Opportunity Junction

In this issue...

Featured Alumnus Mark's resume got his foot in the door, and his skills earned him a key promotion. Here's his story...

Week of Caring: Chevron volunteers come through again to make our offices safer and more inviting. More...

To the Next Level: Opportunity Junction has been selected to join the prestigious Tipping Point Community portfolio, giving us valuable new resources for capacity building. More...

Change Agents: East Bay Community Foundation selects Opportunity Junction as a Community Partner "advancing economic security and the education that leads to it." More...

Art for Opportunity: The 4th annual Antioch Rotary sponsored event is Thursday, October 27 featuring works by local artists, food & wine pairings, and an auction. More...

ENASHA PHOTOGRAPHY: Our volunteer photographers wear many hats. (And they look marvelous!) More...

We're Hiring! We're hiring a full-time Business Services Manager to help us build the placement pipeline and serve more businesses through our Staffing Services enterprise. More...

Partner Spotlight: A Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano partnership helps us deliver critical safety net services. More...

• October 27, 6 pm: Art for Opportunity
• December 22, 2011: Class 36 Graduation

Mark Reynoso was looking ahead to his future. A recent move to California and a new marriage had him feeling like he could accomplish anything. But the job market darkened his outlook after months of looking for work with no success. Although he had a strong work history in a warehouse, as a delivery driver, and in physical labor jobs, he couldn't get hired anywhere.

"I felt helpless and powerless," Mark says. "I couldn't help support our family and I couldn't find any help with employment."

Mark came across Opportunity Junction while riding his bike through the neighborhood. He thought the evening computer basics series would be a great start on getting some new training. He ended up, however, applying to our flagship Job Training and Placement Program. Not our usual candidate for the JTPP, Mark's professional demeanor and sincere desire to improve his life convinced staff that he was a perfect fit.

"I loved learning the computer skills, but what I really appreciated were the Life Skills with Natalie [Georgia, Manager of Personal Development]," says Mark. "The class made me aware of things I never thought of before-how to act around others, how to be professional. Everything I needed for an office position."

Due to a family emergency, Mark had to resign his internship before submitting any applications or working through the career skills curriculum. Fortunately, he was eligible for our array of alumni support services and worked closely with Lorena Caldera, Career Development Counselor, to generate his resume and refine his cover letter. "Lorena was willing to spend as much time as it took to help me find a job. I know she helped me get my resume to the top of the pile," Mark asserts.

Although not his dream job, Mark took a production area position with California Closets making $10 an hour. Barely a month into his new job, his company needed someone who knew computer skills. Thanks to his training at Opportunity Junction, Mark eagerly proved that he had the skills for this position. He is now a Job Coordinator on salary. More importantly, this position has the potential to grow.

"We were barely making ends meet. Now we can afford our car payments. We just got Dish Network-the first time we have had cable in five years. I feel wonderful at this point. I had finally found a job-but to be promoted so quickly was more than I could have asked for."

"Opportunity Junction is a god-send for anyone who needs training, who has been out of the workforce. This is a wonderful opportunity for anyone willing to go for it."

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Chevron Week of Caring Volunteer Teams Make Offices Safe and Inviting

The Bay Area's annual Week of Caring, sponsored by the United Way of the Bay Area with partners Chevron and the Volunteer Centers of the Bay Area, mobilizes thousands of volunteers to help Bay Area nonprofits. Opportunity Junction submitted a project for volunteer teams to paint rooms for our Bay Point Career Development Services team at the Ambrose Community Center and to get our Opportunity Junction offices earthquake ready.

Maurice Van Sickle and his team of co-workers from Chevron Global Marketing Solutions have become part of the Opportunity Junction family, returning for a third straight year to help us tackle some of our most difficult projects. His is support is so consistent that we even brainstorm ideas throughout the year for his team to work on during Week of Caring. This year, his team tackled a major painting project.

We also want to thank Chad Sandburg for volunteering with us for the first time. His handy team helped affix bookshelves and cubbies to the walls so we will all be better prepared for an earthquake. Expertly wielding their power tools, Chad and his team used their half day well to complete all of our projects and worked so efficiently, we were even able to add an additional project: helping us collate folders for recruitment!

Thanks so much to Chevron and Maurice and Chad's teams for helping us beautify our office and complete much-needed projects.

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Tipping Point Community Selects Opportunity Junction to Join Portfolio

Since the founding of Tipping Point Community by Daniel Lurie in 2005, Opportunity Junction has been hoping to tap into its network of resources and expertise to help us increase our capacity to serve the low-income communities of East Contra Costa.

