TotalChild® Workforce Mentor Spotlight: Connor Vincent

Meet TotalChild® Workforce Mentor, Connor Vincent

1. Where do you work and what is your job title?

I work for Hills Bank and my job title is Commercial Banker.

2. What is something you like to do for fun?

In my spare time, I really enjoy cooking and trying new culinary dishes with my wife.

3. What made you want to become involved in TotalChild® Workforce?

The main reason I wanted to get involved with TotalChild® Workforce is because of my desire to volunteer and give back to young adults. Before I started working for Hills Bank full-time, I experienced my fair share of employment struggles. During that time I wished to have someone that could relate to my struggles, listen to me, and support my employment and professional goals. Serving as a mentor with the TotalChild® Workforce program is my attempt to fill that position for young individuals that are going through the same thing I did.

4. HOW DO YOU SEE TotalChild® Workforce BENEFITING YOUTH?

I believe TotalChild® Workforce has tremendous value for the youth involved in the program for multiple reasons. First, the great people at Four Oaks provide a tremendous amount of support to individuals involved in the program. They serve as facilitators between young adults seeking guidance and experienced professionals looking to volunteer their time. Second, pairing the youth with relatively young professionals is effective because the two groups have a lot in common. Lastly, TotalChild® Workforce is beneficial for youth because it gives them real opportunities to explore careers and ask questions in a flexible setting. There are no grades, there is no homework (unless you’re paired with me), and there are certainly no dumb questions. Ultimately, it is about the employment development of youth and supporting them on their journeys to success.

5. How do you see TotalChild® Workforce benefiting the community?

This program benefits the community because it supplies the youth with the human capital and life experiences they will need to one day be independent. As one becomes more independent, they are able to act more selflessly and focus on positively building the community around them. On the other hand, it also encourages professionals to give back and volunteer their time. By volunteering, you meet new people, hear uniqiue stories, and share more about yourself than you otherwise would in a cubicle. Participation in TotalChild® Workforce and similar programs is foundational to a strong and healthy community because it builds and fosters trust. After all, who wouldn’t want to be a part of a community where we all trust one another?

The Importance of Perspective Taking

The Importance of Perspective Taking by Kara Grafft, Education Liaison

As a mother of two boys I’m familiar with what skills are traditionally viewed as superpowers; flying, super strength, slam dunks and posterizing, shapeshifting, and teleportation. Don’t get me wrong, these are exceptionally cool. However, throughout my years in the mental health field, I’ve discovered a superpower I believe to be even more powerful than a radioactive spider bite or a nuclear blast.

Perspective Taking!

Ok ok, I’ll allow that at first glance it may not have the same appeal as the previously stated superpowers, but let me explain.

Perspective-taking is the all-important skill of being able to look at things from a point of view other than our own. When we are able to reflect on someone else’s point of view, we offer compassion and empathy to that interaction. When these qualities are present in our interactions, mutual respect, success, and movement forward are guaranteed. When we get stuck in ‘my way or the highway’ thinking or right vs. wrong, we aren’t building bridges to a solution, we are creating roadblocks.

One of my favorite ways to explore perspective taking with a group or team is with a Values Circle rooted in Restorative Practice Principles. When we are able to discover what someone’s core values are, it helps us to have a greater understanding of where they are coming from as they operate in their day/life.

For example, if a co-worker shares one of their top core values is safety, it helps us understand why they may pay more attention to incoming weather reports, take a long time making decisions, or spend extra time with sanitizing or crisis preparations. Instead of being frustrated about their additional questions or time, we can shift our thinking from a place of irritation to compassion and understanding.

We’re living in a unique time and as we approach the start of school, perspective-taking can help us to understand others and ensure empathy and grace in our everyday interactions.

Here are two sample Values Circle scripts for you to try!

Script 1

Opening: Share a quote about Values. For example:

“Values are like fingerprints. Nobody’s are the same, but you leave ‘em all over everything you do.” –Elvis Presley

“Your core values are the deeply held beliefs that authentically describe your soul.” –John C. Maxwell

Prompt Options

  • Identify a value that is important to you in relationships.
  • What core value guides your work?
  • How do your core values show up in your day-to-day life?
  • When do you feel you’re living in alignment with your core values? When do you feel you’re out of alignment with your core values?

Script 2

Identify Core Value and place in the center of the circle: Provide post-it notes and have people write their own and place them in the center OR spread out The Values Cards in the center of the circle and have people choose one, then offer the following prompt:

Reflection

  • Share why you choose the word you did and how this value is expressed in your work/life.

Closing

“Perspective-taking is taking on the perspective of others. It’s what we do anytime we buy a gift for someone else (‘What would they like?’). So it means breaking the golden rule (‘Treat others the way you want to be treated’) and instead acknowledges that others may not want what you want.” –David Livermore

Expecting success in the face of great adversity brought by derecho

Reflecting on the derecho one year later

As I reflect on the past year since the August 10th derecho, I am struck by the resilience, strength, and neighborliness of our community. The generosity and commitment to helping those most in need that our community exhibited immediately after the storm truly illustrates what it means to be “CR Strong.”

None of us could have anticipated or prepared for the severe damage that the derecho would leave in its wake. Four Oaks and its affiliate organizations, Jane Boyd Community House and the Affordable Housing Network, Inc., experienced over $1 million of damage that was not covered by insurance and across our various locations in the area, lost an estimated 400 trees.

These numbers do not even begin to illustrate the mental, emotional and physical toll that the storm had not only on the children and families we serve but also on our staff and community partners. However, in the face of disaster and crisis, our agency and the community came together and asked, “What can we do to help?”

I witnessed countless good deeds following the storm — from staff helping get generators set up at our residential programs to volunteers helping pass out hot food and non-perishables in the hardest-hit neighborhoods. One staff member even went as far as independently raising nearly $5,000 to distribute supplies to anyone in need in the community, including current and past clients of the agency.

We did not have power, cellphone service, or, for some of us, running water. Despite these challenges, staff worked tirelessly to ensure that our children and families were being taken care of and getting connected to resources and support. They then turned their attention to helping their colleagues clean up the damage and begin the recovery process.

Four Oaks’ vision is “Expect Success.” I truly saw this vision lived out as the community and our agency came together to stand strong as the mighty oak in the face of great adversity.

A year later, as we continue to see the needs of those affected by the derecho persist, Four Oaks, Jane Boyd Community House, and the Affordable Housing Network, Inc., remain committed to ensuring the success of the children and families we serve.

The generosity, strength, and neighborliness I saw in countless actions in the weeks following the derecho continue to inspire me. As we reflect on last year’s natural disaster, I urge you to continue to lead your lives with that same CR Strong spirit, ensuring that all members of our community have the support and resources to achieve success — no matter the challenges that blow through our lives.

-Debbie Craig, Four Oaks Enterprise Chief Advocacy Officer

 

Click here to see Debbie’s guest column featured in the Cedar Rapids Gazette.