CVC is a giving mechanism for state employees. Pledges are going on until December 15 and can be made online or by requesting a pledge card. If you're a Virginia state employee consider making us a part of your giving. Our CVC code is #3789.
Our newsletter comes out several times a year, but you can stay connected with Madison House all the time by "liking" our Facebook.
Chicago: Alumni Service Event
There will be a joint service event on January 28, 2012 at the Chicago Food Depository (9AM-12:30PM) between the UVA Club of Chicago and Madison House alumni. Details to follow.
Madison House alum Carrie Brown and her mentee Tyrec
Alumni Profile: Carrie Brown
by Caroline Chien, Madison House Alumni Council
Last month, I went with my friend Carrie Brown to visit her mentee through Horton's Kids, a non-profit that provides comprehensive services to the children of Washington, DC's Ward 8. As we pulled into the campus of the University of Mary Washington, I'm reminded of all the life opportunities Carrie made possible for Tyrec. To begin with, Carrie and her family provide Tyrec a stipend each month for expenses while he's in college. In addition, Carrie helped him with the SATs, college applications, and financial aid process. Previously, she organized fundraisers for his tuition and his braces and oral surgery. Essentially, ever since Tyrec was 13 years old, Carrie has been a mentor, friend, sibling, and parent to Tyrec.
Carrie's soft spot for children in need began at UVA through the Madison House Big Siblings program. It was there that she took a girl named Maria under her wing for three and a half years. She baked cookies with Maria, helped her sell Girl Scout cookies in her dorm, and even became a Girl Scout leader of Maria's troop. When Maria was in a wheelchair temporarily because of a car accident, Carrie would push her to get where she needed. Carrie became such a big part of Maria's life, that she was invited the Maria's mother's wedding. In addition to Madison House, Carrie was also active in Corks & Curls and the Jefferson Society. She was a biology major with a minor in Religion in the College of Arts & Sciences.
Since graduating from UVA in 2000, service has continued to be a priority for Carrie. In fact, she first learned of Horton's Kids as the Service Chair for the UVA Club of Washington, DC. She's also volunteers for Tamika and Friends, a non-profit dedicated to raising awareness about cervical cancer and its link to HPV (human papillomavirus), and Kilifi Kids, a group of Kenyan and American professionals working together to improve the health and education for thousands of children in an impoverished region of Kenya.
Seeing Tyrec as an adult made me realize the great impact Carrie has made for him and all the people she's helped. Of course, none so profound as in Tyrec, with the numerous hours she's spent tutoring him, helping him to organize his priorities and interests, and providing him with general life-coaching. She also attended his choir performances and debate competitions when his own mother wouldn't, volunteered with Tyrec on two political campaigns, and took him to hang out with her friends and to performances at the Kennedy Center. But most of all, Carrie provided Tyrec the stability that all children need when no one else would for the past seven years. I don't know about you, but I think that's pretty amazing.
Max Grant is the Program Director for The Haven, a day shelter for the homeless.
Student Q & A: Max Grant, Program Director
by Jennifer Breeze, Student Writer
In this issue we introduce Max Grant, a Hoos Assisting with Life Obstacles (HALO) Program Director and volunteer. He is the Program Director for The Haven, a day shelter that serves as a welcoming and safe place for the homeless population within the Charlottesville community. It is open year-round and provides numerous services and resources for its guests. Max is a third-year student in the McIntire School of Commerce, where he is concentrating in IT and Management, and plans to complete the business analytics track. Grant also is an Honor Advisor, a member of Third Year Council, a site leader for Project SERVE, and works in Pavilion VII at the Colonnade Club.
What services do the volunteers of the Haven provide?
The Haven is a dynamic day shelter on the downtown mall of Charlottesville. The services that it provides are computers that clients use for job search and entertainment, free showers and laundry services, a living room full of couches and a nice television, a kitchen and dining area where breakfast is served on a daily basis, and social services on the upper floors. Most importantly, the staff at The Haven creates a warm, welcoming space for a population that is too often neglected in the Charlottesville community.
Volunteers have a wide array of opportunities and responsibilities when on-site at The Haven. Though volunteers are responsible for helping clients sign-up for showers, laundry, computer use, and answering general questions, the bulk of their time is spent forming positive relationships with guests at The Haven. For example, one shift I came into The Haven and ended up being taught how to play Rummy by two guests who went on to destroy me in every single card game for the next few hours. It is opportunities like these that have made The Haven one of the most popular sites that Madison House has to offer students. At the core of the experience is the human aspect--the chance to step outside of the U.Va bubble and form relationships with disadvantages members of the Charlottesville community.
How has your work with the Haven helped you gain a greater understanding of the Charlottesville Community?
My experience at The Haven has allowed me to dive into the vibrant Charlottesville community and learn more than I could have ever learned by just sitting in a classroom. It is easy to get caught up in the "U.Va bubble," and fail to see beyond grounds to realize that there is an amazing community in our backyard. Volunteering at The Haven on a weekly basis serves as a constant reminder of not only issues within the community, but also the opportunities there are for all students to connect with individuals who have so much to share. No matter what you are interested in, I think it is very important to experience the greater Charlottesville community in order to appreciate U.Va's role in that community.
Have you been able to foster any new, positive relationships while you have worked with the Haven?
