S H E L T E R & S U P P O R T

S E R V I C E S , I N C .

F O N D D U L A C ’ S O N L Y D O M E S T I C A B U S E & H O M E L E S S S H E L T E R Turning PointsN E W S L E T T E R O F S O L U T I O N S C E N T E R S H E L T E R & S U P P O R T S E R V I C E S , I N C .

National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week

TP

NOVEMBER & DECEMBER 2013

Decline in Public Assistance. The declining value and availability of public assistance is another source of increasing poverty and homelessness. Federal and state cuts have affected those in our communities without other resources.

Domestic Violence. Battered women who live in poverty are often forced to choose between abusive relationships and homelessness.

Mental Illness. Mental illness is becoming a rapid reality in this country and our community as well. It is a significant contributor to homelessness. Serious mental illnesses disrupt people’s ability to carry out essential aspects of daily life, such as self care and household management. Mental illnesses may also prevent people from forming and maintaining stable relationships or cause people to misinterpret others’ guidance and react irrationally. This often results in pushing away caregivers, family, and friends who may be the force keeping that person from becoming homeless.

Addiction Disorders. The relationship between addiction and homelessness is complex and controversial. While rates of alcohol and drug abuse are disproportionately high among the homeless population, the increase in homelessness over the past two decades cannot be explained by addiction alone. Many people who are addicted to alcohol and drugs never become homeless, but people who are poor and addicted are clearly at increased risk of homelessness.

Solutions Center is committed to shedding light on this very important issue.

What would our city look like without Solutions Center?

Solutions Center attempts to answer this question by displaying a dramatic exhibit portraying the homeless in Fond du Lac during National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week (November 16 - 24.)

The exhibit features 50 life-size silhouettes, which represent the average number of people Solutions Center serves per night. The plight of those without a home can be lonely and difficult. This exhibit helps people realize the difficulties that homeless

persons face daily.

Why are people homeless? Homelessness is unique for each person experiencing it. Homelessness is both the cause and effect of other problems, ranging from chronic substance abuse, financial instability caused by unemployment or underemployment, mental illness, domestic abuse, and more. Most often, it is a complex set of circumstances, choices and traumas that lead a person to this point, as the following points illustrate.

Foreclosure. Recently, foreclosures have increased the number of people who experience homelessness.

Poverty. Homelessness and poverty are inextricably linked. Poor people are frequently unable to pay for housing, food, childcare, health care, and education. Difficult choices must be made when limited resources cover only some of these necessities.

Eroding Work Opportunities. Reasons why homelessness persists include stagnant or falling incomes and less secure jobs which offer fewer benefits.

Happy Holidays!

Warming Shelternow open

The plight of those without a home can be lonely and difficult. A warm meal provided by a caring individual can make a difference! The Warming Shelter at Solutions Center has opportunities nightly for those interested in providing a meal, as well as those looking to volunteer their time.

thank youthank you

thank you

Alliance Laundry Systems made a donation to our Men’s Shelter.

US Bank made a donation of $1,000.

Model Cleaners has been providing free laundry services to Solutions Center for over 30 years!

Marchant Schmidt, Inc. held an employee drive and provided a truckload of basic necessities of shelter.

St. John the Baptist Church donated basic necessities of shelter.

Board of Directors

David Washkoviak, PresidentRoberts Homes & Real Estate

Tim Twohig, Vice PresidentFloorQuest

Lisa Shannon, SecretaryCommunity Advocate

Bob Hartzheim, TreasurerFront Line Systems, Inc.

Sue Strands, Past PresidentCity of Fond du Lac

Jeff BakerBaker Cheese

Terri EmanuelThe Goldsmith

Molly HaackAgnesian HealthCare

Sister Hertha LongoCongregation of the Sisters of St. Agnes

Gary OttUS Bank

Tracy QualmannMarian University

Rick SchmidtMarchant Schmidt, Inc.

Tiffany WieseAgnesian HealthCare

Administrative Staff

Lindee KimballExecutive Director

Karla BreisterAdministrative Services Director

Teresa KeenanCommunity Relations Director

Sheila BaublitAdministrative Assistant

Roxanne BurkhardtCase Manager, Women’s Shelter

Michelle DuranChild & Teen Advocate

Brian FrigardCase Manager, Warming Shelter

Sue George Child & Family Therapist

Tara TarpeyCase Manager, Men’s Shelter

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S DESK

page 2

A Night of Solutions

“Solutions Center has been so blessed this past year, not only by its donors, but by its clients. Many people might wonder what I mean by that.

