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New Hope Housing - Newsbriefs Page 1
Newsbriefs Volume 19 Issue 5 February 27, 2015
New Hope Housing, Administration Office 8407-E Richmond Highway,
Alexandria, VA 22309 703-799-2293
Rethinking Homelessness since 1977
The Journey Home– Nicole Dillon, Volunteer and Special Events Coordinator
Going through the home buying process has made
me understand and appreciate the great work that Case
Managers and Housing Locators are doing. I moved to
Northern Virginia in June of 2014 when my fiancé
accepted a job here in Northern Virginia. We decided to
give NOVA a try for one year and if the horror stories we
had heard about the rude people here and the unbearable
traffic were not true, we’d buy a house and begin to grow
some roots here. It has been almost a year, and turns out we
both love our jobs, our coworkers and new friends, and all
the opportunities available to us here.
Having no clue what to expect, we began the home
buying process as first time homebuyers. I grew up in a
small town located between Richmond and Williamsburg. I
lived in Richmond my entire life except for the four years
that I spent attending Roanoke College in the town of Sa-
lem, VA. While Salem operates at a slightly slower pace
than Richmond, I’d say that life between these two cities is
pretty comparable. The current median sales price for a
home in Richmond is a little over $200,000. Growing up,
we always had at least an acre of land on a wooded proper-
ty and there were no HOA fees, condo fees, or
restrictions attached to owning a property.
We were pre-approved for a VA home loan for
about twice that amount and began our search quickly real-
izing how little we could actually afford. For the price we
would be paying for a townhouse in NOVA, we could have
purchased a large home with land and all the bells and
whistles in Richmond. We found homes we liked, but by
the time we'd put in an offer, there was already a contract
or multiple contracts on these homes. We were blown away
by how quickly homes move in Northern
Virginia and it’s not even peak home buying season yet.
We eventually found a home and put in an offer.
Thankfully, our offer was accepted after some negotiation
and we began the journey to home ownership. I use the
word journey to describe this process because buying a
home has been an unexpected roller coaster ride of
emotions.
Mortgage lenders go through your entire life
history with a fine toothed comb. They ask you for all of
your bank statements, your credit card reports, drill you on
your credit history, job history, past tax returns, and more. I
have no criminal background and have a relatively good
credit score. I have never missed a car or rent payment.
Despite my relatively good financial history, the
mortgage lender honed in on my job history. 2014 was an
unusual year for me. I presented them with seven W-2 tax
returns for 2014 and this was a huge red flag. I had many
jobs in 2014, not because I was being fired or just got bored
and liked to job hop, but because, quite frankly, life hap-
pens! I had to write a letter to the lender explaining and
advocating for myself. I was working hard at multiple jobs.
One job I hated, and the others I was forced to leave be-
cause I was moving. This was a humbling experience for
me and it showed me how important it is for us to be an
advocate for our residents. If I, with relatively little other
barriers, had to advocate for myself in order to purchase a
home, I can only imagine the hoops that our residents must
jump through to prove their stability.
This process has given me time to reflect on the
difficulties and challenges that New Hope Housing’s Hous-
ing Locators and Case Managers go through as you try to
build a better life for our residents. You must teach our
residents to be confident and fight for what they want.
When hurdles pop up (like multiple people wanting to rent
a unit and the leasing office trashes the clients application
because there is a red flag) they must take a step back and
then take a running leap over them! And if they trip and
fall, to keep getting up and trying because eventually some-
thing will stick.
I’ve learned from you that many of our residents
had a bad break or they were never taught how to be
financially stable in the first place. You give them the tools
they need to succeed, prep them for what to expect and
teach them how to present themselves when they have to
explain their work and past housing situations. I want to
congratulate and thank each and every one of you that work
directly with residents day in and day out. You all continue
to amaze me with the accomplishments and breakthroughs
that you make for our residents everyday. Thank you for
your hard work, dedication, and perseverance. Your ability
to push through and find solutions for everyone is why
New Hope Housing is such a successful organization. I’d
like for you to take a moment to pat yourself on the back
and remember all of your accomplishments and the smiles
on the faces of all of your residents as they sign leases and
open the door to a better life.
Mount Vernon Presbyterian Church Thursday, March 5th from 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm
2001 Sherwood Hall Lane, Alexandria, VA 22306
Join us for an evening celebration of Black Culture. Program will include musical performances, special
resident presentations, and good food!
From Adversity To Triumph, We Shall Overcome!
Black History Month February 2015 in Metro DC
Black History Month is celebrated throughout Metro DC in theatre, dance, music, visual arts and the spoken
word. Check here for arts and culture events commemorating, honoring and focusing on the history and contribu-
tions that Black Americans have made to the United States.
For a listing of more Black History Month Celebration events
in the Washington, DC area visit:
http://culturecapital.com/feature/132/black-history-month-february-2015
In celebration of Black History & Culture
Black Women Discuss Hair
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEbRQkr6LSU
View & Share Your Thoughts!
What is Blackface?
http://youtu.be/IPiIyu3rFOY
At this year’s NBA All Star game, Beyoncé rocked a Scooter LaForge custom painted trench coat. Scooter is known for his
pieces that feature caricatures, but critics of this particular artwork note that the big red lips, teeth, and bright eyes are reminiscent of the logo for Coon Chicken Inn—based on the
Sambo art of the first half of the 20th century.
LITERATURE
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
With dazzling candor, legal scholar Michelle Alexander argues that "we have not ended racial caste in America; we have merely redesigned it." By targeting black men through the War on Drugs and decimating communities of color, the U.S. criminal justice system functions as a contemporary system of racial control—relegating millions to a permanent second-class status—even as it formally adheres to the principle of colorblindness.
