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Archive | October, 2013

Operation PENCIL

By on October 14, 2013 in OTHER resources, Public Services, Veterans

Hello everyone,

My cousin in in the Army and is currently stationed in Afghanistan. He is participating in a program called Operation PENCIL. The mission is to get school supplies to Afghanistan schools. If you’re interested in donating supplies, here is the FB page: https://www.facebook.com/OperationPencil. The address is there, but it’s also here:

Casey Napier
724th MP BN
TASK FORCE CENTURION
APO AE  09354

If you or members of your Village are interested, I encourage you to donate!

 

Thanks 🙂

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Language Access to Medicare & Social Security

By on October 9, 2013 in Medicare, Reference Information

I attended a webinar this week on language barriers to Social Security and Medicare, which was very informative. If you have clients who are low-English proficiency, you may want to check out the following link to the Powerpoint presentation.

http://www.nsclc.org/index.php/webinar-language-access-issues-in-social-security-and-medicare/

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Naturalization Information Session at USCIS

By on October 7, 2013 in Immigration service, Legal Services

The attached invitation is for the upcoming Naturalization Information Session at United States Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) in Detroit.  It is scheduled for Friday, October 25, 2013 (from 1:00 to 3:00 pm).  This free session is open to all, and is a great tool for community and faith based organizations, accredited representatives, the general public, and especially permanent residents awaiting their Naturalization interview or who are interested in applying for Naturalization.  This program will assist attendees in understanding and demystifying the Naturalization/Citizenship process. If you would like to attend this session, please RSVP (including the number of your group), no later than October 24, 2013, to

CommunityRelations@uscis.dhs.gov or

 (313) 926-4211

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Have you met Stacey Molinaro yet?

By on October 4, 2013 in Resources

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To understand Stacey Molinaro, Service Coordinator at the Village of Oakland Woods in Pontiac Michigan, one needs to know about some important family influences. Her passion for the elderly came from her grandmother, affectionately referred to as “Saint” Marie. She was always a kind person regardless of what someone did or said. Even while undergoing chemo therapy, her grandmother’s kindness and courage was always on display. Then, when asked about other members of her family, Stacey had kind words to say about many, but referenced her father specifically, calling him her best friend and the reason why she completed her schooling.

Stacey received her Bachelors of Social Work (BSW) in 2009 from Eastern Michigan University and a Masters of Social Work (MSW) in 2012 from The University of New England in Portland, Maine through their online program. Here at the Village of Oakland Woods, the layout is much different than other villages. With an 88-acre campus that includes coyotes, deer, possums and other wildlife. The recent addition of walking paths by the Department of Natural Resources gives new opportunities for residents to take advantage of their surroundings, which is especially unique given their close proximity to the suburban city of Auburn Hills. Stacey’s philosophy as a Service Coordinator is strengthened by her village’s surroundings, as she hopes to empower her residents to access services for themselves and bring the spread out village together in other ways.

When she is not working, she enjoys relaxing with family and friends. While watching her favorite Netflix program or one of her 275 DVDs is always enjoyable, she also goes bowling, to the movies and out to dinner near her home in Roseville. Some day, she hopes to re-visit the DIA and spend more time on the Detroit River walk.

Whenever she can, she likes to go see live music. Stacey can’t count how many shows she has been to over the years. She has seen bands from many different genres, including Indie, Ska, and Rock and Roll. A couple favorite artists are Death Cab for Cutie and John Mayer.

Perhaps her love of live performances has influenced her own decisions to stand up in front of an audience. Stacey has recently decided to try her had at being a stand-up comedian, and is just now getting jokes together. She said the most rewarding and difficult part is to get the guts to first go up on stage.

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10/3 Conference Call Notes

By on October 3, 2013 in Conference call notes

See attached

SC Conference Call 10.3.13

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The Witness Project of Detroit

By on October 3, 2013 in Educational Workshops, Health Screenings/Topics

Please join us at LaBelle for our workshop on the topic of women and breast cancer.