My favorite part about being at The Haven has been the opportunity to connect with so many different people who have unique experiences, backgrounds and philosophies on life. One of the greatest friendships I have made at The Haven is with a gentleman named Chris, who used to do stand-up comedy in New York City, and eventually made his way down to Charlottesville. Hearing his background and everything that he has experienced throughout his life is a constant reminder that you can take so many paths in life and that nothing is guaranteed. I love sharing these experiences with others because too many individuals are under the impression that the homeless population is a group of lazy drug-addicts who depend on the government for their survival. Volunteering at The Haven has humanized an issue that is stigmatized throughout our society, and allowed me to spread awareness throughout the University.
Have Madison House and the Haven influenced your life in any other ways?
Madison House has influenced my life as a student in so many ways. It allows you to connect with individuals who share interests outside of academics or athletics. Also, the staff at Madison House is a great resource for so many things and will do anything in their power to help you succeed as an individual. I can't begin to think what my U.Va experience would have been like without Madison House, and it is absolutely the most important extracurricular organization that I have become involved with.
If I haven't emphasized it enough, The Haven has greatly influenced my life since I begun volunteering there in January 2010. It is a wonderful example of a non-profit, community organization that works due to the caring management and love from the community. I look forward to continuing my relationship with The Haven during my last two years at The University, and hope to maintain that connection after final exercises.
Yousaf Sajid and Jennifer Walker work directly with Madison House's student leaders, advising them on how to lead their programs.
How Technology is Changing Madison House
A Staff Discussion with Jennifer Walker and Yousaf Sajid by Ben Eppard, Director of Communications
Today, we're talking to Jennifer and Yousaf about some of the technological changes going on at Madison House, especially in terms of how program directors lead their programs.
Can you tell us in what ways a volunteer's experience today may differ from what our alumni have experienced?
J: This is our third year using an online system to record all volunteer hours. Before that we were using a paper format. Some may remember it as "gold sheets," because the form was printed on gold paper. Gold sheets went online for a little while before we started using our current system. Now the students have a centralized profile where we can see exactly when and where they did their service. It's really easy for staff and student leaders to access.
Y: This system, which is called Volgistics, has allowed us to have online registration. In the past, alumni may remember running to Madison House on the first day of school past buses and trucks to get here to sign-up for Pet Pals or other programs, but with online registration we're able to reach out to a wide array of students through our website. Program Directors are also able to use online profiles to schedule shifts, which is much more efficient than trying to schedule from paper forms.
Was there any fear that Madison House might lose some of its personal touch as it becomes more tech savvy?
Y: Some things are different. When I was a student I loved how the staff played match-maker, talking to students and guiding them through what program they may like. We still do that if they come in to sign up, but now more students sign up online, so they're making their decision based off our web content or other sources.
How have you tried to keep that personal Madison House feel?
J: Yousaf and I have been holding monthly volunteer socials, where volunteers can meet one another. We hold competitions to see which program has the most volunteers at these events, so we are trying to keep the foot traffic at Madison. We also still hold recruitment fairs in the fall and spring in person. We had about 900 students attend the fair in the fall! I've also created a weekly program director e-newsletter. In this newsletter we cover everything going on at Madison House including events, PD responsibilities, fun contests, and a PD of the week with a photo and interview. That goes out every Monday, and I think it's really kept our student leaders involved and informed. Also, Yousaf who has only been on staff for three months took the initiative to start a
account for our students, which we're hoping will grow.
Y: We also want to start utilizing videos to reach out to program directors. We think they can be educational but fun. It's like Sesame Street for college students! You don't think you're learning something, but you are. Jennifer had the idea of making a video about examples of bad program directors who don't turn in their volunteer hours on Volgistics. It's slightly to highly dramatized to make it interesting. Also, our
Upkeeping the house at 170 Rugby Road is important to our students and programming.
Taking Care of the House
by Elizabeth Bass, Executive Director
We can all agree that Madison House is more than just the two-story brick house that sits at 170 Rugby Road. It is community service and leadership in action. It is the spirit of giving translated to thousands of hours of service to the community. It is mutually beneficial relationships that allow students and community partners to grow and flourish.
But that brick house on Rugby Road still remains the heart of what Madison House is and does. The house is the foundation of our programs, the most valuable asset of the organization, and the hub of student involvement.
Madison House has lived in this building for almost 40 of its 42 year history, and tens of thousands of students have walked through those doors and considered it a second home. But just like any building of this age, the house is showing a little wear and tear. In order to preserve this space for future generations of volunteers, we have made it a high priority to direct valuable resources to our building.
This past year, we were fortunate to receive a grant from the U.Va. Parents Committee to put new lighting in the parking lot area, increasing safety for the many students who use Madison House after hours. A gift from the Dominion Foundation allowed us to put new energy efficient windows throughout the building, helping to reduce our utility costs. And a surprise gift from the Z Society allowed us to remove a dead tree from the front yard whose branches were threatening to fall on the building after some bad storms last year. Each of these generous gifts has been put to good use, and has helped Madison House to be good stewards of our building.
On the horizon this year is a new heating and air system to replace a dying heat pump from the 1980's, updating some failing pipes and plumbing, and possibly a new roof. As we give some tender loving care to our building, we are very grateful for your support to ensure that our students and programs always have a strong foundation at 170 Rugby Road. And we hope you will come by to visit anytime you are in town!
