powell, & Simran Khurana About.com

Where has your New Hope Housing “Orange” Polo been? We are tracking our logo footprint in our community! When you are out and about town serving NHH

residents and/or volunteers, please snap a photo of you wearing your NHH polo and send to jsacharko@newhopehousing.org! Our goal is to make New Hope Housing a

household name in this area; so show off that ORANGE spirit wherever you go!

If you would like a New Hope Housing polo shirt, please send your shirt size to your program site director.

WELCOME NEW

Employment Liaison (Community Services Team)

Tania Sarnor

BIO Tonya has a Bachelor of Arts, Political Science - International Relations from Kent State University – Kent, OH. Ms. Sarnor is a Skilled Professional with experience in employment devel-opment, administration, research, and social work backed by expertise in the coordination of major projects related to government and community relations. Tonya has years of experience facilitating workshops for clients, providing one-on-one job coaching, working with com-munity organizations, and helping clients find and maintain employment as well as any other resources they are in need of. Her expertise will be used to seek and establish relation-ship with potential employers of the community we serve. Tania is also noted for leaving a professional and well respect-ed impact on those she encounters (staff, clients, and employ-ers), evidenced by her hard work at Work Opportunities Unlimited, Pasadena, MD.

Interesting Fact About Me

My favorite TV show is

WELCOME NEW

On Call RSS (Falls Church Winter Shelter)

Samantha Vaughn

BIO

I am originally from Northern California and moved to

Virginia to go to school. I have worked in homeless services for about 3.5 years, but I am so excited to learn from the New Hope Housing Team!

Interesting Fact About Me

I have bungee jumped off a bridge, next on my bucket list is to skydive!

I am the shortest person in my family,

and I am 6 ft. tall.

I am a Pescetarian.

There is a website available where employees may go to print their own pay statements.

The website is: https://ipay.adp.com

Use your ADP user id and password to log in.

Please be advised that all options mentioned on the site may not be available for our usage, but

feel free to check it out

Did you recently move? If you move, please remember to update your new mailing address by filing out the “Change of Address” form in ADP (located on the main page) and submit to Lee Voltmer at the New Hope Housing admin office. Lastly, if you move to another state, it is very important that you complete new State and Federal Tax withholding and submit to payroll. Otherwise, you could end up with a tax liability at tax time.

Please get your timesheets completed and

submitted on time on a daily basis!

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO ALL EMPLOYEES Did you know that federal and Maryland/Virginia/D.C. earned income tax credits are available to certain low-income individuals and families?

These credits can reduce the amount of income tax you owe or increase your income tax refund; and, you may qualify to receive some of these credits even if you did not earn enough income ·to be required to file a tax return.

2014 Maryland/Virginia/D.C. Earned Income Taxcredit (EITC)

Maryland/Virginia/D.C. EITC is a credit for certain taxpayers who have income and have worked. The

state EITC reduces the amount of state tax you owe. The local EITC reduces the amount of county tax you

owe. Some taxpayers may even qualify for a refundable Maryland/Virginia/D.C.EITC.

Most taxpayers who are eligible and file for a federal EITC can receive the Maryland/Virginia/D.C. and

local EITC. The allowable Maryland/Virginia/D.C. credit is up to one-half of the federal credit. To be

eligible for the federal and Maryland/Virginia/D.C. EITC, your federal adjusted gross income and your

earned income must be less than the following:

$46,997 ($52,427 married filing jointly) with three or more qualifying children

$43,756 ($49,186 married filing jointly) with two qualifying children

$38,511 ($43,941 married filing jointly) with one qualifying child

$14,590 ($20,020 married filing jointly) with no qualifying children

To receive the Maryland/Virginia/D.C. EITC, you must be eligible for the federal credit. If your income is

less than the amounts shown in this notice, visit the Internal Revenue Service Web site at www.irs.gov, or

contact your tax advisor, to learn if you meet the other requirements. You also may be entitled to a

refundable state EITC and to a local EITC.

If you are a part-year resident or a nonresident of Maryland/Virginia/D.C., you may be entitled to a prorated share of the credit, if you have state earned income.

For more information about the Maryland EITC, visit the Web site at www.marylandtaxes.com or call 1-800-MD- TAXES (1-800-638-2937), or 410-260-7980 from Central Maryland. You mu st have a valid Social Security Number and file a tax return to claim this credit. For Virginia, you may visit www.dss.virginia.gov and for D.C., the site is otr.cfo.dc.gov

Reminder: Legally married same-sex couples must file as married filing jointly or married filing separately for tax year 2014. Employees wishing to adjust their withholding to reflect married status should complete a new Maryland Form MW507 (VA & D.C. when applicable), as well as federal Form W-4.

