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Our 2017 Summer Interns

By on 7/26/17 in Advocate Story, General, Highlight, Story

The CEF summer internship allows those seeking a transformative summer work experience an opportunity to work full-time in one of the CEF locations. Our full-time interns are a main source of fuel during the summer, powering our offices while many Advocates are away. Interns spend about half their time meeting with Members and the other half working on various projects, everything from resource building to communications!

Hover over the images below to read about them and their work!

Durham

Gabi Stewart

Continuing Education Specialist Intern

Gabi is a rising senior at Duke majoring in classical languages. She is leading efforts to create and strengthen relationships with local organizations who provide education continuation services. She is also developing resources on Connect (our internal database) that will provide Members a streamlined interface for accessing resources! In her spare time, she enjoys writing and playing music. She is also training for a half-marathon!
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Varun Prasad

Resource and Financial Coaching Specialist Intern

Varun is a rising sophomore at Duke majoring in statistics and economics. This summer, Varun is working to build resources by receiving Member feedback to constantly improve our services. He is also working on building up our pathways and refreshing information to place people into housing. In his spare time he enjoys exploring new places and watching his favorite TV shows.

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Nijah McKinney

Communications Intern

Nijah is a rising senior at NCCU and a mass communications major.  She is serving as the site coordinator for communications in the Durham office, gathering content and utilizing CEF social media and online platforms to expand CEF’s online outreach. She is also creating a Member Success Board to get more members to share their experiences and journey with CEF. In her spare time, Nijah loves to sing, write music, and read! “I am a creator who just loves to create!”
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Christiana Oshotse

Healthcare Resource Specialist

Christiana is a rising junior at Duke studying public policy and chemistry. She is working to create and improve upon Member Goals that address the healthcare needs of Members. She is working to survey members to determine their most pressing healthcare needs. She is also creating and improving upon resource documents that serve as information guides for Members and Advocates regarding affording health care and dealing with medical debt. She loves to read, journal, spend time with God, and have fun with family and friends

Vishnu Gottiparthy

Pairings Project Specialist Intern – Duke Engage

Vishnu is a rising junior studying electrical and computer engineering and computer science. He conducts research on similarly-structured local organizations to better understand how they effectively build relationships between their staff/volunteers and community members. In his spare time, he enjoys dancing and reading.

Grace Mok

Housing Advocacy Specialist Intern – Duke Engage

Grace is a rising junior studying economics. She worked closely with Janet on organizing the Mayor’s Landlord Roundtable. She assisted in crafting the content/tone of the event and coordinating circulation of the event invitation. She enjoys spending time with her slow-cooker, her recently acquired soulmate.

And a special thank you to Sam, our Office Beautification Assistant, and Beini, our Outreach Specialist and Duke Engage Intern

Chapel Hill

Kaelan Forbes

Employment Specialist Intern

Kaelan is a rising junior at UNC studying economics and entrepreneurship. This summer, she is working to strengthen the partnership with Inmates to Entrepreneurs, an organization that supports former inmates by giving them the resources and tools to start their own businesses. Kaelan also manages our updated list of job opportunities in Chapel Hill. In her spare time, Kaelan enjoys running and cooking with fellow interns

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Tamar Chukrun

Housing Specialist Intern

Tamar is a recent Carolina graduate with a degree in nutrition from the school of public health. She works to keep an updated list of available units in the Carrboro and Chapel Hill areas. She is also conducting research on subsidized housing complexes in the area in order to embed a subsidized housing goal on Connect and works closely with Members transitioning into housing. In her spare time, Tamar enjoys going to the gym, baking, and reading.

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Hannah Factor

Impact Specialist Intern

Hannah is a rising junior at UNC studying economics and public policy. She serves as the communications site coordinator in Chapel Hill in addition to assisting with content in both the Durham and Chapel Hill locations. She is developing a portfolio of Member and Advocate story/profiles through interviews, audio recordings and data visualization. She is also leading efforts to pilot an online CEF storytelling platform. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking mountains, yoga and cooking breakfast.

