Volunteers Needed

Target Employees volunteering at the
Home Start warehouse sorting food.

Each year more than 100 people donate precious time to Home Start by volunteering for various tasks which include: tax preparation for clients, community outreach, administrative services, handing out food to needy families, and organizing community food and clothing drives just to name a few.

Without their wonderful support we would not be able to provide critical prevention and treatment services for child abuse in our community.

Volunteering creates a lasting community impact through meaningful service! If you are looking for a meaningful and positive work environment then Home Start is the place for you. Please read below for current volunteer needs.

Development Volunteer Opportunities CONTACT ngraichen@home-start.org

Our friendly Development Staff is looking for energetic, organized, and flexible people that are able to commit to at least twice a week for at least 6 months. Schedule and length of commitment flexible and to be agreed upon before volunteer begins work.

Needs include: data entry, filing, mailings, creating and modifying documents in Microsoft Office, general clerical duties, and other opportunities in fundraising and event planning as needed/desired and agreed upon by both volunteer and organization. Please send resume and letter of interest via e-mail to ngraichen@home-start.org

EITC Volunteer Opportunities – January-April 2011 CONTACT hr@home-start.org

(Evenings and weekends)

Site Coordinator – Responsible for site operation including staff scheduling, supervision of facility and customer service.  Must have strong tax preparation background with excellent management skills and be well organized.

Tax Preparer – Conducts intake of client information and prepares federal and state tax returns.  Must have basic tax preparation skills and be willing to prepare numerous tax returns during tax season.  Candidates are required to complete Internal Revenue Service sanctioned tax preparation training and to pass the basic proficiency exam.

Greeter/Screener – Schedule and manage appointments, greet taxpayers upon arrival, and screen for proper documentation.  Must have good organizational skills with basic knowledge of documents needed to prepare tax returns.  Greeters/screeners must enjoy working with people and have excellent customer service skills.

Interpreters – Assist non-English speaking taxpayers upon arrival, ensure they understand requirements for tax preparation, and answer any questions taxpayer may have.  Must have good organizational skills with basic knowledge of documents needed to prepare tax returns.  Interpreters must enjoy working with people and have excellent customer service skills.

Check out the Latest Video!

Home Start Holiday Video

Thank you so much to everyone that participated at this year's Holiday Distribution at the Home Start Warehouse!!! Not even the pouring down rain could keep our superstar volunteers away. Please take a look at this video to see all of the special things that went on!!

Please Save the Date!!

Home Start is excited to announce the 2011 “Blue Ribbon Gala” celebrating 39 years of service to the San Diego community and in honor of National Child Abuse Prevention Month. This signature event raises funds for Home Start’s programs which provide critical assistance to San Diego County’s most vulnerable children and families.  Held at the beautiful Estancia La Jolla Hotel and Spa on April 29, 2011 (6pm - 11pm), this is a fun, festive and heartwarming dinner with live dance music and special presentations. For more information, please contact Nicole Graichen (619) 692-0727 ext.113 or ngraichen@home-start.org.

Thanksgiving a Time to be Thankful…

Posted by Nicole Graichen

Thanksgiving is a time when you gather around the table with your loved ones and friends and share a special holiday meal. You play games, you laugh, you watch football, and you eat way too much! J  Remember to be grateful for your friends and family, and the opportunity to celebrate Thanksgiving like you always have…and if you can, give back a little this year because it’s not that way for all of our neighbors.

San Diego County’s official poverty rate rose in 2008 from 11.1% to 12.6%, the highest level on record during the past 50 years.

·        367,000 county residents are living below the federal poverty level (46,000 more than in 2007), with household incomes of less than $10,991 for an individual or $21,834 for a family of two adults with two children.

·        The number people in poverty in San Diego grew at a much faster rate than in the state or the nation. US poverty grew .2 percentage points and California poverty grew .9 percentage points, while San Diego County poverty grew 1.5 percentage points.

·        The data show that 850,000 county residents -- 29% of the population -- were living in economic hardship in 2008. Economic hardship is CPI’s term describing households with incomes below 200% of FPL, e.g. $21,982 for an individual, $43,668 for a family of 4.

