I Deserve a Peace of Mind

Thou will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on me. (Isaiah 26:3)

One of our clients has been without bipolar medication for months and has missed counseling sessions designed to help stabilize her mind and life because her monthly disability income exceeds her eligibility to receive medical and counseling assistance. Her inability to receive bipolar treatment is an impediment to her health, family, and prospective employers.

Several studies show, African-American and Latino women experience a higher rate of depressive symptoms and psychological distress compared to white women due to a convergence of societal, biological, and socioeconomical factors. Some of the risk factors are: stress due to racial discrimination; health problems (e.g., hypertension and cardiovascular disease); educational attainment, single marital status, and being a working mother.

Depression screening and prevention programs must take into account these and additional factors in order to be successful, according to Annelle Primm, M.D., M.P.H., who spoke at the APA Institute on Psychiatric Services in San Diego in October.

Primm pointed out that development of depression is affected by chronic stress and the “subsequent immuno-regulatory effects associated with living as a member of a marginalized racial and gender group.”

Social forces such as racism and sexism “impose continuous psychological stress and increase the likelihood of developing physical and mental illnesses,” she noted.

Obesity may also contribute to an increased risk for developing depression in African-American women, Primm pointed out. “There is a negative association between obesity and mental well-being,” she said.

African-American women have a greater prevalence of obesity (37.7 percent) when compared with white women (23.5 percent), she said, and overeating may begin as a strategy to cope with sexual abuse, racism, classism, and poverty in African-American women.

Primm cited the 2001 report of former Surgeon General David Satcher, M.D., Mental Health: Culture, Race, and Ethnicity, which brought to light the problems many minority groups have in accessing mental health services.

“On top of that,” she said, “we know that people of color who are able to access services are less likely to receive quality mental health care,” which can be partially attributed to a lack of culturally and linguistically competent mental health care clinicians.

On a broad level, policies that target poverty reduction would“ greatly benefit mental health outcomes” for African-American women.

More specifically, successful depression-prevention campaigns should incorporate “resiliency factors” employed by many African-American women, such as spirituality, which may help some to cope with depressive symptoms.

Preventive strategies should also incorporate nutrition and exercise, Primm noted.

She also recommended that depression screening be implemented to a greater extent at prenatal clinics located in public health facilities, welfare programs, and vocational-assistance programs.

In addition, it is crucial that screening programs link women who show depression symptoms to culturally competent treatment services in their community.

“What is good for African-American women in terms of preventing depression is good for all women in general and for the whole country,” Primm declared.

VEINC provides spiritual, personal, and career enrichment services to help our clients 'holistically'; however, when our clients cannot afford medical treatment, we cannot not prepare them for gainful and successful employment.

It's quite challenging for women to live in peace and harmony when faced with choosing to pay rent, feed their children, or purchase medicine. But, if women begin to focus on what they have and want, instead of their lack, this could possibly be an antidote to their financial and/or mental woes.

There's a saying, What you put your attention on, grows stronger in your life. When we place our attention on fear and lack, this will manifest in our lives and create anxiety which will immobilize us to create a life of harmony and balance. If you're a woman that's experiencing depression seek help from God and lay your concerns at His feet because He cares for you (I Peter 5:7).

Try New Life Ministries for resources and guidance to help you deal with depression. And, try God by accepting Him into your life, reading, studying, and mediating on His Word daily to gain the peace He has promised when your mind is on stayed on Him!

Senator Graham's Stance on Health Care Reform

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee. (Proverbs 23:7 - KJV)

Members of VEINC have not read the Health Care Reform Bill; however, the tone and comments made by Senator Graham has left some of us with the impression that Senator Graham's view of the bill will cost his State (South Carolina) 1 billion dollars to insure low-income Black people.

What's your view on Senator Graham's comments and health care reform? Do you believe America needs health care reform? Do you believe health care reform will bankrupt America? Do you believe health care reform only benefits poor people? As far as Senator Graham's concern about tax-payer's dollars being used to pay for this health care reform, who has a job to pay taxes in this Great Recession?

