Summer and Fall 2011 COMMUNITY NEWS 517 Moody Street, Waltham, MA 02453 781-891-6689 www.watchcdc.org Marc leads his team weatherizing doors at the Barnraising on July 17th. Learn more about Healthy Homes on Page 4 CONGRATULATIONS to Edna for reaching English Proficiency and Graduation from Breaking Barriers! Learn more about our adult education program on Page 2 - ALSO IN THIS ISSUE - Meet a Tutor Pair: Page 2 - Great Annual Meeting: Page 3 - English Conversation Group: Page 2 - Organizing Opportunities: Page 6 - Learn about MWCD: Page 6 - Traducción en español: Página 7 Come join us at the weekly Outreach Market! Learn more on Page 5 1 BREAKING BARRIERS NEWS: Empowering the Community through Education Speak Up! Conversation Club Begins at WATCH This summer, WATCH’s Breaking Barriers program is launching an exciting new program: Speak Up! Conversation Club. Every week, the group, comprised of learners in the tutor program, meets to practice their advanced conversation skills in a casual, fun way. Speak Up! is possible because of two fantastic volunteers, Shayna and Belinda, who are leading the group. Shayna has been a tutor in one-on-one tutoring program since May 2010 and recently joined WATCH’s Board of Directors. Belinda brings years of experience teaching English language learners both in the U.S. and abroad. Meet Mouna and Giovanni! Speak Up! gives participants a chance to improve their skills in an unstructured environment that focuses on their interests. Shayna describes it as “quite a lively group”. In one recent meeting, they spent their time talking about Independence Day in different countries and then the conversation naturally turned to cooking and food customs around the world. Given the relaxed nature of the group, they spend a lot of time laughing. Shayna says of two participants “they should probably start a comedy show together . . . they had everyone cracking up!”. Mouna and Giovanni have been working together in WATCH’s Serve and Learn Volunteer Tutoring Program since March of this year and have made a great connection. They meet every week and spend their time focusing on conversation, pronunciation, and writing in English. Their tutoring sessions are relaxed and unstructured, so they each really enjoy their time together. Giovanni says, “I like that we talk about everything. We talk about family, work, and what we are doing that week”. Mouna agrees, “I enjoy sharing about our families…It feels good to work with someone who is so motivated”. Speak Up! Conversation Club allows these participants to make new friends, continue to improve their English, and have fun. Giovanni and Mouna are a great example of one goal of the Breaking Barriers program: connecting people who might not otherwise have a chance to know each other. Mouna says, “our personalities are a good match and that is so important… I’m happy to be working with Giovanni”. Mouna got involved because she was looking for a volunteer opportunity that got her outside of her typical social circle. Mouna explains that she was initially interested because “I like people and I can talk to different people so I wanted to try tutoring”. The current session of Speak Up! Conversation Club will run until August 9 and then will start again in September. If you are interested in volunteering with this or any of WATCH’s programs for English learners, contact Alex Siegrist, Breaking Barriers Program Manager at 781-891-6689 x202 or Alexandra@watchcdc.org. Giovanni signed up to participate because he had previously taken English classes at WATCH and wanted a chance to continue practicing his conversation skills. In the future, he hopes to take the GED and become a licensed plumber. For now, he works in a restaurant where he has opportunities to speak English with his coworkers. He is getting married next year and he and his fiancé plan to stay permanently in the United States. Improving his already advanced English is Giovanni’s first step toward reaching these other goals. Participating in this program connects both Giovanni and Mouna more strongly to their community here in Waltham. If you are interested in participating in this unique program, either as a volunteer tutor or as an English learner, contact Alex Siegrist, Breaking Barriers Program Manager at Alexandra@watchcdc.org or 781-891-6689 x202. Breaking Barriers at WATCH is supported by Rockland Trust Charitable Foundation, The Foundation for MetroWest, TD Bank Charitable Foundation, and the City of Waltham 2 Action and A wards at W ATC H’s Annua l Mee ting Nearly 80 of you, our members, turned out for WATCH’s Annual Meeting, celebrating our 23rd year. As usual, the night started with some delicious food – roasted chicken, plantains, beans, salad…and, of course, cookies! The WATCH staff was there: Director Erica Schwarz, Program Manager Alex Siegrist, Community Organizer Anne Schweitzer, and Office Administrator Rhonda Lechten, as well as former WATCH staff Steve Laferriere, who is now the Senior Project Manager for WATCH’s new housing development arm, Metro West Collaborative Developers (learn more on page 5). You elected the board of directors, including 3 new members who have already become vital and active contributors to board activities. WATCH Board President Annette Reynolds and Erica kicked off the event by welcoming everyone and asking who was in the room by asking guests to wave purple streamers at the tables. Wave if you rent your apartment! Wave if you have lived in Waltham for more than 30 years! Wave if you can speak a language other than English! Wave if you want to work with your neighbors to make your community as strong as possible! The room was a sea of waving purple streamers! 