Revised August Agenda

To access the revised August agenda, click here:
Revised August Agenda

Day By Day Warming Shelter Director Position

Employment Opportunity with the new Warming Shelter opening in Oshkosh this Fall.  Below is the announcement.  Those interested in learning more about warming shelters can check out the website for the Fox Cities Warming Shelter (note to avoid any confusion, this is not an opening with the Fox Cities agency):

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Executive Director


Day by Day Warming Shelter

Location: Oshkosh WI

Employee Type: Salaried (full time/part time)

Industry: Not for profit – Charitable

Manages Others: Yes

Job Type: Executive/Management

Education: Bachelor’s Degree preferred

Experience: 5 years in Human Services field preferred.



Description:

The Day by Day Warming Shelter in Oshkosh, WI is seeking an Executive

Director for newly established warming shelter serving the needs of the

homeless. Bachelor’s degree preferred with experience in the human services

field. Proven leadership and excellent communication skills required.


Responsibilities:

Responsibilities of the position include:

 Overall management of the shelter.

 Staff and volunteer recruitment and training.

 Develop and maintain policy and procedures.

 Use innovation and creative ideas to develop and enhance programming.

 Maintain effective communication with Board of Directors.

 Work with Board of Directors to coordinate fund raising, public relations

and grant writing.

 Fiscal responsibly for operations.

 Liaison to community including membership on the Winnebago County

Housing Coalition.

 Maintains a climate that attracts, retains, and motivates a diverse staff of

top quality people.


Requirements:

 Ability to work independently.

 Demonstrates a high level of personal and ethical standards.

 Ability to work flexible hours including weekends and nights.

 Strong organization skills.

 Valid Wisconsin driver’s license.

 Pass a preliminary drug screen and criminal background check.

 Computer skills including Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel.


Interested candidates please email résumé and salary expectations to  shelteroshkosh@gmail.com

August 2011 Coalition Meeting Agenda

Access the August 3, 2011 meeting agenda here.

Point In Time Survey Letter

Balance of State Continuum of Care – Point in Time Survey

Data from July 27, 2011

By August 8, 2011 return this form with data collected on July 27, 2011 to:

Brent Wojnowski, ADVOCAP, Inc., Fond du Lac, WI 54936

(920) 922-7214 (fax) or email brentw@advocap.org

Your Organization’s Name: ______________________________________________

Address: ______________________________________________________________________________

Service Area/County(ies):___________________________________

Contact Person: ________________________________________________________________________

Phone Number: ___________________________ E-mail: _____________________________________

No homeless persons were identified. ____________________________

Table 1: Emergency Shelter & Motel Vouchers

Category	Persons Served – Number of persons in your emergency shelter or with motel vouchers on July 27	Turn Away – Number of persons you had to turn away from shelter or motel vouchers on July 27.
Households with children
Persons in households w/children (count all persons in the household )
Households without children
Number of persons in households without children

Table 2: Transitional Housing

Category	Persons Served – Number of persons in your transitional housing on July 27	Turn Away - Number of persons you had to turn away on July 27
Households with children
Persons in households w/children (count all persons in the household)
Households without children
Number of persons in households without children

Table 3: Unsheltered Homeless Persons (streets, parks, cars, campers, etc.)

Category	Persons – Number of unsheltered homeless persons you counted on July 27
Households with children
Persons in households w/children (count all persons in the household)
Households without children

Table 4: Of all the people included in the Tables 1 & 2, how many are in the following categories?

Category	Subpopulations Served – How many of the persons you served on July 27 in shelter, with motel vouchers or in transitional housing were in any of the following categories?
Seriously Mentally Ill
Chronic Substance Abuse
Veterans
Persons with HIV/AIDS
Victims of Domestic Violence
Unaccompanied Youth (I.e. runaways)

Table 5: Of all the people included in Tables 1 & 3, how many are in the following categories?

Category	Subpopulations Served – How many of the persons you served on July 27 in shelter or with motel vouchers were in any of the following categories? Do not include persons in transitional housing.	Subpopulations Served – How many of the persons NOT sheltered but counted or served on July 27 were chronically homeless?
Chronic Homelessness

A chronic homeless person can now include a family as well as a single person where one member has a disability, including substance abuse, that precludes their being able to obtain/maintain permanent housing and/or has been homeless for more than one year or has four episodes of homelessness in three years.

Point In Time Survey Letter

Dear Organization Representative:

The State of Wisconsin collects information regarding homeless individuals on an annual basis. The state is asking us to perform another "point in time" survey on Wednesday, July 27 to determine the extent of homelessness in our area as part of a statewide “census” on homelessness.

Your organization has been identified as one which may come into contact with homeless individuals and homeless families on that day. Please route this letter to whoever would most likely collect information on homeless individuals or families identified.

How funding is allocated for homeless activities to the state and within the state is in part determined by the outcomes of these surveys. Please take a few minutes of your valuable time to fill out the enclosed form.

ADVOCAP is part of an area-wide continuum of care which provides services to the homeless. ADVOCAP has agreed to take a lead role in conducting this homeless survey in Fond du Lac, Green Lake and Southern Winnebago counties. We realize that not every agency that receives this form will come into contact with a homeless individual or family on July 27th. Even if you do not come into contact with a homeless person, please complete and return the form.