Joyce Yao

Finance Specialist Intern– APPLES Service-Learning

Joyce is a rising sophomore at UNC. Her projects include transitioning the Renter’s IDA program from its pilot to a wider implementation in Chapel Hill. She is working as part of CEF’s savings team to assist in the coordination of CEF’s partnership with the Common Cents Lab at Duke. She is also working to better integrate “savings moments” into the trainings that CEF offers to Advocates. Joyce enjoys cooking, reading, and now quilting thanks to David and the CEF Quilting Circle.

Justin Willford

Special Projects Coordinator

Justin is a rising junior at UNC studying statistics and mathematics. He works as an assistant to the co-director on donation analysis and fundraising. He also researches available grants, maintains our donation database, and updates our Major Gifts team on donor prospects. In his spare time, he enjoys stand up comedy, listening to music and exploring the triangle.

Keely Kriho

Member Intro Specialist

Keely is a rising junior at UNC studying health policy and management. She assists in the coordination of our Member intake process and facilitates Talking Sidewalks, a weekly discussion-based group in the Chapel Hill Office. She enjoys running, talking about health policy and eating burritos.

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Financial Independence Day 2017

By on 7/18/17 in Events, General, Highlight, Videos, Written By Advocates

The CEF community took over Umstead Park on a warm July evening, filling the park with exuberant joy, music and a hearty celebration. This annual amped up cook-out celebrates one of the major tenets of CEF— financial independence— with food, music, and dancing in the expected CEF fashion.

Financial Independence Day (FID) 2017 exhibited the gold standards of CEF events. Ms. Yvette led the vibrant Advocacy Choir in a CEF renditions of Smile by Kurt Franklin and the brand new You by Germaine Dolley. We celebrated CEF savers with the Safe Savings raffle, fueled by generous donations from local businesses on Franklin Street and in Durham. Hot dogs were served with a makeshift glove while Members and Advocates eagerly volunteered to dish out the amazing side dishes they had brought. The forecast was calling for rain and thunderstorms, but somehow our song and dance kept the rain clouds away!

FID and events like FID are the products of CEF’s prevailing spirit, the essence that has provided me and many others with such a nourishing and edifying environment. This event was a true testament to the resourcefulness, determination, and genuine hearts of the Advocates and Members who are drawn to this organization. We danced to music from the whole spectrum: live instrumental jazz, our very own Member- Advocate trio of Nijah, Gabi, and Ken, and what was described as “the old people playlist” now living on Spotify as a playlist called FID 2017. Mike Alston won one of the prizes again, with an individual from the crowd shouting Go auto-save! We cheered for Cameron’s CEF Alumni Ambassador Award, celebrating his transition into housing and thanking him for his commitment to attending 86 Opportunity Classes and being a great assistant to instructor Mike Wood.

An impromptu dance crew assembled under the compelling direction of Ms. Lorraine. Those who could, stayed back to help us put Umstead Park back together before the rain began to pour. These results are possible through a community that is deeply woven through unwavering support and strengthened through a commitment to compassion.

It was truly humbling to experience such a tangible moment of what makes CEF so great;  my wide experiences meeting with CEF Members is not always so easy to summarize.

While I’m coming to terms with my internship ending and our eventual return back to two office hours a week when the school year begins, I know that there is always these cherished connections with the Members, Advocates, and partners in the area that form the greater web of community that CEF is a valued component of. I am grateful Financial Independence Day continues to be a special joining of those who cherish/treasure/love each other and CEF, culminating in a day of celebration.

Blog post contributed by Joyce Yao, Financial Services Specialist Intern in Chapel Hill and a rising sophomore at UNC

Photos by Emily, Vera & Caroline

A special thank you to sponsors: Market Street Coffee, Buns Burgers, Harris Teeter, Love Chapel Hill, The Yogurt Pump, Holy Lutheran Church, The Parlor, and the Durham Co-op.

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Unlocking Doors Video

By on 7/14/17 in CEF Advocacy, Durham, Events, Highlight, Member Story, Program Story, Research + Publications, Story, Videos

Produced by CEF for the Unlocking Doors Initiative and the 2017 Mayor’s Landlord Roundtable.

