Seven dollars.

Interactive_Resource_Center — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:20:48 +0000

We start every morning here at the IRC with a meeting in the day room to go over the schedule for the day, answer questions, share information, and often to discuss the inspirational quotes that Jenny puts up on the whiteboard. The meeting facilitation rotates among the staff; Friday is my morning. I took the opportunity last Friday to tell the 60 or so people assembled in the day room about a wonderful $15,000 challenge grant we’ve been given to mark our third anniversary.

And then an amazing thing happened–a man put his hand up and said “How can I give a dollar?”, and he followed the question by walking across the room and handing me a dollar. A woman reached down, unzipped her purse and gave me a dollar. A man dug into his pocket and pulled out a single wadded up dollar and gave it to me. In the space of just a couple of minutes I had seven worn, crumpled dollar bills in my hand. Someone started clapping; someone else joined in and the whole room erupted in spontaneous applause. I don’t think I was the only one close to tears.

Matched by the challenge grant, those seven dollars are the equivalent of a sponsorship of a sponsorship of an individual at the IRC for a full day and a half. If ever we needed evidence that what we do at the IRC is needed and appreciated it is that handful of dollars.

The challenge grant runs through March 31; any gift given since January 1 counts toward the total. You can make a gift online, or by mailing a donation to:

Interactive Resource Center

P.O. Box 20568

Greensboro, NC 27420

Thanks to the benefactors in the day room we’ve only got $14,993 more to go!

Liz Seymour

Meet the Artists!

Interactive_Resource_Center — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 00:16:40 +0000

The first First Friday of the year is coming up and this time we’re celebrating our amazing artists. Come out to the IRC this Friday, January 6 from 6:00 to 8:00 for music, refreshments and some great art.

Click to view slideshow.

The temperature is dropping…

Interactive_Resource_Center — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 23:47:43 +0000

We had 195 people in the building today and expect to see many more by week’s end. Charles Ewing from Fox8 came by today and did a great story on some of the people who find help at the IRC. We expect to be giving out a lot of hats and gloves and blankets over the next couple of days.

“Bright ray of hope.”

Interactive_Resource_Center — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 19:57:00 +0000

The year closes out with a wonderful editorial about the IRC in this morning’s News & Record. As the editorial points out so eloquently the IRC would not exist without the many many hands that make it go, from our partner agencies in the community to the many people who come here for help but also use their time and skills to help the IRC. Thank you all!

We’re busy!

Interactive_Resource_Center — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 23:20:31 +0000

This past Monday we passed a milestone: by the end of the day we had seen 209 people–and every day for the rest of the week the number of people served has come close to the 200 mark. As the weather gets colder we have lots of reasons to be grateful for our beautiful new large and easy-to-get-to building. It’s pretty clear that people have found us!

Every month we see–and help–more and more people. Here are the statistics for November 2011:

INTAKES: 191 (in November 2010 we did 74 intakes! Quite a change…)

Part-time jobs found: 14

Full-time permanent jobs found: 11

TOTAL JOBS FOUND: 25

Emergency shelter placements: 20
Transitional housing placement: 1
Permanent housing by household: 12

Total adults assisted: 41

Total children assisted: 12

TOTAL INDIVIDUALS SHELTERED OR HOUSED: 53

And we couldn’t do it without our wonderful volunteers…

VOLUNTEER HOURS DONATED: 2,089!!

Oops!

Interactive_Resource_Center — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 19:30:21 +0000

Nothing is ever quite as easy as it’s supposed to be. Somewhere in the process of sending out our year-end mailing some names and addresses got scrambled. If you received a letter from the IRC addressed to someone else our sincere apologies—we’ve got your name and address correctly in our system, we just had an unfriendly visit from the Grinch on this particular mailing. It won’t happen again.

Here’s how you can still send a donation to the IRC before the year is out: If you still have a remittance envelope from us simply fill it out and mail it back. If you have discarded the envelope you can always give through our secure online donation process at www.gsodaycenter.org.

Thanks so much for your support!

Honor cards are here!

Interactive_Resource_Center — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 22:34:16 +0000

Many thanks to our friends at Westminster Presbyterian who designed and printed our first-ever honor card! The handsome cards are available for a donation of $5.00 or more; you can purchase IRC honor cards at Westminster Presbyterian Church, Presbyterian Church of the Covenant and here at the IRC.

What does an honor card purchase mean to the IRC? Think of it this way: it costs slightly less than $10.00 for a full day of service for an individual. During that one day he or she might take a shower, get a haircut, see a nurse, look for a job, pick up mail, make important phone calls, go to a support group meeting or simply rest and reflect in a safe, supportive place. That’s a gift indeed!

Cove Creek Gardens’ growing season with the IRC

Interactive_Resource_Center — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 23:03:21 +0000

As November ends we also come to the end of a wonderful warm-weather collaboration with Cove Creek Gardens. Every Thursday morning interns from the IRC have been taking the #15 bus up to the beautiful conservation and teaching garden where they have learned the old-fashioned skills of careful fine gardening. At least one participant is now interested in starting his own landscaping business. Thank you Nancy and Julia!

Interested in seeing what’s been going on (and picking up some gardening tips)? Take a look at these PowerPoint presentations.

Cove Creek Gardens’ IRC Training I

Cove Creek Gardens’ IRC TrainingII

Cove Creek Gardens’ IRC Training III

Cove Creek Gardens’ IRC Training IV

Cove Creek Gardens’ IRC Training V

Cove Creek Gardens’ IRC Training Fall

Now we can offer a warm welcome every day of the week!

Interactive_Resource_Center — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 21:49:00 +0000

Our new seven-day winter schedule begins this Saturday, December 3 with weekend open hours from 10:00 to 2:00 on Saturdays and Sundays. Over the course of the winter people can come in out of the cold to rest, shower, see an intake volunteer or take part in the many special activities we have planned. (N.B. Weekday hours remain the same: 8:00 to 3:00 Monday through Friday).

This Saturday we kick things off with a bicycle information workshop from Bicycling in Greensboro (B.I.G.) “Changing Gears” volunteers who have been collecting and rehabbing bikes to give to qualified recipients. On the same day we are hosting the third year of the Help-Portrait project with Greensboro photographers Joey and Jessica Seawell.

Interested in doing some weekend volunteering? Get in touch with Volunteer Coordinator Tiffany Dumas at tiffany@gsodaycenter.org

First panels of the IRC sculpture project on display

Interactive_Resource_Center — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 17:19:36 +0000

Want to be part of the Interactive Resource Center forever? For $100 you can sponsor (and even help create!) one of 80 panels in the major IRC sculpture entitled “What Money Can’t Buy”. Panel sponsorships make great gifts or commemorations–you, or the person you designate, will receive a certificate showing where your sponsored panel is in the overall design. To learn more go to www.ircpage.org or email info@gsodaycenter.org.

Most Thursday mornings you’ll find an informal little art club gathered around a big table in our day room working on the elements that will become a large wall sculpture to hang on the Washington Street exterior of our building. Sculptor John Martin (John and IRC guest Shannon Stewart created the beautiful spoon-shaped handles on our front door) begins with small sculptures carved in cornstarch foam by IRC guests, casts the pieces in solid aluminum and welds them together into 1′ x 1′ panels.Installation of the completed work will take place in the spring of 2012 to mark our one year anniversary in our new home. Check back here often to watch to project’s progress….