“They looked after me, now I can look after them”

Jack Johnson* is a maintenance worker at the Lookout who truly appreciates the value of a daytime work schedule and a book of bus tickets. Jack was formerly a hotel banquet manager. As a self-described workaholic, the stressful twelve hour days that went long into the night cost him his relationship with his wife and family. He turned to alcohol to forget his troubles and wound up on the street, unemployed, sleeping on train tracks and camping out in the mountains for several years. Jack reached a turning point after ending up in the hospital, where a social worker got him a room at the Lookout shelter. He says “I’ve met so many good people over there. And they gave me a wake up call.”

After getting sober Jack was ready to make a change, improve his health, reconnect with his son, and go back to work. Having worked in hotel management, as a fisherman and a carpenter he had lots of skills, but needed help creating a resume. He connected to Pathways where he “clicked” with Chelsea.  She helped with computer skills, resumes and job applications. After months of no calls back, he suddenly got 5 calls in one week! The last was the Lookout, looking for a maintenance worker. The choice was clear for Jack. “They looked after me, now I can look after them. That’s my payback.”

He was then faced with the challenge of how to get to work at his new job. The work site is in North Vancouver, but he lives in the inner-city. Jack came to BOB to get the bus tickets he needed to get to work for those crucial first two weeks until payday. While bus tickets may seem like a little thing, they’re not to someone like Jack. As a fisherman, he would walk from the North Vancouver shipyards and over the Lion’s Gate bridge to downtown for entertainment and community. In his words, “little things like bus tickets mean a lot”.

Having been on the job for almost 2 months, Jack finds the work is more than just routine maintenance. He has the chance to be the positive role model that he encountered when staying at the Lookout himself. “I can look after people…I can see what they need, what the problem is. I understand what they are going through.”

Now Jack works eight hour days and says “I have time to enjoy everything”. This is a big change from his old career where he rarely had free time, and a huge change from his life on the streets. Now that winter is just around the corner, he “will be up in the mountains skiing,” a pastime that his son also enjoys and they can do together when visits. He hopes that by sharing his story he can help others in his situation feel like they have a choice. The Lookout is fortunate to have such an enthusiastic and compassionate maintenance worker join their team.  Congratulations Jack, we wish you all the best!

*Not his real name. Jack wishes to remain anonymous.

Welcome Danielle!

We are very excited to have Danielle Kottmeier join the SEP team as our new Employment Support Coordinator. Danielle brings over five years experience supporting people with disabilities and is passionate about coaching and mentoring individuals to achieve their goals. For the past two years, she has worked at IAM CARES Society as an Employment Counsellor and Case Manager. You can read more about Danielle on our blog. Welcome Danielle!

JOB POSTINGS

Visit www.bobics.org and look under ‘HR Services’ to apply.

Intakes for the Cycleback Bicycle Repair Program are on-going.

Trumps Fine Foods: Dishwasher/Helper

Army and Navy: Men’s Wear Clerk

EVENTS

SHINE Supper November 21st

All SEP clients, past and present, are welcome to join us for dinner at the BOB office from 4-6pm!

RSVP to Emily at 778-328-7660  or emily.smith@bobics.org

Take our Survey!

All clients, employers, and agencies involved with BOB can take our survey to help us stay open past March 2012. And you get a chance to win a prize! Did you get  a survey in your email? If not, contact Emily 778-328-7660 or emily.smith@bobics.org

Karen O’Shannacery has worked for more than four decades seeking solutions and providing comfort to the homeless and disenfranchised of Vancouver’s downtown eastside.

Ms. O’Shannacery’s compassion for those less fortunate has led to the establishment of quality resources and housing. She has a thorough understanding of the issues, is a tireless advocate for homeless people, a respected, well-spoken leader and a team player who works across boundaries to achieve change.

Among her many successes, Ms. O’Shannacery’s has created 17 housing projects, including three multi-use buildings, renovation of two single-room occupancy buildings and the opening of Antoinette Lodge, subsidized housing in Vancouver’s downtown eastside. She co-founded a provincial shelter network and was instrumental in the purchase and renovation of New Westminster’s former College Place night club, which now serves as a homeless shelter and transitional housing.

