Clark county Job and Family Services:

I don't want to play favorites, I mean, I love all 15 of the counties in my region.  But how can I help doing a special post when the lobby looks like this? :

Here is a close-up.  All of the little children on the wall of decorated with actual fabric, ribbon, yarn, etc.

They also had adorable little chairs and couches for kids to sit in.  Well, kids and...

Zach does a great job of managing/encouraging/guiding/supervising, and keeping the job interesting and fun.  Hence, plopping in the mini-armchair in preparation for our meeting with the Director. 

Other than a really sweet lobby (that included a friendly receptionist and bottles of water for clients!), Clark county Job and Family Services is a really proactive and involved agency.  They seem flexible in their practices and willing to find solutions to barriers that stop clients from accessing public benefits.  It was great to meet with their Director and staff that work with the Benefit Bank applications, and get practice networking and communicating with our partners with Zach's guidance. 

There is a LOT more traveling in my future for networking and the expansion of the network (example: today I was in Bellefontaine in the morning and Lancaster in the afternoon. Consult a map to visualize this adventure).  At least I'm not driving as much as my colleague Alesha (her blog), who works in the SE region.

Here's to meeting fantastic people all over Ohio, working together to provide resources and help people be self-sufficient!

Direct vs Indirect Service

9:30 every morning like clockwork, my stomach creates a ruckus that disturbs my work as I’m sure everyone around me. Why is it so needy? My trip to the break room to stave off hunger with a cup of coffee reminds me that I am finally part of this elusive “adult world” of office buildings that have water colors and break rooms with coffee (as opposed to my entire job consisting of making and handing out that coffee). The other difference is my work now consisting of indirect service, where before I was only doing direct service. Basically this means before I was hanging out with people, playing with kids, interacting with the community, giving out meals, etc, where now I am on an organizational level, building capacity and connecting organizations and people with tools. I can’t get a clear picture yet of which type I prefer, though granted I have only been at this less than a month. Already in my indirect role I feel like I can see results better, as I am dealing more with numbers equated to success.