I don’t often blog about, for or at work, but the Tenant Resource Center could use a few minutes of your time! (i.e. Please read!)
I’ve been volunteering or working for the Tenant Resource Center since 1991. That’s 16 years of my life. And I don’t stay because of the not-so-cushy pay or the not-so-posh comforts of the office and the slow computers. I stay because I know we can change the world. And I hope you do too!
I started as a housing counseling volunteer when I was a second year law school student. At the time, the agency had about a $80,000 budget, 1.25 staff people, a poor volunteer training program and problems literally keeping the door open. And by that I mean, volunteers would show up and the office would be locked. I remember sitting in the basement at 14 W. Mifflin on the steps trying to help tenants who had problems, without any back up materials or even a chair. The place was struggling, but I stayed, because I saw the potential and I knew this place would help change the world.
After volunteering for over a year, the volunteer coordinator was graduating from law school. I interviewed on Good Friday for the position, when I should have been going home for break, and I got it! Then it was my job to keep the doors open – and I did. I did that and a whole bunch of other crazy things, including making my boyfriend hitchhike back from Weedstock in Mt. Horeb (our car was stuck in the mud along with everyone else) to help the Tenant Resource Cenater move around the corner and down the street from 14 W. Mifflin to 122 State Street. (5th floor and later 2nd floor). I kept the job after I graduated from law school and started my law practice, but it soon became impractical, so I had to leave the Tenant Resource Center. However, I joined the board of directors. I did that because this wasn’t just a place of employment or a place to make money; I did it because I knew that the Tenant Resource Center was helping to change the world, one problem at a time.
When I was on the board of directors, we were facing all kinds of trouble that so many non-profits face. Low wages, small staff, unstable grant funding, no money for one time investments like a computer, struggling to meet the grant requirements on a state grant, etc etc etc. It got so bad, we ended up firing an Executive Director, who still couldn’t keep the doors open. Another board member and I stepped in to write volunteer training materials and to do statewide seminars so we didn’t lose our state grant funds. (Since then, because we were so late in performing on the grant, we’ve never gotten state funds again! Or so we’ve been told. Not sure I believe that is the reason.) We hired a new person who, after 6 months, didn’t work out. And we figured out, with a salary of $20,800 and with no health insurance or benefits beyond two weeks vacation, it was going to be difficult to hire anyone else who would be qualified unless they were insanely committed.
So I took the job. It was only supposed to be for three months while we sorted things out. (OK, and at that point, the thought of a steady paycheck as opposed to the completely random payments from my solo law office was kind of appealing.) But I also took the job because I believed that the Tenant Resource Center, with the help of so many people in the community, was making a difference; we were changing the world.
And, so it goes. I brought my desk and chairs from my law office and and my personal computer and I’ve been Executive Director of the Tenant Resource Center since May of 1995. Since that time, I have seen amazing things happen. I’ve had the pleasure of knowing so many dedicated volunteers, staff and board members. I’ve seen the agency help thousands and thousands of people in need. I’ve watched the programs grow and expand. And I’ve been thrilled with the community support we have had so far.
With your help, we took our $85,000 budget to $350,000. Instead of just being funded by the City of Madison Office of Community Services and Community Shares of Wisconsin, we are also now funded by City of Madison Community Development Block Grant Office, Dane County, UW-Madison, HUD, several small one-time grants, our fundraising and sales of services. Our staff grew from 1.25 to a height of 8 FTEs (full time equivalents). We started a mediation program, the Housing Help Desk, the Housing Crisis Fund, the statewide toll-free number and moved two more times, each time to a bigger office and we are now proud members/owners of the Social Justice Center.
In 2006, we were able to serve the following people:
- 6,724 people called or stopped by to get assistance with housing counseling, information or referral.
- 1,480 calls came in statewide through our 800 number and received follow up assistance.
