I've been thinking more about this...and I think what jespah says is true...a lot of this is probably due to underfunding, which is sad. But it seems to me this shelter should give more thought to trying to round up more volunteers -- rather than "burning out" their staff.
And what about appealing to some of the local businesses? There might well be people who would be willing to contribute some things -- maybe even repair that roof.
Sounds like maybe they're not exploring all the avenues they could be.
No kidding. I hate it when people use "money is tight" as an excuse to take advantage of people. It's reprehensible.
Yes, I very much agree more volunteers would help! Many people in the community know about this organization and donate items like clothing, old cell phones, even furniture. Yet there are no volunteers in the organization at all.
Certainly someone could donate a portable radio if the organization can't afford to buy one!
Another advocate was supposed to check the 2 radios in the shelter, and didn't. So I put batteries in them to see if they'd work, and they didn't.... they only work plugged in.
How hard would it have been to have solved this problem a couple of months ago, before hurricane season started? When I brought up stuff like this, I was told everyone is so busy....
Yet when I've visited the office, employees do nothing harder than lift a coffee cup. I rarely saw anyone in the office Actually Working... mostly they discussed how much work they had to do. I hate that!
I've seen other organizations like this, all talk and no action, but frankly they were for-profit businesses and not responsible for anyone's safety, so it wasn't so crucial.
Management could do so much more to help the women and children in their care. I'm baffled as to why they don't.
Why Not solicit business to repair the shelter? How hard would it be to make a few phone calls?
I'm angry about their apparent lack of caring for the people they're supposed to protect.
If they'd really been thinking about the needs of the shelter residents, they would have kept me on, let me work my 2 days per week and no more, and handled other Advocates absences some other way. (I never missed even a partial day of work, so I never caused any staffing problems for them.)
But management was so "offended" by my wanting to work no more than 2 days, they robbed these women of the care they deserve.
These women are truly needy, that is, they only live in the shelter because it's that or the street. If they'd had somewhere else to go, they'd have already gone there. They're at the very end of their resources; they often feel they're at the end of their lives.
Many of these women (and their children) have never been helped by anyone. To finally think they're getting some help, only to find they're really Not, must be close to the Last Straw for them.
I really feel for them, and wish I could help them. But now, I'm not allowed.
It hurts.
At the shelter in San Marcos, Tx, they have 300 female volunteers to take care of 10 families.
And every year they have an amazingly elegant fund-raiser.
Lots of action, there.
Eva wrote:.. I hate it when people use "money is tight" as an excuse to take advantage of people. It's reprehensible.
Yes, indeed. And that's very common.
So you're looking for another job right now, BK?
BK--
Often places like your shelter have paid "professionals" while fund raising and image questions are handled by a board of volunteers. Is this the case with your shelter? Is there anyone on the board you could talk to? I don't mean about talking to get your job back, I mean talking about the radio and the roof and the staffing problems.
Wow, 300 volunteers! What a great community! Apparently these folk couldn't even find One.
Yep, I'm looking for another job already, for any kind of office work. I had an interview yesterday, they said they'd call today if I was chosen, & I wasn't called. On to the next one. I'm probably like most people... I'd rather Have a job than Look for one.
There is a Board of Directors to whom the Executive Director reports. I've no idea who is on it or how to contact any of them. From what I've heard, the Executive Director handles publicity issues.
I feel any further action on my part would be more vindictive than constructive, at least right now, so I've refrained from doing anything.
I guess I'm grateful I didn't have any Real responsibility for fixing all these problems.
I think the Shelter Manager & Executive Director won't be working there much longer. At least, for the sake of the shelter residents, I hope not.
Seems to me like there are three major categories of people who work in such stressful "helping" professions:
1.) Newbies -- they usually do really well while they're there, but are out of there fast, either because they've found something better or because they burn out.
2.) Old battleaxes -- they stopped caring a long time ago as a self-preservation technique. They're just muddling through.
3.) The truly driven and gifted -- while there are WAY too many old battleaxes (even if they're chronologically young -- seem to get that way after 3-5 years if they haven't moved on), there are also those who could go on to something else but stay because they think the work they're doing is important. Rare, in my experience. Much more likely to occur in packs, as they find and sustain each other. (Bet there are a bunch of them at the San Marcos shelter, for example.)
Good luck with the job search, I'm sure something will turn up.
I just saw this thread, BK. I'm sorry it turned out so poorly. I remember how much satisfaction you were getting out of helping the victims. My hat's off to you for putting up with so much and then finally standing up for yourself. This is truly a case where it's their loss.
I hope you find something equally satisfying and much less stressful. Would you consider working in a hospital as a crisis counselor?
