Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Philanthropy Today is
brought to you by the Greater
Manhattan Community Foundation.
In this episode we feature arecently broadcast segment of
the GMCF Community Hour as heardon NewsRadio KMAN, and we are
back, segment number three onthe GMCF Community Hour, and
we're going to go back toManhattan where our next guests
(00:22):
are.
They are with Salvation Army.
We have the director, susanEvans, joining us.
Good morning, susan.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Good morning.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
It's a delight to
have you here, and also Carla
Johnson is in, and I think a lotof people will remember Carla.
Whenever you see a bell ringer,she's the one that sparkles and
smiles.
Hello Carla, how are you?
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Good morning.
Doing great.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Good good.
You represent Salvation Army.
Well, Do you have purple inyour hair?
Is your hair purple today?
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Yes, that's been for
quite a while.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Yeah, we kind of
trade that way, don't we?
Yes, yeah, you do, you do.
Well, it's a delight to haveyou on and you know, we kind of
trade that way, don't we?
Speaker 1 (01:04):
Yes, yeah, you do,
you do.
Well, it's a delight to haveyou on.
And you know, we kind of we'rekind of going into this a little
bit blind because we had alittle switch in our calendars
here for the day and we justwant to talk a little bit about
Salvation Army and Carla, whydon't I'm sorry Susan why don't
you just kind of start and talkabout the mission of Salvation
Army here locally?
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Okay, our mission
locally and we're a little
different than the otherSalvation Armies because we did
start out a pilot program.
When I came three years ago.
It was this 360 Life Center,which is not a Corps, which are
the big buildings that you seein the cities.
We're the first one in theUnited States that was chosen to
(01:44):
develop a program for what wasconsidered a rural area and in
with that ours is a little bitdifferent, but the main mission
is the same that we help peoplewherever they need it the most
and wherever we can, with nodiscrimination, and it's 360.
(02:06):
Part of it is we try to help inany area of your life and with
that we work in cooperation withthe wonderful, wonderful, um,
other non-profit agencies herein town and since we have
started this, when I first tookit over we were helping about 25
to 30.
I checked the records a monthas far as financially or other
(02:30):
ways.
We're up to over a thousand amonth now.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
So goodness what do
you uh, what do you think?
Causes that that increase?
Speaker 2 (02:40):
uh, the fact that we
have changed the way we do
things as a 360 center.
By doing that, it gave me theliberty to go to the different
agencies, to go to the churches,to go to the government and see
what wasn't being done inManhattan and talking to the
other agencies and seeing whatneeds aren't being met, because
(03:02):
we don't want to duplicate.
You know, we have a lot ofagencies doing excellent,
excellent things in here that wehave partnerships with like, be
able and um, shepherds crossingand others, catholic charities
and different churches anddifferent other organizations
like the guardians and all thosethat work very closely with us,
(03:23):
common table and with that um,we see how we can fill in the
gaps and meet things they can'tdo because the limitations of
their grants or in what they do.
So that allows us to have morepeople come in.
And one of the things that wehave started well, we started it
(03:45):
actually two and a half yearsago Operation Street Outreach.
We have started OperationStreet Outreach and the reason
is the first week I was here Ihad somebody come into my office
and they sat at my desk andthey were talking and it was a
wonderful older gentleman olderI'm probably older than he is.
(04:06):
Anyway, older gentleman who wassitting talking about, he'd
worked in construction his wholelife.
He had gotten sick because it'sa week-to-week job.
He missed insurance paymentsand he was behind on his rent
and everything and he justneeded help.
So of course we were able toput him to the Manhattan Free
(04:27):
Clinic, referring to there withRick Hernandez, and then we
started helping him with hisrent and while he was there he
passed out at my table, at mydesk.
So here we are and I'm lookingat him and I got, you know, we
got him around and thankgoodness I have here someone who
was a nurse in guyana, and somiss sharon came over and she
(04:50):
helped us and we got to talkingto him and he hadn't eaten in
two weeks because of his back,two weeks because of his
background.
Um, he didn't.
His income that he had for hislast month was higher than
what's allowable.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
For food stamps.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
For food stamps and
for other things, and so one of
the things we realized thatthere were people who were in
need.
