December 18, 2024 • 10 mins
The mission of Goodwill of Greater Cincinnati includes serving our neighbors with disabilities, Veterans and those struggling with poverty. My guest today is Susie Skeens, the Director of the Shelter and Supportive Housing Program, discussing how they assist those in need, an upcoming holiday party for their guests, and how people can help.
Greater Cincinnati Goodwill
Greater Cincinnati Goodwill
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This week on iHeart Sinsey, they made thrifting cool.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
When we make that sale from that donated good from
a very kind heart, that we are able to provide
additional services that are needed in the community.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
Goodwill's century long mission is to serve our neighbors with disabilities, veterans,
and those struggling with poverty. This month, Ohio Valley Goodwill
Industries is hosting a holiday dinner party for about three
hundred of the individuals they shelter. Today, Susie Skenes, the
director of the Shelter and Supportive Housing program, is here
to let us in on the party plans and more
(00:35):
on their mission. Now on iHeart Sinsy with Sandy Collins, Folks,
this is going to be a fun show. Let me
just tell you right now. I'm with Susie Skenes, and
she is the director at Goodwill for the Shelter and
Supportive Housing Project. And I feel like I've known you
for hours, days, years, rather than just mere moments. So
(00:55):
welcome to the show, Susie. We appreciate you coming in.
How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:59):
I am well? Sandy, thank you for having us and
I feel the same. I feel like we are long
lost sisters, and I'm not sure how that happened, but
so nice to be with you.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
Nice to be here too. Well. I got to tell you,
I'm pretty proud of the fact that I was thrifting
when thrifting wasn't cool back in the day. I think
college students all kind of get to that point where
they discover the whole world of Wow, this is cool,
all this previously used things, clothing styles, functional, you know,
(01:31):
equipment and things like that, things to decorate with. It's
just a great thing. And you've really at Goodwill, really
taken it. You know, such a step up from just
the old, you know, the old dusty thrift stores that
you know, we're run by a little mission here and
there or whatever. It's really a much more wonderful experience,
first of all, and then you know, just the investment
(01:53):
you make in the stores that's expensive, despite the fact
that you know you're your products are donated. So let's
talk about Goodwill and how it started over one hundred
years ago. If you can just a little bit about
what the mission is and then what we've got going
on this month.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Sure, thank you, Sandy. It really is about using donated
goods and having individuals that help us process those those
donations and put those into our retail areas so that
when we make that sale from that donated good from
a very kind heart, that we are able to provide
(02:30):
additional services that are needed in the community. So, for instance,
my programs, we are funded through the Department of Veterans Administrations,
and they do a great job providing funding for the
direct expenses of our programs, but we also have indirect expenses,
and so the sales at the stores go a long
(02:52):
way in helping us to provide the full service of
experience for the veterans in our in our transition.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
Housing and Goodwill serves people with disabilities, veterans, and those
struggling in poverty and homelessness. So you've been leaned on
quite a bit here recently, I would imagine.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Yes, yes, we have. I think one of the things
that faces the entire nation is affordable housing. So we
are at Cincinnati. We are no exception to that. And
being able to help those individuals and families who are
living in the shelter to realize their dream of having
(03:31):
their own place for their family is really what we
want to convey to our community. That Goodwill takes such
pride in being able to help individuals and families achieve
that dream and then sustain it. So it's not just
getting someone into their housing dream, but being able to
wrap those supports around them so that they can continue
(03:53):
to stay in that housing.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
And this might not be in your area, but but
Goodwill does hire people to work at Goodwill stores. Is
that correct that they're not that are not being served
by Goodwill?
Speaker 2 (04:05):
That is absolutely correct.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
We do and that changed, right. I mean at the beginning,
it was you were hiring your folks that you were serving. Yeah,
now it's grown so big, you need it has more people.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
It has. That was a big part of our programming
was to keep the individuals that we work with a
job within Goodwill so we can provide those additional services
like job coaching. So it was kind of the goal
in the beginning. But you're right now that we're growing,
we are hiring, and we're actually one of the biggest
employees in our area. That's terrific.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
Now your Holiday Hope Fest going on.