2014 Federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)

For more information about the federal EITC,

visit: www..irs.gov/individuals or

call the IRS at 1-800-829 1040

NEW IRS MILEAGE RATE EFFECTIVE January 1, 2015

The IRS has published an new mileage rate of 57.5 cents. A new mileage form will be posted on the ADP homepage after January 2, 2015. Please use this for all mileage on and after January 1, 2015.

All mileage through December 31, 2014 will be reim-bursed at the current rate(56 cents) using the current form. Please make sure you have completed all your mileage forms through December 31, 2014 using the current form and rate. The 2014 form will remain on the home page as well.

You must use a separate form for each calendar year. Any mileage submitted on an incorrect form will be returned to you for correction. This will hold up the processing of your check so please be careful which rate/form you are using.

Come join the New Hope Housing Young Professionals Board

Sunday, January 18th from 4-6 at Pinstripes, for an afternoon of bowling!

$30 covers shoes/ socks, 2 hours of bowling,

1 raffle ticket, and great company. We will also be selling additional raffle tickets -

1 for $5 and 3 for $10.

Raffle items include: Starbucks Giftcard, Uber Gift Card, Urban Chic Shopping Party, and a

Soul Cycle Gift Card.

“The Grinch Who Stole Christmas” by Nicole Dillion & Jan Sacharko

New Hope Housing - Newsbriefs Page 10

Yvonne Kedoin sends kudos to: Pam Longshore and Ellen Shepard for taking the

time to meet and plan. That was a big de-stressor for

me!

Celestine Chew and Janine Rushing for working

with Steve Piscitelli by phone to get the front desk

computer internet and Microsoft Outlook access!!!

Eden for sending her updates via e-mail while on

vacation!

Natalie and Simajah for all of their extra help while

Eden is on vacation and for all their assistance in

moving residents into Housing First units! And, for

helping the voucher recipients!

Simajah for delivering numerous food baskets for

Thanksgiving to her rapid rehousing clients. Kudos to

Richard Honesty for “looking out” for his colleague

and finding some “lifting power”.

Luke Taylor for finding the Housing First apart-

ments in the City of Alexandria.

Sue Ryan, Jan Sacharko, Martha Faconer, Jeff

Elder, Eddie Davis, and others who have helped

furnish the apartments.

Pam Michell, Jo Mullen, and Susan Keenan for our

impromptu meeting.

Kudos, kudos, kudos to Christina Trotter for her

miraculous work to ensure that the ACS residents had

another joyous holiday season!!!

Samir Suarez sends kudos to: Nicole and Jan for all your hard work getting the

gifts together for our families.

Khristina and Ms. Martha for coming in on a week-

end to put together the food baskets for Next Steps.

Chavon and Shanice for going the extra mile to

make sure your families had giftsand food baskets for

Christmas.

Samir Suarez kudos (cont’d):

Bernatria and Roxanne for your tireless efforts in

helping our families.

Alba for being a great leader and supporting our team

through the very busy holidays. You've always got our

back.

Nicole Dillion sends kudos to:

Khristina and Martha for all of their hard work

preparing Christmas food baskets.

Shanice for picking up and delivering her gifts so swiftly

Susan V. for sending her girls to help sort Christmas

gifts...what a life saver!

LaKesha for all of her positive energy and Christmas

Cheer!

Martha Faconer sends kudos to:

Jan and Nicole for all of the hard work during the

holiday season!

Sue Ryan, for her amazing job getting the new units put

together for residents.

Pam and Susan V., for helping to sort out donations

during the holiday season.

Stacey Osborne sends kudos to:

Veronica Letsinger for covering my shift on 12/26/14

Chimere Stanley sends kudos to: Nicole and Jan for working hard to give our client’s a

good Christmas!

Ashley and Aylss for great team work!

OPEN POSITIONS

New Hope Housing is currently accepting resumes for the

following job opportunities:

On Call Resident Service Specialists-

Mondloch House/Mondloch Place/Kennedy/ACS Responsibilities include monitoring the shelter, answering the phones, greeting visi-

tors, and most importantly interacting in a positive manner with our residents. $13.13

an hour. Must be flexible, dependable, and have the ability to work with a diversified

group of individuals. A High School diploma or GED is necessary, and previous

experience with the homeless/mentally ill a plus. Successful candidates will be called

to duty when we are short staffed. Hours are flexible, not scheduled, and you must be

willing to cover shifts at a moment’s notice. $13.13 an hour. EOE/ADA that values

diversity.