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Standing Up To Domestic Violence

By on October 3, 2013 in Educational Workshops, OTHER Educational Workshop Topics

A full day of enjoyable but meaningful activities to advocate, empower and take action against domestic violence. Many of your members may be interested in this and it is free. See attached flyer

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Health Insurance Marketplace

By on October 1, 2013 in Health and Medical, Health Insurance Services, Resources

Below are some resources from ACCESS regarding Health Insurance Marketplace.

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B4 – (Best Black Bean Burgers)

By on October 1, 2013 in SCs "Off the Clock"

Boyfriend-Approved-Spicy-Black-Bean-Burgers-410x272[1]Greetings and Salutations! Several SCs asked for this recipe at Rachel’s going-away party. Well, I finally got around to it. This recipe is vegan, but not gluten free. So, without further ado…

Ingredients –

  • 1 whole Jalapeno
  • 2 cloves Garlic
  • 2 cans (15 Oz.) Black Beans, Drained And Rinsed
  • 2 teaspoons Cumin
  • 1-¼ teaspoon Salt
  • 1 Tablespoon Ground Flax
  • 3 Tablespoons Water
  • ½ cups Panko Breadcrumbs
  • 2 Tablespoons Tomato Sauce
  • ½ cups Corn, Fresh Or Frozen And Defrosted
  • 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil, For Frying Burgers
  • 6 whole Hamburger Buns
  • Optional Garnishes: Avocado Slices, Sriracha Chili Sauce And Ketchup , (I like avo, tomato, and Greek yogurt mixed with Sriracha)
  • Also, homemade sweet potato fries make an excellent accompaniment.

Directions –

Seed and roughly chop the jalapeno. Add it and the garlic cloves to a food processor (or high speed blender) and mince finely. (Alternatively, you could chop them yourselves very finely but it’s just easier at this point to throw them into a food processor.)

Add one can of beans to the jalapeno/garlic mixture and pulse to combine. Add cumin and salt and pulse until mixture resembles chunky black bean dip.

In a small bowl, mix together the ground flax and water. Let the mixture sit for five minutes.

Transfer the mixture in the food processor to a large bowl and stir in the bread crumbs, tomato sauce, flax mixture and corn. Stir well until everything is combined. Add remaining can of black beans.

Heat a little olive oil in a skillet on medium high heat. Form black bean mixture into patties and fry for about 4 minutes per side, until golden and crusty brown.

Serve with buns or without. The recipe holds nicely in the fridge for a few days or sealed in an airtight container in the freezer for a few months. Enjoy!

 

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Trudy Jones

By on October 1, 2013 in SC Interviews

Trudy Jones Trudy Jonesis the service coordinator at the Village of Harmony Manor in Detroit. She is fairly new to PVM, she has been working at Harmony Manor for little over a year, starting in April of 2012. In her short time at Harmony Manor she has started a program with the Veterans Affairs Administration to conduct ceremonies for Veterans and the wives of deceased veterans.

Before starting her career as a service coordinator Trudy worked for the State if Michigan where she worked in several capacities, case management, Family Independent Specialist, and as an investigator with the office of Child Support. Trudy retired in 2002, after working for the state for over 30 years. After working with the state, she became a MI café coordinator with elder law of Michigan, until she retired from there in 2009. MI café was a great experience for her because it enabled her to observe the needs of senior, when she helped them apply for the Bridge card and the Medicare savings program. Trudy has a strong background working with DHS through her work as a MI café worker.  In addition to her work with the state, Trudy is also a licensed real estate agent. She has had her licenses for ten years, and she enjoys selling houses because she is able to help others find a home that they love.

Trudy received her bachelor degree in Sociology with a minor in psychology, from the University of Michigan Dearborn campus.

In her spare time, she loves golfing (she is currently on two leagues), reading, and exercising. She has participated in an intensive boot camp, for the last two years, which is held three times a week. Shw continues to workout and be active; she believes it contributes to living a long and healthy life.   Trudy loves all books, but her two favorite books are The shack and Roots.

The number one thing that Trudy loves to do is Give Back! In everything that she does it always has an element of selflessness.

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