Speaker 2 (04:41):
It's coming up next week on December eighteenth, let's talk
about that. Sure, take it away, Take it away. So
our Holiday Hope Fest started Originally in the early nineties,
we had just received a grant from the Department of
Labor that helped with providing employment services for veterans. So
(05:04):
we actually started way back then, but it was very small.
We did work with our partners at the Sharonville Convention Center,
but it was specifically for veterans who were living number
one in our transitional housing and also in our employment
program that we're seeking employment. So our vice president of
(05:24):
rehab at the time, Rehabilitation, felt that it would be
nice to offer something to the veterans who were experiencing homelessness,
and so the birth of Hope Fest began on a
very much smaller scale. Now in the last twenty two years,
it has grown as our grants department grew. We received
(05:44):
several different grants from Housing and Urban Development and so
it really the last twenty two years is where it's been.
We're really asking other shelters in our community to come
and join us for this.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
Okay, so this is on the eighteenth And what is where? When? Why?
Speaker 2 (06:04):
How? Where? When? Why? How? The best questions the where
is it's going to be at the Sharonville Convention Center.
This is a meal, This is a beautiful meal. The
Convention Center works with their food sponsors and they provide
a beautiful meal that Goodwill gets to help provide for
all of the families and individuals in the community who
(06:27):
are currently at shelters. So it's not open for the public.
This is an invitation to any of our community residents
that are currently in the shelters during Christmas, and.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
It's an invitation for anyone who wants to help. Good
Will pay for something.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
Like this absolutely absolutely, because everything comes with a price, right,
and so as the economy changes. Our friends at Sharonville
do a great job in trying to keep costs low
for us, so we appreciate that, but we do have
the cost of the transportation, so we provide a bus
(07:01):
service to each of the shelters to bring in the
individuals and families. We also provide hats and gloves and
also a gift for each of the children that'll be there.
We have a craft table so they can have some
fun and enjoy doing something creative, and then we also
have a DJ who'll be providing music throughout the evening,
(07:23):
and of course the man in the red suit will
be there to greet the kids. Yes, Santa and talk
with all the kids about Christmas wishes.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
So to make a donation to Goodwill, you can do
it online and you can also donate at the donation
centers here in town. You go what thirty of those.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
Yes, yes we do and yes the donation could be
made there. And also if you make a purchase at
the store, you have the opportunity to round up and
part of that will go to helping the cost of
our Hope Fest.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
So they're going to have a meal. You've got all
these fun things for the kids. What else is happening?
Is there an EMC.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
Mark Heapstra, our CEO and president. He will give a
few remarks in the beginning, and then I'll say a
few little things. But the idea is to just have
a fun night. So when they arrive, we'll bring them
in off of the buses. We'll check everybody in. Everyone
is assigned a table for safety purposes. We want to
make sure we know who's there and how many from
(08:23):
each agency. And then the kids can go immediately over
to the craft's table. We'll have volunteers there to help
with that. And then the DJ, of course, will be
playing some music. And then as we just wait for
everyone to arrive. We just keep it a festive kind
of spirit going, and then once everyone is there, we'll
(08:43):
start calling tables to come to the service line, and
it's going to be a very nice meal of turkey
and dressing, believe, mashed potatoes and gravy. And then the
desserts are divine. They are absolutely such high scale desserts
almost always gravitate there first, so we do have volunteers
at the dessert tables just to make sure we get
(09:05):
dinner in there at first. And then after dinner we
have time for dancing with the DJ until Santa arrives,
and then Santa will go off to a little spot
that we have set for him, and all the children
get a chance to come up and talk to Santa
and get a teddy bear.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
Terrific. How big of an advant is this.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
So it's a pretty big event for us. There's generally
around three hundred individuals and families that will come and
anywhere from fifty to sixty children, So we want to
just make sure it's a fun, festive evening of inclusion
and to just provide a night for people who will
(09:47):
be living in the shelters for over Christmas. Just to
give them a break from that kind of thought process
and to focus on just a joyful occasion.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
Many is that listening and actually would like to look
into Goodwill services? How do they go about that?
Speaker 2 (10:07):
So for Goodwill services, they can just give us a
call anytime. They can also go to our website sin
Sy Goodwill and there is a tab at the top
that says services and they could just click on that.
