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Juneau’s homeless have a way to earn some cash and develop connections and work skills as part of the Glory Hole’s new community works program.
The intention of the program is to meet people where they are with work opportunities and positive habits and some amount of financial help, Kiel Renick, outreach coordinator at the Glory Hole said. “Some residents at the Glory Hole work full time already, but still can’t make housing payments, he said. Some residents have physical or mental disabilities and are not intending to get in the work force.”
A middle group, whether just moved to Juneau and trying to get settled or have some minor disability or in recovery, fit the program’s profile. A person in this situation may not be ready to work a nine to five job, Renick said. “But maybe he is available this Tuesday at one o’clock and wants to come out and do something good for the community for four hours.”
Renick said he hopes to be able to develop a rapport with residents that allows him to make job recommendations in the future.
Currently, the program only puts residents to work one day a week for about four hours.
“We don’t have a ton of funding,” Renick said. The shelter spent $4,000 in 2010 and $6,000 in 2011 on work projects. The jump in spending last year was due in part to construction of the Glory Hole’s new vegetable garden. Recently, the shelter hired several homeless locals to winterize the garden. However, the program is lean with staff costs and transportation covered in the shelters budget and landfill costs waived by Waste Management.
"What we are looking for is to cover the wages for the people who are working," Renick added.
While the Glory Hole has provided temporary employment for residents to fix toilets, paint and handle food only in the last month did it establish a program to eventually formalize and streamline the process.
The Glory Hole Community Works program employed six locals on Tuesday to spruce up the area around the Rawn Way stairs near the pocket park on Franklin Street.
Aaron Bender said he came to Juneau from San Diego four months ago and is looking for full time work. He said he hopes his Glory Hole work will introduce him to potential employers.
Chris Cooper came to Juneau three months ago from Ketchikan. He said he signed up to work for a couple reasons.
“It is better than sitting around,” Cooper said, “and you get paid. And a little bit for references because I’m looking to work.”
Dalton Nierstheimer has lived in Juneau for 13 years. He said he works “to get out of the Glory Hole and do something.”
Workers use their earned funds, for example, to go out to movies, eat out, attend concerts, buy personal electronics and go on dates, Renick said.
The program is not designed to supply residents with a living wage.
“You’re not going to pay rent around here working a few hours a week at eight dollars an hour,” Renick said. “But it is having something positive to do, something that is going to be productive to your community …. it gives them ownership in their home.”
Renick said the Glory Hole has approached local and state businesses including BP and Goldbelt to collaborate on work projects. Already locals call in for day labor work, he said.
Renick said Glory Hole is modeling its work program on REACH’s custodial and shredding program for those with disabilities and the Mature Alaskans Seeking Skills Training program for seniors.
The work projects are not expected to compete with other public services or private contractors.
“We’re not taking jobs from somebody else,” Renick said. “We are trying to creatively provide and creatively fund jobs that are not getting done around town.”
The vision is to set up a system that can draw on the experience and trustworthiness of Glory Hole residents who have completed a dozen or so work projects already and can lead a work group.
“Someone who is capable and sober and ready to show up and do the job,” Renick said. However, if it is a large job, Glory Hole staff will supervise.
“We are hoping we can build a reputation as a work entity that can do low-skill, labor-intensive projects for a reasonable wage,” Renick said.
• Contact reporter Russell Stigall at 523-2276 or at russell.stigall@juneauempire.com.
Comments (9)
Add commentSell a dozen eggs to throw?
One needs two and a half times their income to qualify for an apartment. A wage of $11.00 per hour, 40 hours per week, qualifies for less than a $700.00 per month efficiency. The minimum wage in Alaska is $7.25.
Unless someone has either government or adequately paid employment, they are in a homelessness risk group that continues to increase.
The sky is falling each time rent is raised in Alaska.
Doesn't anyone at the Empire have a red pen?
"Renick said he hopes to be able to develop a REPORT with residents that allows him to make job recommendations in the future."
That should be "rapport".
Rapport
@chilihot, thanks for bringing that to our attention. It is now corrected.
Thanks for reading!
Nice job Kiel
Thanks for your creative work Kiel!
G hole
@chicken little, the sky might be fallin, but your lingo seems to be a little stale, unfresh, won't jive with the critics, anyhow, seems to me like the program just needs simple people that are beacons of sobriety, personal experiences are awesome, if people can go and leave without complicating the life thats out there, seems to me, like it should happen, why not? haglaa Íchán, take it from a critic, some people don't know how to beg, some people don't know how to listen, some people don't know how to laugh, some people don't know how to fly :D if we ignore these simple things that we BEG them to learn, why the heck do we have to go and say " well he can't do it....try harder " seems to me like showing them how to get "EDUCATED" is a local downfall, the plan is "sha-lack-a-daisy" on education, even if that is throughly a fault, why do we have to banter-together and create a society were we left our hopes at? live together fall together thats how its done out there on the street, listen its all shame if we let EDUCATION faulter, get a clue, seems to me like theres plans already in place, just no one knows how to get em :D
alaska wages
Actually chickenlittle the alaska wage is 7.65 an hour and it is the lowest wage in the northwest. Good Job Glory Hole, this will provide those that participate a little income but a lot of expirence.
This is a great start and one
This is a great start and one of the first programs from them I would support. People need a first successful step. Even if it is 4 hours a week, they are doing something. I would hope that 4 hours a week inspires a few people to move towards something part time. I don't expect 40 to 60 hours right out of the gate, but it is progress.
Sounds Good To Me
I like the "teach a man to fish..." approach. This reminds of a small scale version of what Love Inc. is doing around here. If anyone from the Glory Hole is reading this you should get in touch with Love Inc. Perhaps you could share information or form a team effort; or maybe you are already working together. Either way, I applaud both groups efforts to help people help themselves.
Another good thing happening in town is the STEM Lab (associated with JEDC) that is teaching kids, and now adults as well, different skill sets. When I visited there was two ladies working on art projects with glass, a gentleman teaching himself how to build a laser-tag set, a two man group tackling an remote controlled unmanned submarine for commercial use, and a few others that I did not catch what their projects were. I have not visited during the youth days, but I hear that it is like Christmas morning in there.
They supply the pieces and the kids supply the imagination and creativity to make "anything". The thing they are lacking is funding. They say they could use $5000-$8000 a year; however, I would like to see them get at least $10,000 a year. That would provide enough to fund a couple of items that will save money in the future, and teach the kids about things that will likely be common place when they become adults. If anyone has ideas or knows a way to fund this program please contact them. Call JEDC and they are likely to be able to answer any questions. I am not sure of the hours, but take your kids down there on Saturdays to learn a new skill; and see for yourself that this program is a good learning experience for anyone.
I have nothing to do with the program and I am only trying to help on my own accord.
Thank you.
Thank you @weather2be!
Thank you @weather2be! I bing - the bing gonged me. However, the minimum wage appears to be $7.75 effective 01/01/2010.
I refuse to write intelligently about wages online. Online comments within the media are short informal essays that should be read easier than Federalist Papers where our founding fathers were really frustrated with the government that they just left, then they vented.
The meetings about wages really don't happen here, they happen at the legislature. If not at the legislature, then the action is by an initiative.
Sometimes commissioners make their case to the legislature and sometimes not. It is their responsibility to analyze and recommend then write or revise legislation.
I wish all of the Department of Labor employees well with their sinuses, and their Workers Comp. Technician recruitment. At least their .gov webpages are moving up the bing page where they should be.