Only a select number of organizations, subjected to a rigorous due diligence process, are invited to join the portfolio. About 10% of organizations that Tipping Point Community selects for site visits are judged to have the capacity to fully leverage this partnership.

We are proud and grateful to announce that we have now joined the portfolio. Our first-year goals for the partnership are ambitious, but Tipping Point Community will provide funding, technical assistance and other resources to help us achieve them:

1. Strengthen employer partnerships in order to (a) place interns and alumni into higher paying positions and (b) increase income from the Staffing Services social enterprise.
2. Work with outside experts to explore opportunities to scale the Job Training and Placement Program to reach more participants.
3. Refine Salesforce infrastructure to improve staff productivity and accuracy, with greater automation of repetitive tasks and improved integration with website.

Thank you, members of the Opportunity Junction community, for your ongoing partnership in getting us to this level and helping us expand our impact during this time of great need.

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East Bay Community Foundation Selects Opportunity Junction as One of Six Job Training Community Partners

Opportunity Junction has been selected by the East Bay Community Foundation as one of its Community Partners that provide services in the Foundation's focus areas of "advancing economic security and the education that leads to it." These nonprofits, all of which have received past EBCF grants, were selected for funding over the coming three years because of their effective programs, strong management, and demonstrated leadership in the community. Beyond its financial commitment, the East Bay Community Foundation will also partner with these organizations individually and as a network of "change agents" to increase the impact of their programs on behalf of low-income East Bay residents and communities.

The Foundation intends to bring added visibility to its Partners, putting them in the spotlight with the individuals, families, and corporations holding charitable funds with EBCF. The Foundation will also work with each Partner to strengthen the organization and to create opportunities for collaboration with similar groups working to improve education and economic security in low-income East Bay communities.

"During the past three years, we have emphasized the importance of collaboration and what comes out of it - the power of many. By establishing partnerships with these organizations, we are now consolidating the power of many into a network of change agents for the vibrancy of the East Bay and its communities," stated Nicole Taylor, President and CEO of the Foundation.

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Join us Thursday October 27 for the 4th Annual Art for Opportunity

For those of you who have enjoyed the Antioch Rotary's annual fundraiser Art for Opportunity, it is that time again! For those of you who are new to the event, here's your chance to learn more.

Join us Thursday, October 27, 2011 at 6 pm as the Antioch Rotary presents the Fourth Annual Art for Opportunity, an art show featuring renowned local artists. This event at Umpqua Bank in Antioch (3700 Lone Tree Way) will have an auction, local art display, and wine and food pairings. Tickets are $40 and all proceeds benefit local non-profits Opportunity Junction, Loaves and Fishes, and the Delta Memorial Hospital Foundation.

Wine and food pairings will be the creation of chef Rick Kaiser, a partner with Temen, Kaiser & Cameron LLP, a firm of CPAs in Antioch. Thank you to the following sponsors: Robert Mondavi Winery, Drs. Roberto and Jessica Deloso, Gloria Martin and Family, and Temen, Kaiser & Cameron.

For more information please contact Brianna Burkman, Development Manager.

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ENASHA PHOTOGRAPHY - Our Volunteer Photographers Wear Many Hats!

David and Nicola Fraser, volunteer photographers for Opportunity Junction's events, make a striking couple. Maybe it's their fashion sense - not surprising, as their company ENASHA PHOTOGRAPHY focuses on fashion photography. Maybe it's the sense of command you can feel from David, even as he kneels unobtrusively to get a good shot or directs a portrait session - and for good reason, since David's other hats include Chief of Staff for Contra Costa County Supervisor Glover, as well as Adjunct Professor teaching Public Administration at Cal State East Bay, and consultant and presenter to a host of other organizations. Or maybe it's the sheer pleasure of seeing Nicola, ENASHA's Creative Director, and an experienced fashion model, dress for the occasion, as shown in some memorable photos before our last Gala.

David and Nicola have volunteered their impressive photography skills for over two years, after David was featured as Guest Speaker in December 2007. Since then, the couple provided the visual record of our graduations, fundraisers, and special events - you can see recent Opportunity Junction photos on their website.

David says, "We were very impressed by the ways that Opportunity Junction helps the community, the consistency and integrity that characterizes the organization, and we knew that for many of the participants, this might be the first opportunity they've had to get high-quality images of themselves and their families. By documenting their graduation, we help to support the importance of that success."

To provide their photographic services, David and Nicola take time out from their busy schedules, rescheduling graduate teaching commitments and travel commitments as necessary. They also spend hours working with the image files, adjusting them to give the highest possible quality output before making them available. Similar services provided on a commercial basis would cost the organization thousands of dollars a year.

