About Us

CHAR-EM POVERTY REDUCTION INITIATIVE
A workgroup of the Charlevoix-Emmet Human Services Coordinating Body
Website address:  www.char-empri.org

 

Jamie Winters, Co-Chair Women’s Resource Center 423 Porter St., Petoskey, MI 49770 231-347-1572, jwinters@wrcnm.org

Corey Berden, Co-Chair NMCAA-Head Start 2202 Mitchell Park #4, Petoskey, MI 49770 231-347-9070, cberden@nmcaa.net

 

Our Mission:

Char-Em Poverty Reduction Initiative (PRI) will provide pathways out of poverty through people helping people connect with solutions that respect their dignity and build on their strengths.

 

Our History:

Since 2007, we have brought together a dynamic group of individuals and organizations to address issues of poverty in our two-county region. The Poverty Reduction Initiative (PRI) is a workgroup of the Char-Em Human Services Coordinating Body. Our initial work has been informed by the efforts of a similar group working since 2004 in the five-county Grand Traverse region. (For info on those efforts see: www.nwm.org/pri.asp)

 

Our Concerns:

• Poverty deprives our community of valuable human resources by creating barriers which prevent individuals from realizing their full potential;
• Poverty is a significant regional expense;
• If we understand the issues, local solutions to poverty can be found;
• Individuals and families can exit poverty with a helping hand;
• Our community has the resources and the spirit of collaboration to impact poverty. Regional poverty rate spring 2010 stands at 17.1 percent

 

Steering Committee:

The Steering Committee has been meeting since 2008 to document the extent of poverty, identify issues to address, and develop solutions. The group has developed Mentor and Navigator programs and presents “survive a month” in Poverty Simulation workshops.

 

Corey Berden, NWMCAA-Head Start, Co-Chair		Therese Green, Northern Michigan Regional Hospital
Jamie Winters, Women’s Resource Center, Co-Chair		Karl Furstenberg, Agape Baptist Church
Cheryl Bauman, Northern Community Mediation		Bill Denemy, Dept. of Human Services
Shirley Gillespie, Dept. of Human Services		Ken Allen, Unitarian Universality Fellowship
Martha Lancaster, Char-Em United Way		Sara Ward, Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Com. Fdn.
Lisa Luebke, Char-Em United Way		Maureen Radke, Charlevoix County Com. Fdn.
Major Matt Grindle, Salvation Army		Mary Margaret Hornbaker, Habitat for Humanity
Jim Rummer, Char-Em Intermediate School District		Kathy Hart, Manna Food Project
Pam Ovshinsky, Temple B’nai Israel		Ken Rapelje, Northwest Michigan Works!
Shelly Lavender, MI Rehabilitation Services

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Advisory Committee:

The Advisory Committee consists of a wide range of high-level community and business leaders. Our philosophy is that a broad involvement is required to create a broad range of solutions to the complex problem of poverty. The Advisory Committee meets twice a year to receive updates from the Steering Committee and to provide input to direct its work.