This past weekend, the Volunteer Engagement team hosted the Panera Bread Impact Your Community Project at Henry Ford High School. Thirty nine community members, including a GM employee and her family, along with 15 Henry Ford High School students, helped create a friendlier, brighter and better culture for learning through the following projects:

Making an entrance

Before the project, the main entrance to the school looked more like a prison entrance than a school entrance. The entire room was painted white, and had no signage or decoration that showed the name of the school or its colors. Now, after the project, the main entrance is painted gold with brown details (the school’s colors), including a large wall painting of the school mascot (the Trojans), and the name of the school.

Painting the halls

While the hallways of the school were painted different colors, the school lacked a certain positive vibe that the principal wanted to create – a vibe that the principal wanted to make sure was permanent, so it could survive for several years. The volunteers helped paint wall murals in three different areas. The first was the Drama, Law and Art hallway, where the volunteers painted silhouettes of objects that represented those areas of studies. The second was the gym hallway, where volunteers painted sports silhouettes, the logos of Detroit’s major sports teams, and a positive/inspirational quote from Michael Jordan. The third was the Henry Ford Health Clinic hallway, where volunteers painted silhouettes of different medical symbols and equipment.

College proud

One main aspect of creating a common culture in all of our Turn Around High Schools are the college canvas murals. Volunteers painted 10 canvas murals of Michigan college logos that will be hung up in the hallway outside of the cafeteria, which is now known as the “Collegiate Hallway.”

Planting positivity

While the outdoor campus of Henry Ford High School was generally cleaned up, there were many small tasks that the volunteers took care of that added up to a BIG difference. The volunteers built planter boxes and planted flowers that were placed on both sides of the main entrance, they helped landscape the bushes and shrubs along the front side of the building, and they helped remove debris.

Overall, 54 volunteers came together to help create a friendlier, brighter and better culture for learning that resulted in 98 hours of service, and more than $2,000 volunteer dollars generated that went back into the Henry Ford High School community. The best part of the day for all of us UWSEM staff was when Sha’Nice Griffin, a student volunteer, told us, “I am so proud of how my school looks” and that she wanted to become more actively engaged in volunteering through United Way.

Many thanks go out to the Volunteer Engagement and Educational Preparedness team, specifically Arlene Gibson and Annie Dunsky, who manages the Panera partnership.

One of the goals of the Detroit Regional Workforce Fund is to help close the gap between the skills people have and the skills employers need.

I have come to learn that the term “skills” is broad. I initially thought skills were defined as those technical, educational or clinical attributes needed to secure a job in a particular industry. What I now know is that many employers find it difficult to employ individuals due to their lack of employability skills. Furthermore, employers usually terminate individuals due to their inability to deliver on the employability skills.

The Michigan League for Human Services and the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments are tackling the issue of employability skills.

Employability skills are those basic skills necessary for getting, keeping and performing well on a job. These are the skills, attitudes and actions that enable workers to get along with their fellow team members and supervisors and to make sound, critical decisions. Unlike occupational or technical skills, employability skills are generic in nature rather than job specific and cut across all industry types, business sizes and job levels from the entry-level worker to the senior-most position.

Employers need reliable, responsible workers who can solve problems and who have the social skills and attitudes to work together with other workers. The Detroit Regional Workforce Fund recognizes that for individuals to be adequately prepared to secure and sustain employment, these skills are critical.

We are seeking to fund work that supports employability skills in the healthcare sector for community mental health and long-term care workers. Three employers have agreed to work with the DRWF to institute a program titled Coaching Approach to Communication. This program will give current workers the skills and confidence to seek and be considered for supervisor and healthcare driver roles which require additional leadership skills. The access to jobs that pay higher wages will put people on a career pathway to financial stability. The earn it, keep it, grow it strategy is the foundation of financial stability work. Funding employability skills is a direct correlation to individuals obtaining and sustaining employment which is critical to one’s career advancement.

Author's Note: While I do not endorse the music/lyrics of Big Sean, I do support his efforts to encourage the importance of education.

This past Monday, the students of Van Dyke Lincoln High School in Warren were treated to a special concert and motivational celebration for their first-place finish in the Metro Detroit Attendance Challenge.  The day included classroom visits by Big Sean, whose premier album featured two Top 40 hits. 

Before he was a rapper, Big Sean graduated from Cass Tech with a 3.7 GPA.  As a senior, he learned that Kanye West was in town at a local radio station and ran to the station in hopes of meeting him.  When that moment came, Sean asked the superstar if he would listen to him rap.  Kanye said, “You’ve got 16 bars.”  And it worked.  Those moments have turned into a successful career.

Several other celebrities took part in the day, including media mogul Kevin Liles, the former president of Def Jam records, who took the stage and laid out some brutal facts.

“At the age of 24, if you’re uneducated, if you don’t have a college degree, 20 percent of you will be unemployed,” he said, noting that ethnicity plays a part: For 24 year olds who are Hispanic, 39 percent are unemployed.   African-Americans are at 49 percent. 

Kevin, much like Sean, took a pretty much non-existent opportunity, and turned it into a stunning career.  He got his start as an unpaid intern at Def Jam records.  In other words, he worked for free. He secured a paid position and then rose through the ranks of the company until he reached the top. Now, he’s the founder and CEO of his own company.

In all the hype of the celebration at Lincoln, I’m not sure what messages got through to the students.  But one struck home with me.  Sometimes you have to wait for hours to get a 30-second shot with a complete stranger or simply to work for free -- knowing that you could look like a fool as a result -- or that you could be fulfilling the purpose for which you were born.

Taking those risks despite our fears -- It's how we get better all the time.

This blog post is a reprint from "We're Better Together," a twice-monthly newsletter, authored by Michael Tenbusch, that discusses the current state of education in metro Detroit and beyond. United Way for Southeastern Michigan distributes "We're Better Together" without charge to people with an interest in education. If you are interested in subscribing to We're Better Together, please visit www.LiveUnitedSEM.org/BetterTogether.

"Showing up to school, all day, every day, is one of the most important things students can do to reach their educational goals and to go on to success later in life,” said Big Sean. “I am so proud of my hometown of Detroit for tackling attendance issues head on and I am so excited to celebrate the achievements of the students who worked so hard throughout the attendance challenge.”

Big Sean will also join MTV host Sway and local radio personality, Coco of FM 98 WJLB, at an all-school event to recognize the students’ and staff accomplishments. They will be joined on stage by Mark Reuss, President of GM North America, Chris Perry, Vice President of Global Marketing of Chevrolet and a United Way for Southeastern Michigan board member, Carl Folta, Executive Vice President of Communications of Viacom and Get Schooled Foundation Board Member, and Kevin Liles, former President of Def Jam and senior advisor to Get Schooled.  The special guests will encourage the students to stay focused on their education and to make their education a priority in their lives.