2011 – 2012 WATCH Board Brenda Capello Connee Counts Shayna Cummings Felipe Lopez Cecilia Matos Virginia Monroe Annette Reynolds Marc Rudnick Cynthia Salamanis Noam Shore Soledad Valenciano John Walters After honoring three awardees (see below), we were all treated to a special presentation about a potential site for affordable housing development. A team of MIT and Harvard graduate students in architecture, finance and urban planning created a development plan for Cooper Lane – a 3-acre contaminated site along along the Charles River in downtown Waltham. The site is ideal for a mixed use development that would focus on affordable housing because of its location to the public transit and other downtown amenities, because nonprofits who develop affordable housing can access special funds to clean up contaminated sites such as this one, and because we know that so many community members would like to see more top quality homes created in our City that the average Waltham family can afford. If you’d like to get a copy of the team’s project proposal, contact Rhonda at WATCH at 781-891-6689 x0. The room then split up for discussion groups – and some action came out of that. Because of the conversation about the “Secure Communities” act, several WATCH members attended a town hall style meeting held by Governor Patrick’s office to discuss this law that would link local law enforcement directly to the federal immigration agency. Thankfully, the Governor ultimately decided not to support this discriminatory law, that would actually make our community less safe, by instilling fear into local immigrants and reducing their likelihood of going to the police at key moments such as in the case of domestic violence. Every year, the annual meeting is a great way for a diverse mix of community members to celebrate what we’ve done so far and become inspired to keep working towards our goals. If you’ve been meaning to get more involved with WATCH, please get in touch with WATCH staff to think about what you might like to do. 781-891-6689 or info@watchcdc.org. We look forward to seeing you soon! 2011 ANNUAL MEETING AWARDS – presented to WATCH members who have gone above and beyond for WATCH or for our mission in the last year 1) Dick Scobie (pictured right): Long-time WATCH member, Dick Scobie, started coming in weekly to volunteer, helping with everything from vacuuming to stuffing mailings, to calling donors during our winter mail campaign to organizing real estate files. 2) John Walters: Introduced to WATCH when we conducted an energy efficiency barnraising at his home, John then became a barnraising volunteer and an English tutor and started participating in our work to build support for affordable housing development! 3) Shayna Cummings: Shayna started with WATCH as a tutor, but quickly became a leader in helping to shape the tutoring program and in starting a conversation class in order to give WATCH English learners more time practicing the language – something they have requested. 3 Healthy Homes: Barnraisings and A New Do-It-Yourself Guide Thanks to your participation, WATCH has completed 5 Energy Efficiency Barnraisings! Volunteers have installed spray foam in basements, weather-stripped doors, caulked around windows, changed light bulbs and done so much more! Each barnraising is different; there is always a new skill to learn and a new problem to fix. Volunteer Jacqui Steinberg says, “I've benefited by learning some new skills but more importantly by being a part of a program that is actually making a difference.” Volunteer at a Barnraising! Be a part of the action and make a tangible difference in your community and world! This summer WATCH added a new component to your Energy Efficiency Barnarisings: the Healthy Home Guidebook! The guidebook includes information on potential toxins in your home, air quality and how to test and improve it, recipes for healthy cleaning supplies, information on how to recycle problem items and much more! Pick yours up at the next barnraising or from the WATCH office. For information on Healthy Homes and Barnraisings, please contact Anne at 781.891.6689 x 206 or at organizer@watchcdc.org 5 Houses weatherized x average of $750 energy saved $3750 saved so far by Waltham families PER YEAR! 5 Houses weatherized x at least 5664.8 lbs of carbon cut 28324 lbs of carbon cut! Contact Anne at 781-891-6689 x 206 or organizer@watchcdc.org “When I leave barnraisings, I always feel like I have gained more than I’ve spent. Most of the time, I work alone and so being a part of a community while working feels pretty good.” – Dan Reedy, Volunteer Team Leader 18 Myrtle Street Made possible through Mass Service Alliance grant honoring Martin Luther King Jr., this barnraising took place at the 2-family home of tenants Wanda Sanchez and Clodine Ostane on MLK weekend. Many volunteers, including LISC Americorps members, joined the effort to weatherize this Waltham home, which WATCH owns and rents as affordable housing. 