That fell through the cracks.
We had one lady who be able hadhelped her.
She had a van and they gave hera place for her van.
But here was a 73-year-old ladywho had lived in a van for
seven years and so working withBe Able and with us.
(05:30):
First we got her into anapartment, we helped, kept her
in food and she came over hereand volunteered, kept her busy.
But after it took us a year anda half but we got her moved to
Wichita with family memberswhere she was able to be cared
for and stuff.
So we don't do just a shortperiod.
We don't have a time limit.
(05:52):
Whatever is necessary, we willbe there for you.
And because of that we startedOperation Street Outreach, which
now it started the first year,where we would go around just
Saturday nights usually, butpeople the word got out and
Saturday nights late we would goup and down the streets.
We have a team who have beenhomeless themselves, who have
been trained and all this andgone through safety precautions,
(06:15):
but they go out on the streetand they will bring people in.
We will feed them, we make surethey have sleeping bags, all
these types of things.
We work now with the Center ofHope and Angela and the ministry
there, because we have a lot ofveterans or people who have
(06:36):
mental challenges.
That being in a room with otherpeople is impossible, so we
also supply tents and so we takecare of those who choose at
this time to live in the streetand those who want to get off.
We work with the other agenciesto help get them into housing
(06:59):
as soon as we can.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
so we, yeah, go ahead
I think that's one of the
things I love most about.
You know the work that we do atthe community foundation.
Within you know, the cityitself is all the collaborative
efforts.
You know we want cracks forpeople to be, uh, able to fall
through, and you know the morethat we can fill in those cracks
along the way, and you know,and you, you ran through a list
(07:22):
what 10, 12 differentorganizations and to have a
collaborative effort ofeverybody that can just come
through and help those that arein need.
I think that says a lot aboutthe character of the community.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
We agree 100%.
One of the things we found outis that a lot of the housing
that's available within our cityis male oriented.
Or if you have a history, acriminal history or an addiction
history, or as a woman or withchildren, you have to be in a
crisis situation, meaning police, called safety of health and
(07:59):
things like this.
To be in a crisis situationmeaning police called safety of
health and things like this.
So one of the things to getmore housing available we have
taken on.
We no longer have a thrift store, but we still take all the
donations.
We give them for free to thosewho need it.
But because we have enlargedthat all run by volunteers is
the fact that the crisis centerhas now been able to free up
(08:21):
rooms for more.
Where they used to keepclothing they're all referred to
us and with that they're havingmore room available for people.
We also, when ponte mentalhealth started the transitional
housing, deb Nuss, through herprograms, donated us furniture
(08:43):
and we in turn came and whenthey needed furniture we were
able to help get the furnitureall needed and the beds for a
lot of the Oxford houses in town, plus Pawnee Mental
transitional housing.
So once again, it's indirectlybut directly helping set up the
needs of our people.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
How do you find the
people that are in need?
Speaker 2 (09:11):
We have developed
through the people we serve Word
of mouth, it has become word ofmouth and through the churches
that were at common table thatnow work, you know, all together
at the educational center.
They know, uh, but we do havepeople who go through the
(09:31):
streets at night.
Uh, I have one gentleman inparticular.
He came in as a client threeyears ago, um, but now he heads
up the program of OperationStreet Outreach and we were just
talking this morning because hewas so excited 7 o'clock in the
morning and he's excited aboutwhat happened last night.
But he goes and goes to placeswhere he knows they hang out.
(09:52):
He knows, like the safe places,whether it be in parking garage
, stairways or which tunnels orwherever that they try to hang
out in, or when it's hot in thepublic, he goes, he talks.
If they don't have basic needsor anything like that, he brings
them back here because he's hadall the training too.
(10:14):
He brings them back here, hemakes sure they're fed, they
have hygiene needs met, theyhave all this water, um,
anything that we have for tokeep the basic needs.
So he and others go out andthis spreads by word of mouth.
I came in this morning and therewere two people already setting
in our back patio uh, one ofthe things I did which used to
(10:37):
be a place where garbage was putand people parked in the back
of one of our buildings.