In the past two weeks, politicians have continued working on budget issues as the summer recess nears. But United Way for Southeastern Michigan made the news as well! On May 7, we announced the launch of an initiative to fight child hunger in partnership with the State of Michigan and the national organization Share our Strength.

The timing couldn’t be better, either: Congress is considering a variety of proposals to renew the federal Farm Bill, the bill that authorizes important nutrition assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Last week, a House committee reviewed SNAP and other important programs that help families put healthy food on the table. Join United Way in reminding  Congress how important these programs are to you and the children in our region – click here to speak out!

You can download the full update here. Don’t have time to read it right now? Here are some highlights:

Education

• No Child Left Behind: Michigan revised its application to the federal government to waive the student achievement requirements imposed by No Child Left Behind. The state submitted its original application in February, but made adjustments based on the federal government’s initial review. The state has set adjusted achievement goals, which include 85% proficiency by 2022. Read commentary on the changes in the Detroit Free Press.

 Income

• Financial Literacy: The State House Committee on Banking and Financial Services heard testimony about efforts by Michigan organizations to improve residents’ financial literacy.

Special Topic

• FY2013 Budget: The House passed legislation, advanced by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), to replace the automatic budget cuts mandated by the Budget Control Act that Congress passed in October 2011. The cuts that are currently scheduled will impact defense spending and discretionary domestic spending evenly; the new House proposal protects most of the defense spending by cutting millions out of domestic programs. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, healthcare programs, and social services would see steep cuts under the proposal. Read the full story in the Huffington Post.

Download the full update here.

How would you feel after five days of meager meals? People who take the Live Below the Line Challenge eat for $1.50 each day. Nicole and Rob V. took on this challenge to raise awareness of world hunger. It wasn't easy, and both Nicole and Rob felt fatigued throughout the five days of the challenge. At United Way for Southeastern Michigan, adults and children in our own back yards are suffering from extreme hunger. Find out how we are fighting this epidemic here. And watch the final thoughts of Nicole and Rob below.

It's Day 4 for Nicole and Rob V. for their Live Below the Line challenge! Rob shares the challenges of fatigue in his video blog, and anxiously awaits the final day. On the Live Below the Line challenge, participants can only eat $1.50 worth of food each day. Read more about Nicole and Rob's Day 3 here. To find out why there challenge is important to us at United Way, click here.

Every morning, I reach for caffeine to get ready for a busy day at United Way. But those coffees I buy on my way to work aren't cheap. As I read about the caffeine withdrawls Nicole experienced as part of the Live Below the Line challenge -- a week-long initiative where people spend five days feeding themselves on the U.S. equivalent of the extreme poverty line -- I wondered how well I would function without those javas. It wouldn't be pretty. Of course, couple that with a significant cut in daily calorie intake, and I really began to appreciate how good I have it. On the Live Below the Line challenge, participants can only eat $1.50 worth of food each day. You can read about Nicole and Rob's Day 2 here. Read more about their challenge, and why it is important to us at United Way, here.

So I had expected the headaches…though they have decreased in intensity since Day 1. I expected a few bouts of dizziness – and to my surprise, this hasn’t been bad. I expected to miss caffeine – wow, do I! But what I didn’t expect when planning to take on this crazy challenge of Living Below the Line and eating for $1.50 a day for 5 days was how tired I am! And how it’s causing me to lose a step!

I am always yawning – all I want to do is crawl in bed and I’m completely lethargic and at times a bit listless. Almost like I’m living in slow motion. My husband and I usually go the gym a couple times a week and we quickly decided halfway into Day 1, that the gym was not something we were going to do while undertaking the challenge. We also have a trainer and have learned a lot about eating for optimal health – eating for fuel. But it has never felt more real until this week. What I wouldn’t do for a protein bar! Or a nice piece of salmon or steak!

In all seriousness, my mind wanders into questions like what about the people that live this day in and day out? And I. Just. Can’t. Fathom. Honestly, it’s easy to remember being a child and hearing mom and dad say “clean your plate, there are starving children in Africa” – and as a 6 –year old rolling my eyes. But the thing is – this is not something a parent just says to get you to eat – it IS the truth.

Probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever seen in my travels to Africa – is that no matter where you go – Ethiopia to Ghana – there will be children that come to the window of the car you are in when it stops – and they will look at you with beautiful eyes the size of saucers – and put their cupped fingers to their mouths – begging for money so they can eat. Those are the images that haunt me every time I come back from a trip. Those are the images that make me want to do something.

I also don’t want to be blind to the fact that there are hunger issues right here at home in the U.S. While Rob and I decided to do this challenged based on what I’ve experienced in Africa (which is a whole other level of poverty than the U.S.), I know that there are kids here who don’t get enough to eat. Knowing how tough it is after this week to function at 100% and work – it has to be grueling for kids who have to go to school without a good breakfast – and maybe without having dinner the night before. Our cousin works for the United Way in Michigan and they have just launched a campaign this week called “No Kid Hungry” where they are aiming to eradicate child hunger in Michigan.

Hunger in Africa – in Michigan – in India – doesn’t matter where, it’s heartbreaking and the effects are real and can be long-lasting. It’s an issue that I have taken for granted in my privileged upbringing. I only hope this small gesture at “Living Below the Line” continues to change my behavior and brings awareness to even just one person who might not have thought about someone else who isn’t eating enough today. I. Am. Thankful.

As an employee at the United Way for Southeastern Michigan, I know that an experiential learning experience for high school students most at risk for not graduating could result in a significant change in the course of their lives. So when the opportunity came up to attend the Job Shadow Day at DMC Sinai Grace Hospital, I jumped at the chance.

The event was organized specifically for River Rouge High School juniors and seniors interested in healthcare careers. Surprisingly all of the students who participated were girls. In the past few years, girls surpassed boys in medical school and the trend is growing. 

During the hospital tour, I saw a new light shine in one student’s eyes as she expressed her delight after viewing a human brain in the autopsy room. That confirmed her passion for medicine. I saw fear in students' eyes when we walked into the morgue. And there was sadness streaming down their faces when we overhead a family mourning for the loss a loved one in the ER. 

With scrubs over our clothes, we entered the low-lit NICU and saw tiny babies connected to various machines. The Chief of the NICU showed us the x-rays. In Detroit, the chance for an infant to reach age 1 is one of the lowest in the nation. The reasons for this expand beyond adequate pre-natal care and infant safety; infant mortality is also impacted by the family’s ability to provide basic needs and other socio-economic factors. 

