In an effort to promote awareness of poverty among students and other members of the community, the Suitcase Clinic, Cal Habitat, and Cal Corps Public Service Center are hosting a poverty alleviation conference on April 11th from 4 to 8 PM in UC Berkeley’s Pauley Ballroom. The goal of this event is to not only provide more insight into the issues that cause and perpetuate poverty, but also to empower individuals with opportunities to make poverty more manageable in society.

In addition, a panel comprising of members of the homeless community and experts on topics concerning poverty will discuss the issues of representation, education, healthcare, and housing and their effects on the homeless population.  An art gallery will be a large part of our program as well, and various student groups, organizations, and homeless people will provide art that pertains to homelessness.  Last but not least, we welcome and encourage the students, faculty and staff of UC Berkeley and other campuses, members of the homeless community, and members of the entire Berkeley community to attend the event.  It will introduce channels for the community to get involved in ameliorating the problems faced by homeless and low income individuals and families.

UPDATE: The Berkeley Section 8 waiting list is no longer open.

Hey all!

I just wanted to pass along the awesome news that Berkeley’s SECTION 8 VOUCHER PROGRAM WAITING LIST is finally open. This is a REALLY BIG DEAL because it only opens every 4-6 years (last time was in 2006). It’s only open from 6am MARCH 1st til 6pm MARCH 5th.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE tell your clients about this opening because we really need to get the word out quickly. If you don’t know anything about Section 8 here is a really short blip:

Section 8 is a government subsidized housing program. When the waitlist opens, people who apply are put into a lottery system. For the next 4-6 years they go through this waitlist offering vouchers to those that they can find. (A lot of people never get off the waitlist and even if their name is finally reached–it is often impossible to find them) Once they have this voucher they can use it at any housing place that accepts Section 8. Click here for more information.

Clients must apply online. The website is not currently up, but will eventually be findable through this site. You can also find this through the Berkeley Housing Authority website.

I’ve also heard that if people (especially with disabilities) need assistance with filling out the application they can go to the Center for Independent Living at 2539 Telegraph (near Dwight). Their phone number is 510-841-4776.

Please please please pass this information along to all volunteers and clients (possible announcement before clinic starts). Because the waitlist will be open next week during clinic hours, it might be a good idea to have extra volunteers/computers available in case people want help applying.

Thanks everyone,

Alex (C.A.R.E. Coordinator)

Thank you again to everyone who applied. We had such an amazing pool of applicants, but due to classroom size limitations, we could not accept everyone. We have received some emails from several of you who are still interested in joining Suitcase. We usually have two summer sessions that are two-days long during the first two weeks in June/July. Please check our website as summer approaches for more information about these two sessions.

If you are interested in taking the class during Fall 2010, please check our website in August for the application. We are truly grateful for your interest and hope to see you in the upcoming months.

Thanks,

Class Coords

For those of you who didn’t make the info sessions and you emailed us for an interview time you will be contacted later tonight. The interviews will probably be in the afternoon. They will be brief around 5-10 min.

Tomorrow we will hold the last few interviews only for those who have emailed us tonight by 10pm.

Thanks.

For those of you who are interested please apply in the summer or next semester!

Dear Applicants, This semester we will be changing up the application process a bit.

The Classroom and first day of class is February 4th from 5pm-7pm , the room in 182 Dwinelle.

In order to participate with Suitcase Clinic this semester you have to complete the following:

1) Attend one of two informational meeting on Thursday January 21st or Thursday January 28th from 5-7pm in 182 dwinelle.

If you really cannot attend the 2nd info session you can come back to the website the following night for details but you would still need to signup for a weekend interview by emailing suitcaseclass@gmail.com. There will be time slots posted January 29th. But please try to make it to one of the two info sessions.

2) Download an application following the informational meeting and fill it out. (You cannot complete it until you finish the next 2 steps) 2010 Spring Class Application

3) Interviews will occur immediately after each info session. They will be short around 5-10 min just so we can get to know you. If you really can’t make the Sign up for an interview time by sending an email to suitcaseclass@gmail.com. January 29th. A schedule will be posted. BUT DON’T DO THIS UNTIL AFTER THE 2nd INFO SESSION. You will receive an email for your time slot. But try to stay for the interview during info session, trust me it won’t take long.

4) Attend one of 3 tours of our General, Youth, or Women’s clinic. You are welcome to attend all 3 tours.

Meeting locations:

1) The Youth and Womens tour will be on Monday (Jan 25 & Feb 1) 7:00pm, 7:30, 8pm. Meet in front of the RSF and sign in.

2) General Clinic will be on Tuesday (Jan 26 & Feb 2) 7:00 pm, 7:30pm, 8pm, 8:30pm. Meet in front of Sproul Fountain.

