Friday, February 28, 2014

Question & Answer Interview with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Guam Executive Director Vanessa Estella


1. What is your mission at BBBSG?

Our mission statement is as follows: We provide children facing adversity with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one relationships that change their lives for the better.

We strive to achieve this by increasing awareness of the positive impacts of mentoring, building partnerships that yield volunteer and donor support, and enhancing the mentoring experience by providing support and supplemental services.

2. What specific services does BBBSG  provide?

We recruit, screen, train, coach and support volunteer mentors who work one-to-one with youth.  We also work with school and community partners who provide youth referrals to our programs.  Our organization takes a case-management approach, and therefore every mentoring match is assigned a case worker who tracks the progress of each mentoring relationship.

3. Who is your target audience?

We work with youth who seek the guidance and friendship of an older role model or mentor.   Youth, or “Littles,” ages 8-16 can apply.  There is no cost to participate.


4. What are your hours of operation and what is the best way for people to reach you that are interested in assistance?

Our office is open from 8AM-5PM, Monday through Friday, and by appointment on Saturday.

It’s best to reach us via email at bbbsg@teleguam.net or to call our office at 472-2227.

You can fill out an online youth or volunteer enrollment form at www.guambbbs.org  or find us on Facebook –BBBSG.

5. In addition to direct services, what resources does BBBSG offer?
Case workers provide referral services for youth and parents involved in the program.  The organization also hosts regular enrichment activities, and volunteer and youth trainings.  A current grant allows us to host an “Internet Tent” that provides underserved youth with Internet and computer access several times a month.

6. Thinking about current events, how do you foresee recent events in your field of work affecting your organization and its work?
By providing positive role models to youth, and by presenting youth with opportunities to experience new things and improve their developmental assets, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Guam aims to give youth the skills they need to achieve success in their lives.   We encourage our mentors to guide their Littles in shaping better, healthier attitudes towards school, their peers and their families. In essence, we are equipping kids to break the cycle of academic failure, poverty and broken families. 

7.  Can you discuss your community partnerships and how they contribute to the overall success of BBBSG individually.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Guam is a volunteer-driven, donor-driven organization.  Therefore, the partnerships we’ve forged with community partners, local businesses and our friends in government agencies have been critical to our program.

8. Can you touch on the history of BBBSG and how the organization is set up?
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Guam began in the mid-1990s and was run by a small group of determined volunteers.  By 2001, we incorporated and became a full-fledged non-profit organization!  The Guam office is a full affiliate of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, and must comply with national program standards.  We are currently an office with 2 full-time staff, and our abilities to serve children are multiplied through the power and generosity of volunteer mentors!

9. Any upcoming plans or projects that our island community should be aware of?
February is Mentoring Awareness Month, and we kicked things off with a 2K/5K run hosted by our corporate sponsor, Nerium. We also hosted a pool party for our mentoring matches.  On Feb. 10, with the help of Gov. Calvo, we honored two outstanding individuals for their dedication and service to youth mentoring.  Rafael Hughes Batalla was recognized as the 2014 Big Brother of the Year, and Price Elementary School counselor Dr. Agnes Indalecio was named the 2014 Honorary Big Sister of the Year.  Later in the month, VARO will conduct a child safety and sexual abuse prevention training for our youth constituents.  

10. Why do you think the work you do is important to our island community and the world at large?
The economy has affected the way social services are delivered, both for government agencies and for nonprofit organizations.  As we all grapple with scarce resources, we have come to realize that Big Brothers Big Sisters of Guam plays a critical role in filling some of the gaps in youth services.  So, if we can provide early-intervention services for at-risk youth and change the way our youth grow up, we benefit the community at large.


Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Question & Answer Interview with Guam Legal Services Corporation - Disability Law Center (GLSC-DLC) Executive Director Harold F. Parker


1. What is your mission (goals & objectives) at Guam Legal Services Corporation - Disability Law Center Services?
 GLSC-DLC will provide legal assistance, and will advocate and promote equal rights and equal access to justice for the underserved communities of Guam.

2. What specific services does Guam Legal Services Corporation - Disability Law Center provide?
 Staff conduct intake assessments, provide counsel and advice, provide representation at court hearings or meetings, advocate for individual’s rights, investigate allegations of abuse and make appropriate referrals.