On-Call Residential Service Specialist for Susan’s Place and Max’s Place

On-Call Residential Services Specialist (RSS) for chronically homeless adults with

substance abuse/mental illness/or co-occurring disorders located in Arlington and

Falls Church Virginia. Must be able to establish rapport and build trust with residents

and be comfortable working in a program with few rules. Need to be flexible and have

an ability to handle crisis situations. RSS will assist Outreach Counselors with leading

life skills groups/activities, cooking and cleaning with residents and general upkeep of

the house. RSS monitors residents medication. Must be able to work well inde-

pendently and must be reliable. Provides On-call coverage. Must have a valid driver’s

license and BA in behavioral science or related field. Experience can be substituted

for education. BSW preferred. Two years experience with homeless adults, adults

with mental illness or substance abusers. Counseling and crisis intervention skills.

Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing. Salary is $13.13 an

hour. EOE/ADA that values diversity.

If interested, please send resume to hr@newhopehousing.org

New Hope Housing is proud to be an EOE/ADA that values diversity!

OPEN POSITIONS

New Hope Housing is currently accepting resumes for the

following job opportunities:

Case Manager-Full Time (Bridging Affordability II)

Reporting to the Community Services Director, the Case Manager will provide the support ser-

vices needed to ensure that program participants succeed in securing and retaining their housing.

Emphasis is placed on regular home visits and utilizing programs and benefits designed to increase

income, financial stability, and quality of life. You will be responsible for assessing participants to

determine eligibility for both prevention and rapid re-housing assistance. Will work closely with

the Housing Locator in identifying suitable housing for program participants. Must be able to

develop a Housing Services Plan with each household; meeting with households as often as need-

ed, at least on a monthly basis to ensure that the participants are working towards the goals stated

in their Housing Service Plan, such as paying rent on time, maintaining the terms of their lease,

maintaining employment and taking care of their financial obligations by maintaining a budget.

Bachelor’s Degree in a social services field required. Must be a self-starter, have excellent written

and oral communication skills as well as excellent interpersonal and organizational skills. Ability

to work with persons with serious mental illness and/or substance addiction is critical. Empathy,

patience, and persistence are fundamental characteristics required for this position. Knowledge of

Word, Excel, and Homeless Management Information System databases is required.

Candidate must have a valid driver’s license, a clean driving record, and willingness to use per-

sonal vehicle to perform work related duties. $40,000 annually EOE/ADA that values diversity.

Full Time Case Manager-Kennedy Shelter

Full Time Case Manager needed for our single adult shelter serving individuals with mental health

issues and substance abuse. You will be part of a dynamic, “Case Management Team”. Responsi-

bilities include resident assessment, service plan development, counseling, and crisis interventions

and committed to rapid re-housing. Some early evenings may be required. Bachelor degree

required, preferably in social services. Bilingual preferred. Candidate must have a valid driver’s

license, a clean driving record, and willingness to use personal vehicle to perform work related

duties. $40,000 annually EOE/ADA that values diversity.

If interested, please send resume to hr@newhopehousing.org

New Hope Housing is proud to be an EOE/ADA that values diversity!

OPEN POSITIONS

New Hope Housing is currently accepting resumes for the

following job opportunities:

Case Manager Position - Full Time (Housing First Case Management)

Reporting to the Program Coordinator, HUD PROGRAMS, you will case manage up to 14 single adult

residents at scattered sites in Fairfax County. Will work with area agencies to identify individuals on

waiting lists and/or in programs in need services of supportive housing. Works with residents, and other

service providers to develop a plan of service to meet social, health, emotional and economic needs to

prevent or end homelessness. Coordinates services using a wraparound approach. Provides individual and

group life skills training, socialization skills, and enrichment activities, including money management, cook-

ing, nutrition, etc.

· Addresses and if necessary, diffuses crisis situations with residents. Assesses safety issues and assists

residents to access emergency services as needed (e.g., mental health services, adult protective

services, women’s shelter, homeless shelter).

· Advocates for and actively assists residents in obtaining services (e.g., health, mental health, intellectual

disability, alcohol and drug, housing referrals, financial assistance, home based services, training,

medical services, mentoring, and socialization).