Ms. O’Shannacery has served on committees, boards and organizations involved with homelessness, including the Greater Vancouver Shelter Strategy committee, the Urban Core Workers Community Association and municipal task forces on homelessness in Burnaby, New Westminster and North Vancouver, and she is an original long-standing member of the Metro Vancouver’s Regional Steering Committee on Homelessness.

A celebration and singing of "For she is a jolly good lady!" took place at Vancouver Urban Core Community Workers' Association.

Toby Barrazzuol says he’s not a garden expert, but he and the team at Eclipse Awards and It’s Saul Good Gift Co have created a beautiful rooftop space for everyone in their office and manufacturing facility to enjoy. They grow food like strawberries, tomatoes, figs and a variety of herbs; flowers like irises, mallow, wisteria, clematis and lilies; edible weeds like chickweed and sorrel; and drought-tolerant species like sedums. That’s a lot of biodiversity for what was recently an asphalt roof!

What’s more, they DIY’d the heck out of it! Most of the garden is made from reclaimed materials scavenged from the community or found on Craigslist. Pathways are pallets and recycled decking, planter boxes are washtubs, and pots are secondhand.

When Eclipse and It’s Saul Good moved in to their current building it required a few renovations to meet their needs. They used the renovation process as an opportunity to incorporate plants and gardening into their office culture. In anticipation of the rooftop garden they added several large crossbeams (made from a sustainable pressed wood product) to ensure that the roof could support the weight of 25 people plus the garden soil. They also added two large skylights that bring enough natural light in to sustain many office plants, including this beautiful mass planting of African Violets. Looking up through the skylights you get a sneak peek at the rooftop garden.

The garden has been a couple of years in the making, and Toby says managing the garden continues to be a learning process. Crows and seagulls show up regularly to snack on young plants and eat tasty berries, and they have free reign since there are long periods where no one is on the roof to scare them off. They have an irrigation system, but some of the plants have nonetheless whithered a bit in the scorching sun of the last few weeks. Also, there’s no formal process for employees to manage the garden, so it’s a bit harder to plan regular tasks like weeding and garden clean up. A recent success is the worm composter they’ve added to their office, which is rapidly turning food scraps into rich soil for use in the garden.

Interestingly, Toby reports that there has been some debate among their office over the purpose of the garden. Should it be wild and green, letting whatever wants to grow take root? Or should it be a place to cultivate food in a more purposeful way? For the time being they have come up with a great compromise, planting a central bed with 100 strawberry plants and letting a few edible weeds spring up in between.

This garden is a great case study for anyone interested in starting a green roof project and making their home or business that much more sustainable. We hope you can learn from Toby’s experience and develop one in your workplace. Congrats to the whole team at Eclipse and It’s Saul Good for working together to make this great project happen!

And for you design nerds out there, enjoy a few more of Lani’s beautiful pictures…

Photography by Lani Johnson

For this man, a pair of boots for roofing has meant a roof over his head.  After living for 3 months at a local shelter, *David found his own bachelor suite and job at a roofing company.  Unfortunately, after years of trying to get back on his feet, David doesn’t have the money required to get proper boots.  And getting a new place means more expenses and a tight budget.

David is determined not to lose his place and not to end up back on the street or a shelter.  So he has been  wearing his old boots…  Without steel toes, and falling apart.   After a referral to BOB’s Supported Employment Program we were able to get his feet into a solid pair of steel toes.

Congratulations David, on all your hard work!

*Not his real name.

Doris from SOLEfood

Sitting on the street, sipping my iced americano at Columbia and Pender, I saw a beautiful sight.  Gorgeous Dalias being delivered by bicycle!  Doris from our local urban farm called SOLEfood, is taking flowers to Olla Urban Flower Project by my favorite sustainable mode of transportation.

SOLEfood Urban Farm is located at Hawks and Hastings in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.  They produce local food and employ local residents, bringing fresh food to a colorful neighborhood.  You can buy their produce at the Main Street Station Farmers Market on Wednesdays at 3-7pm.

Olla Urban Flower Project is a socially responsible business selling beautiful flowers in Gastown at 235 Cambie Street.  She sources all her flowers locally,  intends to hire residents from the neighborhood and is working towards zero waste.  Megan Branson, who started the business, is graduate from the Embers Build a Business Program.

Dalias enroute to Olla

In a recent discussion with my colleagues, we came up with a few ideas on the subject.