The Unlocking Doors Initiative is a partnership between landlords, non-profits, the City and the Durham Housing Authority. With visionary new leadership at the DHA and a groundswell of community support, we are at a crucial juncture in Durham. Mayor Bill Bell has issued a challenge for us to lease up individuals and families, including veterans, to permanently end their homelessness. Landlords and non-profits, will you consider joining us as a Key Partner?

Learn more at unlockingdoorsdurham.org

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Earl

By on 7/13/17 in Chapel Hill, General, Highlight, Member Advocate Story, Member Story, Savings, Story

Growing up and Getting Started

No Matter What. That is what the bracelet on Earl’s wrist reads.  Earl has been sober for 15 months and counting but his memories are fresh from when that was not the case. Earl has been meeting with his Advocate Steven in the Chapel Hill office, pursuing savings and securing employment alongside a 12-step recovery program.

Born in Charleston, South Carolina, Earl grew up in a large family. “My mother and father had 12 kids, my father was a hardworking man… I’ve seen a lot of things in a young stage that’ve helped me become the person I am today…There was a lot of love,” shares Earl, but “I grew up in an unstable home.” Earl recalls how certain things shaped his relationship with finances. “Where I’m from it wasn’t just about savings, it was about trying to survive… my father never had a bank account, never wrote checks so my mother didn’t either.

When Earl first came to CEF in March of 2016, he was skeptical. “You know, I wasn’t sure about what, you know, I could get from CEF. But I found a lot of students from UNC—they really care about the community. They volunteer their work. I know that when people volunteer their work, they’re here for a purpose… I remember my first day at orientation, it started right then and there. There was so much that they offered me to do. They put the guidelines for what I can and can’t do but it was up to me as an individual to follow those guidelines. It was like being in school, if you don’t do the assignment, what’s the good of being in class. “

Finding Work and Financial Stability

At CEF, his consistent Advocate meetings manifested into a successful job search where Earl secured full-time employment at the Carolina Ale House. “The job search it was an experience, most of the jobs I had were daily paid labor. I understood I didn’t want that type of job anymore”.  Although the restaurant recently closed, he feels more prepared now for the job search than he did before. “We’re not finished yet. We’re looking for a job. But now I know how to approach it. He’s (Steven’s) already setting the guidelines for me, he’s already helping me prepare for tomorrow… That’s what I learned from CEF. Preparing myself for the future.”

Earl also spends his meetings with Steven working on finances, which includes disputing debts and created payment and budget plans. By making consistent savings deposits, Earl has saved just shy of $4,000. “I came by Tuesday and put $500 in my savings because I know it’s the right thing to do. I love the idea, I really do, of having a savings account.” Earl also opened a bank account at Coastal Federal Credit Union to build even more savings and have access to a checking account! “Now, I go to a bank and they know my name. ‘Hey Earl, how you doing Earl?’  Even when I’m not there to cash a check I still go in there, talk my banker, talk about ball, talk about how my life is going.” Earl told us that his banker even offered to be a reference for prospective employers, “she sees something in me that I didn’t see when I first started to open my bank account.”

It’s About Relationships and Family

Earl is paired with Steven but that does not stop him from building connections with other CEF Advocates. “I gave a couple of advocates some names like ‘Sarah Salad,’ ‘Sarah Hotdog,’ ‘Chocolate Ice Cream’, you know, because that’s the kind of bond I built with them.”

Earl with CEF Advocates at the Financial Independence Day celebration

Earl only has words of praise for Steven. “It’s all about the relationship that I built with Steven has helped me focus on things in life that I know I am able to achieve…he always has great things to share with me. He always gives me that positive motivation.” More than anything, Earl believes the key to success is partnership. “I don’t want a handout. Just give me a hand… Show me, guide me, pull me along the way.  Just give me that, “you can do it.” That is the hand I need.”