3. Who is your target audience?
Individuals with low income and individuals with disabilities.
4. What are your hours of operation and what is the best way for people to reach you that are interested in assistance?
Monday through Friday 8:30am-4:30pm.
Closed on weekends and holidays.

5. In addition to direct services, what resources does Guam Legal Services Corporation - Disability Law Center offer?
GLSC-DLC also developed interactive interviews which are available on our website for issues such as guardianship and simple divorces wherein an individual can go through the interactive interview and answer questions which then create the legal documents necessary to file in court without an attorney.
6. Thinking about current events, how do you foresee recent events in your field of work affecting your organization and its work?
Current events indicate that we will continue to receive a large number of requests for assistance in domestic relations matter and especially where protective orders are needed.  Unfortunately this is just the area where our funding was reduced in the last year. We thus are continuing to search for other funding to meet these needs.

7.  Can you discuss your community partnerships and how they contribute to the overall success of Guam Legal Services individually.
We have a large number of community partnerships because of the numerous programs that we operate. In the area of domestic relations and domestic violence, we work with VARO, the Guam Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Family Violence, Office of the Attorney General- Victim Witness Ayuda Services, the University of Guam Violence Against Women Prevention Program, and with I Famagu-on'ta, Sanctuary Incorporated, the Family Court, Child Support Enforcement, Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center and many others.  The partnerships are essential in providing us with referrals for individuals needing our help and as places to which we can refer individuals who need assistance from other organizations.  Our primary task is legal aid, so we are referring individuals for shelter, income support, foster placement, treatment of injuries and trauma, parenting, anger management and other needs.
8. Can you touch on the history of Guam Legal Services Corporation - Disability Law Center and how the organization is set up?
GLSC-DLC is a non-profit organization established in 1978 and opened its doors in 1981 to serve the low income community. In 1999 GLSC-DLC was then designated as the Protection and Advocacy System for Guam. The organization is funded primarily by federal grants and is made up of 9 different programs: Legal Services Corporation (LSC) Grant Program, Protection and Advocacy Programs for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI), Individuals with Developmental Disabilities (PADD), Individual Rights (PAIR), Assistive Technology (PAAT), Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS), Traumatic Brain Injury (PATBI), Voter Access (PAVA) and the Technology Initiative Grant (TIG) program.

9. Any upcoming plans or projects that our island community should be aware of?
GLSC-DLC is currently working on a project through the Technology Initiative Grant program wherein interactive interviews are being developed for the Protective Order, Restraining Order and Change of Name process for individuals who are not able to receive services through GLSC-DLC. When the interviews are developed, individuals will be able to create the necessary documents to file in court just by answering questions on the computer.

10. Why do you think the work you do is important to our island community and the world at large (very obvious question, but I feel this is extremely important to ask)?
We seek to assist individuals whose marriages and other relationships have fallen apart and who do not know where to turn.  We help to protect their rights and to get them services and relief that they need.  Most of these individuals would have nowhere else to go for legal assistance if we were not available. 

11. Lastly, could you please provide any current relevant statistics that you have.
In 2013, GLSC-DLC assisted 120 individuals who requested assistance with a Protective Order.



Friday, February 14, 2014

Question & Answer Interview with Oasis Program Manager Holly Rustick


1. What is your mission (goals & objectives) at Oasis? 
The Oasis mission statement is to inspire success-filled living.
The Oasis offers a comprehensive array of supportive services for Islanders to become over-comers of life challenging barriers. Rather than promote short-term entitlements, we promote life-long transformation.

2. What specific services does Oasis provide? 
The Oasis provides for four main tiers, and within those we have a variety of supportive services.

1) Recovery – we offer a multitude of substance abuse classes that range from AA meetings to Early Recovery Skills. We also provide a group home for our residential recovery group home and apartments for our Empowered Together program, which serves homeless mother in recovery that have children in their care.

2) Victims of Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Stalking, and/or Human Trafficking – we serve victims through supportive services (including art therapy, other therapeutic classes, parenting, etc.) and housing in our transitional housing program The Animu Project. We also have a Rape Prevention Program through funding from Department of Public Health and funding to support our DV/SA programs as a sub-grantee under the S*T*O*P* award from the Federal Programs Office.