The hospital was excited to host us, and it showed in the amount of staff that participated. Eleven doctors, nurses, staff and even the hospital President Reginald Edie, spoke to the students. Each speaker was hand selected based on the student’s identified interests – OB/GYN, nursing, radiology, general medicine – and shared their personal journey of how they made it to this point in their life. Their main messages?

• Set high expectations for yourself and get good grades. Education gives you choices.
• How you present yourself, professionally and personally, is directly related to your success.
• Dream big.
• Never stop learning.

As I listened to each story, I reflected on my own path into a professional career. I hope that these girls will carry the messages on their journey as well. Observing each young woman around the table, I visualized what their presence might be like at 30. And I hope that they will become bright, confident, well-spoken girls, who still dream big and know that they’ll never stop learning.

Nicole and Rob V. are taking part of Live Below the Line - a week-long initiative that challenges people to spend five days feeding themselves on the U.S. equivalent of the extreme poverty line. They can only eat $1.50 worth of food each day. You can watch Day 1 here. Read more about their challenge, and why it is important to us at United Way, here.

There is an old English proverb that states, "A way to man's heart is through his stomach." When you are eating and drinking on just $1.50 per day, this is very true.

Nicole and I were just debating whether or not to use two chicken legs in our rice this evening versus only one. It is strange to think families have to make these decisions each day - and not because they are choosing to.

My Day 2 experience during this challenge has been much different than Day 1. I came through Day 1 like a champ. Not really hungry, no headaches and only mild caffeine withdrawal.

Day 2 - I'm very hungry, having trouble concentrating, fatigued and, I'm told by Nicole, not my usual patient self. A little "testy," I believe is how she put it.

Now, if I'm a grown adult and I'm having these problems concentrating after just two days, how could we expect kids without access to proper nutrition to focus on their school work or fight off diseases like malaria?

The answer is we can't. But what we can do is make sure kids find no shame in getting a good breakfast at school. And we can take steps to help prevent a treatable disease like malaria by investing in life-saving bed nets and research into finding a vaccine.

I'm certainly going to do what I can to make sure both scenarios happen.

Growing up, every single day, my mom made sure that my sisters and I had a hot breakfast. I brought my lunch to school and I always had a healthy dinner. It would have never entered my mind that perhaps some of the  kids around me were not as fortunate. It's even more astounding to me that hunger continues to be a problem for millions of families.

Think about it: Who could have ever imagined that in the year 2012, children were going to school hungry because their last meal was lunch the previous day. Can you imagine going to bed hungry every night?

In America, 20 percent of children struggle with hunger. In Southeastern Michigan, 18.5 percent of individuals are food insecure. In 2010, of the 700,000-plus individuals that depended on food assistance, more than 300,000 were children.

Families that are food insecure can't afford enough food, and so they face difficult choices. Gas or dinner? Winter coat or groceries? Medication or meals? None are easy choices.

On Monday, in partnership with Governor Rick Snyder’s office and Share Our Strength, we launched the "No Kid Hungry"Campaign. Our goal is to end childhood hunger in Michigan by increasing participation in school breakfast and summer meal programs.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, 16.2 million children younger than 18 in the United States live in households where they are unable to consistently access enough nutritious food necessary for a healthy life. Although food insecurity is harmful to any individual, it can be particularly devastating among children because of their increased vulnerability and the potential for long-term consequences.

Almost 1 million rural and urban Michigan households need help to afford enough food at some point during the year. A Share Our Strength survey of teachers also showed that nearly two-thirds of teachers said there are children in their classrooms who regularly come to school hungry because they are not getting enough to eat at home.

You can help ensure that children have access to nutritious foods. Tell Congress to protect federal nutrition programs in the Farm Bill.

United Way for Southeastern Michigan is committed to being a part of the solution -- no kid should ever be hungry.

This blog post is a reprint from "Pathways out of Poverty," a twice-monthly newsletter, authored by Dona Ponepinto, which discusses issues relating to basic needs, such as housing and food, in metro Detroit and beyond. United Way for Southeastern Michigan distributes "Pathways out of Poverty" without charge to people with an interest in education. If you are interested in subscribing, please click here.

Could you feed yourself on $1.50 a day – the U.S. equivalent of the extreme poverty line? Rob and Nicole V. are doing so this week as part of Live Below the Line - a week-long initiative that challenges people to spend five days feeding themselves on the U.S. equivalent of the extreme poverty line. Read more about their challenge, and why it is important to us at United Way, here.

Today Nicole shares a video with us reflecting on Day 1.

Editor's Note: Detroit4Detroit is a movement of passionate citizens, each committed to leading the fundraising for a community project in Detroit. United Way for Southeastern Michigan is a funding partner for some of the organizations that team with Detroit4Detroit on Detroit projects. Read more from Dan on Detroit4Detroit here.

People from across Detroit are making a real difference as part of Detroit4Detroit. Natasha is helping people get screened for HIV and STDs. Jeff is helping Detroit youth get exposed to higher education. Leah is bringing a garden and nutritious food to a community in Brightmoor. There are nearly 100 more people doing similar small but critical projects in Detroit, and I want to celebrate all of them.

So we are throwing Detroit4Detroit’s Crank Up the Cause with WDET on May 17th at Bert’s Warehouse and I want you there. Our 20 Detroit4Detroit nonprofit partners will be there, from COTS to the Empowerment Plan to DAPCEP. Tickets are $10 donation, and YOU actually get to choose which organization gets your 10 bucks.

But it gets better. For every $10 donation a Detroit4Detroit nonprofit receives, WDET will give it FREE airtime. Actually, throughout the next couple weeks, WDET is going to give the Detroit4Detroit nonprofit partners $50,000 in free airtime. There are two opportunities to vote — right now online and at the party.

So, mark your calendars and join WDET, Michigan Corps, Model D, Ponyride, I Am Young Detroit, 71 Pop, Detroit Harmonie, Imagine Detroit Together, The Collaborative Group, CommunityNEXT, Texts from Last Night and Detroit Young Professionals for a night you won’t to miss.  Come out, enjoy the music, celebrate the people, support the community, and get involved! Doing good has never been so fun.

Could you feed yourself on $1.50 a day – the U.S. equivalent of the extreme poverty line? Rob and Nicole V. are doing so this week as part of Live Below the Line - a week-long initiative that challenges people to spend five days feeding themselves on the U.S. equivalent of the extreme poverty line. Read more about their challenge, and why it is important to us at United Way, here.

Today Rob and Nicole share a video with us of Day 0 - the day they went shopping to prepare for a week of eating on $15.