194 Brown Street 21 Fiske Street Jesus Martinez, the longtime nanny of the children of WATCH board members Felipe Lopez and Cecilia Matos, hosted a barnraising at her multi-unit home on Brown Street. As Jesus is a native Spanish speaker, this barnraising was bilingual! When asked about Jesus, Felipe says “I am so proud of Jesus for all she has accomplished since she immigrated to the US. She has worked so hard, not only to become a homeowner, but to enrich the lives of many along her path.” (Pictured above) David Grinstein and Christina Camacho, President of the Waltham League of Women voters, opened their home to barnraising volunteers on Saturday, July 16th. At their 3 floor, 2-family home on Fiske Street, volunteers benefited by an intensive caulking seminar led by caulking expert and HEET (Home Energy Efficiency Team) member, Jason Taylor. 4 Meet the WATCH Summer Interns! Originally from Harrisburg, PA, Andrew Mandel is a recent graduate from Brandeis University, where he majored in International and Global studies and minored in Environmental studies. Andrew has been involved with the Housing Advocacy Clinic since the summer of 2009: “Working at the housing clinic has taught me so much about Waltham, and I am thankful that working at WATCH has allowed me to feel like I am a part of the community.” Andrew really enjoys getting people involved in helping others, which is one of the reasons why he wanted to be a community organizer with WATCH this summer. Yeiri Roberts is a rising senior at Brandeis University. Originally from the Dominican Republic, she has lived in New York City for most of her life. Yeiri is majoring in Health: Science, Society and Policy, International and Global Studies, and Latin American and Latino Studies. She intends on becoming a human rights lawyer with a focus on economic justice. Yeiri volunteered as an interpreter for WATCH’s Housing Advocacy Clinic during her junior year. Yeiri’s interest in the Latino population in Waltham brought her to apply to the WATCH summer internship. Yeiri says “WATCH is amazing in that it works to empower its clients so that they can feel better about themselves and know their rights without them having to depend on others to help them. I have learned so much in the past many weeks and I owe it to the work that WATCH does.” WATCH Partners with Waltham Fields Community Farm to Provide Fresh Vegetables to Local Families On Tuesday July 19th Waltham Fields Community Farm kicked off the 3rd season of their Outreach Market at WATCH’s Moody Street property. The goal of the market, which the Farm started in the summer of 2008, is to provide organically grown produce at a price that is affordable for everyone. Many of Waltham’s residents cannot afford Waltham Fields’ CSA (community supported agriculture) program, so the outreach market presents a great alternative for them. The outreach market is held every Tuesday from 4:30-6:30, and will run through October 11th. It is held in the WATCH parking lot at 517 Moody Street, and anyone is welcome! “I love my community, and prefer to support the Waltham farm than a local supermarket.” Waltham Fields Community Farm supplies the produce, and partners with several organizations in Waltham (including WATCH, of course) to distribute vouchers for a free bag of vegetables. Even without a voucher, vegetables only cost five dollars a bag, which is a great price! The outreach market has many other advantages as well. Michele Richard, one of the many customers at the market, notes: “I like to bring my kids because they are not big vegetable people, and when I bring them here they get to talk to the [farm] workers and learn recipes. I also love my community, and prefer to support the Waltham farm than a local supermarket.” Michele’s daughter, who is twelve, has been learning about healthy foods at her summer camp across the street. “I like coming here because I do not want to eat food with pesticides,” she said. 5 Thanks so much to our Recent Funders for their Generous Support! Bank of America Charitable Foundation Massachusetts Service Alliance TD Bank Charitable Foundation Unitarian Universalist Funding Program 128 Innovation Capital Group We also deeply appreciate the recent donations from so many of our individual members. If you didn't contribute during our spring appeal, it's not too late! Visit www.watchcdc.org/donate or send your check to 517 Moody Street, Waltham, MA 02453. Thanks! Meet Your Waltham City Councillors! WATCH Members (like you!) are now regularly meeting with Waltham City Councillors. A shared initiative of WATCH’s Planning and Development and Affordable Housing Committees, these meetings not only allow you to get to know City Councillors, but help City Councillors get to know you! A ne w wa y for H ou sin g D e velo pm en t Creating affordable housing takes a lot of time and a lot of money, much of it from public