We recently spoke with Sean McClung, a newly trained Advocate, on his time and experience with CEF thus far! Sean first got introduced to CEF via his Service & Leadership LLC and we’re very excited to have him working with us.

When did you get involved?  How did you get involved?

That’s kind of a difficult question. I officially became an advocate this semester but I worked with CEF before, because last year I was a member of the Service and Leadership Living Learning Community- and this year I’m the leader of that community. So, Dr. Charles Price does a class for just us called Action Research and we did a project for that class last semester when I was just a member of S & L. It was called HOPE for a Home and if you talk to Jon or Maggie they’ll know what you’re talking about. We split our class into groups and each dealt with different things like long-term support for grads, like alumni council meetings; going around Franklin and Triangle Transit asking getting lifetime discounts for graduates; and planning the actual event. We had the event and we just had a raffle going and announced the discounts—it was a recognition/ mini-fundraiser night.

So that worked out really well and it was really cool because we got to help CEF. So that’s where I started getting involved and while that was happening, I was like “Yeah I’m going to be an advocate!” but I just didn’t have time for it at that point, so I came in this year knowing this was something I wanted to do.

What about CEF interested you?

Long story short– It makes a positive impact on people’s lives and it’s very different from other organizations because it makes that impact in a personal way. Usually it’s very bureaucratic, but CEF’s emphasis on personal relationship and the fact that we do so much interested me. There’s no reason I wouldn’t want to do it, really. I want to make a positive impact on people and the world and this is a fantastic way to help those people who can’t get themselves where they want to be or just need an extra push to get there. There are just so many good reasons to be in CEF because it’s just incredible.

What is/are the most important thing(s) you’ve learned by working with Members at CEF?

You definitely learn about primarily the things you’re doing, first and foremost… but that’s just like physical life things- like how to apply for this or apply for that, which is great, since they’re good life skills for you to have.

I wouldn’t say that just CEF taught me this but CEF really helps you realize that connotations that come with the kinds of people we help are almost always completely unfounded. These are real people who have just found themselves in really unlucky situations and far too many people don’t realize that it could literally be them tomorrow. There’s nothing wrong with these people and sometimes they deal with circumstances outside of their control and some of them may have gotten themselves into situations by their own fault, but the fact that they’re here shows that they’re growing and learning. We’re all just people. I’ve learned over time from CEF and other places that no single person ever deserves judgment. Everybody makes mistakes and everybody deserves love. There’s no reason to not give that to somebody. They don’t deserve your judgment even if you could because absolutely nobody wants to be in the situation where you have to ask for help and the members we work with have, which shows something. And if more people realized that, I feel like most of the problems in the world would disappear.

What skills do you think you’ve developed through working with CEF?

I’ve become better at navigating these strangely arcane, bureaucratic things. I can’t say I’m good at it because I don’t think anyone can be good that them, but I’ve definitely learned to throw myself around in all of these systems and try to get things out of them as opposed to getting lost in cyberspace. I’ve learned how to apply for jobs and stuff—and I helped someone open a checking account, which is something I didn’t know how to do three weeks ago. It’s definitely a work in progress- you learn as you go.

Is there a skill or knowledge of a concept that you want to develop through CEF that you haven’t already?

I can’t really think of anything specific. It’ll come when I need it, that’s how CEF rolls.

Are there any future aspirations that CEF helps you achieve?

After graduation I plan on going into the Peace Corps and I’m considering doing business development as a career. Although CEF isn’t directly applicable to that, it’s very similar. Essentially you’re helping people restructure their lives and get them to where they’re supposed to be. We also learn about job markets and financial things, which are important skills to know and have. It’s nice to know how systems work even if you don’t directly work with them. But it’s also to know the types of people that you’ll be working with when you actually get into those types of careers. Experience trumps the classroom.

If you ran CEF and could change one thing, what would it be?

I would change that stupid printer on the other side of the room that always prints off wingdings… it’s really annoying. Like I just want something to print and all of a sudden there are symbols and wingdings on the paper. I just don’t understand.

What’s the craziest thing that’s ever happened to you in the office?

So Ian Gallager and I had to move this copy machine where the savings center is now, and we were actually moving it to make room for the saving center. And we wanted to see if it worked, so we turned it on and it worked. It was really cool. Oh, but I bet if I had eaten Caleb’s kimchi that would be the craziest thing to ever happen to me… it wasn’t real kimchi, it was his take on kimchi.

What’s your favorite memory made in CEF?

That’s hard, but the first moment that popped into my head was this time I spent two hours working with a guy in one sitting; his name was Daniel. We started applying for a job, wrote a cover letter and resume. We finished the cover letter and this sounds really cliché but he got really happy and thanked me for being so efficient. And I wasn’t being really great or anything, he was just so happy that we were able to do that. It just made me feel so good because it sort of just validates why we work there.

