Bob Hallowell is a long-time Spectrum Board member as well as a mentor in Spectrum’s Mentoring Program for 6 years As Bob once said to me, “What a wonderful thing to have friends in life and it’s so great I can count David as one of mine.”

On the Sunday before Christmas, my wife (who is a volunteer mentor at Spectrum) took her mentee, a 15-year-old Somali Bantu girl who has been here with her family for five years, to T.J. Maxx to spend a gift card she had given her. Accompanying them were her mentee’s two younger sisters, who also have mentors through Spectrum and also had T.J. Maxx gift cards to spend. They were in the store for almost an hour, made their purchases, and then walked in the close-to-zero-degrees night to the car. The oldest girl wasn’t dressed warmly enough, with only a thick sweatshirt on, and as they walked across the parking lot a woman came up to my wife and said, “I noticed you in the store with your daughters, and I just bought myself a new coat in there, would your oldest daughter like to have my other coat, it’s really in good condition, I don’t need two, and it is a nice warm coat for the winter.” My wife looked at her mentee, who smiled broadly and gladly accepted the coat from this kind and generous stranger.

And then two days before Christmas, I was with my family on Long Island when my cell phone rang. It was one of the owners of the Healthy Living market, Eli Lesser-Goldsmith. “A friend of mine just sent me a package of Omaha Steaks as a holiday present,” he said, “and I already have plenty of food, can you think of a family I could give these to who could really use them? I will even drive the steaks to their house myself if you give me the address.” I told him I’d get right back to him, and I dialed the cell phone of Amanda Churchill, who runs our youth development program and works with one family I know which has several youth connected to Spectrum. Amanda took it from there and connected with the family and with Eli, and that family had Omaha steaks in their refrigerator that night. Eli and his sister and mother have been so generous to Spectrum for so long, and this gift epitomized what is truly the spirit of compassion for others during the holidays.

So thank you Eli and thank you to that woman in the T.J. Maxx parking lot for helping out others in need.

Happy New Year,

Mark

[VIDEO] New England Cable New (NECN)

Homeless shelter demand rises as temperatures drop (NECN: Anya Huneke, Burlington, VT) - Homeless shelters across our region have seen a surge in demand this past year, and in Vermont. That goes for youth shelters as well. Play video

Boloco is doing the 12 Days of Giving, 50 cents donated to Spectrum this past Monday for every burrito or other item sold. 

The manager, Andy Barker, told me that this Monday was the busiest lunch push they’ve had since JULY!   Our board member Meghan Haley came in (and picked up lunch for a lot of people in her office), as did Gary Vassar, and Michelle Little from the Lake Champlain Chamber of Commerce came in and bought burritos for her office.

 We attribute our success to lots of twitter buzz telling people to go to Boloco in order to help Spectrum.  There were also some surprising cash donations ($20 from one guy who said that he once got a sandwich from our street outreach team, and has been grateful ever since and wanted to thank us).   

Thank you so much Andy and all at Boloco for doing this for us and thanks to all who stopped by and purchased a meal that day.

Her name is Mary Lynne Isham and a supervisor at the Dept of Corrections wrote this about her:

Over the past several months I have found myself frustrated by a great many things within our organization from staffing cuts at the highest levels to staff motivation at the local level. Many of these “things” cause me “pain” as I have always believed in the importance of doing the best job possible each and every day that we come to work. For me that means first and foremost being impactful with the offenders at risk under our supervision. There is nothing that will influence community safety long term more than influencing and promoting change.

Over the last nine months I have had the pleasure of seeing you “run” the Cognitive Self Change Program here at the St. Albans Probation and Parole Office. Sure, the program has a “supervisor” but you are the glue, you are the program at this site. The offenders see you as the go to person for CSC and so to do the staff.

Many people could have accomplished the numbers that you have, some people could have maintained the motivation in the face of adversity such as you have, but very, very few have ever shown me the level of true investment in the program I see from you each and every day. Your genuine investment in the men  you work with is amazing and if I could bottle it, I would be rich. For twenty years I have tried to train and even supervise what you have naturally in most cases unsuccessfully.

Thanks for truly amazing work – it is most commendable. The Department of Corrections, the community and the men are blessed to have you.

Come to Boloco -  92 Church Street Burlington VT 05401

Eat at Boloco on Monday 12/14, they’re open from 11am – 10pm. .50¢ from any burrito, bowl or salad sold will go directly to Spectrum. Watch the video below from last night’s  Fox 44 News- Good Deeds in a Bad Economy 

To watch the video click here  

From one of our staff at Spectrum:

“We have a youth who has gone to the Y consistently with a staff member.  She has lost over 20 lbs. and is getting healthier both physically and emotionally since she started.  It is an excellent example of two community organizations collaborating for the betterment of a youth in need.  She is starting to feel better about herself, is eating healthier and is managing her depression symptoms very well.  She is finding more success in school as well as her art.

I honestly feel like this all began with our staff member taking her to the Y.”

I was sitting at our front desk about 30 minutes ago, fiddling with a scanner that would not cooperate, and a young man walked in who lived at Spectrum a while ago.  I smiled and greeted him, and he looked at me and said, “I am here to see one of the staff, but I want to apologize to you for the way I often spoke to you back when I was living here.”  (I knew what he was talking about.  I originally fought with the State to get this boy out of an abusive and neglectful home, and into Spectrum, and then when he arrived he was extremely difficult to deal with, including giving me lip every single time I saw him.)

He continued, “At the time I didn’t like the different living situations I was in at Spectrum, and that’s why I acted that way,  but now that I look back at it, I realize it was what I needed and it really helped me.  I have my own apartment now and I have been sober for over a year.”

I stood up, shook his hand and said, “I really appreciate your apologizing to me.  It takes a big man to do that.  It shows character.  And I am really glad to know you are doing so well.”

And he went off to see his counselor. 

A nice way to end the week.