What is home? For me, I think of the cute little house my husband and I bought when we learned we would be welcoming a daughter. I think of the house I grew up in and the bedroom where I dreamed of where life would take me. I think of the corner of the high school theater where my friends and I ate lunch and compared stories of awkward teenage humiliations. I think of the City of Hamtramck where I met my husband and spent 10 years soaking up a cacophony of cultures, surrounded by art and music. And I think of the place I’ve spent business hours for the last nine years. 

When I started with United Way, I was freshly out of college, living in a little flat with a roommate and two cats. The organization was called United Way Community Services and looked little like what the organization has grown into. The business model was simple. We raised money and we gave that money to nonprofits throughout the region. I worked in a small department called Tel-Help. We took calls from individuals who needed assistance and connected those individuals with organizations that provide assistance.

During my time here, Tel-Help evolved into the powerhouse that is 2-1-1, United Way Community Services dissolved and regenerated as United Way for Southeastern Michigan, and I grew as a person and as a professional. This kind of growth doesn’t come without its awkward moments. I remember a boss letting me know that if I wanted to be taken seriously as a professional I might want to quit wearing men’s athletic socks with flats to work. The organization lost some key partners when our missions no longer aligned. But far more memorable are those sweet moments of success.  There was they day I got married, the launch of 2-1-1, my daughter’s birth and the encouraging numbers coming from our Turnaround Schools.

So nine years later, what’s the coolest thing I’ve learned here? I suppose if I were to pick one thing it would be the importance of evolving to meet the times while still staying true to who we are.  From day one, United Way has been dedicated to bringing people together across all the boundaries in this region – cultural, economic, geographic – to improve the quality of life for all people.  In recent years we’ve evolved to meet changing needs and expectations, to be more focused and results oriented, but at our core, we have the same goal.  And my personal mission remains the same as I transition to a new organization. 

It’s never easy to say goodbye. But both individuals and organizations must continue to evolve and take on new challenges if we are to remain vital and relevant. I’ll never forget this place or the people that make it what it is.  I feel extraordinarily privileged to call United Way for Southeastern Michigan home. Thanks for everything.

With the launch of No Kid Hungry – Michigan today, United Way, along with community partners, is ending childhood hunger. Among our first-year priorities, we are increasing access to federal child nutrition programs, such as school breakfast and summer meals.

But what does that really mean? Will increasing school breakfast and summer meal programs really put a dent in hunger?

I think so, and let me tell you why.

Last year I had the good fortune to take a group of student leaders to Ford Field the night before Thanksgiving to meet Nickelback. We walked from our office on Campus Martius to the field around 6:00 p.m. As we entered the stadium and crossed the field, just as we were approaching the members of Nickelback, out of the corner of my eye I caught one of the students kneeling on the field.

Oblivious, I assumed that he was just really excited to be standing on Ford Field and was touching the turf. A few seconds later I realized he was on the verge of passing out. It turns out, he hadn’t eaten all day, which unfortunately, made sense to me. The day before Thanksgiving, he had only a half day of school. He was sent home before school lunch.

For too many of our children, school lunch is the one consistent meal they can count upon. And this is what happens when school isn’t in session. Children go hungry and get sick.

It is easy to assume that careless parenting is to blame. If only parents had their priorities straight, managed their money correctly or worked a better job, then their children wouldn’t be hungry. And I’m not going to say that is never the case, but research proves it to be the exception – not the norm. Most of us, fortunately, just do not understand what it is like to live below the poverty line and to have to rely on services such as school lunches to feed our children because our food budget is gone a week into the month.

Enter Live Below the Line, a week-long initiative that challenges people to spend five days feeding themselves on $1.50 a day – the U.S. equivalent of the extreme poverty line. The campaign is designed to give a glimpse into the lives of 1.4 billion people who have no choice but to live below the line every day – and who have to make $1.50 cover a lot more than food.

I learned about the Challenge through my cousin, Rob, and his wife, Nicole. They are participating in the challenge in support of Nicole’s organization, Malaria No More – an organization that distributes life-saving mosquito nets and treatment, paired with groundbreaking health communications to ensure families are safe and protected. As the Director of Operations and Strategy at the Malaria Policy Center, Nicole has traveled to Africa several times and has become heartbroken by the abject poverty and living conditions she sees there.

I am just as heartbroken when one of our best and brightest students from Detroit doesn’t have steady access to three meals a day, or anywhere in our state, for that matter. One in five Michigan residents have trouble affording enough food.

Rob and Nicole have graciously agreed to blog about their week living on $1.50 per day for food for United Way – to give us all a glimpse into what it is like to live in extreme poverty. I invite you to watch this space this week, May 7 - 11, and follow their story.

And, while I’m not in the practice of soliciting donations for another nonprofit (my blood runs United Way blue, red and gold, you know), I invite you to check out Rob and Nicole’s Live Below the Line fundraising page in support of Malaria No More and contribute if you are inspired – like I was. I am proud to say that, as of this writing, they are second in the nation in fundraising for the Challenge.

If you want to make a difference at home, here are three ways you can take action today:

1. Sign up now to be a part of No Kid Hungry – Michigan by visiting the website and entering your information under the “End Childhood Hunger“ heading.
2. Lend your voice to United Way’s advocacy efforts to ask Congress to support nutrition programs, like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, that put food on the table for 800,000 children in Michigan.
3. Donate now to United Way’s work to eradicate childhood hunger.

And, by all means, don’t feel as if you have to choose between supporting world-wide efforts or local efforts to end hunger. A small donation or action to each could make a world of difference.

Michigan No Kid Hungry is a partnership with Share Our Strength, a national child anti-hunger organization, and the United Way for Southeastern Michigan, with support from the State of Michigan that will end childhood hunger in the state by promoting proven strategies that connect Michigan kids with healthy meals where they live, learn, and play.

“For Michigan children to succeed and thrive, they need access to healthy meals each and every day,” said Gov. Snyder. “Working together through efforts like this will help do just that and make a positive difference for our kids, communities, health, and economy”

Almost one million rural and urban Michigan households need help to afford enough food at some point during the year. A Share Our Strength survey of teachers also showed that nearly two-thirds (65%) of teachers said there are children in their classrooms who regularly come to school hungry because they are not getting enough to eat at home.

The first year priorities of Michigan No Kid Hungry are to bring together a collaborating table of stakeholders who will focus on connecting kids to school breakfast and summer meals programs and teaching families at risk of hunger how to get more food for their money and better nourishment from those foods through Share Our Strength’s Cooking Matters.