If you do identify a homeless person or family on that day, please also indicate the area where the person was identified, (i.e. park, car, etc) so that we can identify those areas where the homeless may reside. If the homeless person was referred to a shelter, please make note of that as well.

I will be happy to answer any questions you may have regarding this form or the survey in general. Also, please feel free to add any comments you may have regarding homeless persons served or needs that exist.

Please return this form by Monday, August 8 either by e-mail, fax or mail (see contact information below)

Your participation in this survey is greatly appreciated!

Sincerely,

Brent Wojnowski

ADVOCAP, Inc

19 W. 1st St

Fond du Lac, WI 54936

(920) 922-7760 ext. 3584

(920) 922-7214 (fax)

brentw@advocap.org

Cost of Bad Lending in Wisconsin

Access this fact sheet from the Center for Responsible Lending for "a snapshot of foreclosures in Wisconsin and the high price of abusive overdraft fees, 400% payday loans, and kickbacks on car loans."

Foreclosure Prevention Efforts in Winnebago County and region

Winnebago County has a number of scattered foreclosure prevention programs, highlighted by FISC's efforts, the recent Emergency Homeowners' Loan Program administed by Homestead Solutions (pre-apps due July 22), and the recent forclosure prevention program organized in the Valley this past June.

I noticed that Dane County has a group dedicated to the issue and a companion website (http://daneforeclosurehelp.org/). Based upon a brief review, it appears as though they are doing much of the same work that is happening in our area, but possibly with more publicity and consistency, which may produce results including greater outreach and connection to households at risk for this issue.

PIT count in Appleton Area

Message received from Chris Lashock with the Emergency Shelter of the Fox Valley:

I am still in need of agency staff members willing to lead a group for the (Appleton Area) Point in Time Count on July 27th. The main shifts I need coverage on are the midnight-3am and 3am-6am shifts. This is a great opportunity to raise awareness of homelessness and housing issues in the community with the volunteers you will be leading into the community!

Please contact me as soon as possible if you are willing and able to help on the 27th.

I thank you all in advance for your time!

Chris Lashock

Emergency Shelter of the Fox Valley

920-734-9192

Tenant Resource Center Cut Backs

The Tenant Resource Center is cutting staff back and potentially ending services outside of Dane County as a result of the loss of federa land state funding sources.  According to director Brenda Konkel, " People outside Dane County can still call the center's toll-free number at 1-877-238-RENT, but return calls will be delayed by a week or more".

You can also visit their website at www.tenantresourcecenter.org/

Water calculator shows Wisconsin residents how much money is going down the drain

Many people are literally throwing money down the drain by using older less-efficient showerheads or toilet fixtures. But a new water cost and savings calculator developed by UW-Extension’s Center for Watershed Science and Education and UW-Stevens Point lets Wisconsin residents that rely on community water systems see how much money they are wasting--and how much they could save through increased water use efficiency.

"What most people served by municipal water systems don’t realize, is that in addition to a standard service connection fee, there is often a water and a sewer fee associated with every drop of water used," says Kevin Masarik, UW-Extension groundwater educator with the Central Wisconsin Groundwater Center.

Water and sewer fees are variable from community to community, making it difficult to develop tools for homeowners to see how much they could save by installing more efficient water fixtures. "Add in energy costs needed to heat water for taking a shower and people may be surprised at how much some of these everyday activities actually cost over the course of a year," says Masarik.

For an activity like showering, which accrues water and sewer fees, as well as energy costs associated with heating water, it can be difficult to quantify a cost, but most people assume the amount is small. The costs may seem even less significant because the bills are divided into monthly or quarterly statements; however when you add them all up over the course of the year, they can be significant.

The new water calculator allows homeowners to easily see how much money could be saved annually through increased efficiency. For example, a family of four in the City of Fond du Lac with an older showerhead and an electric hot water heater could save over $300 per year by simply installing a 1.25-gallon-per-minute showerhead.

"For many families these days, that extra money can go a long way towards paying the bills or putting food on the table," says Masarik. Who stands to gain most from installing more efficient water fixtures? "The more people living under the same roof, the more a household stands to gain," Masarik explains.

Households with electric hot water heaters will see more savings than those with a gas hot water heater since it generally is more expensive to heat water with electricity. Replacing an inefficient showerhead offers quicker monetary savings than replacing an old toilet. Certain communities will see greater savings than others since water and sewer rates are not uniform across the state. The more inefficient your current water fixtures, the more you stand to save.
Masarik notes that for some people, especially those in newer homes that have installed high-efficiency fixtures, the savings may be smaller. But many Wisconsin families stand to save a great deal by taking some simple steps to improve efficiency.

"Technology has greatly improved the quality of low-flow showerheads and high-efficiency toilets over the last couple of years," he says. "These technologies reduce the amount of water used without sacrificing functionality. Not only will you be saving money, but you will also be helping to save water and lessen the impacts of water use on the environment."

Visit the Center for Watershed Science and Education’s website to download the Residential Water Saving Calculator and see how much you could save through improved water use efficiency at http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/watersheds/

WPR Piece on WI Homeless

Wisconsin Public Radio has a segment on Homeless in Wisconsin from 6/30/11 - listen here.