5) Turn in the application by Wednesday at 570 University Hall by 3 pm on February 3rd. 1st day to turn in application is January 27th.

6) If you are accepted you will either receive an email or call Wednesday night February 3rd or Morning of February 4th. Good luck!

Sincerely, Edward – Class Coordinator

THE APPLICATION PROCESS IS OVER! If you’re interested in our organization. Please visit the website again in January. Thank you.

Application: You must complete an application in order to volunteer. Download: SuitcaseApplicationFall2009

• Turn in applications at 570 University Hall by 4pm on Wednesday Sept 9, 2009
• You must complete at least 1 tour of one of our clinics before you turn in your application. Thus, this means the earliest you should be turning in your application is Tuesday morning.

Tours: You must attend at least 1 tour as part of your application

• In order to attend you must email us at suitcase.class@gmail.com with your name, which clinic, what time, and tour(s) you can attend. Don’t email me and say I can make any time. Give me a specific time. Thanks. You’ll automatically be signed up for the tour. We just need to know the times you can make it. There won’t be a confirmation email. For Youth and Women’s if you haven’t emailed me, just show up. For general clinic tmrw keep emailing me until 5pm tmrw.

• Tour times

1. Youth Clinic: (Monday 7pm, 7:30pm, 8pm)-> Meet in front of the Recreational Sports Facility
2. Women’s Clinic: (Monday 7:30pm, 8pm, 8:30pm) -> Meet in front of the Recreational Sports Facility
3. General Clinic (Tuesday 7pm, 7:30pm, 8pm) -> Meet at Sproul Fountain

Brief Recap of the Info Session

What is Suitcase?

Suitcase Clinic is service-learning organization dedicated to training competent caseworkers who can staff the Suitcase Clinic’s three drop-in centers (Youth Clinic Monday nights, Women’s Clinic Monday nights, General Clinic Tuesday nights), empowering students who are passionate about ending homelessness, and exposing future leaders in medicine, law, social welfare, academia, or politics (that’s you!) to a philosophy of humanization, cooperative learning, and social justice. This however, is NOT A CLINICAL EXPERIENCE. The work that you’ll be doing is mainly advocacy work.

How, When and Where

In order to become a volunteer you must take the course HMS98/198 Sec 1. You don’t have to be a student in order to join. However, if you are a student you must get units for the course. CCN and CEC will be distributed in class if you are accepted.

HMS 98/198 meets EVERY Thursday in 100 Wheeler from 5:00-7:00 P.M, starting Sept 10th, 2009. Do not apply if you cannot attend each and every class for the first six weeks–no exceptions!

You must fill out an application above. Follow those instructions.

Small Groups

Housing and Employment

Housing and employment are two integral aspects of the lives’ of our clients. Our small group’s goal is not to offer housing and employment solutions for every client because each clients’ needs are particular and unique and the solution to their case might vary from one person to another. Existent for two semesters now, the housing and employment group’s goal is to create a system whereby we can direct our clients’ to the proper existing resources. This semester we hope to create a database of all the existing housing and employment resources in the Bay Area. We also hope to obtain the housing and employment records and needs of our clients. We also want to start offering our clients’ resume writing services and interview training. We are planning to have a housing and an employment workshop to give our clients an insight on available resources, empowering them to make change.

UNITY

The Unity small group strives to connect Suitcase Clinic as a whole. Unity recognizes that maintaining communication both within and among all three clinics can be difficult at times, and therefore works to facilitate the improvement of Suitcase relationships both inside and outside of clinic. Through organizing different social and service events, Unity hopes to build a strong foundation for Suitcasers that will lend them support through the intense, and sometimes very heavy, clinic nights. Just as importantly, Unity strives to make sure that others are enjoying their time in Suitcase!

Supply

The Supply group’s main objective is to collect the supplies necessary for Clinic to run smoothly and effectively. These supplies provide our clients with tools they need to meet their basic physical needs while living on the street. For example, some of the items we give out include: hygiene supplies and toiletries, clothing, blankets, and vitamins. The group runs drives throughout the year in order to collect the items. For example, this semester, we are planning to host a Halloween-themed poker tournament for socks, collect donations from resident halls such as dorms and greek houses, and even get involved with the community beyond the campus.

Dinners

The goal of the Dinners small group is a simple and straightforward one: providing hot meals on a consistent basis. In the past, the dinners small group has been responsible for putting on several large scale dinners at General clinic over the course of the semester. This semester, we will not only keep this tradition going, but we are also looking to improve and expand dinners as a service by including more dinners based projects. Members of the dinners small group will work collectively to make providing dinners a fun and exciting experience not only for our clients but also for members of the clinic. We want to stress that providing dinners is not just a service, but an important way to promote client retention. Therefore, we aim to ultimately make our meals the best meals ever.

