Thank You

Dear Jim,


    I am so very grateful for the mentorship and opportunities you have provided me with. I consider myself very fortunate to work for you. You have always had my development as leader in this field as a priority, and I cannot begin to thank you enough. Your leadership and stellar example to all veterans is without equal in my opinion. It is no wonder that you have been recognized by the First Lady and Generals Petraeus and McCrystal, for your work with veterans. It is honor to follow the path that you blazed for veterans interested in social services.

Beyond the professional kindness you have shown me, your friendship and guidance has truly helped me in dark times. When I have faced doubts, you have supported me and motivated me. When I graduate, you will be among the names I am thanking in my head as I walk across the stage.

Lessons Learned

While my fellowship ends in August, I have already adjusted my goals. Having worked over 350 hours at this point, I have come to realize that the goal of housing 50 veterans simply isn't feasible on my current timeline. The bureaucracy dictates that housing homeless veterans in stable and permanent homes is a lengthy process. It is dependent not only on member of my organization (VOALA), but also the VA social workers, and city and county housing employees. When you throw in landlords, it becomes very difficult to coordinate between all parties.  A three month process would be a very quick housing of a veteran.

Initially I was very upset at the realization that I would not meet my goal. But I have learned that in aiming for such a lofty goal, I am working at level I didn't know I was capable of. This disappoint has turned into an opportunity for growth. It has also spurned to find ways to streamline the process.

My favorite place

Since I was a young boy, my favorite place has been Catalina Island. About 30 miles off the coast of Los Angeles, its features only one town named Avalon. Some of my fondest childhood memories are of walking down the ramp of the Catalina Express boat and looking eagerly at the town about a eight of a mile away. The small pier had cotton candy and fish and chips, the smells would draw my little body ahead of my parents rushing towards Avalon. My next stop would of course be the small arcade.

As a pre-teen I would go camping and kayaking, and at 12 I was certified as diver of the Casino Point. Later after having joined the Marines, I would take weekend trips with my girlfriend to island.

Safe to say, when I found out I was going to be a father, I already had a name in mind.

Collaboration

With the recent VA scandals, several groups have called for the dismantling of the medical system. The media has called it but dysfunctional. A lot of people might attribute this to a lack of funding. For of my PAF 400 course I researched the barriers to properly implementing veterans homeless programs. I found that the federal level of government spends a significant amount of money on grants and housing vouchers to aid in the housing of homeless veterans. The federal government partners with non-profits to provide programs like Supportive Services for Veterans Families (SSVF) and U.S. Department of Housing and Development- Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH). The goal of SSVF is to promote housing stability for veterans and their families by providing housing assistance and services if they are homeless or are at risk of becoming homeless, while the VASH program provides vouchers that allow a veteran to pay 30% of their income towards rent with the VA and HUD covering the rest.

What it comes down to is not a lack of funding but the need for further collaboration between the VA and community partners. The programs that were most successful were the ones that featured VA responsiveness to the needs of the community partners operating the SSVF and VASH programs through grant money.

The Dreaded Drive...

One thing I am not going to miss about attending ASU is the commute! I have enjoyed all my classes this last year, but the drive is just too much. It is a good thing I'm graduating because I don't think I could make drive any longer.

I'm not one to complain, but did I mention I have a ridiculous commute. Although most of my coursework was completed online,  two have been hybrid courses. I know, I know, just two?

Did I mention I live in Los Angeles? I basically live where the 10 freeway ends, about  2 miles shy of the beach. So hybrid classes make for early mornings, and ummm well early morning returns.

Wouldn't change a thing, so happy to have had the opportunity to attended on campus. Been a really great experience, I'm just kidding about complaining so much.

Fatherhood

I had no idea what I was capable of until I became a father. Before my son Avalon was born, I was not a motivated student. I took the occasional class at Santa Monica College but never fully devoted myself to my studies and my grades reflected it. Despite only being a few math courses shy of the transfer and AA requirements, I had little interest in taking  statistics. Math had always been a weakness for me, so much so that I figured I would never finish school.

And then I got the news! Suddenly statistics wasn't such a daunting task. My son was born February 4th, 2013. It was almost as if my body knew what was coming decided it was go time. I was a dedicated student when I finished my coursework at SMC in December of 2013. I entered ASU with an eagerness to learn and gain the skills necessary to provide my son the best possible opportunities. I feel so fortunate to have had this focus and drive coupled with an amazing university. I feel extremely prepared to enter the workforce.

