Back in the Saddle Again

Beginning last May our South Jersey team underwent a bunch of unintended changes. People left, people assumed new roles, responsibilities shifted, and we all tried to go with the flow. One of the areas in limbo was our Camden Drop In Center and who would be "in charge". 

It's a smaller operation; a storefront with a few offices, bathroom, kitchenette, back "lounge", and basement, operating Monday through Friday, 9-5pm with some flexibility here and there. 2 full time staff, sometimes an intern or two, a per diem, maybe a volunteer if we're lucky. Day services=immediate needs (food, hygiene, clothes, diapers, etc.) and case planning. In the event that we meet a youth that is homeless (which happens a few times a week), we have local partners to whom we can send a youth but if beds are full, we send them to our Atlantic City site or our sister location in Philadelphia. If they walk in at 4:45pm on a Friday, we stay until they are where they need to be. 

I was approached in the fall by my supervisor about assuming the charge of operations in Camden. As it was presented to me, I'd be the logical choice since I had program experience and was aiming to raise funds for the site, which would blend nicely as I met with donors=I could share the needs I was seeing first hand, tell more stories, and better help the intended expansion of the program which is part of our Campaign 2020. Not a major assumption of programmatic duties...just making sure things ran well and was a touch point for staff. Hmmm.

A BAJILLION questions flooded my mind. Granted, I had run the AC crisis shelter 10+ years ago, been a front line program staff for more years than not, and had run our YouthBuild program which ended in 2012, so yes--I had experience. Overseeing a  Monday-Friday, 9-5pm seemed manageable to me versus the "Is the phone going to ring???" stress of overseeing a 24/7, as I did before. But a lot had changed in the years since I ran a program: new policies, new hiring procedures, new databases, new budget formats, etc. I didn't say yes right away but wrote up a list of questions, many that seemed complete minutia but, in my world, matter. Things like, "Who orders things like paper towels and toilet paper?" "What are the closing procedures for bad weather and what does staff do on those days?" "Who supervises the interns and volunteers?" "What do we do if a pipe bursts?" "Who assumes the budget?" "How is petty cash handled?" "What are the current procedures for minors?"

I prayerfully considered taking this on...In reality, nothing was being taken off my plate so I would still be primarily responsible for doing all things development (sleep outs, donor relations, marketing, presentations, mailings, etc.) while overseeing the day to day operations in Camden. I was told my aim was to be a presence at least 2 days a week=keep Atlantic City as "home base" and manage meetings around being present at the site to deal with whatever and help our expansion=hire another full time employee, add services, and increase our space=adding shower, laundry, and meeting room to the vast expanse of empty space beyond the back door which opened into a warehouse-like area. 

In the end, never one to back down from a challenge, I accepted in February. Perhaps in my wisdom, I decided to give myself a broad learning curve, not that I don't know how to handle a youth in crisis or balance a budget or deal with a shortage of supplies, but a lot had changed and I needed to learn a lot of new things. After our 20th anniversary vacation to Mexico, I drove in, head first.

It's been an interesting journey, these past 3 months. I have an additional supervisor who I have never worked under, so I am trying to learn him--it's been great and supportive so far, as I suspected, after knowing this person for 10+ years. I have tried (in vain) to learn 2 new databases--one for Covenant House and one for the county. My mind isn't wired to understand these things so trying to run a report on anything is like trying to read the Wall Street Journal if you know nothing about stocks--it's Chinese to me. I've aimed to learn my staff and the operations, not just come in with new eyes and try to change everything to the way I think it should be (although one of the first things we did was a big clean and purge--I can't stand clutter!) We hired 1 new worker and then lost another so we're still down 1 person. I've had to call on a "go-to" staff for help with a few situations that were no familiar to me, always with, "This has been a while for me", at the beginning, while searching for a third or fourth alternative and aiming to always do the most loving thing for the youth and staff. I have not pretended to have all the answers...If my staff asks me something and I don't have a clue because I know a policy has changed or maybe our programing in that area has shifted (or even laws), I'll admit that and give a standard, "I don't know so let's learn together"...Several times I've been asked how to handle a sticky situation and it's been a blessing to be able to pull from my 20 years worth of experience, NOT to say, 'This is the right way to do it", but rather," I've been there...this is tough...this is what I did then...let's talk through some other choices". 

I was in Camden this past Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday helping to cover the site since we had a staff on vacation. I answered the phone, put together hygiene bags, helped a kid with his resume, cleaned, and put together small Ziplock bags of waffles and sausage patties. I ventured down into our basement and yelled at the inhabitants (roaches!?) to scurry while I located umbrellas to give to kids since it was pouring out. I reviewed healthier food options to give our kids with the staff rather than Hot Pockets. I helped dissect a tough decision while sharing wisdom of having to do this many times and the reality that it never gets easy when you are dealing with street kids/street code/heads/and hearts. 

So I'm "back in the saddle again" as a program person...I'm planning our Executive Sleep Out in November, our Camden Community Sleep Out in March, in charge of all Night of Broadway Stars ticketing, calling donors to meet, while figuring out how much money we need next year for bus tickets, office supplies, and overtime, handling sudden phone calls, trying to not stress over new databases I can't figure out, and lovingly welcoming that kid through the front door who has been sleeping in their car for the last week. I heard a clear, "Go ahead", from God on this, so I completely trust HIS grace and strength to be the best Ms. Jen (again!) I can be!