sources. So if the national housing market implodes in the middle of the process to develop that housing, the entire deal is at risk! WATCH's project on Jackson Street fell victim to complications from the housing market and recession, making it impossible for us to proceed. This turn of events clarified for WATCH that we are too small to take on affordable housing development alone. So, in 2010, after a lot of planning with our partners, WATCH formed the Metro West Collaborative Developers (MWCD) with Watertown Community Housing, Belmont Housing Trust and Lexington Housing Partnership. MWCD’s sole mission is to create high quality, financially sustainable, “green” affordable housing developments in the four communities represented, in collaboration with residents of those communities. WATCH's seats on MWCD’s board allows us to maintain our priority of creating affordable housing in Waltham while focusing on what we do best: community organizing around housing issues, adult education and leadership development. By pooling resources and sharing staff WATCH has eliminated the risk inherent in new real estate development projects from our organization -- but we still get to work towards a City where all families have a decent home they can afford. WATCH will continue to identify potential sites and raise awareness and support among local residents, City officials and state funders. We will be an active partner with MWCD on any affordable housing development it carries out in Waltham in order and make sure that Waltham residents get the housing they want and need. In 2010 MWCD secured a $50,000 start-up grant from The Boston Foundation to support staffing and housing predevelopment costs. In 2011, MWCD has an accepted offer on a 25-unit property in Watertown being sold by nuns who want to be sure it is renovated, but remains affordable. We hope to see an offer on a site in Waltham by 2012. Want to get more involved with this work? Contact Anne at 781-891-6689 x206. 6 So far, WATCH members have met with Councillors Rourke, Logan, and Stanley (pictured left, with WATCH members Soledad Valenciano, Virginia Monroe, and Dick Scobie) and are in the process of scheduling meetings with the rest of the Council. John Walters, a WATCH board member and resident of Ward 8, met with his Ward Councillor, Stephen Rourke, in June : “I liked the fact that we were able to sit down, quite casually, and chat about the going ons with the WATCH organization. I feel like many people in the community, even councillors, need reminders about what kinds of things non-profits are doing to better support the people in their city,” John says. The meetings are fun and informal and focus around what the community members want to discuss with their councillors. If you live in Waltham, these meetings are for you – will we see you at the next one? It doesn’t matter which part of WATCH you are involved in or if it has been a while since your last WATCH event, Your councillors need to hear what you care about in your community in order to better serve you. You have a part in improving the community you live in, and as John says, “At the heart of the discussion was the idea of communication within a community and how that can better support the overall welfare of the population.” And what is better to talk about with a councillor than that? To get involved and meet your councillor, please contact Anne at 781.891.6689 x 206 or organizer@watchcdc.org. Did you know that, on average, more than 5 families a week use our Housing Clinic? If you are a tenant, you can help! Come to the Tenant Action Group meetings where you can use your housing experience to help other tenants! Cases may range from a tenant whose landlord is notorious for keeping his tenants’ security deposits to a landlord refusing to take care of a bedbug infestation. We are looking for teanants who are outraged by situations such as these and want to share some of their knowledge to collaborate in helping someone else. To learn more, contact Community Organizer Anne Schweitzer at 781-891-6689 x206 Supported in part by Bank of America Charitable Foundation Mercado Comunitario ¡Gracias por Una Reunión Anual Magníifica! WATCH continúa su asociación con la Waltham Fields Community Farm para proveer productos alimenticios locales a bajo costo a la comunidad de Waltham en nuestra reunión semanal del Mercado Comunitario. El Mercado se ofrece cada martes de 4:30 a 6:30 hasta el 11 de octubre. Michele Richard, una de las compradoras del Mercado dice “Me gusta traer a mis hijos porque no favorecen a las vegetales, y cuando vienen aquí pueden hablar con los trabajadores y aprender recetas. También quiero a mi comunidad y prefiero apoyar a la finca de Waltham en vez del supermercado.” ¡Venga a probar! Solo $5 dólares por chuspa, estas vegetales son a buen precio. Nuestra reunión anual # 23 fue un gran éxito, con la asistencia de casi 80 miembros y todo el staff de WATCH. Fueron elegidos tres miembros nuevos a la junta y ya son contribuyentes activos y vitales en las actividades de la junta. Después de honrar a tres personas, todos escuchamos a una presentación sobre un sitio posible para el desarrollo de la vivienda