PLASE News Articles
July, 2010
A Life of Service: An Interview with Mary C. Slicher, PLASE Executive Director & Co-Founder
In 1973, Mary C. Slicher was one of four idealistic university students who dreamed of a Baltimore where every one had a decent place to live. Inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King and a vision for a different world, they created Project PLASE, the first not-for-profit in the city dedicated to providing a spectrum of housing and services to special-needs homeless citizens.
Q: How would you describe your role as Executive Director?
A: As the Executive Director, my role is to serve and support staff in serving our clients. We really strive to be client focused in our policies and practices. Everything about my role emanates from serving our clients.
Q: You helped found this organization at the age of 21, after over 35 years on the job, what advice would you give your younger self?
A: I certainly know a lot more now than when we started out in 1973. That said, there was a certain advantage to not knowing things (she laughs)! I would tell myself to make sure to always keep your passion, purpose, values and mission in front of you. Don’t let the inevitable hard knocks carry too much weight. Remember: those hard knocks are just bumps on the road, not the road itself. Challenges can help keeps things in perspective and often show you different possibilities.
Also, I would also stress the importance of nurturing relationships. Our work is really all about people—whether they are clients, colleagues, or family members. Furthermore, I’d remind myself to always have fun!
Q: What do you enjoy about your job?
A: I feel satisfaction and gratitude to see that we’ve been able to be faithful to our values as an organization for over three decades. I feel tremendous contentment and sense of fulfillment that Project PLASE staff and volunteers have made such a difference in people’s lives, we have a special niche—those differences that would not have been made without PLASE. We are all part of a community—a family.
I am so grateful to the residents who have allowed us to walk with them and be part of their journey. We are so touched by them and the difficult changes they make in their lives. These are the most courageous people I’ve ever met (I’m paraphrasing our nurse here!) and it’s really inspiring. Their belief in us, in others, and in their own recovery is what helps keep me going on everyday, especially the challenging ones.
Q: What about Project PLASE has surprised you over the years, and what are the organization’s future plans?
A: I have been constantly impressed by our flexibility as an organization. It has been a critical characteristic that allowed us to succeed through today. In particular, we have been flexible about how we’ve served the homeless population in Baltimore—a population that has changed so much since we started. I mean, who in 1973 would have anticipated HIV/AIDS and its impact on the community or how many women who would face homelessness? PLASE has been able to focus our philosophy and vision to the changing needs of homeless citizens.
What is my hope for our future? I still envision a city and country without poverty and homelessness. In the meanwhile, we at PLASE really want to expand our development of permanent, supportive housing where we can help our clients achieve true stability. Second, homelessness is ever-changing, so we cannot be sure what the future holds, but my hope is that PLASE will be a unique part of the solution, both in its vision and in concrete life-giving ways. We always seek to serve the most vulnerable of Baltimore’s homeless citizens.
Historic Federal Plan Announced to End Homelessness
On Tuesday, June 22nd, the U.S. Intragency Council on Homelessness released Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to End Homelessness. This plan represents the historic, first-ever comprehensive federal plan to reduce the number of homeless to zero. President Obama declared that “ending homelessness must be a national priority.” In response to the federal government’s increased commitment, Mary C. Slicher, Executive Director at PLASE, remarked, “I am glad to see the highest level of government emphasizing the needs of our poorest citizens—a condition—unacceptable in this still rich country!”
The goals of the plan include ending chronic homelessness in five years, preventing and ending homelessness among Veterans in five years and preventing and ending homelessness for families, youth and children in ten years.
The plan explicitly focuses on the provision of affordable housing as the most important tool for ending all types of homelessness. This push for affordable housing was lauded by Ms. Slicher, who explained that “without housing, one cannot meet their most basic of human needs, let alone think about realizing their potential.” Supportive housing models for those with health, mental health and other needs must be more diverse to represent the spectrum of the homeless population, according to Ms. Slicher.
Opening Doors follows the release of the 2009 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress, an evaluation of homelessness in the country. The report found a decreased amount of unsheltered homeless as well as an overall decrease in the total number of homeless. However, with the recent economic troubles and its effect on vulnerable families, there has been an increase in families and children seeking shelter support.
To further this trend of decreasing homelessness, the plan calls for coordinated leadership and teamwork on the federal, state, local and community levels. It also encourages research and review of best practices and their adaptation to meet the unique needs of each community. The plan recognizes a need for increased attention to prevention and faster stability for those who are vulnerable to homelessness. Suggestions include a retooling of the Homeless Crisis Response System, earlier support of needy families and individuals, increased access to healthcare and streamlined navigation of such services.
Of course, the real work of the plan is yet to come. Implementation is what will really make a difference. Ms. Slicher comments, “this is an impressive positive step in the right direction!” and renews Project PLASE’s dedication to working towards a time when every individual has ample housing and employment.
June, 2010
A Veteran's End to Chaos
Chris grew up in Baltimore with a supportive family; however, he suffered from bipolar disorder that went undiagnosed. In grade school, he experimented with drugs to help alleviate his moods and the voices in his head. He served in the Marine Corps, but within a few years of leaving, he was using hard drugs. Chris spent the next 10-15 years using heroin and cycled through jail, treatment programs, and the streets. He describes this time of being shot at, robbed, beaten up and going in and out of programs as “a rough existence beyond description.”
