Author Teaches Homeless Awareness & Sensitivity

The Facts

·         1,000,000 Homeless Students are Walking the Halls of U.S. Schools

·         Thousands of College Students are Suffering, Hiding Hunger & Homelessness

·         13.9 Million Americans are Unemployment

 

The Problem

Our nation’s economy has been stagnant for a few years now and many believe the education of our youth and re-education of more seasoned workers is the best way out of this economic slump.

 

Many are experiencing poverty and great losses for the first time and do not know how to navigate the road to transformation. Youth and young adults who have not lived during tough times are teaching each other the best way they know how to manage their plight.

 

The Solution

Homeless awareness and sensitivity training leads to homeless prevention.

 

Organizations such as the National Alliance for the Homelessness, Georgia Coalition to End Homelessness, Coalition of Temporary Shelter and the Chicago Alliance to End Homelessness to name a few must be more visible and accessible to college students. Of course National Hunger & Homeless Awareness Week is primarily promoted in colleges across the country the week before Thanksgiving but because of the severity of this growing problem more action is necessary.

 

“The Shelter” Homeless Awareness & Sensitivity Tour will be an up close and personal, interactive multimedia experience that will inspire, educate and guide students, advocates and service providers in 10 major urban cities this fall.

 

Together We Can Make a Difference

With sponsors DO Foundation, Sun Rhythms and other homeless support organizations in Detroit, Chicago, Dallas, Cincinnati, Dayton, Harlem, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Birmingham and Washington D.C, VKI is creating a pocket college resource guide that will be distributed to 10,000 college students during the tour.

 

As a once homeless entrepreneur and mentor to many in transition, I will be sharing first-hand accounts of teen and young adult homelessness. Using scenes from my monologue Thank God for the Shelter LIVE, I will show how I used the internet and my laptop to find a home and transitional support after I lost everything I owned.

 

With your support, thousands of young adults will be armed with homeless prevention and homeless support resources to assist them during one of the most trying economic times in American history.

 

Tour Schedule

August 3, 2011 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

August 19, 2011 Dayton, Ohio

August 24, 2011 Cincinnati, Ohio

September 14, 2011 Atlanta, Georgia

September 17, 2011 Birmingham, Alabama

October 10, 2011 Harlem, New York

October 26, 2011 Dallas, Texas

November 12, 2011 Chicago, Illinois

November 16, 2011 Washington, DC – Rescheduled

 

Call to Action

If your business or organization would like to show your support for homeless prevention, please act now. Purchase your ad space for our homeless prevention resource guide which will be distributed to 10,000 college students.

 

5 line listing $25

1/4 page ad  sold out

1/2 page ad  sold out

full page ad  $125

 

We are also looking for event sponsors for each city. Our event sponsor will assist us with promotional items for 100 VIP guests per city. (t-shirts, pens, gift bags) The investment is $1,000 and the sponsors would receive:

·         Mentions during the presentation

·         Local Press Release

·         A half-page ad in the resource guide (10,000 distribution)

·         50 Tickets to be distributed with their compliments

P.S. You may also support this cause by purchasing a copy of Thank God for the Shelter: Memoirs of a homeless healer. Visit www.thankgodfortheshelter.com or call 313-443-2571

Homeless students find hope in their principal – CBS News

Our children go to school to learn, but in this economy their education is becoming more experiential. The quiet little girl with the unkept hair who sits next to your daughter in class each day, may very well be homeless. That handsome young man with the dirty clothes could be sleeping in a car with his mom just down the street, the neighborhood motel or their waterless home which was recently foreclosed on.

It is imperative that every parent with the ability to read this email, know how to teach their child  homeless sensitivity. In order for our children to become more sensitive of this tragic epidemic,  the parent must first be sensitive to the 900,000 school children in the United States who don’t have homes.

As adults, desensitization can make us numb to what our innocent children are exposed to at school. The traumatic learning experiences they face daily could either scar them for life or with your guidance expand their perspective. Teach your children that good people sometimes become homeless. And use your homeless sensitivity time to show them how to volunteer and help other in need as well.  But don’t forget to teach your children homeless prevention strategies such as home economics. (taken out of schools when I was a child)

In a Las Vegas school where 85% of its student population is homeless, one principal goes above and beyond her job description to support her students. Homeless students find hope in their principal – CBS News I applaud Principal Gahn’s selfless acts but even if you don’t feel led to support efforts like donating to DO Foundation our non-profit homeless support partner or any other homeless outreach program, you must be a part of your child’s homeless education experience. Your child doesn’t wear blinders yet. They see the human suffering and hunger in their friends eyes at school.

Thank God for the Shelter Homeless Awareness & Sensitivity Tour

Coming to a City Near You

Sign up for tour updates, homeless awareness and personal development tips.

In the spirit of hope and love – Inspirational quotes

There is one thing which gives radiance to everything. It is the idea of something around the corner.

G.K. Chesterton, 1874 – 1936

Coming to a city near you.