SHARE

The SHARE Small Group stems from the General Clinic service called SHARE (Searching How to Achieve Respect and Empowerment), a forum for clients and students to come together to discuss topics relevant to homelessness in a safe space. An important aspect of the forum is to gather different perspectives from students and clients to empower the clients to better their situation and to work together to actively create change in Berkeley’s homeless community. For example, currently the Suitcase Clinic is working with Berkeley Food & Housing Project to plan the construction of a new Men’s Shelter and Multi-Service Clinic in Berkeley. Also, SHARE actively participates in the City of Berkeley’s Homeless Commission meetings. Many of our projects are designed to empower the clients since SHARE’s ultimate goal is to end homelessness and make Suitcase Clinic obsolete.

Wellness

The Wellness Small Group was created to promote mental health – a state of balanced well-being where individuals develop the ability to cope with the normal stresses of life, recognize their unique abilities, and work productively and fruitfully to make a positive contribution to their community.Originally created as a project to address mental health needs through psychology and counseling services, the Wellness Small Group’s directive has evolved to a more holistic view of health. Its renewed focus seeks to develop sustainable steps to create an environment of positive mental health in a safe and comfortable setting.In a recent internal survey, the clients at Suitcase Clinic identifiedabusive and broken relationships as one of the primary causes of theirfinancial instability. This semester, Wellness hopes to address this growing need by providing a variety of workshops and activities that focus on building healthy relationships to learning stress management techniques.The Group holds its programs at the Women’s and Youth clinics. Small Group members are responsible for facilitating programs, coordinating with on/off campus groups to put on a workshop, and/or spear-heading activities that meet the mental health needs of our clients.

Dear Volunteers,

There will be an informational meeting about Suitcase Clinic as well as how you can volunteer on THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 3rd.

The meeting will be on Thursday from 5-7PM in 100 Wheeler Hall. This is near the center of the UC Berkeley Campus.

Here is a link for the campus map: http://berkeley.edu/map/maps/large_map.html

Applications will be posted AFTER the informational meeting. CEC will be given out AFTER people are accepted.

Anyone can apply. Applications are due Wed Sept 9 at 570 University Hall by 4pm the following week. This is not a de-cal.

All questions will be taken at the informational meeting.

If you are a student and cannot make the informational meeting because of a class conflict, then hold off and join in the Spring. The class is always at the same time, Thursdays from 5-7pm, the room location may be different though.

If you are an alumni or not affiliated with UC Berkeley and cannot make the meeting send us an email at suitcase.class@gmail.com telling us why you can’t make it and we’ll work something out.

The Youth Clinic is planning to host a  bike workshop this summer, which will entail fixing up used bikes to give away. In order for this to be successful, we are hoping to obtain at least 10 donated bikes,  along with various bicycle parts.

If you happen to have, or know someone who has a bike or bike parts that they would be willing to donate for this workshop, please contact Adrienne Schlatter at aschlatter_at_berkeley.edu.

This is a really great opportunity to get involved in something both fun and beneficial, as clients will be able to keep the bikes once they have been restored.

A follow-up announcement will be posted presently with more specific information regarding the workshop.

Thanks so much!

Our second session of summer training will be taking place on July 11th and 18th from 10:00 AM – 4:00PM. You must attend both days.

Due to the large number of people who have already RSVPed, we will be closing off registration this FRIDAY, JUNE 19. If you are interested and have not yet registered, please do so ASAP by sending an email to suitcaseclass@gmail.com with your first name and last name under the subject “RSVP SUMMER TRAINING”.

We will be charging a class fee of at least $30. We will send out an email with the finalized amount as the date nears. 100% of this amount will be used to fund the clinic as well as print caseworking handbooks. You can bring cash or make checks payable to “Suitcase Clinic”. Please have your money on the first day.

Dear Applicants,

We are sorry to say that we have to close the June training to any new volunteers. There are simply too many people signed up.

We will take the first 50 or 60 people who RSVP’ed first. The people afterwards will be on the list for the July training. If you already RSVP’ed for July training you will be on that list. The reason is because we don’t have enough people helping out with the training as of now. But if more people come help out we will accept more. Everyone please be on the lookout in your Inbox from us. You can still RSVP, but we may push you to July.

There are some people who already RSVP’ed and would like to switch to July. If that’s the case the next person will be bumped up. We will take care all of the logistics and let all of you know.

If you didn’t RSVP you will not be able to do the training this June. Look for updates on June 23rd about July training.

Lastly, June trainees you must bring your $30 fee on the first day June 13th. Please bring exact cash or write a check to Suitcase Clinic. YOU WILL GET AN EMAIL to inform you if you are or are not in the June training.

ALSO THERE IS THE TRAINING IS IN A NEW ROOM! IT IS NOW 213 WHEELER HALL SAT 10am – 4pm !!!! Not 160 Dwinelle.