Jennifer Berkey, MSU Extension Family & Consumer Science Educator, PRI's Simulation Workshop Coordinator and Facilitator

PRI's Survive a "Month" in Poverty simulation workshop is available to all interested community co-sponsor groups and organizations.  This powerful and effective three hour workshop enables interested individuals and community groups to gain a valuable understanding about the daily challenges of living in poverty and about the issues facing more than 13,200 people with limited or no income across our Northwest Michigan five county region.

One recent "Survive" simulation workshop, sponsored by the Traverse Bay Poverty Reduction Initiative, was held in November 2007 at Bayview Wesleyan Church in Traverse City.

Volunteers played the roles of businesses and agencies in "town" while participants were assigned identities and were divided into family groups. Each family (and each member within the family) was given a certain set of circumstances and a unique set of barriers which had to be managed in order to survive the "month" or transcend poverty.

The "month" in poverty--really four weeks of 15 minutes each, was frustrating for most. Of the 23 families, 7 were on the way to foreclosure, only 10 had visited the grocery store within the first two weeks, and some elicited the help of school-age children--sometimes to their long-term detriment--in order get by.

Other barriers included: lack of knowledge about available resources, poor attendance or performance in school, lack of job training, hunger, long lines, crime, drugs, illness, scarce transportation, disabilities, low income, and unemployment.

One family with a single mom attributed their success to the son who had graduated from high school; he found a job early in the simulation.

A senior citizen couple, played by two students from Leland Public Schools, was able to pay all of their expenses for the month with a little to spare but they were victims of a crime.

Most families had to choose between paying bills, eating, or seeing their kids off to school. It seemed there was not enough time or resources to accomplish all that had to done.

Tom Emling, Michigan State University's Community Partners Regional Representative, compiled feedback from the participants. This feedback will be used to create awareness and to assist in reducing poverty in the region.

New ideas and creative solutions are essential to significantly reduce the number of those in poverty. If you are interested in hosting a Poverty Reduction Initiative "Survive a 'Month' in Poverty" workshop for your organization, please contact PRI Social Attitudes Issue Group member Tom Emling at emlingt@msu.edu or:

info@traversebaypri.org
(231) 922-6995