asequible. Un equipo de estudiantes de post-grado de la arquitectura, finanzas, y la planeación urbana de las universidades MIT y Harvard crearon un plan de desarrollo para Cooper Lane, un sitio contaminado de 3 acres, en la ribera del río Charles en el centro de Waltham. Si quiere una copia del proyecto, llame a Rhonda en WATCH al 781-891-6689 x0. Bio de Andrew y Yeiri Originalmente de Harrisburg, PA, Andrew Mandel se graduó recientemente de la Universidad de Brandeis. Andrew viene ayudando con la Clínica de la Vivienda desde el verano de 2009, y goza mucho facilitando la ayuda mutua entre las personas, que es una de las razones que quiere ser organizador de la comunidad con WATCH este verano. Speak Up! Conversation Club Este verano, el programa de WATCH Breaking Barriers (Romper Barreras) inicia un programa nuevo: Speak Up! Conversation Club. Cada semana el grupo se reúne para practicar la conversación avanzada en un ambiente casual y divertido. La mayoría de los alumnos ya están matriculados en el programa Breaking Barriers, el programa de WATCH que ofrece tutores individuales. Los alumnos son de sitios diversos, como Guatemala, Haití, Morocco, y El Salvador. La sesión actual de Speak Up! Conversation Club termina el 9 de agosto y una nueva sesión comienza en septiembre. Si quiere ayudar con cualquier programa de WATCH para los estudiantes de ingles, contacte a Alex Siegrist, Directora del programa Breaking Barriers al 781891-6689 x202 o Alexandra@watchcdc.org. Yeiri Roberts entra en su último año en la Universidad de Brandeis. De origen dominicana, su meta es ser abogado concentrada en los derechos humanos y la justicia social. Yeiri fue traductora voluntaria para la Clínica de la Vivienda de WATCH durante el año pasado, y debido a su interés en la población latina de Waltham aplicó para el puesto en el internado del verano con WATCH. Una Nueva Vía para el Desarrollo de la Vivienda Asequible Así que en 2010, WATCH formó la organización Metro West Collaborative Developers (MWCD) con otros organizaciones. La misión de MWCD es crear proyectos de viviendas “verdes” de alta calidad y sostenibles económicamente, en estas comunidades miembros. Al juntar los recursos y el staff, WATCH ha eliminado el riesgo inherente en desarrollar los bienes raíces nuevos. Esperamos tener un terreno en Waltham en 2012. Si quiere participar en este trabajo, llame a Anne al 781-891-6689 x206. Presentamos a Mouna y Giovanni! Mouna y Giovanni vienen trabajando juntos en el programa de WATCH Servir y Aprender con Tutores Voluntarios desde marzo 2011 y han hecho una buena conexión. Se reúnen cada semana para charlar y enfocarse en la pronunciación y la escritura en ingles. Son un gran ejemplo para la meta del programa Romper Barreras, conectando a gente que de otro modo no se conocerían. Giovanni quería seguir mejorando su inglés después de tomar las clases en WATCH y Mouna quería una oportunidad voluntaria distinta de su círculo social regular. Participando en este programa también los enlaza a los dos mas fuertemente a su comunidad en Waltham. Hogares Saludables Este verano WATCH sumó un nuevo componente a este proceso, el Guía para un Hogar Saludable. El guía incluye información sobre sustancias tóxicas, la calidad del aire, como probar y arreglarlo, recetas para productos de limpieza saludables, información sobre el reciclamiento de cosas problemáticas,¡ y mas! Para mas información sobre este programa, favor de contactar a Anne al 781.891.6689 x 206 o al organizer@watchcdc.org Si le interesa participar en este programa como tutor voluntario o alumno de ingles, contacte a Alex Siegrist, a Alexandra@watchcdc.org o 781-891-6689 x202. Reuniones con los Concejales Necesitamos su ayuda! Con un grupo de Acción de Inquilinos, donde podrá discutir sus experiencias con la vivienda para ayudar a otros inquilinos. Casos pueden tratarse de los dueños que son conocidos por no devolver el pago de la seguridad, o por no arreglar los problemas con insectos. Estamos buscando a los que han sufrido y están furiosos con estas situaciones y quieran colaborar para ayudar a otros, venga a las reuniones del Grupo de Acción de Inquilinos Para aprender mas, llame a Anne Schweitzer al 781-891-6689 x206 Miembros de WATCH ahora reunimos regularmente con los Concejales de la ciudad de Waltham. Hemos reunido con los Concejales Rourke, Logan, y Stanley y vamos a reunir con los demás Concejales. Las reuniones son informales y divertidas. Sus Concejales deben oír lo que les importa para servirles mejor. Si quiere participar en las reuniones y aprender mas, favor de contactar a Anne al 781.891.6689 x 206 o organizer@watchcdc.org. 7 WATCH Community News: Summer-Fall 2011 WATCH works towards a more just community in the Waltham area by: Creating and promoting affordable housing Providing adult education and leadership development Empowering underrepresented residents through civic engagement WATCH is about you! Our work is underscored and strengthened by community organizing and community building. Rhonda, Alex, Erica, and Anne are always here to help, give us a call! Traducción en español esta adentro: Página 7 8 517 Moody Street, Waltham, MA 02453 (781) 891 - 6689 www.watchcdc.org