Dear Team & Supporters,

Welcome to the first Shelter Program

newsletter for Community Assis-

tance Network, Inc. (CAN). Quarter-

ly, we look forward to sharing with

you our programs, success stories,

volunteer spotlights and staff up-

dates.

As we work to serve the needs of 125

family members and individuals at

the Eastside Family Emergency Shel-

ter and 110 men at our Westside

Men’s Emergency Shelter, we thank

all of our staff, volunteers and sup-

porters for their time and commit-

ment.

These are tough times for so many,

but the good news is organizations

like CAN exist to assist the most

vulnerable people in our community.

We provide the critical needs of

food and shelter, but in addition,

we have Rapid Rehousing Special-

ists assisting residents with hous-

ing. In the last four months, we

moved 57 people out of shelter

into transitional or permanent

housing.

Our goal is to help end homeless-

ness, and partnerships with Balti-

more County Office of Planning,

Baltimore County Communities

for the Homeless, Faith-Based

community, and countless others

help us to make progress to reach

this goal.

We hope you enjoy the newsletter

and thank you for your hard work!

A Word from our Director

Programs Leading to Self - Sufficiency

One of the main focuses of the

shelter program is to provide resi-

dents with opportunities for self-

growth and independence through

programming. During 2013, at the

Eastside Family Emergency Shel-

ter, there were fifteen programs

introduced and coordinated. Art

with a Heart was introduced on

March 19th and had an impact on

the individuals in the shelter who

love art. Pamela, a resident at the

Eastside shelter, loves to draw and

paint, especially pictures of horses,

and always looked forward to this

class. At the Westside Men’s

Emergency Shelter, there were

seventeen programs introduced

from January to May of 2013. In

March one program was held by

the group called “10 days 10

deeds”. Volunteers and profession-

als taught on topics such as: finan-

cial literacy, resume writing, anger

management, and family law. Our

goal is to hear the voice of the

residents so we may assist them

with achieving stability, structure,

and growth leading to a self-

sufficient life.

August 2013 Volume 1, Issue 1

We C A N Make a Difference as a TEAM

Inside this issue:

Taking a Walk in Their

Shoes 2

Resident Advocates at

Their Best 2

Accomplishing Great-

ness 2

‘Round the Clock

Volunteering 3

Being a Helping Hand 3

Staying Together as a

Family 3

On the Back of

this issue:

Where Are We as a

TEAM? 4

Community Resources 4

Rapid Re-housing and

Samaritan

Housing 4

Take a Look at What’s

Happening 4

Megan Goffney

Director of Homeless Services

“If legislation, politics, and

education come together in

agreement then there can

be major changes towards

homelessness.”

- Anonymous

Page 1

Karen Snead was born and raised

in Baltimore City, to a single

mom. She is one of eleven chil-

dren. Ms. Snead attended Cop-

pin University and Coppin State

College. Throughout her under-

graduate and graduate college

years, Ms. Snead maintained an

honor roll status, later receiving a

Bachelor of Science degree in

Criminal Justice. Ms. Snead has

one child who is fifteen and is

“the sunshine” of her life. At one

time, Ms. Snead was a resident

of the Eastside Family Emergen-

cy Shelter. When Ms. Snead

came in the shelter she was

pleased to see how structured the

shelter program was. “My stay

provided me the opportunity to

reflect on my life, refocus, and

set new goals and objectives.”

Now as a Resident Advocate her

goal is to maintain a calm, safe,

and clean environment to all

residents. “I try to dispense

kindness, understanding, sup-

port, and a positive attitude to

the residents at the

Shelter.” Ms. Snead answers

questions and concerns of resi-

dents as issues arise. “What I like

most about being a Resident

Advocate is, I have experienced

first hand what the residents may

be experiencing and also I am

working with people. I find it

rewarding when I can make a

difference.”

came to the Westside Emergency

Men’s shelter, he was devastated.

Facing homelessness was not easy

and at the same time he was facing

prosecution charges. Becoming a

resident at the shelter helped him to

gain a sense of knowing who to go to

for help. Travis began to see the

opportunities that were made availa-

ble at the shelter. Travis assumed

the responsibility of being a volun-

teer monitor to help out in the shel-

ter. Travis mentioned that being a

monitor helped make him feel that

As a native “Baltimorean” , Travis

grew up most of his life on the

Westside. On his off time he likes to

do free-lance writing. His passion

and future plan includes Information

Technology. He is a graduate of

Career Technical Institute maintain-

ing a 3.82 GPA. During his stay at

the Westside Shelter he would travel

to Washington D.C. and back to the

shelter so that he could complete his

education courses. Currently Travis

is studying other related avenues in

his career field. When Travis first

he still had a purpose in life and helped

keep him striving for the best. On July

25, 2013, Travis successfully moved

out of the shelter into permanent hous-

ing with the help of our Rapid Rehous-

ing Specialists.

Taking a Walk in Their Shoes

Accomplishing Greatness

Resident Advocates at Their Best

ment. Helping residents improve and

enhance their skills and talents will

make them fruitful and hopeful when

they leave the shelter.”