· Assists residents with upkeep of apartments by meeting regularly with residents in their units. Through life

skills training, teaches residents simple household chores, upkeep, and cleanliness of their homes.

· Develops and maintains a positive relationship with the property management for units.

· Transports residents as needed.

· Meets with the resident as needed to provide feedback. Regularly assesses, supports, and facilitates

resident progress. Maintains case notes in HMIS.

· Maintains records in compliance with agency policy and compiles requisite statistics.

· Attends interdisciplinary meetings regarding resident progress. Prepares clinical reports for inter

disciplinary team.

· Works flexible hours in order to accommodate residents’ needs.

· Models caring, concerned, respectful attitude toward residents. Maintains adherence to resident guidelines

and is familiar with and complies with policies and procedures of New Hope Housing, Inc.

· Identifies and addresses volunteer needs for program. Develops and maintains a positive relationship with

volunteers and donors.

Performs other duties as assigned. BA/MA degree and considerable experience working with adults with

serious mental illness. Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing. Experience with

chronically homeless adults and adults with substance abuse issues. Strong counseling and crisis interven-

tion skills. Flexibility, creativity, and leadership skills. Able to make decisions independently and work

autonomously. Will rotate “on call” phone with other team members. Candidate must have a valid driver’s

license, a clean driving record, and willingness to use their personal vehicle to perform work related

duties. $41,000 annually EOE/ADA that values diversity!

If interested, please send resume to hr@newhopehousing.org

New Hope Housing is proud to be an EOE/ADA that values diversity!

OPEN POSITIONS

New Hope Housing is currently accepting resumes for the

following job opportunities:

Case Manager Full Time– Next Steps Family Program Reporting to the Director of Family Programs, the Case Manager will provide the support services needed to ensure

that program participants succeed in securing and retaining their housing. Emp-hasis is placed on regular home

visits and utilizing programs and benefits designed to increase income, financial stability, and quality of life. Will

be responsible for assessing participants to determine eligibility for both prevention and rapid re-housing assis-

tance. Will work closely with the Housing Locator in identifying suitable housing for program participants. Must

be able to develop a Housing Services Plan with each household; meeting with households as often as needed, at

least on a monthly basis to ensure that the participants are working towards the goals stated in their Housing Ser-

vice Plan, such as paying rent on time, maintaining the terms of their lease, maintaining employment and taking

care of their financial obligations by maintaining a budget. Bachelor’s Degree in a social services field required.

Must be a self-starter, have excellent written and oral communication skills as well as excellent interpersonal and

organizational skills. Ability to work with persons with serious mental illness and/or substance addiction is critical.

Empathy, patience, and persistence are fundamental characteristic required for this position. Knowledge of Word,

Excel, and Homeless Management Information System databases is required. Candidate must have a valid driver’s

license, a clean driving record, and willingness to use their personal vehicle to perform work related duties.

$40,000 annually. EOE/ADA that values diversity!

If interested, please send resume to hr@newhopehousing.org

New Hope Housing is proud to be an EOE/ADA that values diversity!

JANUARY

Sun Mon Tues Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2

PAYDAY 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13

Board Mtg.

14 15

PAYDAY 16 17

18 19

MLK HOLIDAY

20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27

Quarterly Mtg.

28 29

PAYDAY 30 31

Name Location Dates Times

Next Steps Team Sacramento Drive Every Wed 9:15am

ACS Team ACS Every Wed 2pm

EUKS Team EUKS Every Thu 2pm

Housing 1st and Bridging Affordability MP Conf Rm 4th Tues of each month 2pm

Gartlan, Susan's, Max's, Just Homes Team Susan’s Place 3rd Tues of each month 10am

Mondloch House and Mondloch Place MH Conf Rm Every 1st Wed of each month 11:30am

Community Services Team Admin Every 1st Monday of each month 10am

Tea

m M

eet

ings

Name Month Day

Lara Ostapiej JAN 2

Anthony Hartnett JAN 5

Phillip Mitchell JAN 7

Bonsetta Rushing JAN 9

Ashley Jennings JAN 11

Celestine Chew JAN 12

Yvonne Kedoin JAN 12

LaKesha McGuire JAN 20

Helen Berhane JAN 24

Vera Johnson-Stewart JAN 24

Stacie Thomas JAN 30

Name Month Day Years

Alba Mathewson JAN 13 1

Sharina Jagoonanan JAN 12 6

Dana Murray JAN 7 7

Stanley Royals JAN 2 8

Veronica Letsinger JAN 17 11