David and Nicola have now witnessed nine graduations, and have been moved many times by the family support they see for the graduates, and the impact of the Job Training and Placement Program on the participants' lives. David says, "At the last graduation, we set up a family portrait with the new graduate holding her very young baby in her arms and surrounded by her family. I realized what a challenge it must have been for her to successfully complete the training program. That image really stands out for me."

David's involvement in teaching photography began as an adjunct to Supervisor Glover's Youth Summit, recognizing that many teens had an interest in posting quality photographs on MySpace and Facebook. By the time you read this, David and Nicola will also have taught two Digital Photography classes, free of charge, in Opportunity Junction's evening Technology Center program. David says, "I love to help people progress as photographers, whether they're just getting started, or starting to move to professional level."

Many thanks to David and Nicola - and please visit their website or Facebook page.

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New Full-time Business Services Manager to Increase Placement Pipeline and Generate Staffing Income

Originally posted as an opening for an Employer Relations Manager, our new Business Services Manager position will be charged with developing and maintaining employer relationships, increasing our pipeline of placements, and generating Staffing Services income.

The new hire, whoever it is (we have excellent applications from both internal and external candidates), will be part of expanding on last year's successful employer outreach efforts. Placements made through employer outreach averaged wages that were higher by almost $2 an hour than ones in which Opportunity Junction did not have a direct connection with the employer.

Excellent candidates, with a passion for our mission, can still check out the posting on craigslist, but they'll have to hurry. "There's some amazing talent out there right now," says Brianna Burkman, Development Manager. "We're going to wish we could hire more than one of these folks."

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Partner Spotlight: the Food Bank of Contra Costa

We are proud to be partnering with the Food Bank of Contra Costa's Food Assistance Program to help bring even more safety net services to our Job Training and Placement Program participants.

This much appreciated community resource allows us to pick-up and distribute fresh food every Thursday-at no cost. Although it varies from week to week, items often include milk, bread, a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, and other miscellaneous items. In addition to the free weekly items, we also purchase additional items at the end of every month (including eggs and meat) when budgets are leaner and our participants are more in need of assistance to help their families.

"I really appreciate receiving the items from the Food Bank on a weekly basis. I don't have to worry about feeding my family while I focus on finding permanent employment," says Intern Clarina Martinez.

This is a continuation of the partnership created several months ago when we started storing non-perishable items for emergency situations. We discovered that some of our participants were skipping meals and struggling to put dinner on the table for their children during our training program. We now store a closet of items to be distributed as needed along with recipes so the food can be best utilized.

The mission of the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano is to alleviate hunger and provide an efficient, coordinated system for collecting and distributing food that reduces waste and increases public awareness regarding hunger and food security issues. Most of the distributed food comes from donations and the purchasing of some staple items. Other direct distribution programs include the Brown Bag Program that serves low-income seniors and the Food for Children Program providing food once a month to families with children ages four and five.

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Alumni News

Congratulations on the following new positions: Elisha Pedersen-Booher, Class 34, Front Desk Administrative Assistant; Bridget Garcia, Class 34, Cashier; Linnea Ludwick, Class 34, Waiver Specialist; Norma Shearin, Class 30, Realtor Associate; Erin Thomas, Class 34, Accounting Clerk.

Keep Us Posted: Alumni, please fill out an online update here if you've not already done so. The survey takes 5 minutes, and your responses will be confidential. Your reporting creates opportunities for others. Thanks for your help!

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New Grants and Support for our Programs

We are proud and grateful to announce the following new grants and funding partnerships, in addition to those separately featured in this newsletter:

• The PMI Foundation: The PMI Foundation has selected Opportunity Junction for a Community Champion grant supporting our initiatives to expand the capacity of the Job Training and Placement Program. The foundation funds initiatives that target disadvantaged, poor, and distressed populations and focus either on increasing affordable housing opportunities or directly contributing to the quality of life in under-served communities.
• SparkPoint East Contra Costa: Grants from the funders supporting the new SparkPoint East Contra Costa at the Ambrose Community Center in Bay Point -- including the United Way of the Bay Area, the Y&H Soda Foundation, the Bank of America, and the S.H. Cowell Foundation -- will be supporting our Career Development Services there, in addition to other services designed to help low-income residents achieve financial stability. Since the Career Development Services launched in the summer of 2010, staff have placed 33 participants into employment.

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Newsletter Contributors: Brianna Burkman, Alissa Friedman, and Jesse Golden.

copyright © 2011, Opportunity Junction

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