Characteristics of good non-fiction writing – by John W. Paulus – Helium

Tomorrow I will speak on two essential characteristics of good non-fiction writing; authenticity and significance. I will support my presentation with excerpts from my memoir,  “Thank God for the Shelter.” I hope to see you at WCCCD Northwest Campus 8200 W. Outer Drive,  just west of the Southfield Freeway in Northwest, Detroit. MI.

 

 

Authenticity. Good non-fiction writing provides the reader with the ability to interact with the writer by way of the writing. Good non-fiction writing does not come across to the reader as canned or cobbled together by some formula. Good non-fiction writing has its own authentic voice which projects itself as genuine and knowledgeable.

Significance. Good non-fiction writing addresses a felt need in the reader. It makes a point. Something in the writing should be engaging, persuasive, enlightening, or surprising. Good non-fiction writing benefits the reader by providing the reader with information that is useful, and it does it in such a way that the reader can understand. Non-fiction writing has value. That is why how-to books, blogs and Internet article directories make money. Good non-fiction writing has this value because it contributes to the body of knowledge and to the ongoing discourse on the topic. More…

University of Georgia paying $7.9 million for homeless services

Associated Press

The University of Georgia is paying a coalition of nonprofits $7.9 million to build housing and centralize services for the homeless in Athens.

Curtis Compton, ccompton@ajc.com The plan calls for creating a single location where the homeless can obtain medical and other services and have a place to sleep, shower and do laundry.

The arrangement stems from the university’s acquisition of the U.S. Navy Supply Corps School campus.

The plan calls for creating a single location where the homeless can obtain medical and dental care, mental health and substance abuse counseling and job training. It also gives them a place to sleep, shower and do laundry.

More…

Thank God for the Shelter LIVE College Tour Coming to Atlanta Georgia 2011

State Leaves City’s Homeless at a Disadvantage

Michigan  and New York are experiencing the same plight as a result of new state government. We must share one another’s  expertise as we the people progress through this critical time in history.

Seth Diamond is the Commissioner of the New York City Department of Homeless Services. Here is an excerpt from his most recent blog.

“New York State should recognize its obligation to support working families who want to leave shelters and re-establish themselves in the community. Advantage was designed in 2007 to be carried by the City and State as partners together, each with a strong interest in the best possible outcome of families moving from shelter. New York City is prepared to continue our share of this successful investment in the lives of those in shelter and is deeply disappointed that the State of New York is not.”

More…

– Don’t forget to sign-up so you can get updates of our college homeless awareness and sensitivity film screening tour.

College Students Hide Hunger, Homelessness : NPR

 

 

More Students Struggling

There’s a definite increase in the number of homeless students nationwide, according to the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth. But nobody has firm numbers.

“What we’re hearing from the college presidents and leadership [is] that more and more students are struggling,” says Michelle Asha-Cooper, of the Institute for Higher Education Policy in Washington, D.C.

“Some are taking out pretty large amounts of student loans to finance their education as well as their living costs. Some are enrolling part-time, some are even dropping out.” more from NPR

Mental Health America: May is Mental Health Month 2011

In my book, Thank God for the Shelter: Memoirs of a homeless healer, I share how my mental health became a great part of my need for shelter. The depression brought on by several major life stressors ( all at one time) and PMDD led to suicidal thoughts and ultimately an urgent crisis prevention phone call.

May is Mental Health Month and I hope to speak to the 1 in 4 American adults who  are living with a diagnosable, treatable mental health condition (2005 NIMH statistic). I want them to know that they are not alone and that there is support for them. Mental Health America is an excellent advocacy organization with a mission to help all people American live mentally healthier lives.

…Live Well! It’s Essential for Your Potential, is a wellness theme that speaks to the wellness portion of the wellness circle in our case statement and encompasses the notion of balance in one’s life among the mental, physical and emotional elements of health. A person who has achieved this sense of wellness can be fully engaged in their family and community. More from Mental Health America.

 

 

Detroit Author/Advocate Versandra Kennebrew Promotes Literacy!

Professor Jeremy Williams invites Author Versandra Kennebrew to speak to his students about literacy and non-fiction writing, the subject of her workshop at the 2nd Annual Spring Book Festival at the Northwest WCCCD Campus April 9, 2011.

Detroit Author/Advocate Versandra Kennebrew Promotes Literacy!.

WCCCD Spring Book Festival 4/9/11 Northwest Campus

 

 

The WCCCD Spring Book Festival will give book lovers an opportunity to attend readings, discussions and a book signing. The Book Festival will feature a wide range of genres including fiction, non-fiction, romance, Christian writing, poetry and writing for children and young adults.

Among the featured authors are Versandra Kennebrew and Ronnie Boggess of My Vision Works Publishing. The wealth of knowledge and resources at this event for aspiring and seasoned authors will be astounding.
Educational Objectives:
• Participants will discuss with successful local writers various ways
to improve literacy
• Participants will explore the various styles of writing and writing techniques
• Participants will have an opportunity to review and/or purchase a variety
of books that will be on display

WCCCD Spring Book Festival Flyer