“We will be expanding our work with schools across the state of Michigan to implement innovative breakfast practices that help increase school breakfast participation, such as Breakfast in the Classroom, where kids eat breakfast at their desks, making it a part of their academic day,” said Michael J. Brennan, President and CEO of United Way of Southeastern Michigan. “At the same time, we’re focused on connecting kids to free summer meals by raising awareness about the program and get more summer meals sites set up.”

More than 580,000 students across the State of Michigan ate a free or reduced-price school lunch—an important indicator of need—during the 2010-2011 school year.  Yet less than half of those students (48.2%), received free or reduced-price school breakfast. In addition, only 13.5 out of every 100 kids who ate a free or reduced-price school lunch in school year 2009-2010 received a free summer meal. Reasons for low participation vary by program but include stigma, transportation barriers and a lack of awareness of food programs and how to access them.

"We know that children who skip breakfast or other meals are more likely to make errors, be absent or tardy and to repeat a grade,” said Roy Roberts, Emergency Manager of Detroit Public Schools. "We also know that not all families can afford to feed their children three meals a day and ensure that they have the fuel they need to excel in the classroom, which is why Detroit Public Schools for the first time ever this year began offering free healthy breakfasts and hot nutritional lunches to all students in K-12. We applaud the state of Michigan and its Michigan No Kid Hungry partners for their efforts to end childhood hunger."

Share Our Strength is investing more than $145,000 in Michigan No Kid Hungry with generous support from sponsors the Arby’s Foundation and Weight Watchers®. Michigan No Kid Hungry is part of Share Our Strength’s national campaign to end childhood hunger with campaigns in 17 other states and cities.

“This is the moment to act,” said Billy Shore, founder and CEO of Share Our Strength. “Right now, a fifth of our youngest generation is struggling with hunger. When these kids get the food they need, they feel better, they learn more and they grow up stronger. The good news is that, together, we can make that happen.”

A recent survey conducted by Share Our Strength and the ConAgra Foods Foundation found that 85 percent of low-income families rate eating healthy meals as important, but many parents are struggling to afford the ingredients to make healthy meals. Cooking Matters teaches families at risk of hunger how to get more from their food resources and cook healthy meals, through cooking, shopping and nutrition education.

“We have found that families that participate in nutrition education programs, such as Cooking Matters have reported that they are eating a wider variety of healthy meals and feel more empowered when confronting the variety of items offered in grocery stores,” said Kareemah El-Amin, Executive Director of the Michigan Food Bank Council. “The long term benefit that nutrition education can have on the health and wellness of families go hand-in-hand with increased access to food to improve the quality of life in Michigan’s communities.”

Since 2005, Share Our Strength has partnered with Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeast Michigan to provide Cooking Matters programming to Michigan families. In 2012, Gleaners expects to expand programming to 36 counties across Michigan (up from 11 counties in 2011), reaching 11,500 people at risk of hunger.

Share Our Strength’s national No Kid Hungry efforts are supported by Share Our Strength core partners ConAgra Foods Foundation, Food Network and Walmart. Visit www.Strength.org to learn more about Share Our Strength and NoKidHungry.org/Michigan to learn more about Michigan No Kid Hungry.

As a 13-year-old boy, I was lucky enough to vacation in the tropical Bahamian paradise with my family. The hotel we stayed in was pristine – offering every luxury a kid could want. After a couple of days playing by the pool, my sense of curiosity kicked in and I decided to take the bus out of the all-inclusive resort. I wanted an adventure, but I wasn’t prepared for what I saw.

Growing up in a blue collar neighborhood in Lansing, I knew of families and friends who struggled financially. Both of my parents were educators, so luckily, I never lacked for the basic necessities. More importantly, however, my parents instilled in me a drive to do something important with my life. I thought I was pretty aware of how good I had it.

Despite witnessing some hardships on my own block, I was stunned when I saw the abject poverty outside of the resort. Families were living in 6-foot-by-6-foot structures made from scrap materials. The effect was a sprawling shantytown of refuse. As I compared this scene to the one I had just left a bus ride away, I became angry. These people worked in a luxurious resort, but had no bed to sleep on for themselves. It was unjust. The experience was just one that set me on a path to help make change.

As I grew older, I learned that my own home state has pockets of poverty that rivaled what I witnessed as a child. Working as a legislative aid in Lansing, I canvassed the neighborhoods of inner-city Detroit. Vacant lot after vacant lot lined the streets. I remember meeting an older woman on one of my trips. I imagined what her home looked like decades ago, probably tree-lined and full of people barbecuing dinner. Now, burned-out buildings surrounded her, and city services had been severely cut.

It was shortly after these experiences that I decided to work toward making sustainable, positive changes in our region. And I found myself at the United Way for Southeastern Michigan, where I currently serve as the director of our food initiative.

But what I encountered during my stint canvassing streets wasn’t just a “Detroit problem.” In every community, people are struggling, and some of our most vulnerable residents are our youngest. According to Feeding America, more than 250,000 children are food insecure in Southeastern Michigan, struggling to access the nutritious food they need to survive and thrive. It is well documented that these children are more likely to suffer from behavior, emotional and academic problems than children who are not experiencing hunger.

Today, we launched the Michigan No Kid Hungry Initiative, an initiative to rid childhood hunger in Michigan in five years. An ambitious goal, but one we can meet if everyone works together.

I’ll always be grateful for the eye-opening experience I had as a teenager. It made me better appreciate what I was given. Today, I want the same for all of our children. When all of Michigan's children are healthy, our state is healthier. And that’s a goal everyone can benefit from.

As I wrote last night, I’m thrilled that United Way for Southeastern Michigan is not only a Challenge Detroit Host Company, but that we are also one of the nonprofits that will be a benefactor of a Challenge Detroit Team Challenge. Want to learn more about the Challenge? Check out this video from Fox 2 Detroit.

66 finalists for Challenge Detroit spots after 900 applied: MyFoxDETROIT.com

"To those who scoff at the idea of a revitalized Detroit, I would remind them of what aviator Amelia Earhart said: 'Never interrupt someone doing something that you said can’t be done.’” - Sergio Marchionne, Chairman and CEO of Chrysler.

It has been a stellar week as far as I’m concerned. Sergio Marchionne announced that he, along with 70 other Chrysler employees, will move to downtown Detroit. Dan Gilbert pledged his support for United Way publicly. And Challenge Detroit kicked off a new phase with candidate interviews.

A good week for this city – this region – indeed.

If you haven’t heard of Challenge Detroit, I invite you to visit their website and learn more about this special initiative that will bring 30 of tomorrow's leaders to live, work, play, and give in and around the Detroit area for one year.