This neighborhood is used by many as a travel corridor to get downtown. These commuters’ objective is often to travel through the area as quickly as possible, in part because of the way the neighborhood has been stigmatized as neglected ghetto of crime and poverty. While some of that may be true, it doesn’t account for the fact that there is an underrepresented and diverse community of wonderful people here who call the DTES home and deserve to have it recognized and celebrated as such. Traveling through the neighborhood at 60+kph is certainly way too fast to get acquainted with the many unique community services, architectural features, libraries, urban farms, art galleries, eateries, and shops that exist here in the heart of the city.

Furthermore, many of the opponents of the speed reduction plan protest on the grounds that it is the pedestrian’s responsibility to see if it is safe before they cross. Sure, common sense dictates that this would be the best-case scenario. But life on any busy street is unpredictable. To those who hold this view I ask: Are you a driver? How would you feel if you struck and injured or killed a pedestrian, even if it was “their fault”? It doesn’t matter who the person is, where they live, or whether they made the mistake. No one wants to be involved in a pedestrian-vehicle accident. Therefore, slowing down to increase driver awareness and reaction time, thereby reducing pedestrian fatalities, benefits everyone.

And as many pedestrians know, crossing a busy street is not an easy task at the best of times for the most able-bodied person. There are a variety of challenges that can make it even harder. In BOB’s Supported Employment Program we work with folks who have a variety of barriers to help them get on the job; many of the barriers we see actually would make crossing the street a challenge too! Have you been low income for a prolonged period of time, with a degenerative eye condition for which you cannot afford glasses? You literally cannot see well enough to cross the street in safety. Are you experiencing psychosis due to a mental health condition or drug use? If so, the reality of cars speeding down the street or the relative safety of a crosswalk may not be as it seems to you. Are you elderly or physically disabled? You may need more time to cross the street than the crosswalk allocates. And the list goes on. Are any of these cases any less worth slowing down for than, say, a kid in a school zone chasing a ball into the street? I think not.

The DTES is home to a high population of individuals with a variety of challenges in part because there is a concentration of services here, as well as a much higher degree of access to affordable housing options than the rest of the city. Every neighborhood has its own characteristic demography, and municipal policy, programming and infrastructure is targeted to reflect those special community traits. Think about your own neighborhood or your child’s school zone and how traffic is managed there. Let’s applaud the City of Vancouver for taking action on this important issue while we slow down to stop and smell the roses (or gaze at the swiss chard at SOLEFood Urban Farm, or get to know some of the local characters who make this community great).

Other news on this topic:

Vancouver Sun

BC Cycling Coalition

DTES Pedestrian Safety Project

All photos in this post courtesy of BURST! Creative Group

That’s right, the much anticipated W2 Media Cafe is open for business! They’re serving yummy Saltspring coffee and a variety of other delicious offerings. Come for the food & drink, stay for the community, politics, media and art!

The media cafe is collectively run social enterprise with a mandate to provide accessible technology for media and communications to all those to all those who need it. And that need is a pressing one: according to W2′s statistics, at least 6,000 DTES residents are without telephone, internet, or computer access. We see this in BOB’s Supported Employment Program, where many of our clients describe having no phone or computer at home, and get only limited access to communications technology through inner-city community resources that are often very busy and only open during standard business hours; many see this lack of access to technology as an obstacle to achieving their goals in life and on the job. It can also make it hard to find a job, secure permanent housing, and assert one’s voice to advocate for political change.

Fojan, an acting student, is making delicious coffee and helping with W2 programming

In terms of community, W2 hired all local DTES and East Van residents to staff the cafe. BOB’s BusinessLinks program assisted the W2 team with with hiring outreach and candidate selection, and sponsored barista training for 12 folks to get FoodSafe certification, customer service training, a programming overview of the media cafe, and more. Cafe staff are getting great opportunities to build skills and pursue activities beyond the cafe counter; several of our BusinessLinks graduates enthusiastically report getting involved with event coordination and program development for projects like the W2 Letterpress Studio and kids & youth media camp.

Debbie is a mother of 3 made temporarily homeless by unwanted apartment renovations in East Vancouver. She plays goalie for the DTES Women’s Street Soccer team and is going to Paris to play in the 2011 Homeless World Cup. She and her family are now well housed. She cites her employment at the cafe, as well as the community she connected with there, as a key part of her return to housing stability. Congratulations Debbie!