 3) Workforce Development – We have The Dream Project, funded under ANA Social and Economic Development Strategies that provides a nine-month program for women in poverty to receive workforce training, skills development, and microenterprise assistance through helping with business plans and offering competitive start-up grants. The Dream Project also includes a group home and transportation. We are also a vendor for DVR where we offer job coaching and workforce training for individuals with disabilities;

4) Other – The Hidden Treasures Second-had Boutique that provides workforce training and revenue to fund clients with jobs. We are also anticipating starting up a small plot of gardens on-site in order to provide some basic vegetables and herbs for our clients and provide a means of garden therapy.

3. Who is your target audience? 
Our target audience includes the following: homeless women with disabilities, homeless women with disabilities and their children, adult men and women needing outpatient and intensive outpatient services, women and their children who are victims of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and /or human trafficking, individuals with disabilities, and women in poverty.

4. What are your hours of operation and what is the best way for people to reach you that are interested in assistance? 
At our 556 E. Marine Corps Dr. E. Hagatna location, we are open from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday Friday. Interested people may reach us at 646-4601.

5. In addition to direct services, what resources does Oasis offer?           
We offer the resources of leveraging and referring to partner organizations.
We also offer the opportunity for interested individuals to attend our church – Zion Fellowship on Sundays and to receive prayer on Saturday evenings.

6. Thinking about current events, how do you foresee recent events in your field of work affecting your organization and its work? 
We are largely affected the federal cuts and slashes in SNAP benefits, as are most of our clients personally affected. We do not have much in the way of funding for food for our various programs and are awaiting the funding award of the Emergency Food & Shelter Program Grant. Although, we are writing food category budgets into future grants, we are still trying to come up with solutions to our current shortfalls. 

7.  Can you discuss your community partnerships and how they contribute to the overall success of Oasis individually. 
The Oasis has the following community partnerships: Guam Homeless Coalition (Quorummember), Guam Behavioral Health & Wellness Center, the Department Of Labor, Guam Small Business Development Center, Department of Public Health and Social Services, Agency for Human Resources Development, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, Victim Advocates Reaching Out, Guam Coalition Against Sexual Assault & Family Violence (member), Guam’s Social Workers, Healing Hearts, Guma San Jose, Guma Mami, Guam Legal Services Corporation, Prison Fellowship Guam, Guam Ministerial Alliance, Payuta, Soroptimist International Marianas, Federal Programs Outreach, past and current project beneficiaries, and a wide variety of private corporations and independent business vendors. 

All of our members contribute in various ways pertaining to how our programs relate to their mission statement and how we can work together in order to inspire success-filled living.

8. Can you touch on the history of Oasis and how the organization is set up?
Incorporated as a 501(c)3 tax-exempt nonprofit organization in 2002, Elim Pacific Ministries has become a credible and well-established organization on the island of Guam [refer to Certificate of Good Standing*].  In 2004, Elim Pacific Ministries founded The Oasis Empowerment Center (Oasis), a nonprofit, faith-based organization, which provides a much needed recovery center for homeless Pacific Islander women with life-controlling and life-limiting problems - including drug addictions and disabilities.

9. Any upcoming plans or projects that our island community should be aware of? 
We are launching our Dream Project classes on February 11, 2014 that will assist women with no-to-low income in receiving housing in a shared group home (if needed), workforce training, microenterprise development, with the ability to compete for a seed grant award. Applications are available at our main facility at 556 E. Marine Corps Dr. E. Hagatna or can be requested via email.

10. Why do you think the work you do is important to our island community and the world at large?
Our work impacts our island in dramatic ways. Since we focus predominately on women (and those with children) we see that there is a huge gap in programs for women and women with disabilities and those who are homeless. There exist some short-term programs on island, but we are unique in our holistic programs that are long-term in nature and focus on life changes rather than promoting short-term entitlements. As many of our women have children, and many are single moms, they (and our programs for children) in turn have a huge effect on children. Since our children are the future, we see that we have an intergenerational impact on our island. Furthermore, our programs are tailored to assist women in job creation and development so our programs also have an effect on increasing needed employment on Guam. This in turn, has an effect on the world as Guam can be a transient place where Guamanians go to Asia, Australia-Pacific, and the mainland for other job opportunities, education, and various other reasons.  