I’m thrilled that United Way for Southeastern Michigan is not only a Challenge Detroit Host Company, but that we are also one of the nonprofits that will be a benefactor of a Challenge Detroit Team Challenge.

Over 900 people applied to become part of Challenge Detroit. The field has been narrowed to 66. I spent today, along with our Marketing Manager, Paul, meeting with the finalists and interviewing those that have shown an interest in working with United Way during their Challenge Detroit year.

After interviewing candidates for a straight six hours (and losing my voice - us “Digital” people don’t exercise our vocal chords all that often, you know), all I can say is, “Wow!”

I am so inspired.

Today I met a woman who is moving her entire family across the country, from Colorado to Detroit, because her and her husband have been reading about the Detroit revitalization and want to be part of it.

And a woman born and raised in New York that can’t wait to move here.

And a soon-to-be college grad from Wisconsin who has never been to the city before today, but is placing bets on this is where her future is going to start.

And four “locals” who know that they don’t want to follow in the footsteps of so many of their peers – moving out-of-state to start their post-college careers.

“This is my city,” I heard over and over again today.

I know that there are those that think the Challenge Detroit concept is crazy – that 30 people can’t put a dent in decades of decline in just one year. And they’d be right. But, luckily, the 30 participants chosen for Challenge Detroit won’t be doing this work alone. They’ll join the ranks of Sergio Marchionne… and Dan Gilbert… and United Way… and the tens of thousands of United Way donors, volunteers and advocates… and every person at every organization invested in Challenge Detroit…

And me.

I am a believer in the collective power of the people of this region and I’m proud to be part of the movement that won’t be interrupted by the neigh sayers.

Do you believe too? If so, let it be known – drop a comment below and tell me why. I can’t wait to hear your story!

When I was a kid, we had liver for dinner every other Thursday night.  Almost as bad as that, we would occasionally have to bring liverwurst sandwiches to school as a substitute for our usual staple of PB&J or baloney. Why? Because it was good for us. I can still hear my mom’s voice, “It’s filled with iron.”

As a husband and father, I often wonder, “Didn’t they have iron pills back then? Vitamin supplements?  Something?” I don’t even know if they sell liver any more.  And I’m almost positive you can’t buy liverwurst at reputable grocery stores. So what gives?

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do In Life and Business by Charles Duhigg, is helping me make sense of the world.  It turns out that in the 1940’s, when my mom was just a kid, our nation did not have enough meat for families to eat, as we had to feed our troops overseas as well as those of our British and Russian allies in World War II.  In order to keep our nation healthy and our morale up, the government needed to make eating organ meat, like liver and kidney, something palatable here at home.  To do that, they convened a group of leading sociologists including Margaret Mead, who engrained eating liver into the daily habits of ordinary Americans—so much so that my mother was still feeding it to us 40 years after the war ended!

That’s the power of habits, and it turns out that some habits are more powerful than others.  Making your bed every morning, for instance, has a correlative impact with being more productive throughout the day.  Similarly, having family meals every night correlates with children who get much better grades.  These are known as “keystone habits,” and incorporating them into one’s day can have a big impact in families, organizations, and even communities.

In my own life I stumbled upon a keystone habit not mentioned in the book: Date Night.  My wife and I had three kids in the first five years of our marriage--at the same time that we were starting and running Think Detroit with Dan Varner.  Our life was pretty much a blur, and our entertainment consisted of sitting on the couch on Saturday mornings with a cup of coffee, watching the kids play on the living room floor.  But we noticed that every couple who had a marriage we admired held a pretty sacred commitment to date night. And so we did the same.

Date night for us quickly became an anchoring event each week, a time to exhale together, to catch up on the week behind, plan the week ahead, or just escape to a good movie and not think at all. The weekend, and the following week, all flowed smoother because of it.  Our kids have a much better quality of life today because of our commitment to adopting a habit that did not come naturally to us.

Our commitment at United Way to the transformative power of early childhood rests on a similar conviction: that all parents and caregivers have the capacity, indeed the responsibility, to adopt and practice habits that will best prepare their children for success in life—regardless of their circumstances.

The most powerful keystone habit is reading to children every day for the first five years of their life.  On this one the science is clear—the combined impact of quiet, attentive time with children, close physical touch, a soothing voice, and the mystery of the spoken and written word unfolding in front of them, stimulates children’s brain development in profound and permanent ways.

Reading to children every day.  Every home.  Every neighborhood.  It’s a simple habit, and it’s how we get better all the time.

This blog post is a reprint from "We're Better Together," a twice-monthly newsletter, authored by Michael Tenbusch, that discusses the current state of education in metro Detroit and beyond. United Way for Southeastern Michigan distributes "We're Better Together" without charge to people with an interest in education. If you are interested in subscribing to We're Better Together, please visit www.LiveUnitedSEM.org/BetterTogether.

One of the most rewarding and most challenging parts of my work in Volunteer Engagement is understanding the diverse characteristics and needs of those who volunteer. A while ago, I wrote about how Millennials can work with more experienced generations to ensure a better life for all.

But reports from the Corporation for National and Community Service indicates something it did not predict when it set its five year goals back in 2005. It reveals some stark statistics regarding the Baby Boomer generation’s involvement in volunteerism – it’s on the decline. In 2010, 28.8 percent of Boomers volunteered, a decrease from 29.9 percent in 2007, and from 33.5 percent in 2003, according to a 2010 annual report.

This came as a surprise to the Corporation, which had identified Boomers as low-hanging fruit for volunteer engagement efforts, subsequently investing millions of dollars into building out programs targeted specifically to engage them.

One of the Corporation’s five major objectives in its five-year strategic plan focused on “Harnessing Baby Boomers’ Experience." The rationale for this target gushed with claims about how “the nation and its communities can greatly benefit from the sheer volume, high motivation and broad talents of Baby Boomers, who can bring innovative ways to address the most pressing community needs.”

But instead, we experience a decline in Boomer volunteerism. But why? The problem with this strategy is that it is based on unfounded assumptions.

By setting a goal to increase volunteer rates among Baby Boomers, the strategy assumes that those who are not currently volunteering will begin volunteering upon retirement. This assumption seems to follow logic. If an individual has more time and is out of the work force, they should be more likely to volunteer. In fact, those out of the labor force are less likely to volunteer than those who are either employed or looking for work, as reported recently by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Though it seems an anomaly based on opportunity cost, those employed full-time are the most likely to volunteer. Though we know that Baby Boomers are more civically active than the Traditionalist generation,  we cannot simply take their volunteer participation for granted.

Another assumption worth debunking is that which expects Baby Boomers to volunteer in traditional ways. The reason we cannot take Baby Boomer’s for granted as volunteers is exactly the same reason why the Corporation and Volunteer Centers across the nation find Baby Boomers so attractive as volunteers. It is precisely because they are skilled, self-motivated and highly educated.