Our Gifts Are Making Future Impacts!

In 2006, VEINC donated "fully-loaded" Dell computers to eleven single mothers and one single student returning to school to complete their undergraduate or graduate degrees and online certification programs to advance their careers through our Computer Donation Initiative. This initiative was made possible after receiving a Capacity Building grant from the Washington Area Women's Foundation to establish a wireless network to share training resources with staff members, volunteers, and trainees.

Recently, VEINC received updates from two donation recipients - Tracy Henry - a medical student in her final year at Georgetown University School of Medicine and Joetta Fluellyn - a single mother on how this initiative helped them achieve their educational goals.

Tracy Henry shared:

• Prior to receiving the donated computer, she had to use computers at the school library which limited her access to computers and online study time. The donated computer allowed her to study from the safety and comfort of her home;
  
• Most of Tracy's lectures were online and the donated computer allowed her to take advantage of the 'free' online lectures and required text books; and
  
• The donated computer enabled her to stay abreast of her coursework because of easy access to her own computer.

Joetta Fluellyn, shared:

• The donated computer encouraged her to enroll and participate in online paralegal and medical certification training; and
  
• The donated computer helped her son to improve his school grades with online tutorial services. Prior to receiving the computer, Joetta said, her son was a little behind in his schoolwork and she has seen a tremendous boost in his esteem.

VEINC believes education and technology are key components to decrease the growing trend of poverty amongst low-income families headed by women. VEINC is proud to know our Computer Donation Initiative is helping Tracy Henry complete her studies at Georgetown University School of Medicine and provided Joetta Fluellyn and her family access to online certification training to enhance her skills to transition to a livable-wage career, and online tutoring which helped her son keep up with his schoolwork and boosting his self-esteem.

Over 2,000 years ago, God gave the world His greatest gift - His Son, Jesus Christ to set captives free and to give individuals an abundant life. This Gift is still impacting the world for people willing to receive Him as their Savior. During this Christmas Season, don't give for the sake of giving, but give to make a life-long impact, because our communities sorely need it!

What's the Big Deal About Single Mothers?

What's the big deal about single mothers, I was raised by one and I turned out okay! Were the words of a business leader running for a Prince George's County Council position.

There are many successful leaders and great people that were raised by single parents. VEINC is not presenting single mothers as damsels in distress or victims of society. However, due to the increased percentage of households being led by single mothers not only in Prince George's County, Maryland, but within our Nation, it's a big deal when single women-headed households have in some regard become the normal family structure.

According to Sociology for Families, single-parent families are normally female-headed and single women typically do not earn the same income as a single man; thus, there is a consequent economic struggle and burden not experienced in a single-father household. Single mothers often must work overtime shifts to compensate for the low salaries, thus taking time away from their children and other domestic chores. This results in a child that is home alone, without adult supervision, or placed in a daycare service for up to 8-10 hours per day. Government subsidized daycare is not yet a realized dream, and many single mothers pay large fees for this service.

The big deal about single parenting especially for Prince George's County, Maryland is, it has the highest concentration of low-income families headed by women in the Washington metro region. And, low-income families headed by women are vulnerable to the cycle of poverty. The impact of poverty puts a strain on the local, state, and the government by investing money in reactive services and programs to support low-income families (e.g., emergency housing, food stamp assistance, or crime and gang prevention) instead of proactive services and programs (e.g., workforce training and development, entrepreneurship programs; affordable housing, childcare, and health care, and accessible transportation).

There's an old saying, If you keep doing what you've always done, you will keep getting what you've always gotten. And, we can no longer afford to allow politics as usual if we want to experience a significant change in Prince George's County.

The Status of Women and Girls of Prince George's County needs to be a top priority on the platform for all politicians running for local and state government. Make your vote count to ensure Prince George's County, Maryland will live up to it's motto, A Livable Community for all Prince Georgians, especially for low-income women-led families where the weight of economic instability rides on their shoulders.