There's a drop down box and they'll be able to
access all those services.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
Susie Steins, the director of the Shelter and Support of
Housing program at Goodwill, thank you for coming in good
Luck with your holiday Hope Fest coming up and we
appreciate what you do at Goodwill great.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
Thank you so much for having us Sandy. This means
a lot to us and just really appreciate you and
everything that you do for our community.
This week on iHeart Sinsey, they made thrifting cool.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
When we make that sale from that donated good from
a very kind heart, that we are able to provide
additional services that are needed in the community.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
Goodwill's century long mission is to serve our neighbors with disabilities, veterans,
and those struggling with poverty. This month, Ohio Valley Goodwill
Industries is hosting a holiday dinner party for about three
hundred of the individuals they shelter. Today, Susie Skenes, the
director of the Shelter and Supportive Housing program, is here
to let us in on the party plans and more
(00:35):
on their mission. Now on iHeart Sinsy with Sandy Collins, Folks,
this is going to be a fun show. Let me
just tell you right now. I'm with Susie Skenes, and
she is the director at Goodwill for the Shelter and
Supportive Housing Project. And I feel like I've known you
for hours, days, years, rather than just mere moments. So
(00:55):
welcome to the show, Susie. We appreciate you coming in.
How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:59):
I am well? Sandy, thank you for having us and
I feel the same. I feel like we are long
lost sisters, and I'm not sure how that happened, but
so nice to be with you.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
Nice to be here too. Well. I got to tell you,
I'm pretty proud of the fact that I was thrifting
when thrifting wasn't cool back in the day. I think
college students all kind of get to that point where
they discover the whole world of Wow, this is cool,
all this previously used things, clothing styles, functional, you know,
(01:31):
equipment and things like that, things to decorate with. It's
just a great thing. And you've really at Goodwill, really
taken it. You know, such a step up from just
the old, you know, the old dusty thrift stores that
you know, we're run by a little mission here and
there or whatever. It's really a much more wonderful experience,
first of all, and then you know, just the investment
(01:53):
you make in the stores that's expensive, despite the fact
that you know you're your products are donated. So let's
talk about Goodwill and how it started over one hundred
years ago. If you can just a little bit about
what the mission is and then what we've got going
on this month.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Sure, thank you, Sandy. It really is about using donated
goods and having individuals that help us process those those
donations and put those into our retail areas so that
when we make that sale from that donated good from
a very kind heart, that we are able to provide
(02:30):
additional services that are needed in the community. So, for instance,
my programs, we are funded through the Department of Veterans Administrations,
and they do a great job providing funding for the
direct expenses of our programs, but we also have indirect expenses,
and so the sales at the stores go a long
(02:52):
way in helping us to provide the full service of
experience for the veterans in our in our transition.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
Housing and Goodwill serves people with disabilities, veterans, and those
struggling in poverty and homelessness. So you've been leaned on
quite a bit here recently, I would imagine.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Yes, yes, we have. I think one of the things
that faces the entire nation is affordable housing. So we
are at Cincinnati. We are no exception to that. And
being able to help those individuals and families who are
living in the shelter to realize their dream of having
(03:31):
their own place for their family is really what we
want to convey to our community. That Goodwill takes such
pride in being able to help individuals and families achieve
that dream and then sustain it. So it's not just
getting someone into their housing dream, but being able to
wrap those supports around them so that they can continue
(03:53):
to stay in that housing.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
And this might not be in your area, but but
Goodwill does hire people to work at Goodwill stores. Is
that correct that they're not that are not being served
by Goodwill?
Speaker 2 (04:05):
That is absolutely correct.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
We do and that changed, right. I mean at the beginning,
it was you were hiring your folks that you were serving. Yeah,
now it's grown so big, you need it has more people.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
It has. That was a big part of our programming
was to keep the individuals that we work with a
job within Goodwill so we can provide those additional services
like job coaching. So it was kind of the goal
in the beginning. But you're right now that we're growing,
we are hiring, and we're actually one of the biggest
employees in our area. That's terrific.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
Now your Holiday Hope Fest going on.
Speaker 2 (04:41):
It's coming up next week on December eighteenth, let's talk
about that. Sure, take it away, Take it away. So
our Holiday Hope Fest started Originally in the early nineties,
we had just received a grant from the Department of
Labor that helped with providing employment services for veterans. So
(05:04):
we actually started way back then, but it was very small.