What’s your least favorite moment from working at CEF?

I hated calling the Wake Tech financial aid office… I got put on hold for seven minutes

I hung up on them after seven and a half minutes and decided that an email would be a better usage of our time. It still took them a week to get back, but at least I didn’t have to stay on the phone for that long.

We got a chance to talk to one of the latest members of the CEF family, Brianne Marino. Bri is a newly trained Advocate that has begun diving into all things CEF related!

When did you get involved?  How did you get involved?

I got involved in the beginning of this year. I heard about it through Grace Harvey who’s working with CEF right now and how it’s one of the best things that she’s gotten involved with so far. I heard about it at the Campus Y Open House and decided to try it out!

What made you want to actually get involved in the first place?

I was working with another student group last year that was helping out with people who already had jobs that were having a hard time with that and I was enjoying my work with that group. So I thought that CEF was like that except approaching from different stages, further back or different areas that people needed help and it interested me.

What’s the most important lesson you think you’ve learned from working with CEF?

People who come here seem so kind and so willing to work with someone who doesn’t have any experience. And I know I don’t have any experience, so it’s just great that everyone we work with are so patient and that everyone around is willing to help you help them sort things out.

What skills do you think you’ve developed by working with CEF?

I’ve been doing some research on my own and I’ve been doing the financial teaching fellows thing with Maggie and with that, I’ve learned a ton. I’m learning how to build good budgets and how to save– I haven’t had much experience. I’m learning things with like direct deposits and other really cool things. I’d say I’ve learned a lot myself and happy that I can help other people with that knowledge.

Is there a skill or knowledge of a concept that you want to develop through CEF that you haven’t already?

I would say a lot of the financial stuff- navigate the building system, developing a budget system myself, and good credit and things like that. I just want to use that to help other people at CEF. I just want to feel like I know what I’m talking about so I can help people more confidently.

Are there any future aspirations that CEF could help you achieve?

I’m actually thinking about possibly going to get my Masters in Public Administration or Law School or something like that. But I’ve always been interested in interacting with people or the human side of thing sso I might be interested in working with an organization like CEF in the future… good practice for that

If you ran CEF and could change one thing, what would it be?

I think it would be cool to have Members to come to the general body meetings. I know it’s difficult and it might not be as effective, but it would be pretty cool.

What’s the funniest, craziest thing that’s ever happened to you in the office?

When Amanda telling me I was in the cool club because I could name the Bruno Mars songs that she wanted me to. And I just like the fact that I feel like I’m sort of gaining people’s trust as I’m coming in more. It’s crazy and funny at the same time.

What’s your favorite memory in CEF thus far?

So far I’m actually really excited because I think I’m going to start working with Norman today, but I haven’t been able to do anything with that yet. I was working for a few weeks with a woman who hasn’t come back in since then. She was sort-of having a bit of a hard time with a whole bunch of random things. So she was pregnant and was asking for advice and help on how to take care of her baby for the holidays, which was when the baby was due, and she asking about finding housing and a job. She was just such a sweet person and actually the same age as me, which was shocking at the same time. I’m hoping the reason she hasn’t come back is because everything is okay. She was just so kind to me even though I didn’t even know what I was doing. It was just nice. I liked working with her for the bit of time that I did. And I’m sure it will be the same with Norman.

What’s your least favorite moment in CEF?

I guess the feeling that I don’t know what I’m doing. But like I said, with the classes and everything, it’s getting better. The feeling came more at the beginning of my time here.

I heard that you wanted to become more active in the Latino sector of CEF. What brought that about?

I started thinking of at the beginning of the year. I just wasn’t sure what the time commitment was and I didn’t feel like I was adequately prepared for that. I love Spanish and one of my majors is Spanish. I was also really nervous because I’m good at Spanish but my speaking isn’t all that great. But I realized that there’s enough in the team or the group and not everyone is fluent and so it’s okay and I’ll probably be able to improve, hopefully. I’m interested in Spanish culture and the way it is, and I’m even thinking about immigration law in the past like going to law school for it. So working with this part of CEF seems like it’ll really help me out.

Is there something that CEF doesn’t offer/ isn’t well versed in that you think we should develop?

Nothing I’ve really noticed—it seems to me really, really well organized. I’ve been amazed at how much has been thought out and how everything seems to work so well. So I would say no for right now.

written by: the ever-wonderful Kevin Ji

“Is there a freedom to having no assets?” The question was posed to me by a friend and long-time Member of CEF on a Friday afternoon last year during one of our weekly writing workshops. It has been posed before (thanks, Ralph Waldo and Henry David) but at that moment, I found myself fully embracing – and personally grappling with – its sentiment.