So what exactly is Earl saving for? Family. “I have 3 sons, 3 grandsons and we have never all been together at one time…We’ve never been together. Every day I get a little older. We’ll get together and play a game of basketball…That’s one of the reasons I’m trying to save some money too. One day man, one father’s day man, there’ll be that love, that unity.”

Earl and his Advocate Steven in the Chapel Hill office

 

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Mayor’s Landlord Roundtable 2017

By on 6/28/17 in CEF Advocacy, Durham, Events, Highlight
RSVP Here

Contact: Janet Xiao
Tel: 919-797-9233
Email: janetx@communityef.org

Contact: Grace Mok
Tel: 516-499-0393
Email: gracem@communityef.org

MAYOR BILL BELL TO HOST THE 2017 MAYOR’S LANDLORD ROUNDTABLE

A community gathering regarding housing vouchers and affordable housing

Mayor Bill Bell will convene the 2017 Mayor’s Landlord Roundtable—the second annual gathering of landlords, Durham Housing Authority (DHA) leadership, non-profits and community members—to continue a discussion about housing vouchers and affordable housing in Durham.

The Roundtable will take place on July 11 from 10:00am to 11:30am at the Temple Building in downtown Durham. The event is organized by the Unlocking Doors Initiative—a partnership working toward affordable housing in Durham—and will be open to the public. An RSVP is preferred but not required. Over 130 people attended last year, including 48 landlords and property management companies and representatives from over 50 organizations.

A roundtable conversation with landlords and property managers on how the private sector can engage in affordable housing efforts will be the focal point of the event. After a short welcome from Mayor Bell, the Durham Housing Authority CEO Anthony Scott will provide an update on their progress since the 2016 Roundtable. The Unlocking Doors Initiative will also provide opportunities for landlords to create affordable housing partnerships with area nonprofit organizations.

The event will also be an opportunity for community members to learn about and show support for Housing Choice Vouchers. Previously known as Section 8 Vouchers, the program is administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD describes the program as “the federal government’s major program for assisting very low-income families, the elderly, and the disabled to afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the private market.” Vouchers are considered a tool to end homelessness and increase affordable housing opportunities.

The Roundtable takes place as Bell enters the end of his tenure as Durham’s mayor. It also takes place soon after the City awarded a $4 million grant to DHA to repurchase Fayette Place and after the Durham City Council approved an increase to the City’s dedicated housing fund. City Council and the four mayoral candidates Farad Ali, Pierce Freelon, Kershemia “Shea” Ramirez and Steve Schewel have received personal invitations to the event.

About the Unlocking Doors Initiative

The Unlocking Doors Initiative is a partnership initiative between local landlords and property managers, the Durham Housing Authority, and area non-profits. A main goal of the initiative is to increase landlord partnerships with tenants who are returning to permanent housing after a period of homelessness, using housing vouchers as a tool.
To learn more, visit www.unlockingdoorsdurham.org or email us at info@unlockingdoorsdurham.org.

Photographs from the 2016 Landlord Roundtable

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Healthcare Navigators at CEF

By on 6/27/17 in Chapel Hill, Durham, Highlight, OC Hub

In partnership with Legal Aid of North Carolina, CEF hosted Healthcare Navigators in both our Durham office and CEF’s Orange Community Hub weekly in order to assess insurance options through the Healthcare Marketplace and provide targeted support in enrollment for CEF Members.

During the pilot of this partnership (open enrollment for 2017), 52 households were served, with 22 obtaining health insurance directly through the Marketplace and 12 choosing alternative insurance options. Meanwhile, 18 of the households filed hardship exemptions as they could not afford health insurance due in part to the state legislature of North Carolina choosing not to expand Medicaid eligibility under the Affordable Care Act.

Affordable health insurance plays a key role in the financial stability of CEF’s Members by increasing access to preventive medicine and prescriptions, and by protecting gains in savings, credit, and well-being which could all be lost due to a medical emergency without insurance. CEF is grateful for the partnership of this amazing team of Healthcare Navigators, and proud that the results of our collaboration increased access to this critical resource for CEF Members!