Things started to change when he turned 40. Chris says that he had known for years he wanted to change his life, but it was not until he felt he had the will to do so that things started to happen—“the 18 inches between my head and my heart made all the difference.” With the help of his family, Chris was able to get into a methadone treatment clinic to kick his heroin use. “That’s where the journey really started,” he says.
Project PLASE’s Transitional Housing Program for Veterans was a good fit for Chris. He was able to continue his methadone treatment, stay at a special facility for veterans, and access services at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Through Project PLASE and the VA, he accessed mental health services, applied for and received disability benefits, and continued to stay off heroin.
After almost two years in transitional housing at Project PLASE, Chris has his own apartment through Project PLASE’s Shelter + Care program. In this program, he has the continued support of a case worker, but lives independently for the first time in his adult life. “I have never lived on my own—always in chaos,” he says; “sometimes I just sit back and enjoy being in my own place.”
Preventing Unintended Consequences for the Homeless
The Baltimore City Council is poised to pass a bill (Council Bill 10-0489) in June that will increase fines for various public nuisance crimes such as urinating in public, loitering, etc. While the bill is designed to act as a deterrent to disorderly individuals leaving restaurants and bars in the city, homeless service providers like Project PLASE are concerned that the higher fines will have a harmful affect on the city’s vulnerable homeless population.
People experiencing homelessness often live their private lives in public and are frequently cited or arrested for the public nuisance crimes the new bill targets. Homeless individuals typically lack the resources to pay the fines which can lead to incarceration. Such contact with the criminal justice system can prolong homelessness and exacerbate the challenging conditions individuals face in accessing assistance.
On May 19th the Baltimore City Council’s Judiciary and Legislative Investigations Committee attempted to clarify the intent of the bill and agreed to incorporate amendments in an effort to protect the homeless. The amendments declare that the bill “does not intend to authorize enforcement of citations and penalties against persons who lack fixed nighttime residences” and urges law enforcement officers to be sensitive to “persons in need of social service assistance.” Unfortunately, such an amendment is used to underscore the ‘spirit of the legislation’ and is not legally binding.
The SHARP (Stop Homelessness and Reduce Poverty) Coalition, of which Project PLASE is a member, has expressed concern that by increasing the fines associated with nuisance behaviors, the bill will have a severely detrimental effect on the vulnerable population we serve. If you are also concerned, please contact your City Council member and ask him or her to either maintain support for the homeless amendment or to not support the bill at all.
April, 2010
Ricky's Back on Track
“I came to Project PLASE eight days after being locked-up at central booking for not doing community service… [and] with about a day clean of drugs and alcohol. I have been clean ever since with the help of twelve-step programs and reconnecting with God. Project PLASE offered me case management, mental health therapy, food, clothing, shelter, and great support from staff. With the help from Project PLASE’s mental health team, I was able to let go of the mental and physical abuse I suffered as a child.
I have applied for housing since I’ve been here at Project PLASE, and… am about to move into my own apartment! Being here at Project PLASE has been a great experience; I am studying for my GED [and] am back to achieving my goals in the arts and entertainment arena. If you are homeless and need to go get your life back on track, I highly recommend coming to Project PLASE.” To help more clients like Ricky get back on their feet, donate now.
Ricky B. successfully completed the transitional housing program in the late fall of 2009 and moved into permanent housing in December 2009. He is currently pursuing his dream of being part of the arts and entertainment field.
March, 2010
ZONTA International Partners with PLASE
Project PLASE’s all-female GED class, lead by instructor Ms. Connie Moore, has made some significant strides in its first year of existence. One important development for the class has been its involvement with ZONTA, which is a global organization (Baltimore City being a part of District 3) made up of executives and professionals who work together to advance the status of women worldwide through service and advocacy. ZONTA is a great fit for the GED class because of the organization’s mission, the passion of ZONTA’s individual members and the connection with the life skills being taught in the GED class.
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One of the most effective ways that the GED class has meshed with ZONTA is by sending PLASE’s GED students to ZONTA’s monthly meetings where they can ask questions, give and receive input along with encouragement. ZONTA members have also given inspiring and educational presentations to the class: |
Irma Dillon shared about ZONTA history and membership; Joanne Smith contributed by teaching the women in GED about Australia and her experience as a ZONTA member, and Vicki Jones has helped to implement a writing/journaling/theater workshop for 2010. The women in class have also written notes of encouragement that were given to a ZONTA member who will be traveling to Kenya in February. She will then give these notes to women who are in dangerous and life-threatening situations.
Being graced with the presence of these ZONTA women has brought encouragement and empowerment to the women in the GED class. Several of the students have dreams of turning professional or running their own businesses, ranging from being a floor tech, a beautician or owning a restaurant. With the support they have received from ZONTA these dreams are becoming more tangible day by day.
-Melissa Neiderhiser, PLASE volunteer
Housing and Hope for Baltimore's Most Vulnerable Homeless Citizens
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