Growing and thriving in our new normal: Welcome Blake and Missy!

In a year defined by change and uncertainty, we are more grateful than ever for the many kinds of support that we have received from so many of you. We are also incredibly grateful for our amazing staff, who have consistently gone above and beyond to care for our friends here at RCI. We are pleased to announce two recent staffing changes that will ensure that we can continue to keep our RCI community members safe and healthy while still moving toward our organizational goals. Please join us in welcoming Blake Henry as our new Community Chaplain, and in congratulating Missy Wise on moving into a new role as our Community Services Coordinator!

Welcome Blake! Blake Henry is the new interfaith Community Chaplain for the Community Building Center. As Community Chaplain, Blake is responsible for providing care and support to members of the RCI community, including one-on-one and small group care for RCI community members interested in addressing their spiritual or emotional needs on a deeper level. Along with that, he will help support our RCI Village residents. Blake brings the gifts of pastoral care, positivity, and connectivity. He is most excited about deepening the relationships at the Community Building Center and connecting others to the work that is happening at RCI. Blake has been a great addition to the team!

Congratulations Missy! Missy Wise has moved into a new role as our Community Services Coordinator. As the Community Services Coordinator, Missy coordinates our Service Hub, which is a dedicated space at the Community Building Center where our partner organizations (including the Street Medicine, St. Luke’s Parish Nurses, Lehigh County Mental Health and Drug and Alcohol programs, VAST, Muhlenberg College Office of Community Engagement, and others) provide specialized services to our community members. With her skills in Restorative Practices, Missy continues to facilitate our weekly circles and engage our community members in the processes of healing from trauma and building empathy with one another. Missy has been a valuable part of our team for the past four years, and we are thrilled to have her stepping into this new and critical role!

Some thoughts from Ripplers during election season...

On Election Day, the voices of our unsheltered neighbors are as powerful as any individual in this nation. But you might wonder, why would someone who faces rejection by virtually every aspect of modern society continue to believe in the great promise of democracy?

 This election season, our unsheltered friends have been answering that question by telling us why they are interested in voting. These voters are young and old, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. Just like voters with permanent addresses, they don’t think alike, and they didn’t vote alike. Their stories are inspiring reminders that our elected officials are accountable to all of us.

Akeem lost his housing in February of last year after parting ways with his girlfriend and has been unable to find a new apartment that he can afford. He said, “Being homeless, [voting] means a lot because a person of my stature, some people might think that we're not qualified,” He told me that he inherited a strong appreciation for voting rights from his grandmother, who reminded him every election cycle that there were times in American history where someone like her — a woman and a person of color — had no say in choosing our leaders. “Hopefully [other people in my situation] will exercise their rights and feel good about voting. I would hope we'll help change our futures, change the circumstances that we are in.”

 Amy, a young woman who lost her housing when her parents passed away, and who will be voting for the first time in the upcoming election, saw voting as a way to assert her rights and increase respect for anyone who might be judged unfairly.  “Something's gotta be done about that whole discrimination thing, against anybody in a house or on the street or whatever, you know? It's just frustrating to constantly get looked at sideways. If I carry too much stuff into a place, they automatically peg me for someone, you know, like I'm going to steal something.”

Donald, a registered Independent and a retiree from the manufacturing industry, said, “Many U.S. Presidential elections are extremely important and consequential. This year is very polarizing considering all the many issues that have defined 2020 - Coronavirus pandemic, social unrest, racial injustice, protests, unemployment, the economy. Everyone’s voice needs to be heard at the ballot box… I have a right to vote as much as any U.S. citizen, no matter my social status, economic status, etc. Everyone’s vote counts the same in the election.”

Homelessness didn’t get much attention on the campaign trail, but, sadly, people experiencing it are no small constituency. Government figures put the number of unsheltered Americans at more than half a million, but the actual count is undoubtedly higher. We have all been reminded in recent weeks that no vote can be taken for granted. As our community member, Donald, reminded us, “I want to vote to help choose our leaders. It is my right and duty as an American citizen.”

The New Normal

It is a bit rowdy at the Community Center today. The topics of conversations swirling around involve anything from protesting to the inescapable Pennsylvania summer heat and even who won the World Cup in 2018 (it was France.) This is RCI. As we adjust to this new, COVID-19 normal, some things sound, look and feel very different. Our purpose to cultivate community through time, resources and conversation, however, remain the same. In some moments that cultivating community sounds like big ‘important’ conversations about safety and the state of the world. In others it is the comfort of equally important relationship sharing around topics like when the new Star Wars movie may be released or distanced birthday plans.   

Throughout COVID-19 some of our guidelines have changed for the safety of our community members and staff. During this time, RCI has made the decision to stay open during our normal hours because our community members often simply do not have the option to ‘shelter in place.’ Our community members do not have the luxury of looking for alternatives. RCI has become a hub for prepackaged foods, healthcare, community and support while so many other programs are in necessary flux. That means our day to day is different and ever-evolving. On a practical level, as we continue to be in constant communication with healthcare leaders and experts about what our actions need to be in order to safely operate, our policies have changed. We have added deep cleaning to our daily, after hours routine (and are ALWAYS in need of Clorox wipes!) as well as required hand-sanitizing, temperature taking, person to person distancing and mask wearing for all of our visitors as they come through the doors. This is with a reduced volunteering task-force as we try to keep all of the ones that we love as ‘low-exposure’ as possible. While this is important, it also means that we miss some of the things that we most appreciate about Ripple. We, like many, are missing the comfort of routine games, physical contact and even simple acts like handshakes and hugs.  

Another part of our new normal means that we are all learning to be creative. While our volunteer team has not been able to come into the Center for the last few months, they have supported us with cards, laundry packs, prepackaged meals and other essentials (we truly have some AWESOME volunteers.) While our normal St. Lukes University Heath Network’s Parish Nurse team cannot be on site, we are working closely with them via phone to get individuals the medical and social help they may need via their open in hospital offices. Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network’s Street Medicine Team continues to meet with community members regularly at the Community Center to take care of the routine and more urgent medical needs of those who would not otherwise be getting care. We have been able to temporarily hire two of our Community Members to participate in our supportive employment program as we simultaneously offer technical support to our friends with their daily online needs which involve things like job applications, unemployment and housing paperwork, Census info and similar work. 

Over the last few weeks, we have been working hard to reimagine how we can offer our signature restorative circles and therapeutic art activities as we continue to recognize their importance in helping our community to not just survive but to thrive. We are hopeful that resuming these activities in new ways can help Ripple to continue to do what we do which is to nurture community and connection in Allentown by fostering a sense of community among our neighbors who have traditionally been marginalized. 

To be honest adapting can be hard. It is draining to constantly be working outside of the things that we know we do well. There are days that being in relationships that are ever changing is challenging and sometimes even painful, especially as our nation and world grieve daily injustices that directly and indirectly affect us. And yet, it is in these times that we recognize how Ripple can shine.  This happens through community, relationship (even when it is messy), perseverance and a lot of grace. Thank you for continuing along with us on this journey and please check back on our Facebook page and website for updates! 

Join us next week for two community conversations!