Jewel Parker joined the shelter

team not too long ago, but has made

great positive impact on the residents

at the Westside Shelter. Ms. Parker

has coordinated many events and

speakers at the Westside Shelter

such as: The Resident Awards Cere-

mony, GED pre-testing, Vocational

skills training, Resident Cookouts,

Plays, and speakers Eric Jordan

(Facilitator and Motivational Speak-

er), and Tony Fugett (President of

the Baltimore County NAACP). Jewel

stands by her quote, “ Mirror, Mir-

ror—a reflection of oneself ‘ Support-

ing one another is the KEY to SUC-

CESS.”

Gail Jackson is our number one ex-ample of someone who goes above and

beyond. Ms. Jackson has been with

CAN for six years now and loves what she does as an RA. Ms. Jackson drives

the shuttle bus, assists in the kitchen, helps in the front office, and whatever

else is needed. When asked what

keeps her here she said, “Seeing the needs of the men and the opportunity

to be an ear and shoulder for their

issues.” Ms. Jackson views her job as a learning experience. She is able to be

an example to the men, but also learn

from the good temperament they are

able to maintain in a time of crisis.

Resident Advocates (RA) - Jewel

Parker, Lucia Naval, and Gail Jackson

are three of our many staff members

in the shelter program whom we want

to recognize in this issue.

Lucia Naval was a classroom teacher

for almost thirty years in the Philip-

pines. In 2003 Ms. Naval came to the

U.S. and became an Adult Education

teacher at Greater Homewood Com-

munity Adult Learning Center. Ms.

Naval says, “I applied to become a

Resident Advocate because I believe I

can influence and help residents to

see life in a different perspective. The

biggest space in the world is improve-

Page 2

We C A N

Make a Difference as a TEAM

Karen Snead - Eastside Family

Emergency Shelter, Resident

Advocate.

“Helping people to

make good or better

choices is always a

good thing”

- Karen Snead

Travis - former resident, Westside

Men’s Emergency Shelter

Lucia Naval - RA Jewel Parker– RA

Gail Jackson - RA

Owen Reilly is a brain tumor survi-

vor and has been in remission for

four years. A devoted volunteer

such as Mr. Reilly finds his time

being well spent even at the Oncolo-

gy Department of John Hopkins

main campus in Baltimore City.

Eastside Family Emergency Shelter

has had the opportunity to welcome Mr. Reilly continuously for several

months. Mr. Reilly supports the shelter by reading to children ages 0-

4 years old every Monday and

Thursday from 9:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.. After he reads to the children,

Mr. Reilly helps the Kitchen Mgr.

with prepping and serving lunch. When asked why he chooses helping

at our shelter he said, “To serve the

Lord, to do the things that God asked

us to do in the bible. Those who give, receive. To feed the hungry and

to be ‘My brother’s keeper’”.

SFG - Special Force Group Jacob C. Fletcher has served in the

U.S. Army for nearly 17 years. He has served in S. Korea, Germany,

Iraq, Afghanistan and numerous

stations in the U.S. Mr. Fletcher was born and raised in Indiana. He is

married to a wonderful woman

named Johanna. Whenever Mr. Fletcher has free time from work and

family responsibilities, he devotes

his time every other Saturday to the Eastside Family Emergency Shel-

ter. From hanging banners for spe-

cial events to cleaning shelter's prop-

erty grounds, Mr. Fletcher gives

100%. When asked why he chose to volunteer, his response was: “I chose

to assist in your shelter because I

love to help people. I have noticed that people in this area are in need

of help and he thought why not help

when I get some free time. I have seen how people live in the third

world countries and he could not

help them then, but he can help his community now.”

Baltimore County during that

period. Finally, the Eastside

Family Emergency Shelter had

the opportunity of welcoming

the family. Rayven was de-

pressed and pregnant with their

second child and Andrew was

very quiet. That was how they

dealt with their crisis. The fami-

ly’s first impression of the shel-

Residents Andrew and Rayven

and their daughters Andrea and

A’dreanna were faced with hard

times at one point. The family

pursued many avenues to stay

sheltered, while they were at risk

of facing homelessness. In a

span of four months they were

“house hopping”, because there

were no available shelter beds in

ter was good and they were wel-

comed by respectful staff. Now

they are less stressed and fo-

cused on employment, housing,

and education. Andrew is cur-

rently employed and the family

will soon be receiving housing.

Rayven is looking forward to

finishing her Entrepreneurship

studies and would like to incor-

porate this with her husbands

passion for mixing music.

‘Round the Clock Volunteering for this Team

Staying Together As a Family

Being A Helping Hand goals in life. Lynne understands

that shelter life is hard, but this

motivates her to encourage oth-

ers through their hard times. One

of the ways that she helps out

endlessly at the shelter is assist-

ing at the front door. Lynne

volunteers to help welcome any

new residents and visitors to the

shelter. Lynne is grateful that

CAN is providing shelter, food,

and safety, Lynne says “I get

what I need”. Shelter Staff

Roxanne H., Olivia R., Donna

N., and Charmaine S. are just

some of the people mentioned

that have made the stay for

Lynne positive. Lynne looks

forward to a better future. Along

with the Wellness classes given

currently by the Department of

Social Services, Lynne says,

“Let go of the past to live in the

future and live today for today”.