Baby Boomers will not find the same fulfillment in packing food boxes or stuffing envelopes that they did from utilizing the skills and talents required by their careers. More attention will need to be paid in empowering this generation of volunteers to continue to draw from their life’s work through skill-based volunteering. (Not sure what skill-based volunteering is? Ask the word police!)

Baby Boomers, retirees, and those in “semi-retirement” are excellent candidates for skill-based volunteering because of their education, talents, experience, and available time. By promoting skill-based volunteerism — volunteering which requires specialized education or training, such as pro-bono legal services, health care or even pro-bono carpentry or painting volunteer management experts across the country encourage more efficient and effective volunteerism and increases the value of the time provided.  While traditional volunteering, which requires no training, is valued at $18-$20 an hour, skill-based volunteering is valued at $40-$500 per hour, depending upon the market value of the service. This not only channels the value of the service, but more importantly, demonstrates to this generation of volunteers that they are valued.

While it is the view of some that Baby Boomers must replenish volunteer ranks, it is my view that the call to action is to organizations to retool and better equip themselves to engage this generation in new and valuable ways. When volunteer centers across the national were spending time drooling over the Boomers as they entered retirement years, they should have been preparing themselves to better engage this productive and idealistic generation.

Getting a job offer straight out of college is a good thing, right? Of course it is. But if you’re a Sally, and not a Sam, typically, you will be offered less than your male counterparts. Even if Sam and Sally both have an associate’s degree in Information Technology from a local community college and had similar internship experiences upon college graduation, Sam would be offered $25 per hour while Sally would get $19.25. In this economy, both would be grateful to have a job. Yet the income disparity will continuously plague Sally throughout her career.

In terms of wage gap disparities nationwide, Michigan ranks as the 10th worst.For every dollar a man earns, a woman makes 77.4 cents. That’s 25 cents an hour less than her male counterpart – a sad, but true statistic.
There are severe financial repercussions that result due to the wage gap. In Sally’s case, she will earn nearly $12,000 less than Sam per year at this rate. And this number would not even factor in possible overtime pay or interest that could have been earned on an investment with the extra $12,000. And  if Sally goes on maternity leave, has to take care of an ailing parent, the wage loss continues to compound.

During my own high school internship 15 years ago, I earned $6.50 per hour. That was the highest paid internship in my cohort. During my junior and senior years of high school, I was fortunate to be selected as an accounting intern for a mid-sized automotive supplier. The school’s college preparatory curriculum allowed me to attend class and the internship as part of a dual enrollment program.  I would spend four hours of my day in business classes at Detroit’s Cass Technical High School and the remaining four in an accounting department at a nearby office. Thankfully, the foundation provided by the internship landed me on a career path in corporate finance.

Fast-forward to today, in my role at United Way for Southeastern Michigan, I am charged with funding initiatives that put people on a pathway to financial stability. We all know that this starts with a good job. Securing a good job, however, is only one part of becoming financially stable. In Sally’s case, the wage gap would be one of the challenges she would face, at the Detroit Regional Workforce Fund, we are helping people like Sally overcome employment obstacles.

Yesterday marked the end of National Financial Capability Month, a national effort to bring awareness to financial responsibility. This White House initative started in response to the economic crisis. When people are able to manage their finances well, they are more inclined to spend or invest money that directly impacts the economy.

At United Way for Southeastern Michigan, we want to focus on financial education year-round. To learn more about our efforts at helping people become more financially stable, please click here.

The past two weeks have been busy ones for public policy “wonks” like myself. The state legislature is developing next year’s budget at a record pace and addressing long-awaited education reforms; at the same time, Congress has put forth bold proposals for the federal budget, hunger-fighting programs and workforce development. The full update describes all of these developments and more. You can click the links to find in-depth information.

Don’t have time to read the whole thing? Check out some highlights below!

Education

• FY 2013 Budget: The House and Senate approved education funding bills. The House generally conformed to the Governor’s recommendations, supporting new incentive grant funding. The House also provides new funding for out-of-school time programs. The Senate only provided minimal funding for incentive grants, instead increasing the per-pupil allotment and continuing funding for small class sizes. The Senate backed off a previous proposal to replace the MEAP test this year. The Senate also proposes to change the structure of early childhood funding next year; the House proposes a phased-in plan to change the structure gradually.
• Home Visits: Rep. Lisa Posthumous Lyons (R-Alto), chair of the House Education Committee, introduced new legislation that would support home visitation programs for at-risk families and expectant parents. The legislation has bipartisan support.

Income

• Workforce Investment Act (WIA): The House Education & Workforce Committee held a hearing on the Workforce Investment Improvement Act, a proposal that consolidates several programs, reduces bureaucracy and enhances the role of employers.
• Foreclosure Settlement: Neeta Delaney, of the Michigan Foreclosure Task Force, advocates in a Free Press op-ed for ensuring that state funds from the foreclosure settlement are targeted at helping struggling homeowners.

Basic Needs

• Farm Bill: The Senate Agriculture committee approved a proposal to reauthorize the Farm Bill, which passed the committee with bipartisan support. The proposal largely maintains Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for families in need, but limits states’ ability to use the “Heat and Eat” option, which coordinates with other assistance to maximize families’ benefits. It also includes a number of measures to decrease program abuse and fraud. The House Agriculture Committee held the first in a planned series of hearings on Farm Bill reauthorization. It will examine nutrition programs and fruit and vegetable programs on May 8.
• FY2013 Budget: The Senate Appropriations committee approved a budget bill for Department of Agriculture that fully funds WIC and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program. The House Agriculture Committee submitted a recommendation for policy changes that would save $8 billion in FY2013, in response to directive in the House-approved budget framework authored by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI). The Committee’s proposal included drastic cuts to SNAP, which would result in all recipients seeing reduced benefit amounts in September 2012. It would also make 3 million current recipients ineligible. The proposals foreshadow proposals that may arise as the House debates a Farm Bill in the coming weeks.

Click here to download the full recap of recent public policy developments.

If you’ve taken a glance at the Metro Detroit Attendance Challenge leaderboard lately, you might have noticed that Lincoln Van Dyke High School is on fire! As the challenge winds to a close, they show no signs of cooling off. Principal Charles Lesser attributes their success in the challenge to a few things.

“From the beginning we focused on engaging key student leaders that are really seen as role models to their peers,” Lesser said. “These students cross many different peer groups including kids involved in sports, band, robotics and choir.”