Following is VEINC's wish list to strengthen the economic status of women and girls of Prince George's County:

• Bring more livable wage careers to Prince George's County that offer benefits in health and work-life balance. Prince George's County main career industries are retail and hospitality
• Work harder to ensure funding for Individual Training Accounts under the Workforce Investment Act is adequately funneled from the State to Prince George's County to increase participation in local education and training programs
• Change childcare voucher systems to ensure vouchers are honored in a timely manner
• Make public transportation more accessible to transit around all localities of Prince George's County, Maryland
• Add more women politicians that will advocate on behalf of the issues relating to women and girls
• Increase local funding to proactively address barriers that prevent women and girls from achieving economic independence and stability.

Ladies, make your vote count! Don't sit on the sideline and assume your challenges will automatically be taken care of, or your vote won't count. All votes count and you have the power to make a change for yourself and other women like you in your community. Make your voice known. Make your voice heard. And, hold your local and state representatives accountable to making positive changes and impacts on behalf of underserved women and girls of Prince George's County, Maryland.

We Have Not, Because We Change Not - Job Hunting

Job Hunting is a full-time job, and it’s amazing how lackadaisical many individuals approach job search until their bills pill up or state benefits end - creating a ‘reactive’ job search strategy out of anxiety and fear instead of a ‘proactive’ job search strategy out of desire and contribution. Seeking employment out of fear and anxiety will resonate during a job interview of any prospective employer. And, following are some tips to prevent you from landing a career that’s a mismatch to your core values, skills, and abilities.

Return to Your First Love
If you’re unemployed and your life only consisted of work, maybe your unemployment is a time to re-evaluate your life to determine your true values and passion. We were not created to simply work to pay bills, we were created to utilize our gifts and talents to bring glory and honor to God.

Discover your Skills and Aptitude
Many people are working in careers that are a total mismatch to their skills and abilities, vocational interests, work values and priorities, and temperament. This is prevalent because some jobs are secured for ‘debt relief.' An assessment is a great tool to help you match your career(s) to your strengths.

Create a Job Search Strategy
Once you’ve discovered your strengths, create a strategy to find the career that matches your assessment results. A strategy could consist of prioritizing your time, setting and sticking to a regular job search schedule, internet search, informational interviews, and developing and maintaining a career tracking log (this can help you determine your follow-up strategy).

Update your Resume
What does your resume say about you? Informational – it reads like a story with your employment history? Impact – demonstrates your abilities to make positive impacts and your contributions. Revise your resume to match your target career (don’t fabricate), highlighting skills equivalent to the career requirements. Common resume types to consider are functional, combination, or chronological.

Carry Your Resume like American Express...
Don’t Leave Home without It. If you frequent different business establishments like Starbucks for example, start a conversation with a familiar face to learn what they do and where they work. This conversation could potentially be your ticket to a career opportunity of your dreams.

Change Your Voicemail Greeting
Your music genre or ‘slang’ used for your voicemail greeting may need to be changed when you're conducting job search. Your voicemail greeting should be professional and clean inviting any prospective employer to consider you for an employment opportunity.

Approach Each Prospective Employer as a New Prospective Client
You have what they need, they have what you need. And, this could be the beginning of a wonderful relationship. Your approach to any relationship shouldn’t be unilateral. This is especially true for an Employer/Employee relationship. Interviewers can tell when interviewees are simply looking for work to fulfill their own desires and this can or will be a turn-off to any prospective employer. Demonstrate what you have to offer and how your skills can make an impact on the bottom-line of the company. Definitely demonstrate the benefits of adding you to their team.

Network, Network, Network
Only about 15 percent of available positions are advertised. So, get out from the computer and network. Consider joining an employment agency, temporary agency, or volunteer with the intent to demonstrate what you have to offer first instead of seeking what you need. Most businesses and employment opportunities are secured through relationships and not the internet, periodicals, or newspaper.