- 634 people attended our local workshops or presentations
- 106,940 people visited our website
- 1,084 people received in depth assistance from the Housing Help Desk, with an additional 6,732 people stopping by to get “quick” information
- 205 families were able to avoid eviction through assistance from our Housing Crisis Fund
- 787 people resolved their rental housing disputes through 645 mediations
We also continued our statewide seminars, finished our Apartment Management in Wisconsin book, performed CLE training for local attorneys, translated more materials into Spanish, continued to improve our website and a whole host of other things. We’re able to do all of this, not only because we have volunteers who do our housing counseling and assist with office work and a dedicated staff, but because of the community support. And of course, because we all know that we can change the world, or at least our little corner of it.
Sometimes I feel like I am one of the luckiest people in the world. I was able to find a job that I am good at and I love. Sure, there are mornings, like this morning, when I’m answering the business line until my office manager gets here and getting interrupted to open the storage area in the basement to figure out how to get rid of the water in the basement from last night’s rain after being at the office until 11:00 last night. And sometimes I wonder how I’m going to make it through the next three months without going insane while Megin (Hicks) McDonell, my trusty sidekick and the Program Director for the Tenant Resource Center for the last 10 years, is out on maternity leave having her second baby. But it’s all worth it. It’s worth it when you see the look in the eyes of a formerly homeless person who says thank you for believing in him and helping him to get permanent housing. Our friend, Johnathan was able to sell some of his art through his exhibit at the Social Justice Center Jackie Macaulay Art Gallery and because of the case management of one of our staff people, was able to get himself in a position to have a place to call home. And he in return, gives back, by running errands and helping out with miscellaneous things around the office. For others, we might just give them some information that helps them figure out how to prevent getting evicted, how to get their $600 security deposit back, how to get their heat repaired, what their responsibilities will be if they break their lease because they have to move out of town and what they can do to help themselves. But most people still smile and say thank you and you can see they truly appreciate what we can do for them, and that makes it all worth it.
So, back to my point. We need your help! This fall, the SSFC (Student Services Finance Committee) denied the Tenant Resource Center eligibility for funding because they changed their rules yet again and they have determined that we are not a student organization. We apparently need students to 100% control our funding and having 1/3 of our board members being students isn’t enough. As a result, come July 1, after 10 years of being funded by the UW-Madison, we will be losing $55,000 in funding. That’s $15,000 more than my salary and more than the salary of 2 of my full time employees. As you can imagine, that will have a devastating effect on the amount of people we can serve if we don’t figure out a way to make that up.
Don’t dispair, we have a plan! But we need you. And here’s some of the things that you can help with.
- Volunteer to do housing counseling for the Tenant Resource Center (There is a 12 hour training done in 3 sessions, written materials and on-going support.)
- Volunteer to help answer the business line, in particular between 2:00 and 6:00.
- We’re looking for someone to help finish our second book, but we need someone who is well versed in PageMaker (We’re kind of stuck with that program at the moment.)
- Make a donation.
- Donate materials we need. We can always use letter size paper (white and various colors), treats for our volunteers, letter size file folders, flip chart paper, miscellaneous office supplies. And at the moment, we need a new easel for our flipchart and a cooler (preferably on wheels).
- Host a houseparty. (Invite your friends and ask them to donate.)
- We always need additional trained mediators who can work on Tuesdays.
- Or, more immediately, if you have time today or tomorrow or maybe even Monday, stop by and help us get a 5,000 piece mailing out the door.
Seriously, if you can help, we can be contacted at
- 257-0143 (257-0006 if you need help with a housing problem or 242-7406 if you need help finding housing or with rent assistance), or
- stop by our office at 1202 Williamson St, Suite A Monday – Friday from 9 – 6, or
- email us at office@tenantresourcecenter.org (or for housing counseling questions asktrc@tenantresourcecenter.org), or
- you can donate on line at our website.
Thanks for listening! And thanks for everyone who has supported the Tenant Resource Center for so many years. You have helped us to make a difference! And our many clients throughout the years really, truly appreciate it.