We did work with our partners at the Sharonville Convention Center,
but it was specifically for veterans who were living number
one in our transitional housing and also in our employment
program that we're seeking employment. So our vice president of
(05:24):
rehab at the time, Rehabilitation, felt that it would be
nice to offer something to the veterans who were experiencing homelessness,
and so the birth of Hope Fest began on a
very much smaller scale. Now in the last twenty two years,
it has grown as our grants department grew. We received
(05:44):
several different grants from Housing and Urban Development and so
it really the last twenty two years is where it's been.
We're really asking other shelters in our community to come
and join us for this.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
Okay, so this is on the eighteenth And what is where? When? Why?
Speaker 2 (06:04):
How? Where? When? Why? How? The best questions the where
is it's going to be at the Sharonville Convention Center.
This is a meal, This is a beautiful meal. The
Convention Center works with their food sponsors and they provide
a beautiful meal that Goodwill gets to help provide for
all of the families and individuals in the community who
(06:27):
are currently at shelters. So it's not open for the public.
This is an invitation to any of our community residents
that are currently in the shelters during Christmas, and.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
It's an invitation for anyone who wants to help. Good
Will pay for something.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
Like this absolutely absolutely, because everything comes with a price, right,
and so as the economy changes. Our friends at Sharonville
do a great job in trying to keep costs low
for us, so we appreciate that, but we do have
the cost of the transportation, so we provide a bus
(07:01):
service to each of the shelters to bring in the
individuals and families. We also provide hats and gloves and
also a gift for each of the children that'll be there.
We have a craft table so they can have some
fun and enjoy doing something creative, and then we also
have a DJ who'll be providing music throughout the evening,
(07:23):
and of course the man in the red suit will
be there to greet the kids. Yes, Santa and talk
with all the kids about Christmas wishes.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
So to make a donation to Goodwill, you can do
it online and you can also donate at the donation
centers here in town. You go what thirty of those.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
Yes, yes we do and yes the donation could be
made there. And also if you make a purchase at
the store, you have the opportunity to round up and
part of that will go to helping the cost of
our Hope Fest.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
So they're going to have a meal. You've got all
these fun things for the kids. What else is happening?
Is there an EMC.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
Mark Heapstra, our CEO and president. He will give a
few remarks in the beginning, and then I'll say a
few little things. But the idea is to just have
a fun night. So when they arrive, we'll bring them
in off of the buses. We'll check everybody in. Everyone
is assigned a table for safety purposes. We want to
make sure we know who's there and how many from
(08:23):
each agency. And then the kids can go immediately over
to the craft's table. We'll have volunteers there to help
with that. And then the DJ, of course, will be
playing some music. And then as we just wait for
everyone to arrive. We just keep it a festive kind
of spirit going, and then once everyone is there, we'll
(08:43):
start calling tables to come to the service line, and
it's going to be a very nice meal of turkey
and dressing, believe, mashed potatoes and gravy. And then the
desserts are divine. They are absolutely such high scale desserts
almost always gravitate there first, so we do have volunteers
at the dessert tables just to make sure we get
(09:05):
dinner in there at first. And then after dinner we
have time for dancing with the DJ until Santa arrives,
and then Santa will go off to a little spot
that we have set for him, and all the children
get a chance to come up and talk to Santa
and get a teddy bear.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
Terrific. How big of an advant is this.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
So it's a pretty big event for us. There's generally
around three hundred individuals and families that will come and
anywhere from fifty to sixty children, So we want to
just make sure it's a fun, festive evening of inclusion
and to just provide a night for people who will
(09:47):
be living in the shelters for over Christmas. Just to
give them a break from that kind of thought process
and to focus on just a joyful occasion.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
Many is that listening and actually would like to look
into Goodwill services? How do they go about that?
Speaker 2 (10:07):
So for Goodwill services, they can just give us a
call anytime. They can also go to our website sin
Sy Goodwill and there is a tab at the top
that says services and they could just click on that.
There's a drop down box and they'll be able to
access all those services.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
Susie Steins, the director of the Shelter and Support of
Housing program at Goodwill, thank you for coming in good
Luck with your holiday Hope Fest coming up and we
appreciate what you do at Goodwill great.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
Thank you so much for having us Sandy. This means
a lot to us and just really appreciate you and
everything that you do for our community.
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