Lynne, a resident at the Eastside

Family Emergency Shelter, loves

to help! A description of her

character would be the one who

is always optimistic. Lynne

loves administrative work, she

was a former Development Di-

rector of a non-profit, winning a

grant of 175,000 dollars! Alt-

hough life’s circumstances

brought her to the shelter, every

day she is adamant about keep-

ing her head up and pursuing her

Page 3

Volume 1, Issue 1

From the left back to the front:

Rayven, Andrew, Andrea, and baby

A’dreanna

“Miracles come in

‘Cans’. They don’t

come in ‘Cant's’.”

- Joyce Meyer

Owen Reilly

Volunteer

Lynne

Resident, Eastside Family Emergency

Jacob C. Fletcher

U.S. Army Volunteer

April Stevens

Volunteer Coordinator

We C A N

Making a Difference as a TEAM

This Issues

Community

Resources

Take a Look at What’s Happening

Thinking out of the Box? Education Baltimore County Public Schools Monday-Friday/9 a.m.-4 p.m. Educational Support Services

(Homeless liaison) 410-887-6485

Prisoners Aid

Shelter, transitional housing,

Monday-Friday/8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

Page 4

Diana Mason Administrative Program Coordinator

Resident Curtis Resident Leon Motivational Speaker and

Representative of the NAACP Residents Brandon and Kendrick Resident William

and Ms. Jewel

Resident Johnny and Ms. Jewel

As a private, nonprofit, community action agency, CAN responds to local needs. Community

action agencies were established over 45 years ago as part of President Lyndon Johnson’s

War on Poverty legislation known as the 1964 Equal Opportunity Act. The legislation was far

-sighted enough to ensure three things. First, that the structure of the agency would be adapt-

able to local issues and new trends. Second, that the required tripartite Board of Directors

(1/3 elected and appointed government officials, 1/3 private citizens, and 1/3 low income

people or their advocates) maintained “maximum feasible participation” from all sectors of

the jurisdictions served. Third, and most important, the flexibility and grassroots nature of

each agency would enable us to follow through on our basic goal:

“Helping People. Changing Lives.”

7900 East Baltimore Street

Baltimore, MD 21224

Phone: 410-285-4674

Fax: 410-339-6457

E-mail:

www.canconnects.org

Like us! Follow us!

@ canconnects

Shelter

Dept. of Social Services, Baltimore County 410-853-3000,

ext. 2 for information, assistance and referral for emergency

shelter. Weekends and afterhours, contact 410-583-9398.

Where Are We as a TEAM?

Employment

Department of Economic Development,

Baltimore County

Job skills training and search services.

Mon, Tues, Thurs Fri 8:30 a.m.- 4:30 p.m.

Wednesday - 8:30 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

Central 1101 McCormick Rd., Suite 102, Hunt Valley

410-887-7940

East

7930 Eastern Blvd., Essex 410-288-9050

West

3637 Offutt R d., Randallstown 410-887-8912

The purpose of We CAN is to be used as a source of encouragement, motivation, and up-to-date infor-mation on what is happening within the Shelters. If you are “Thinking out of the Box” on what you would like to see in the newsletter PLEASE do not hesitate to share - We can only SUCCEED as a TEAM.

I would like to express my gratitude to all staff and residents that helped make this happen!

THANK YOU!!!!!

Contact Diana at: 410-285-4674 ext. 206 and/or at dmason@canconnects.org

Rapid Re-housing The Rapid Re-Housing program for Community Assistance Network, Inc. is

unique in its purpose of placing homeless single individuals and families into

secured permanent housing. Rapid Re-housing specialists (RRS) assist clients

with life skills (including budgeting and time management), ensure that tenants

are able to live independently before finding them housing, maintain regular

contact with residents and landlords to ensure they are maintaining all responsi-bilities. RRS do their best to identify and address potential problems before

they become irreparable.

In the last four months, over 50 individuals were housed through the Rap-

id Re– housing Program!

We continue to improve the infrastructure of this program so that we may be

able to help more homeless individuals become stable and permanently housed.

Samaritan Housing The Samaritan Housing Initiative Program is a federally (HUD) funded housing

project initiated and managed through Community Assistance Network, Inc.

(CAN). The project serves chronically homeless men and women in Baltimore

County who have been diagnosed with a disabling condition. This project will

support HUD’s goal of “Strengthening Communities” with the objective of

improving housing accessibility for persons with disabilities.

Overall the percentage of success has increased in 2013, 13 out of 14 units

were housed.

As of the July 2013, 3 individuals will have exited Samaritan housing and

into secured permanent housing!

The Samaritan Project is a necessary supportive housing program.