Friday, February 07, 2014

Put your online safety first!!!

Although social media is fun and has many positive benefits, unfortunately it too can also be misused.

Visit Techsafety.org and this bulletin  http://opdv.ny.gov/public_awareness/bulletins/winter2014/winter2014_bulletin.pdf. brought to you by the National Network to End Domestic Violence to learn about social networking and stalking and practice these 10 easy steps to maximize your online privacy. 

Question & Answer Interview with Erica’s House Assistant Director Natalie J. de Leon


1. What is your mission (goals & objectives) at Erica’s House?
The mission of Erica’s House is to provide a safe and fair venue; a center of hope, support, prevention and family visitation services necessary to create positive change in the lives of all families affected by violence and contribute to the advancement and awareness of these issues in our island community.

2. What specific services does Erica’s House provide?
Erica’s House is a support service for parents and children in need of visitation and exchange services:

1. A safe place to pick-up and drop-off children for exchange between parents/guardians;
2. On-site partially-supervised visitation for families with periodic checks made by staff;
3. On-site supervised visitation for families with a visitation monitor present at all times;
4. Parenting Classes offered once a week for six weeks; and
5. Informational Reports generated upon request. 

There are no fees for the services provided.Erica’s House services can be used by obtaining a Court Order or through Erica’s House Voluntary Referral Program (VRP).  Under the VRP, the custodial and non-custodial parents must agree to use Erica’s House, must agree to the type of service, agree to a schedule and agree to who will participate.

3. Who is your target audience?
Parents or Guardians who feel they are in need of Erica’s House services for various reasons.  Although Erica’s House serves victims of abuse, not all families of Erica’s House have experienced abuse; for example, some cases are referred by Child Support. 

4. What are your hours of operation and what is the best way for people to reach you that are interested in assistance?
Hours of operation for Erica’s House is as follows:

Thursdays and Fridays from 12 Noon – 7:00 p.m.
Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Sundays from 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Holiday Hours on Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas from 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. 
Erica’s House is closed on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. 

Erica’s House staff can be reached at 642-4020/22; fax number is 642-4021; or via email at ericahse@teleguam.net

5. In addition to direct services, what resources does Erica’s House offer?
In addition to the services mentioned, Erica’s House staff also refers clients to other Agencies for services they may need.

These include:Victim Advocates Reaching Out (VARO), Alee Shelter, Child Protective Services, Inafa Maolek and to the Child Support Office.    

As mandated reporters, Erica’s House staff makes referrals to Child Protective Services for suspected child abuse or neglect.

6.  Can you discuss your community partnerships and how they contribute to the overall success of Erica’s House individually?
Erica’s House works with different non-profit organizations and government and private agencies.  Networking with these agencies contributes to Erica’s House’s success by helping staff serve clients more effectively. 

7. Can you touch on the history of Erica’s House and how the organization is set up?
Erica’s House is named after Erica Mesericordia Crisostomo Aquino, a seven-year-old girl who at the hands of her father, was killed along with her mother, Therese Crisostomo. Therese at the time was a social worker with Adult Protective Services.  It took three years of planning before Erica’s House opened and with the Crisostomo family’s support and a contract with the Judiciary, Erica’s House opened on November 15, 2000. 

Erica’s House is a joint project of the Soroptomist International of the Marianas and the Soroptomist International of Guam. 

8. Why do you think the work you do is important to our island community and the world at large?
Erica’s House is Guam’s only family visitation center when  exchanges or on-site visitations are conducted at the facility, these prevent any conflicts or violence between parents. These supervised visitations give parents and children a sense of safety at all times the facility is open as there is always staff, a security guard and a Deputy Marshal present.    

9. Lastly, could you please provide any current relevant statistics that you have.
In the month of December 2013, Erica’s House served 570 adults, among these adults Erica’s House served 520 children, conducted 204 exchanges, and held 19 partially supervised visitations and 18 direct supervised visitations.