U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services is offering a free educational session from 1-3 p.m. on Sept. 20 for those interested in the citizenship process. Topics covered include: the naturalization process, interview & exam; rights and responsibilities of U.S. citizenship, details about biometrics; and a question & answer session.
The program will be at USCIS, Detroit District, 11411 E. Jefferson, Detroit, 48214.
RSVP by Sept. 19 to 313-926-4211 or CommunityRelations@uscis.dhs.gov
It came up that there is confusion around who is an approved guest in a Co-op that SCs are able to provide services to as a Community Client. Here is the information from Sheila:
The House Rules state the guest rule policy for each of the co-ops, there may be a difference in the amount of time. The SC needs to read the policy to be accurate on the time allowed. The member needs to talk with the floor rep so they can keep a record of the overnight guest(s). HUD does not want guests to be there for an undetermined amount of time because the rent is based on who is on the lease. If they are using lights, laundry room, etc. the co-op is not getting the money to cover these extra charges from the rent.
Sheila Crayne Friedrich
Note from Rachel – The “norm” is up to 30 days, but please read your House Rules to confirm for your own Co-op.
I just received a thank you from MiCAFE for you all helping 61 clients between April and June of 2013 receive an average of $115 in food assistance each for a total benefit amount of $5,754! Job well done! Thank you.
Greetings from the AASC National Conference in Indianapolis, IN! There are over 1,000 SCs attending the conference this week.
Matt and I gave our presentation on Self-Care Strategies this morning to 80+ participants. It went really well, and we were quite pleased.
Here are a few photos that we would like to share with you! (See if you can spot Diane Crawford!)
-Alexa and Matt
If you know someone in your building is still driving who perhaps should not be, you can fill out an OC-88 form and submit it to the Secretary of State’s office. The person will then have to be re-examined to see whether it is still safe for them to drive. More information and a link to the form: http://www.michigan.gov/sos/0,1607,7-127-1627_8665_9066-23762–,00.html
Name – Diane Crawford
Hired date – April 23, 2012
Name and Location of Building: Labelle Towers Co-op
Diane Crawford is a lifelong eastside Detroiter, who grew up in her beloved Brewster Projects, graduating from Northeastern High School and today lives in the Lafayette Towers area. She considers trips to the Eastern Market as one of her rituals and Belle Isle as her playground.
Diane is a proud Spartan, having attended Michigan State University as an undergrad, majoring in History and English. She continued her education and attained her MSW from Wayne State University. Diane earned her PhD in Human Services from Walden University.
Diane grew up with 2 older sisters. Her father worked at the Ford Motor Company and her mother worked for the Aladdin Coverall Company in Highland Park, Michigan. She developed a fondness for working with seniors while running errands for her grandmother and other seniors in her youth. She sees this as a form of community service and has always given back.
After 32 years with the Detroit Public Schools (DPS), Diane retired as a teacher and school social worker. Diane loves to dance and listen to Motown, Contemporary, and Jazz music. She has been to 9 countries in Africa, Paris, and Brazil. When relaxing, she enjoys watching movies. Her favorite movie to watch is the Godfather.
While she has been a mentor to many young people throughout the years, Diane has two great nieces that are the loves of her life, Saniya 9 and Zariya.6. She tries to spend as much time with them as possible, teaching them the same lessons she learned when she was their age.
Kari Wilson has a heart that beats to the social work drum.
Kari joined the Hannan Family in April of 2012. Currently, Kari has two homes: one at the Royal Oak Manor Cooperative and the other at the Madison Heights Cooperative. Kari’s undergrad was at the University of Missouri, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism. Kari’s path drove her to acquire a MSW degree from Wayne State University and she is currently a LLMSW.
Kari worked as a copy editor for the Free Press for 10 years. During that time, she edited many special projects, including some about child abuse and neglect. Kari felt helpless but at the same time she felt a need to do something. During her MSW program, she had two great internships: one as a service coordinator at Bethany Villa senior apartments in Troy, and one with Citizens for Better Care as a volunteer long-term care ombudsman. Kari worked to resolve problems of individual residents and to improve residents’ care and quality of life. This is when she met Ann Kraemer, also part member of the Hannan family. During this time, she worked at Ambassador nursing center on Jefferson Ave in Detroit and Sorrento Care Center on West Chicago (now closed), and also worked on a research project about adult guardianship.
Kari spends her free time reading mysteries and historical fiction, especially medieval, regency and Victorian. Kari has too many favorite authors to list but she did name a couple: Dorothy Dunnett was a Scottish historical novelist who started her career as a press officer in the civil service, and she was also professional portrait painter. Iain Pears is an English art historian, novelist and journalist. Deanna Raybourn is an American author of mystery novels set in Victorian era England. If she wasn’t a social worker, Kari would love to be a professor of medieval European history.
Kari loves Monty Python, classical and New Wave music, the Stratford Shakespeare festival and “The Princess Bride.” One of Kari’s favorite quotes is by “Great Gatsby” author F. Scott Fitzgerald, “I am a cynical idealist.”
Kari has passed on her love for reading and the arts to her children, Tristan, 11, and Annabel, 8. She has traveled to London and Ireland with her husband, Jeff, and to Ireland with Tristan as part of a Suzuki Royal Oak music tour. This summer, Kari and Tristan will be traveling to Estonia and Russia, also on a music tour. History, music, art, what a grand adventure for this history- and music-loving mother.
Written By: Monika George
Did you know that depression is the leading cause of disability in the U.S. and Canada? A recent Gallup study found that about 12% of workers have been diagnosed with depression at some point, and that depression costs U.S. workplaces $23 billion in absenteeism each year. In addition, depressive illnesses can significantly affect an individual’s ability to find, retain, and regain meaningful employment.
However, programs focused on raising awareness and promoting early identification and effective treatment of depressive illnesses can help employees thrive at work and improve their quality of life.
In these six short videos, U of M Depression Center experts offer basic education on depression treatment approaches and practical suggestions for self-care. They include tips on improving nutrition, sleep, and exercise, and provide information on various psychotherapy techniques, managing medication, and neuromodulation therapies for treatment-resistant depression.
http://www.depressiontoolkit.org/expert_advice/
Depression rates have fallen significantly among the majority of older adults in recent years, with the most pronounced drop among the elderly, who have historically been a higher risk group for depression. This is according to a new study led by Depression Center member Kara Zivin, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychiatry in the U-M Medical School and research investigator at the VA Center for Clinical Management Research, which found that fewer Americans over 50 are experiencing symptoms of depression. The results were not all good news, however, as increased depression rates were found among “late middle agers” (55-59 years of age) over the study period (1998 to 2008).
http://www.michiganradio.org/post/fewer-older-adults-report-depression-symptoms-except-one-group