This group of about 25 students have actively promoted the challenge by promoting good attendance, reminding their peers to sign up for the wake up calls and participate in the challenge activities like the quizzes and teacher nominations.

“The sense of competition is HUGE,” he said. “The kids do not like it when our position slips on the leaderboard. They want to know what else they can do. That leaderboard really taps into their competitive spirit.”

It’s not just the students who are getting into the competitive spirit. School administrators have incorporated the different components of the challenge into everyday school time by taking the quizzes at the beginning or ending of class, asking the students who gave them wake up calls when passing them in the halls and providing daily PA announcements about the challenge and where the school stands.

“I always want to do more and see more gains in our attendance rates,” said principal Lesser. “We fight against breaks in the schedule for testing, spring break, senioritis … you name it. But this is so important that we can’t give up!”

While Lincoln loves the competition and the possibility of hosting a celebrity at their school, their goal is to improve attendance for the entire student body. The challenge gave them some tools to get the ball rolling. But they aren’t stopping there.

“We’re talking about using this spirit of competition to motivate students around academics. We thought maybe we could use a leaderboard to help motivate kids to work harder academically and improve our test scores,” he said.

Given their success in the Attendance Challenge, principal Lesser might be on to something. Great job Lincoln!

Recently, we celebrated a graduation. There were no cap and gowns, but graduates left our program better informed and ready to take on the social challenges plaguing so many in Southeastern Michigan. It was exciting to see so many people coming together from across the region to celebrate the idea of gathering useful resources, passing them along and making connections with other students.

The celebration was for UCAN (Union Community Activist Network) program. But it didn’t happen overnight it. It actually began more than 10 years ago in Southeastern Michigan. The program highlights the 60-year partnership between United Way and Organized Labor with the American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). We know that change doesn’t happen all at once, but our goal is to provide vital information to students from local unions, and challenge them to share the information they learn. It sounds simple, but the classes empower people to take action and become ambassadors of change in communities.

United Way for Southeastern Michigan is all about introducing positive change to local communities, so our participation with the program makes perfect sense. During the four-week program we had 122 students discuss topics such as the Michigan Benefits Access Initiative, effectively communicating with social media and public policy efforts that affect our everyday life.

I smile as I think back to that Saturday evening where people were laughing and celebrating the completion of the 2012 UCAN program. I wasn’t exactly sure how successful the program was until one of the students pulled me to the side. She was beaming! Her statement helped me breathe a sigh of relief; she never knew there were so many programs and resources available throughout the region until she participated. That was enough for me; I do believe we’re changing communities one person a time.

Our next UCAN program will take place in March 2013, for more details about the program please contact Erkeisha Terry at erkeisha.terry@liveunitedsem.org.

As an AmeriCorps member with the Downriver CARES program, I have the privilege of volunteering every Friday -- sometimes Saturdays. This past weekend, I worked on a special project for Global Youth Service Day.

The beatification project took place on Lamphere Street in Brightmoor, a neighborhood on the western border of Detroit. Brightmoor, a working class neighborhood since the 1920s, has halved its population in the last 20 years, yet some remarkable things are taking place there, and I was proud to be a part of that. 

The sense of community is clear in Brightmoor, and is manifested in the community gardens, art projects and volunteer efforts. This particular project took three days to plan and execute, but the rewards far surpassed the effort.

The event – flawlessly orchestrated by Katharina Walsh, a fellow AmeriCorps Member – was a partnership between the Downriver CARES AmeriCorps program and her placement site, Neighbors Building Brightmoor. 

During the two Fridays that led up to the main event, 50 or so AmeriCorps members and about a dozen community members partook in various projects to make the street safer while beautifying the area. We painted sheets of wood to board up houses, filled three dumpsters with debris and landscaped the block, creating a new community garden and gathering place on a vacant lot.

I knew the sweat equity was adding up when I overheard a resident comment that she didn’t know how she would be able to display her gratitude adequately. She didn’t realize that by making us delicious barbecued chicken and ribs that she had shown her appreciation! After a few days of hard work, the barbecue was a great treat, although the real desert was the sense of accomplishment of creating a better physical space for the community, with the community.

There are many more blocks in Brightmoor and throughout Detroit that could use your help. If you are interested in volunteering, please check out the Neighbors Building Brightmoor Facebook link.  If you are interested in a year of service and would like to learn more about the Downriver CARES AmeriCorps program, please click on this Facebook link.

For as long as I can remember, my dad, who was a career U.S. Marine, almost always worked a second job to bring in additional income so that my mother could stay at home and watch my four sisters and me. Back in the '60s and '70s, this extra income was exactly that -- extra. My dad did everything from catering to bartending, and many tips paid for family vacations. Meeting the basic needs of food and shelter was never an issue.

Unfortunately in today's economy, working an extra job won't even pay the rent. One-third of Southeastern Michigan residents don't make enough income to meet their basic needs.

According to the Michigan League for Human Service's 2011 Economic Self- Sufficiency Report, for a single parent with two children in Michigan, the income needed to meet basic expenses is $21.33 per hour. This is nearly as high as the 2008-09 median income of a two-parent family with two children where both parents worked.

The map above from the National Low Income Housing Coalition shows, state by state, the average number of hours a minimum wage earner must work in order to pay for an apartment.

Based on the NIHS calculator, in order to afford the monthly rent shown for Michigan, you need to make at least $15.38 per hour, or $32,000 per year. This calculation assumes you will spend no more than 30% of your income on rent (the generally accepted standard of affordability). If you earn the minimum wage in our state, which is $7.40 per hour, then you must work 83 hours per week to have an income high enough to afford this rent. Imagine having to work that number of hours just to ensure your family has a roof over its heads and food to eat.

For too many families, a second job does not pay for a vacation.  It pays for rent, child care and prescriptions.

As I sit writing this, I am in a hotel room in San Francisco, and I am thinking about all the hotel employees who get up every day to come here and clean rooms, serve food and check bags for guests. I wonder how many of these individuals must work an extra job to make ends meet or must count on the generosity of tips to cover their basics. For all the years I have traveled, I have always left a tip for housekeeping along with a note wishing them a wonderful day. But I know these tips won't fix the problem.

Through our many partnerships such as the Detroit Regional Workforce Fund or Centers for Working Families, United Way for Southeastern Michigan is committed to efforts that  help people create career pathways and hope for a better life for themselves and their families.

This blog post is a reprint from "Pathways out of Poverty," a twice-monthly newsletter, authored by Dona Ponepinto, which discusses issues relating to basic needs, such as housing and food, in metro Detroit and beyond. United Way for Southeastern Michigan distributes "Pathways out of Poverty" without charge to people with an interest in education. If you are interested in subscribing, please click here.