What we continue to find, the longer we do this work is that many clients become such a part of us.

This year a few of our clients passed away. This really made us wonder here at Solutions Center, “Could we have done more?” and “Did we help them enough to make a difference in their lives?”

Of course, we do all we can with the resources we have been given, but it is hard not to ask those questions when coming face to face with mortality.

These questions become increasingly difficult when we look at the reality that some of the clients we deal with are mentally ill. Homelessness isn’t the stereotypical “lazy person,” it is so much more complex than that, and the range of issues we deal with is vast.

Mother Teresa said, “We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty.” Let it not be known that we didn’t want, love or care for humanity.

The holidays are a wonderful opportunity to show everyone, including those that are so marginalized in our community that there are indeed people who care.

This is why Solutions Center sponsors programs like “Adopt-a-Family” and “Baskets of Hope.” These programs are at the heart of what we do at Solutions Center, and align with our mission.

“Baskets of Hope” is a new program for us this year, and I am very hopeful that it is successful. I know how much the community loves to give to those in need, especially at the holidays. This drive allows us to collect items that the clients of our organization need the most and can be used all year long, such as personal items, cleaning products and gift cards. Upon moving out, we will present our clients with a basket filled with these items, as a help to them with a new start.

Everyone deserves a new start. That’s what Solutions Center is all about. Happy holidays to all; I hope that as we are being blessed, we can become a blessing to others!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Lindee KimballExecutive Director

Solutions Center broke with tradition by hosting its annual dinner event in a simplified fashion. “A Night of Solutions” was held on Thursday, September 26, at Thelma Sadoff Center for the Arts and was a humbling success.

Over 200 guests were in attendance for the dinner event that boasted no silent auction, no live auction, nothing more than a simple sharing of stories about Solutions Center and the people that are helped. As part of Solutions Center’s mission, the organization has committed to an increase in education and awareness. This event spoke to exactly that and inspired the people of the community to help at an unprecedented level.

TP

Sister Hertha Longo and Gary OttSolutions Center Board Members

page 3

Heather’s Story

Items

S p o t l i g h t O n :

neededWe welcome any items you wish to bring. Here are some of our current needs:

• Pillows• Bath towels• Laundry soap

• Toilet paper• Paper toweling• Cleaning supplies• Garbage bags

All good things must come to an end. Unfortunately, it is the end of the six-year terms for Solutions Center board members, Sister Hertha Longo and Gary Ott.

“We are so grateful for all Hertha and Gary have done for us, we are very sad to see them go!” said Lindee Kimball, Executive Director for Solutions Center. “They have been instrumental in the success of our organization during their terms, and we are going to miss them tremendously.”

“Providing assistance to victims of domestic abuse and the homeless has always been near to my heart,” said Gary Ott. “I recall a number of years ago seeing a number of individuals ‘camping’ in wooded areas and hanging around the inner city of Fond du Lac, out in the cold. It was clear that providing shelter was a definite ongoing need in our community.”

Ott was very familiar with the efforts of Bethany House and FAVR (the two organizations that ultimately merged to form Solutions Center), having served on the Holy Family Parish Council. Helping Solutions Center was a natural fit for him.

Of course, Sister Hertha Longo is certainly no stranger to serving organizations like Solutions Center, either. “Solutions Center is very near and dear to my heart,” said Longo. “I am very passionate about serving those in need in our community, and I am proud to have been able to give my time to those that need it most.”

Longo has an extensive background in serving the Fond du Lac community. She is General Treasurer and a member of the board of directors for the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Agnes, on the board of trustees for Marian University, and is a member of the Plan Commission for the City of Fond du Lac, just to name a few of her efforts.

Both Ott and Longo served as board president during their tenure.

“I certainly want to thank Gary and Hertha for all they’ve done over the years,” said Kimball. “I can only hope to find such dedicated replacements!”

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, my name is Heather and I am very excited to be here this evening. This is an opportunity for me to express my gratitude to all of you here that have given donations to Solutions Center. It is also a chance for me to give back to a program that helped me to rebuild my life after having been in an abusive relationship for six years.

The abuse was difficult for me to understand at first, because the violent outbursts usually had nothing to do with me. Once, when trying to move my piano into another room, it dented the floor and he became angry, so he smashed it to pieces with a hammer. Another time, he was trying to hang a door and was not able to get the frame level, so he took off a piece of wood and used it to beat about a dozen holes in the wall.