Graduation

Can't believe it is almost time to graduate. I have had many doubts over the years that I would ever achieve this goal. I started my college career in 2001 at Cal State Monterey Bay, and as 17 year old I remember standing in my dorm room and telling myself that college just wasn't for me. A short few weeks later I had dropped out.  I went home to Los Angeles and attended various schools and course until I joined the Marine Corps. After I returned from my stint in the Corps, I faced different challenges than my first attempt at college.

I am so grateful for all of my loved ones support and the guidance of my mentors. They all provided me with strength when I was filled with doubt. But the most credit must be given to my son. His birth prompted my return to school and the academic success I have achieved since.  Thank you Avalon. Poppa loves you!

Career Services - Hire Heroes USA

Hire Heroes USA is an organization with the goal of helping transitioning service member and veterans find careers. Based in Georgia, with offices throughout the nation, they place 40 veterans a week with employers. They have partnered with over 200 veteran friendly corporations and offer their services to spouses as well.

They recently opened an office in Torrance, California and came to the B3 headquarters to give us a brief about the services they offer. All of the Battle Buddies, myself included, registered to receive their services. Not only for our own benefit, but also so that we may have a better understanding of a resource before we refer any of our veteran clients to them. They have a stellar reputation and help veterans put together outstanding resumes that really translate their military skills well. I look forward to my appointment to work on my resume.

Health Navigator Supervisor Training

One of the many trainings that VOALA set up for me was a Health Navigation Supervisor seminar.
 Three of my Battle Buddies are attending a several weeks long training on how to be Health Navigators. Health Navigation is essentially peer support, but with the focus being entirely on medical issues. The Health Navigation mantra is " for them, with them, and ultimately by them." The navigators seek to help their clients engage the medical system in way that best serves them and allows them to participate in their own healthcare decisions.

My short training involved how I as a supervisor can best support the health navigators and ensure that they have all that is necessary to accomplish their tasks.  A healthy portion of this training involved Medi-Cal billing, which had me very disinterested as it does not apply to the B3 program. But I'm sure it will be of value to me should I end up taking a job that deals extensively with Medi-Cal.

Battle Buddy Bridge Program Strengths

The B3 program was designed with the goal of breaking down the barriers that veterans face when seeking services. Many of the of the nonprofits and even the VA itself represent the actual barrier rather than the service provided.

B3 is staffed by veterans that have been trained as peer support specialist. As veterans of the LA county area, we are familiar with the social service and benefit landscape here and can help provide guidance to other veterans. All of the Battle Buddies are in some form of recovery and that enables them to relate to those we serve in a was that social workers and doctors cannot.

With that being said, I am sometimes concerned about the stress burden placed on the Battle Buddies. The success of the program is both a gift and a curse as it has allowed us to expand throughout all the service areas in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, I am unsure if we are able to handle such a massive workload.

Volunteers of America Los Angeles - Public Service

Volunteers of America was established in 1896 by Ballington and Muad Booth. Their mission was to provide human services to the poor. Though they were originally affiliated with the Salvation Army, the two broke off due to philosophical differences.

VOALA's current goal is to serve people in need, strengthen families and build communities. The nonprofit provides services for Los Angeles area children, elderly, families, and veterans. As well as operating multiple housing programs for the homeless.

Leadership

   As part of this internship, I have worked at developing  my leadership style. Rather than coming in with a preconceived notion, I waited until after the first few weeks to determine my approach.
Due to the nature of peer support work, I decided that my leadership style would be one of empathy and support. For those reasons I chose to utilize the path-goal theory and servant leadership styles. Those styles place an emphasis on the followers rather than the leader. It requires me to clear the barriers to my subordinates success and demands that I listen to their concerns with empathy.

I believe this to be the best way to lead veterans that are engaging in emotionally draining work, while they deal with their own recovery process. Recovery is not limited to substance abuse, people can be in recovery from a variety of issues like homelessness or post-traumatic stress.