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Annual Report 2016 : Transformative Community

By on 6/19/17 in Advocate Story, Annual Reports, Chapel Hill, Durham, Highlight, Member Advocate Story, Member Story, Partner Story, Program Story, Research + Publications, Savings, Story
Download Here

“We share these stories, and are reminded just how profound it is to be a part CEF. We share them with gratitude for the whole wide CEF family—Members, Advocates, supporters, and friends. Thank you for reading, writing, and living this story with us!”

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David: Crafting Community

By on 6/14/17 in Chapel Hill, Highlight, Member Story, Program Story, Story

How one Member’s passion for quilting is spreading love and togetherness at CEF 

David believes that every quilt is an opportunity for connection. “Our society is losing that personal touch, and in that process of us making that quilt, if someone is bothered about something, we have the chance to talk about it.”  Originally from Sanford, North Carolina, David moved to Chapel Hill last summer to receive better medical care for his sickness and quickly found himself without a place to stay. “I’ve never experienced homelessness until now.”

David’s passion for quilting is life long. “I have been quilting for 30 years or more. When I was young I couldn’t play outside too much, I used to sew my mother’s clothes and when I got older I took an industrial sewing class.”

David was initially connected to CEF through the IFC men’s shelter.  “I wanted to see all I could about all the people around, and I found out about CEF the day during that time I was sick. He (his advocate Kevin) was just like a brother. What I did is a lot of the meetings, and during that time and I was going to Opportunity Class. I was just trying to get a feel for what things were going.” David also enjoys engaging in Talking Sidewalks and CEF’s Advocacy Choir, where he performed for the CEF TED Talk in Memorial Hall this past April. His weekly meetings with his Advocate Kevin, however, sometimes included searching for local quilting groups to join “I liked taking something you would throw away and making something beautiful.”

David with his Advocate Kevin at the 2017 CEF Graduation Celebration!
David passing out fabric from his trove of quilting supplies!

  In February of 2017, David, alongside Kevin, launched the first ever Quilting Circle in the Chapel Hill office. The Quilting Circle allows Members and Advocates to enjoy a community that socializes, relaxes and celebrates each other. “The thing about old-fashioned quilting is that it takes everyone together in the circle to make it. Quilting forces us to talk to each other about things and, in turn, we start to form a strong bond.” Each week, that is exactly what Members and Advocates do, gathering in the CEF office for a collaborative craft and safe space to support and celebrate one another. David, who is currently staying in the shelter, provides all the fabric and supplies himself. He has successfully gotten some supplies donated through the Scrap Exchange in Durham. His quilting projects vary from week to week as he brings new projects to keep people interested and learning. “I just take everything and look at the goodness of it because you can turn everything around and make it pretty, Cause you know, everybody has faults, everyone has needs, everyone is human so live and let live.”

The first quilt is set to be put up in the office this summer. “This is my way of giving back for everything y’all have done for me. If it wasn’t for CEF in this moment, in this time, these people would not be able to come together and make something so beautiful.”

So what is David looking forward to? ”To be in my own place so I can keep on quilting. I am going to quilt and sew until the day I leave the earth.”

Sound amazing?  Come to Quilting Circle any Thursday at 6:00pm in the Chapel Hill office and see for yourself! No experience necessary.

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Financial Independence Day 2017

By on 6/1/17 in Chapel Hill, Events, Highlight

The CEF Community is proud to announce the 6th annual Financial Independence Day on Saturday July 8th at Umstead Park in Chapel Hill. Join us as we celebrate member savings, accomplishments and financial freedom!

Things to get excited about

  • Performances by the infamous CEF Advocacy Choir
  • The Safe Savings raffle with prizes
  • Live entertainment and a showcasing of community talents
  • Arts and crafts and other fun activities for children

Things to know:

  • Carpools are available (make sure to RSVP)
  • Bringing a side dish if you want to share!
  • Bring a chair or a picnic blanket to share if you have extra!
RSVP HERE
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CEF: Community Empowerment Fund
Chapel Hill: 919-200-0233 Durham: 919-797-9233

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