Over time, it became more apparent that the anger was being directed at me. If only I would have come downstairs happier one morning, he wouldn’t have thrown my breakfast at the refrigerator. If only I would have done more to quiet our screaming toddler, he wouldn’t have thrown a chair through the front door. “Don’t you know how much I love you?” he asked as he banged my head against the floor.

There was so much fear and intimidation that I truly felt helpless. I was afraid that if I called the police, they might not believe me and my partner would become enraged and hurt me worse than before. I worried that if I told my family and went to stay with them, they could get hurt too.

Eventually, I did start to talk about what was going on, and from my mother came the phone number for Sue George [Child and Family Therapist for Solutions Center.] I worked up the courage to call and make that first appointment. It has been almost two years since I made that call, and after

As shared at Solutions Center’s Dinner Event “A Night of Solutions:

Continued on page 4TP

page 4

Solutions Center Welcomes Newest

Solutions Center is proud to welcome Tiffany Wiese, Domestic Violence Coordinator for Agnesian HealthCare, to its Board of Directors.

“We are excited to have Tiffany on our board,” said David Washkoviak, President of the Board of Directors for Solutions Center. “Her experience and expertise in domestic violence advocacy will only help to further the mission of Solutions Center.”

Tiffany was thrilled with the invitation to join the board of directors. “My main intention for accepting the position was to build better collaboration between Solutions Center and Agnesian’s Domestic Violence program. This is something both programs have wanted to achieve for a long time. I also felt it was important to have a team member who may be able to help educate and consult with other board members about the very issues Solutions Center represents - intimate partner and family violence. I hope my experience in the field with direct victim services can assist the board with issues presented from a victim or community member’s perspective.”

Welcome to Solutions Center, Tiffany!

Heather’s Storycontinued from page 3

a couple of starts and stops, I am out of the relationship and have done a tremendous amount of healing.

From that relationship, I have a son and he needed a safe place to talk after having grown up in such a tumultuous environment. Michelle Duran is the child advocate and has done a wonderful job of helping my son. She was also able to be there for me when I needed to go to court for a restraining order against my partner and it made all the difference in helping me to get through all that.

The professionalism and caring nature of the staff at Solutions Center is a large part of their success. Another important factor is that they are able to offer their services for free. If it was not, I personally would not have been able to go there for help. I would have been too afraid that my partner would wonder where the money was going and now that I am on my own, there is no way that I could afford it. I feel it is also important to note that since Solutions Center is not religiously affiliated, they can reach people who might not feel comfortable going to a church group.

To bring my story to a close, I would like to reference that wonderful old saying that “the truth will set you free.” As I stand before all of you here, I feel free indeed, and I have my loving support group and Solutions Center to thank for helping me see and understand the truth about what I was going through. Thank you.

Thank you Heather for your enormous act of courage in sharing your story with us and our supporters! We are humbled to have had the privilege of helping you through your journey in life. TP

TP

C H R I S T M A S P R O G R A M SSolutions Center will again be hosting a Christmas Adopt-a-Family program for its clients and is looking for sponsors.

Clients include adults and children who are victims of domestic violence and/or victims of homelessness or impending homelessness. A great majority of those in the program are past or current residents of Solutions Center Men’s, Women’s, Family or Warming Shelters.

Sponsors can be individuals, families, civic groups, small businesses or large corporations.

Those wishing to help, but not able to commit to a sponsorship adoption, may assist with monetary donations or store gift cards to be used to purchase much needed last-minute gifts. Solutions Center works with other local agencies to ensure that while holiday needs are met, families are not benefiting from assistance at more than one agency.

Solutions Center is also hosting an initiative called “Baskets of Hope.” Those wishing to make a donation in the Christmas spirit to Solutions Center can provide a “Basket of Hope,” which consists of a laundry basket filled with items that fulfill basic human needs. Suggested basket items are laundry detergent, toilet paper, paper toweling, Windex, shampoo, conditioner, soap, body wash, towels, wash cloths, dish soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, Pledge, bleach, Kleenex and garbage bags and gift cards. The baskets will be collected and given to clients when they move out of shelter for use in their new home.

“These ‘Baskets of Hope’ allow us to host a holiday drive that is really in line with our mission,” said Teresa Keenan, Community Relations Director for Solutions Center. “We understand that especially around the holidays, the community loves to give to those in need. This drive allows us to collect items for the holidays that our organization really needs the most and can be used all year long.”

Board Member TIFFANY WIESE

Younkers Community DaysYour $5 donation to Solutions Center will get you over $500 and more in exclusive coupon savings. Call 923-1743 for purchase!