Mr. Jim Zenner - VOALA Veterans Programs Director

          Jim Zenner is the program director for Volunteers Of America's Hollywood Veteran Center and the Battle Buddy Bridge program. The Hollywood Veterans Center is a grant-per-diem program that serves homeless Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. It is a dual treatment facility that offers both substance abuse and mental health programs. Mr. Zenner, in addition to directing the program also facilitates Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Cognitive Process Therapy (CPT).
Mr. Zenner earned his bachelors degree while serving in Iraq and returned home to face the same struggles that many other veterans face. Mr. Zenner then entered the USC school of military social work and begun his path to helping veterans in the way that he had been helped.
           Mr. Zenner told me that furthering ones education in all possible ways is the best way to equip yourself with the tools needed to aid reintegrating veterans. Mr. Zenner highly recommended taking a grant writing course as that is an absolute must have skill in this field.
          I highly admire Mr. Zenner and I hope to follow the path that he and other veterans have paved for me.

VA Career Fair

I attended a job fair at Los Angeles Community College that was hosted by the Department of Labor and the VA. As part of push to help veterans and people with disabilities into the job market, the two departments put this event together to help connect those populations with employers that are aware of their strengths and needs.

Though I attended the fair in an official capacity (B3 had a table set-up), I also utilized the resources available. I made my way to the VA hiring table and picked the brain of the representative there. I was provided crucial information about VA hiring practices, USAJOBS.gov navigation and federal resumes. In addition, I was able to meet with several employees of the VA that work in the Vocational Rehabilitation program. As someone who utilizes that program and as a person who wants to work in that department, this was an extremely valuable opportunity to gain some inside knowledge that will hopefully further me along the road to federal employment with VA.

Bad Paper Discharges

One of the difficulties I face in my work with veterans is that of program eligibility. Veterans receive one of five discharges (Honorable, General, Other than Honorable, Bad Conduct, Dishonorable) when they leave the military. Veterans who receive anything other than an honorable discharge face the potential loss of benefits.

In the last few weeks, I have encountered several homeless veterans with "other than honorable" discharges and this presents a challenge when attempting to find housing resources.  Because of those discharges they are not eligible for veteran housing resources.  I find this particularly troubling because veterans who leave the service with bad paper discharges are the most in need of services often. Some changes have occurred with the HUD-VASH program where they are making a limited amount of vouchers available to veterans with OTH's. I think this is a great start and I hope the VA continues this trend. They will have to if they are truly committed to ending veteran homelessness.

Outreach

 One of the things I really enjoy about my fellowship is that I travel throughout my city and county. I have been able to see areas that I previously had never visited, despite having grown up here. In our efforts to end veteran homelessness in the county, we travel throughout the various service planning areas (spas) to find veterans in need and make connections with community resources.

While I know it is necessary to reach out to service providers and community partners, I really enjoy the street outreach the most. Crawling through brush to reach encampments and being able to get a veteran registered and enrolled with VA medical services is a great feeling. One I hope to repeat many times over.

A.S.I.S.T

As part of my fellowship with B3, I have been great opportunities to attend extremely valuable training seminars. Several weeks ago I was fortunate enough to attend the Applied Suicide Intervention Skills training event at Bob Hope Patriotic Hall in downtown Los Angeles. The building is home to Los Angeles County veteran service organizations and county staff.

The training itself was very emotional but provided the necessary skill set to intervene in crisis moment. I found this training to be especially powerful given that I work with a population that is suffering from an estimated 22 suicides a day. While I hope that I never have to use the skills learned in the training, I feel confident in my ability to help a veteran in crisis.

No typical day

It has been a very busy three weeks at the Battle Buddy Bridge program. No day is like the last. My first week involved attending a housing fair at the Bob Hope Patriotic Hall. The building is the site of Los Angeles County veteran services. Our program set up a booth at the fair and helped guide veterans to various resources available at the fair. I felt proud to be a part of something that will get roofs over veterans’ heads. It was a great first day.

               The rest of my week consisted of meetings with program manager and the other squad leaders of B3. During these meeting we determined a course of action for my squad. We set a timeline for creating a spreadsheet of all area National Guard and Reserve units. The spreadsheet will contain five points of contact with every unit within 30 miles of our Boyle Heights headquarters. The points of contacts are made up of various stakeholders, from Chaplains to Family Readiness Group leaders.  Although I have faced some resistance and doubt from various units, I strongly believe all will get on board once they realize the nature of the services we offer.

               The last two weeks have been spent in training to become a peer-support specialist. I cannot begin to convey the value of this training. It is an amazingly powerful tool in aiding veteran reach the services they need. The training was through a company called Recovery Innovations, based in Phoenix. I highly recommend that anyone in the area check them out and look into the valuable training they offer.