On its surface, the question exposes materialism and its rampant presence in today’s culture. This is nothing novel and we are all guilty of it. I love shopping, especially at Ross and Old Navy. In a few weeks, I will be a proud iPhone owner, with the words ‘it was a birthday present’ serving as the (weak) justification for my compliance with the purchase of a device that will surely enslave me in many ways. In particular, I am already immensely looking forward to Snapchat, Plants vs. Zombies, and to further exploring what absolute dependency on Gmail might look like. Not great.

At its core, however, the question suggests something deeper. Assets are more than just money and possessions; they are things, both tangible and intangible, that we hold close, assigning value to them and deriving value from them. For some, this is prestige, voice, or influence. For many others, it is the stable job, secure home, or supportive family that we so often take for granted. They are things we strive to build and maintain; by admitting their value, we in turn give them the power to define us.

To distinguish us.

To disjoin us.

—

At the monthly HOPE Community Dinner earlier this month, I shook hands with a twenty-two year old man preparing to spend his first night at the IFC Shelter. To me he looked much older; my own twenty-second birthday is only a few weeks away. Before even mentioning his name or where he was from, he prefaced his greeting saying, “I swear I’m not a bad person, I’m just going through a hard time.”

A number of things went through my head upon hearing this: a compulsion to tell him he had nothing to apologize for, a pang that he had perceived me as someone who might cast judgment on him, and an overwhelming frustration that he felt the need to justify his ‘goodness’ as a person simply due his personal circumstances and those of our encounter.

Does this interaction suggest that we as a society have successfully marginalized homelessness? What about being poor? In many ways, measures of wealth and status have become so central in defining success and what we strive for that we forget other obvious alternatives: happiness, morality, balance, humility – the list goes on (Lao Tse, I’m looking at you). By so closely linking money and success, we fool ourselves into a mode of deficit thinking that has come to falsely and narrowly characterize poverty in this country.

What we don’t talk about enough are the consequences of this characterization, and what it truly means to define a rather large group of Americans (roughly 1 out of 6 of us) primarily by an absence of wealth and income. It certainly isn’t healthy. The story of poverty in this country has always been one of deficiencies: of money, literally, but also of capability and self-sufficiency. We offer charity and develop welfare programs, championing ourselves as providers and calling people free-riders when nothing comes back the other way. We tell the same story over and over again, in our schools, our media, and amongst one another, yet funnily enough never give ourselves the chance to meet any of the characters or to the hear their version of the tale. It’s quite different.

Strength and resilience, gratitude and appreciation, groundedness and perspective, camaraderie and community – these are words that aren’t used often enough. They are not meant to glorify or to diminish, but to give fair and due representation to a group that is too often defined by its deficiencies and hardly ever by its assets. We are all rich in some ways, poor in others. Let’s embrace that notion, and in doing so become more creative in how we perceive wealth, define assets, and pursue success in this country.

And CEF has done just that: what began as a monetary fund to help Members work toward and enjoy the same assets that many of us take for granted has turned into so much more. It is an intellectual fund where students grabbed by traditional teachings and pursuits can borrow from the wisdom and perspective of Members (in exchange for the use of their laptops), a social fund whose loan products range from crisis support to lifelong friendship (scary low interest rates, too), and an emotional fund from which any and all may borrow hope, optimism, and love, so long as they promise to reinvest it.

—

These two stories come from a pool of many that have accumulated over my past two years with CEF, and join the countless more that take place each day around the globe. They are moments of connection in a disparate world, perspective in a muddled one, and humanity in a, well, human one. They are reasons to stop and question, to listen and learn, to live and refine.

In life, look for the unlikeliest of friends and teachers – you probably have the most to learn from them anyway. Look them in the eye and understand where they come from. Share something about yourself too and reciprocate; there’s a reason why one-way streets suck, and I’m not just talking about traffic. Iterate, and in doing so spread the love.

As Dr. Martin Luther King wrote in his Letter from a Birmingham Jail, “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” (Baller quote alert.) Underlying this thought, however, is another reality, that this garment is comprised of large and often isolated patches of color. They are patches of homogeneity, a result of the gravity that pulls together our social circles and guides our interactions. They are easy, natural, and comfortable – all things we love.

Imagine a garment, however, where these patches weave and intersect. Zoom in and see individual threads of colors interwoven with one another; zoom out and see the patterns that make it beautiful. I never really tell anyone to do anything, but I’ll tell you this now. Knit patterns for yourself and those around you. In doing so, challenge the status quo and defy gravity.