The First Day!!

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.

 * from my favorite Dr. Seuss book, Oh the Places You'll Go *
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So today, armed with the perfect playlist (manly made up of jams from the Hot Jam Listserv), I drove over to Homewood to where our main office is located to meet Elizabeth, one of my new bosses.  Most of the day was typical first day stuff, filled with job orientations and meeting some of the other staff members.

Sadly I have been GROUNDED because my FBI background check still has not come back yet.  If any of you out there know of anyone that works over that way let me know.  I sadly will not be able to work in the clinic until my background check comes through. 

To read the job description (and get an idea of what my schedule will look like) click here.  It looks like I will be spending most of my time in the clinics filling out intake forms, handing out vouchers, signing up people for appointments and doing some health education work.  The last part was something that they touched on briefly last year, but really want to expand this year.  Maria (the other AmeriCorps volunteer who I am working with) is also doing some health education stuff so we are hoping to be able to double team each other throughout the year.  It also looks like we will be planning a 5k run for June.

One thing I was really impressed about was how they are looking to create more of a team approach to  medical care.  They are hoping to do this through a series of team meetings between the medical staff (apparently they come from a variety of locations) and the Health Care for the Homeless staff.  We have out first POW WOW meeting (no joke - this is what they are called) tomorrow.  We also have a really cool three day training next week which will help us to communicate with clients better and find out what their needs are - what a novel thought, right?

Two major points came out of our orientation:

1. Do not go in with any preconceived notions about the homeless populations.  Instead keep an open mind because this will help you to get a lot more out of your experience. 
2. If you look out for your community, they will look out for you.  This was something we would tell out DC Reads tutors all of the time.  Say hi to the people on the street, stop into some of the local stores and restaurants.  If people see you in the neighborhood they are more likely to look out for you in the future and come to your rescue if you may ever need it.  Good rule to live by for those of you looking to venture outside of your comfort zone for work/volunteer opportunities. 

Not to alarm anyone, but apparently I am apparently living/working in three of the more dangerous areas it is all about being aware of your surroundings; I got this information from one of the social workers that is in our office.  Living in the Shaw neighborhood and working in Anacostia has definitely prepped me for what I am getting myself into over the next few months.