We made that into an outdoorgarden.
With the outdoor garden, wehave fresh produce available for
them, everything like this, butright next to it we have made a
seating area where they cancome, and there's umbrella over
it, there's chairs, but, likeright now, when it's so hot, we
(11:00):
keep a cooler back there all thetime, anytime, day or night,
full of water, gatorade, thingslike this, so that they we know
they will be, so that we knowthey will be hydrated, we know
they will be taken care of.
Speaker 1 (11:13):
Carla, what's your
role?
In all this.
Speaker 3 (11:19):
I'm a disabled
veteran so I try to help connect
veterans also.
Help connect veterans also andif any veterans come in that
need um help with filing fordisability or any other services
, I try to help them, directthem to any other help.
(11:39):
Specifically, women veteransand I've been doing um trying to
help with fundraising and Ivolunteer, kind of doing
everything, doing whatever Susanwants me to do, pretty much.
Speaker 1 (11:54):
Well, bless your
heart for doing that.
Of course, you know and I mayhave mentioned this earlier
about you know seeing you sooften in so many different
places.
When it comes, you know holidaytime because you are you're
like the CEO of bell ringers.
I agree, Bell ringer, you arethe salvation army bell ringer
(12:15):
mascot and you're alwayssparkling.
I think that that's one of thethings I love about you.
Whether it's the shoes or thehat or whatever it is, you know,
you always sparkle and and itjust seems like you always try
to bring some joy, uh, to theworld.
Speaker 3 (12:29):
I love it.
It's fun if you can't have fundoing it, yeah and I've done it
a few times myself.
Speaker 1 (12:35):
You know, and and, uh
, probably have to, you know
we'll have to talk about tryingto get me out and do it again
here this year.
Speaker 3 (12:41):
So yeah, yeah, you,
you come along and join me one
ship.
Speaker 1 (12:45):
It's always a lot of
fun.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
I challenge you to
come join me.
One ship, do you think?
Speaker 1 (12:50):
you can handle me for
one ship.
Yeah, yeah, okay, all right,yeah, I had another radio
personality.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
join me a couple
times.
I think you could do itAbsolutely.
Speaker 1 (13:01):
Yeah, okay.
Well, we're about out of timehere, ladies.
Anything we could do, Susan,that you'd like to share with
our listeners about how they canhelp All?
Speaker 2 (13:12):
right Right now, one
of our biggest needs because of
the heat, because we also have afood bar.
We serve meals every day too,that we're open noon meals to
those on the street and theycome in.
Last Friday we had 40.
But with that is honestly,honestly water, gatorade and if
you can go through any of yourold camping stuff we still need
(13:35):
tents, we still need sleepingbags we go through quite a few
of those and blankets and thosetype of things.
It's just to try to keep peopleas warm and safe and hydrated
as possible during this time.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
So we can always get
those to you, and we can always
get those to you.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
You never know
whether you're going to have 100
people walk through your door,you know, in a couple hours or
15.
So we can always find somethingfor anybody to do.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
How do people get
these goods to you?
Speaker 2 (14:13):
We are open Tuesday
through Friday from 10 to 3.
And Saturdays from 3 to aboutwell now, because we're in the
warming season from 3 to 10 inthe evening.
So they're welcome to drop abye.
And also you can call and theywill give you my personal cell
(14:35):
phone number.
I have it posted all overFacebook, everywhere it's on my
business cards, and you can callme and I will come meet you.
Speaker 1 (14:45):
All right.
Hey, carla thanks for coming inand bringing some sparkle to
the show.
Susan, it's always great to tohear from you.
310 points is that what youwere trying to get in edgewise
to bunk smite?
Speaker 3 (14:59):
that's the address
that's handy to know.
Speaker 1 (15:02):
310 points.
All right, sounds good, ladies.
Hey, thanks, appreciate youcoming in joining us for for the
GMCF community hour today.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Thank you so much for
having us.
Speaker 1 (15:11):
We're going to go to
Calgary here next Vern's going
to come back and we'll talkabout some things that are
coming up in the near futurehere on the GMCF community hour
on news radio K M a N.