This training is MANDATORY for all staff who are not certified or need recertification. Please RSVP your attendance with your direct supervisor.
Friday, February 27th 9:00 am—3:30 pm
Aldersgate Church (Guback Hall) 1301 Collingwood Road, Alexandria, VA 22308
Please see below for an easy reference of our Emergency and Inclement Weather
Policy. If you have questions, please see your supervisor.
Section 4.8 Personnel Policy Manual:
Emergency and Inclement Weather Conditions
As a residential, emergency housing agency, New Hope Housing is to remain open and
operating at full staff under any and all conditions. Extra planning and care should be
made by staff to insure they are able to report to work as scheduled when there is
inclement weather. Our residents need us more than ever during times of crisis in the
community. Should an emergency or extreme weather condition exist that results in
the Fairfax County government (not schools) closing, New Hope Housing will operate
under “emergency status”. Under emergency status, residential staff is expected to
report to work as scheduled and will be compensated at a rate of 1.5 times their
normal pay rate for the hours they work during the time frame of the emergency
status. Should an emergency or extreme weather occur after normal business hours
when it is unlikely that Fairfax County government would make a determination about
being open, the Executive Director will inform the executive team whether or not the
agency is considered to be in emergency status.
Should the Governor of Virginia declare a State of Emergency due to an extreme
weather condition or other emergency, all staff is expected to stay where they
are. Staff on site will be required to stay on site and staff at home is required to stay
at home until the state of emergency is lifted and it is determined safe to be on the
roads.
Management staff is expected to check in with their teams to determine how they can
best be supported during any emergency or crisis situation.
Congratulations to Ms. Binn who moved from shelter to housing!
Khristina Koontz- (Case Manager)
New Hope Housing - Newsbriefs Page 11
Tava White sends kudos to:
Ms Ollie- I honestly think I would go crazy these past
2 weeks! These past 2 weeks felt like any and every-
thing that could’ve went wrong did and at times it was
overwhelming, but having a GREAT team player like
Ms. Ollie, definitely made a great difference. Thank
you for your continued commitment and for just play-
ing your part the way that you do!! From accompany-
ing me when dealing with challenging HF situations,
to always willing to just come in when we are short
staff, despite having worked an extended shift the
previous day and inclement weather, I could always
count on you! For assisting our county assigned
contact, advocating for clients, putting together and
delivering meals, cooking dinner for Mondloch house,
and helping out at EUKS!! Just your willingness to
always go above and beyond and I love when you see
a problem you’ll come to me to discuss and also have
a solution for it! These past 2 weeks you have been
my right hand and together we were able to work thru
some challenging situations. I can always count on
you Ms. Ollie & actually learn a lot from you! I need
to know your secret to how you keep going! THANK
YOU!THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
Alyss- for being the awesome case manager that you
are! I know this week has been kind of tough with the
facility issues and having to accommodate displaced
residents, but you continued to work in those heels
and meet the needs of your clients! YOU GO GIRL!
Ashley and Chimere for being supportive and great
team players.
Lisa, Marion, Veronica and Clarence for being
dependable and covering shifts!
Zach and Stacey for your continued hard work and
dedication!
Martha Faconer sends kudos to: Jeff and Eddie for their diligence in handling out-
reach and in-kind donations.
Tonya, Susan K., Ollie, Clarence, and Tava for
effortlessly responding to the Mondloch Place crisis.
Ollie Dawson sends kudos to: Zach- Thanks for your teamwork with helping our MP
residents during the incident that happened.
Tava- Thanks for coming in and making sure the resi-
dents were placed in a warm and safe place and for mak-
ing sure I received dry clothes and socks.
Susan K.- Thanks for coming in to help with finding a
new place for our MP residents to go, and for making
sure everything we need was available.
Tonya- Thanks for coming in to make sure our MP resi-
dents were ok after you had just shoveled snow out your
drive way for 2 hours. Thanks for all of your efforts to
find a place for residents to go.
RSS staff at Kennedy for working 7 days a week to keep
our shelter a safe place for residents to stay, and for
handling so many residents due to the extremely cold
weather. All of you ROCK!
Steve L.-Thanks for continuing to make sure I receive all
updated data sheets on new clients.
Millie- Great job on the reports you are doing. Continue
to ask questions.
Pam Michell- Thanks for checking on everyone to see if
we needed anything, and to make sure we could continue
to provide support.
Jan- Thanks for sending the email out about Mondloch
Place needs during the crisis. What a great response!
Thank you so much for making it happen by getting food
and gift cards for residents.
Jo- Thank you for making sure we were all ok and for the
support.
Mike D. –Thank you for checking in on MP and for
offering your help.
Alyss- Thanks for going around helping with the hotel
food runs. It’s a big help!
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 [email protected]
New Hope Housing is proud to be an EOE/ADA that values diversity!
FEBRUARY
Sun Mon Tues Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12
PAYDAY
13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 PAYDAY
27 Staff CPR/First
Aid Training
28
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
Team 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
Shanice Gomire Feb 1
Veronica Letsinger Feb 3
Jo Mullen Feb 4
Nicole Dillon Feb 10
Luis Franco Feb 12
Joseph Gouss Feb 12
Alex SaintFleur Feb 14
Essie Marble Feb 17
Tava White Feb 24
Kevin Coleman Feb 28
Name Month Day Years
Gary Steele Feb 8 10
Troy Skeen Feb 4 1
Stephanie Sheehan-Felix Feb 28 4
Janine Rushing Feb 9 6
Susan Keenan Feb 14 15