Tech geeks, artists, and anyone interested in DIY electronics will appreciate the interactive light display largely DIY’d by W2′s Tech Director WillStacey. You control the interface from within the cafe. Adjust the display pattern and the RGB scale, and look up to see the results! More exciting interactive art and technology installations to come through their Media Artist in Residence Program. Sensitive to the needs of the neighborhood, the cafe also provides free community meeting space, publicly accessible washrooms and lounge, a community media lab, and much more.

BOB is pleased to be part of supporting the start-up of W2 Media Cafe through our Loans Program. We congratulate all the founders and staff on the cafe opening, and look forward to seeing more great things come out of this ambitious project founded on grassroots principles of social inclusion. Well done!

“Your Life is Your Message. Make it Inspiring”: Harbour Light Detox

Kathryn George is an Addictions Counsellor with the Salvation Army’s Harbour Light Detox Centre. Their 90 day abstinence-based treatment program is composed of 3 phases. Phases 2 and 3 provide a variety of life skills support to help clients succeed in the areas of career, education, housing, leadership, and mentorship. As Kathryn says, the program is “about the whole person” and encourages “a balanced recovery” to support a person’s transition out of addiction and into community life.

Part of that balanced recovery is often about becoming job ready and returning to work. BOB Employment Support Coordinator Ada Mo-Williams gives presentations about job readiness and community resources to clients in Phase 2 of the Harbour Light program. Her presence becomes a vital connection in the chain of support that many of Harbour Light’s clients access when returning to life on the job. Katharyn notes that Harbour Light graduates discuss how much they appreciate working with Ada in their group reflections, whether she has connected them to other employment resources like Working Gear and the Job Shop, or enrolled them in BOB’s Supported Employment Program.

Emily Smith, BOB’s Office Coordinator, loves receiving clients from Harbour Light. “They always have such a positive attitude, because they have put so much work into their success. Their enthusiasm really shines through, and they tend to be really excited about the counselling component we offer in the Supported Employment Program. And they always remember Ada and ask for her personally!”

Harbour Light graduate Nichlos Tilley has just enthusiastically re-entered the workforce and is employed as a warehouse receiver. Nichlos found out about the Supported  Employment Program through one of Ada’s presentations. He continues to be an active volunteer at Harbour Light and brings his contagiously positive attitude to everything he does. BOB’s SEP program helped him get the boots and  support he needed to succeed on the job. Nichlos is a recent addition to BOB’s Wall of Achievement, where we celebrate client success.

Kathryn is passionate about her work at Harbour Light, and says “it’s a real privilege to be able to walk alongside these men in their journey of personal growth and self discovery…and watch them become the person they were meant to be.” BOB staff are honoured to be a part of that journey as well. We congratulate Nichlos and all Harbour Light graduates on their success!

New Job Postings
Visit www.bobics.org and look under ‘HR Services’ to apply.

Fresh and Desired
Sales & Marketing

Impark
Part-time Customer Service Representative

Intakes for the Cycleback Bicycle Repair Program are on-going. Email lani.johnson@bobics.org to book an appointment.

Events
SHINE Supper, August 22nd. All SEP clients, past and present, are welcome to join us for dinner at the BOB office from 4-6pm! RSVP to Emily at 778-328-7660  or emily.smith@bobics.org

Sneak Peek
Next month’s newsletter will feature great local businesses like W2 Media Café, Save-On Meats, and Scent of a Sandwich, and tales of their success partnering with BOB!

Draigh, a Cycleback Graduate

Draigh graduated from Cycleback Bicycle Mechanic Training Program April, 2011.  He has always had an interest in mechanics and enjoyed people, so he was a great fit the bike mechanic program.  Draigh wanted to go through it with the hopes of starting up his own company.  Here is his story in his own words:

“I have always done a lot of biking, but I didn’t know anything about bike mechanics.  I had come across situations where I can’t afford to have my bike fixed, and I would try on my own…but it didn’t work out so well!  So when I first went to an employment counselor and was asked what I would like to do, the first thing that came to my mind was bike mechanics.  My counselor looked into it, and found information about Cycleback.”

Draigh met with Lani at BOB to find out if the program was a good fit for him.  He was so keen and obviously passionate about the bike industry and it really seemed like the right time in his life to start something like this.