Why the Color Green Can Wake Up a Nation

“We must act now!” are four words that have gained great momentum to bail out financial institutions (green giants) on the verge of bankruptcy or closure. These words have radically shaken the corporate giants and current administration from a deep sleep because they no longer see green, but red.

The words, “We must act now” did not gain its popularity from the failing financial institutions. These words have been quite popular among advocates that have been working to restore the vitality of our debilitating communities due to spiritual, economical, and social woes. For example,

• We must act now to provide affordable childcare and health care to low-income wage earners
  
• We must act now to raise minimum wage to livable earnings to stimulate the economy
  
• We must act now to provide paid maternal leave beyond three-months
  
• We must act now to provide equal-pay for women and men to create healthy families and communities
  
• We must act now to provide protection for victims of domestic abuse and sexual trafficking
  
• We must act now to provide affordable housing to decrease and eradicate homelessness
  
• We must act now to stop predatory lending practices
  
• We must act now to end gender and race discrimination
  
• We must act now to make quality education affordable and accessible to all citizens

What will it take for the Nation to move with urgency to ensure the middle-class is not eradicated, or the low-income is not moved to extreme measures to survive? Apparently, “We must act now” has been associated with the colors red and yellow. Red to stop or end social programs that serve the poor or low-income due to lack of funds; Yellow, to move with extreme caution because serving the poor could possibly bankrupt the economy.

The economy is on the verge of bankruptcy and We must act now to find ways for average citizens to regain hope and faith in America –‘land of the free’. Bailing out the ‘green’ giants to leave citizens impacted by corporate greed, deceit, and ignorance to fend for themselves, is not justice or liberty for all.

Poverty: A State of Mind or Being?

"Many women are poor because no one wants to help poor black women" was the comment from an attendee of Virtuous Enterprises, Inc. (VEINC), first Sister Table Talk Tour held in Hillcrest Heights, Maryland.

Should the plight of poverty among low-income, women heads-of-households in the Washington region be associated with people refusing to help? If this is true, why do people turn their backs on the down-trodden? If it isn't true, why is poverty a growing trend among women in the Washington region?

During the Sister Table Talk forum held at the Spaulding Branch Library in Forestville, Maryland, the attendees concurred that poverty is a combination of mind and being - 'in order to change what one lacks tangibly, one must first change their mind.'

The topic reminds me of the story of a lame man who was carried and laid daily at the gate of the temple called Beautiful to ask for alms (i.e., money). When the lame man saw Peter and John (disciples that went to the temple to pray), he asked them for alms. When Peter saw the lame man, he asked him to look at him and the lame man did with anticipation to receive money. However, Peter told the man, "Silver and gold, have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk." Peter took the lame man by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately the lame man's feet and ankle bones received strength and he entered the temple with Peter and John leaping, walking, and praising God for his healing. (Acts 3:1-9)

The moral of this story is, some people need self-empowerment to lift themselves from the 'paralysis' of circumstance. Since the lame man lived his life based on how he was born and not what he could become, he automatically lived a defeated life. Money wasn't what he needed to receive strength to walk on his own, his soul needed to be revived or quickened to get the guts to get up and walk on his own.

There are may societal inhibitors that contribute to poverty regardless of gender or ethnicity, but the 'true' transition to economic stability and security has to start from within to receive and accept 'positive' change.

What are your thoughts about poverty? Do you believe it's a state of mind or being? What do you believe is the root cause of poverty among women in the Washington Region? Do you believe poverty exists in Prince George's County, Maryland? When you think of poverty, what's the first picture that comes to your mind? What do you believe can decrease and/or eradicate poverty among low-income, women-headed families?

Our next Sister Table Talk Tour will be held on Saturday, April 19 from 10:30 am - 12:30 pm at the Fairmount Heights Branch Library in Fairmount Heights, Maryland. To RSVP, please call 301.316.1955 x707 or send an email to events@veinc.org.

Our next Blog discussion, Poverty: The new return on family investment.