Empowered

It has been several years since I have worked with veterans, and I can’t believe I took so long to return to this field. I had forgotten what is was like to be tasked with an important mission and be supported by like-minded individuals. Everyone at my host site served in the armed forces, and their commitment to serving their brothers and sisters in arms is unparalleled.  It is very motivating to know that your co-workers feel strongly about the work we do.

I am really excited to learn the professional skills needed in this field. The program manager, Jim Zenner, is a social worker and Iraq veteran. I am very fortunate to have a man like Jim guide me into a leadership position. I feel extremely honored that he has given me the responsibilities that he has. I take it as a tremendous source of pride and I will do everything in my power to honor the position that I have been given.

In the upcoming weeks I will be meeting many stakeholders in the Los Angeles area. I will strive to make the connections needed to best serve veterans in the Southern California area.

Orientation in Houston

The weekend of January 23^rd through the 25^th was a milestone in my life. I attended an orientation for the Mission Continues Fellowship program. Veterans from around the country were flown to Houston for the weekend and left with a strong sense of purpose. The Mission Continues vision is that veterans are ready to become citizen leaders, that is, people willing to actively lead others to contribute to a common good.

During the course of the weekend we attended professional development seminars and attended a service project. The service project was the most powerful portion of the weekend in my opinion. Over 200 veterans loaded into buses from the hotel and arrived at an elementary school in a disadvantaged part of Houston. We were greeted by community members and the school Principal. Within several hours our group of veterans and other groups of volunteers had transformed the campus into a much more inviting learning environment. Along with restoring the library, hundreds of books were donated. Upon completion of our work with we took our fellowship oath:

We are Fellows of the Mission Continues.

As Fellows, our personal service did not end with our military service,

But has only just begun.

We are citizen leaders,

committed to making a positive impact in our community,

by upholding values we learned through our military service.

We pledge to work hard,

both selflessly, and joyously.

Trust will always be our foundation.

As we serve, we will learn, grow

and always respect everybody unconditionally.

We will do all of this because we are Fellows

and our mission continues.

What we do

January 27^th I began working with the Battle Buddy Bridge program (B3).  The program exists to guide veterans in need to community resources. Veterans face many barriers to services and B3 works to bridge the gap. The program is staffed by veterans who have been certified as peer-support specialist.  Peer-support specialist help others learn about their strengths and challenges and support the development of personal responsibility and self-advocacy skills.

I am serving as a squad leader in the B3 program. I am tasked with managing a squad of peer-support specialist assist current reservist and guardsmen gain employment and housing. The squad will be primarily responsible for implementing initial research and development of employment task force in the initial phase. After the research and once relationships have been built, we will begin working with our contacts in the units to figure out ways to interact with the troops, educate various leaders on B3, and present at various events.

I am eager to go out and make an impact. The men and women of B3 will help empower veterans to receive the services they need and I feel fortunate to be a part of the team.

Introduction

My name is Marlowe Dickerson and I am currently in my last semester as Public Service & Public Policy student at Arizona State University.  This semester I will be serving a fellowship with The Mission Continues organization. The Mission Continues fellowship is an opportunity for post-9/11 veterans to utilize their skills and leadership in a civilian setting. Fellowships are 26 weeks in length, during which the Fellow volunteers at a local charitable organization, providing a tangible service to the community. I have chosen the Volunteers of America Los Angeles (VOALA) Battle-Buddy-Bridge program (B3). The B3 program will provide me with an amazing opportunity to team with fellow veterans in service of our brothers and sisters in need. Los Angeles area veterans face many barriers to services and the B3 program helps to reduce those barriers by utilizing trained veterans as peer navigators. I am very motivated to be part of a team that will serve veterans that are in the most need of services. Helping to create a network of community resources will provide me with the mission I have been seeking since leaving the Marine Corps.  I consider it a great privilege to be a part of  program that will hopefully expand and help veterans nationwide. Additionally, I consider it a great honor to have been chosen as a Mission Continues Fellow. I look forward to meeting the challenges presented to me and growing as a leader.

 

 

My fellowship goals:

 

Advance my leadership and oversight management skills will assisting the program manager in leading the 18 member battle buddy squad.

 

Place 50 homeless veterans in permanent housing.

 

Place 25 veterans into full-time employment.

 

 

 

On Friday the 22^nd , I will arrive in Houston for my fellowship orientation. I will be sure to make the most of this fantastic opportunity!