The Data:
The following data comes from the 2008 American Community Survey (ACS) which was released on September 29, 2009 by the US Census Bureau. ACS provides demographic, economic and social data for individuals and households. The data is made available for geographic areas with populations of 65,000 or more.

Time is flying by!

Posted by Home Start Intern-Nicole

We’ve been at Home Start for 11 weeks now, and the to-do list continues to grow. Sometimes I wonder if I’ll ever reach a point where this all seems second nature to me. I have had some real trouble with establishing clients this semester, but I’m not giving up hope! I have two open cases – both with adolescent clients. I’ve seen the caregivers, but have yet to meet the clients themselves. I’m determined to meet one of them this week! I’m opening a Parent Child Interactive Therapy (PCIT) case this week, and I’m really excited to have Veronica shadowing me. Her calm demeanor might help me relax a little! I continue to co-facilitate the Adult Survivors of Child Abuse (ASCA) group for women. We are in our sixth week! It is a little hard to believe that group is half over.

My fellow interns and I have formed a pretty cohesive group, and I’m really very happy with my placement at Home Start this year. The supervision I receive here is always excellent, and I’m sure I’m on the path to being a competent, confident, mental health professional.

An Ounce of Prevention

Posted by Home Start Intern-Jen

With two months into my internship and a caseload half full, I can already say that I am being challenged.  I made it through the initial flood of new information, trainings, and accompanying insecurities feeling lucky to have found my sea legs.  I have learned to not stay too late, make my mental and physical health a priority, and have “good boundaries” in psychology talk.  There is one case, however, that I struggle to keep in perspective.  The case is not the over-parentified child from an abusive home or the number of childhood neglect cases I have witnessed and reported, but instead a group of women I see on a weekly basis.  There is nothing else that has sold me more on the benefits of Home Start programs than the experience of facilitating their recovery. 

These are women with whom we encounter every day, in the workplace, around town, possibly our neighbors.  They do not stand out from the crowd and their lives reflect a strong work ethic and compassion for others.  What they do share is a childhood of fear, horror, and repeated victimization that still haunts them today.  All of these women were chronically abused by immediate family members with the majority being victims of incest.  When talking with these courageous women, I was shocked to find out that most had never seen a therapist before and one woman had never disclosed her abuse.  Being in the mental health field it is easy to forget that not everyone goes to therapy, as we are surrounded by it every day!  Their abuse was never recognized or treated, and as a result has struggled in silence with issues of shame, guilt, and betrayal.  As adults some numbed their pain with substances, others found themselves in emotionally abusive relationships. 

I remember driving home one night feeling deeply affected by one woman’s story.  I kept picturing her as a child, possibly as my client, and wondered what her life would be like if her abuse was prevented or treated early on.  The fact is I will never know.  I can only focus my efforts on the present.  With sexual abuse prevalence rates ranging from 15% to 30% for female children, the value of preventing lifelong suffering like hers is immeasurable.

Adopt-A-Family

Posted by Home Start's Development Coordinator, Nicole Graichen

San Diego County is home to families who struggle daily to meet their children's most basic needs. Too many families live only one event away from irrevocable loss through child abuse or violence, a preventable childhood illness, poor access to health care, or the devastating absence of a parent. Many struggle to escape the relentless, punishing stresses of poverty and their subsequent inability to provide a stable, secure home for their children.

For these families, Home Start provides a continuum of care. The professional help provided by our dedicated staff through home visits or our neighborhood resource centers is often the critical human contact these struggling families need to prevent tragedy and move toward a healthy, more promising future.

The holiday season is quickly approaching and, through our annual Adopt-A-Family Campaign and Holiday Drive, Home Start invites you to join us in giving our most disadvantaged families a wonderful reason to celebrate during this difficult time. 

For many struggling families, serving a special holiday meal or providing gifts to their children is well beyond their reach. However, with the support from charitable people like you throughout our region, Home Start has been able to bring a smile to the faces of many children and their parents. You can create a meaningful holiday for a family in need by joining us in this effort.

This is an immediate opportunity to offer support and compassion to deserving families when they need it most -- and when it could provide an uplifting "boost" to help them accomplish their goal for a healthier, happier life. 

We hope you will participate as a 2010 sponsor!

Click here for the participation form!! You can also call Nicole at 619-692-0727 ext. 113 or send her an email at ngraichen@home-start.org.