“The instructor for the course is really great, a lot of knowledge, willing to help, a lot of stories!  I really learned a lot.  It was just the surface really, but it was enough for me to really know what was going on in the bike industry and what I need to know as an entry level mechanic.”

Draigh completed his 2 week work placement at the Pedal Depot, a community bike shop where volunteers help people to work on their own bikes.   “I did the practicum, volunteering at the Pedal Depot.  I like it so much that I’m going to keep volunteering as long as I can.  I’ve always felt bad about being on the receiving end of society for the last few years, and now it’s my turn to give back and show that I really appreciate all the support I’ve received over the years.

This whole thing is so new to me, because I’ve been in drugs for so long that this is a whole world.  I’m finally maturing at the age of 59!  I am being a contributing member of society, when for so long I’ve been on the take.  Taking and never giving back.  But now is my chance and I feel like I’m living a dream.

Congratulations Draigh!

I have big dreams!  Dreams of becoming a great bike mechanic, and eventually starting my own business, a bike delivery business.  Through Cycleback, a whole new avenue has opened up to me.  I’ve gained a lot of confidence as a person.  I believe in myself.  I’ve learned I’m quite capable of being a part of society, having a job.  Not being a drain on it.

I’m overwhelmed with gratefulness at where my life is these days.  I wake up in the morning and thank my higher power because these days are great.”

Congratulations Draigh, on your graduation from Cycleback and all your great work at the Pedal Depot!

Cycleback is put on the Lookout Emergency Aid Society, and the training is at Mighty Riders.  If you are interested in this program, a class starts up every 6-8 weeks, so intakes are ongoing and are done through BOB.  You are a good fit if you:

• Mechanically inclined
• Enjoy customer service
• Passionate about bicycles
• From Vancouver’s inner city or mount pleasant
• Face barriers to employment

Contact BOB for more information at jobpostings@bobics.org

Lani's Bike, with oh-so-important reflectors and helmet!

That’s right! The entire SEP team is taking the ICBC Commuter Challenge. From June 5th to 11th we’re thinking about our transportation habits and how we can improve them. Whether it’s emissions reduced, calories burned, or money saved, we’re on board to make positive changes at home and in the workplace!

Now, BOB has participated in the Commuter Challenge in the past. It must have really made an impact because when we talked about doing it this year we realized that most of us have pretty sustainable transportation habits already! In our team of 5 none of us use a car as our primary mode of transportation to work. But there’s still room for improvement. Some of us are walking rather than taking the bus; others are turning down rides offered by friends, family, and loved ones in favour of getting on the bicycle!

For myself, I’m someone who has converted from busing to walking. I save $4.20 round trip and have added a total of 1hr and 10mins of light exercise to my day. Furthermore I get to enjoy the street life and connect with my community. I get an up-close look at the seniors practicing sword- and fan-styles of Tai Chi in the park, notice my neighbor’s peonies blooming, donate some change to kids fundraising for orphans via the Salvation Army out front of their elementary school, and absorb some vitamin D through my skin as I walk in the sunshine. Plus I can stop by the Wednesday Farmer’s Market at Main & Terminal on my way home to pick up goodies for dinner (where I also get to connect with Urban Farmer and Urban Farm Network organizer Chris Thoreau).  How awesome is that? I would miss all that if I was just on the bus.

Shoes for working & shoes for walking

What’s also cool is that it’s really encouraged me to be disciplined and plan my day a little better. Initially I didn’t want to get up earlier to do that walk. Solution? Plan my outfits, iron my work clothes, and pack my lunch the day before. I also didn’t want to arrive at work all sweaty, so I’ve started simply packing my work clothes with me and changing once I get to work. That way I get to wear my comfy runners too, encouraging me to walk faster and get a better (albeit light) workout.

It has been really neat to do the Commuter Challenge and realize that it’s not just about transportation and environmental issues. There’s a whole social aspect of it that encourages us to maintain work-life balance and develop life skills around budgeting, planning, exercise, workplace participation, and community engagment. These same sorts of life skills are the types of things our Employment Support Coordinators teach to help clients thrive in the workplace as part of BOB’s Supported Employment Program. No matter who we are and where we’re at in our personal and career development, it is always rewarding to reflect on what we can do to make positive change!

Are you participating in the commuter challenge? What sort of changes has it helped you make?