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Cornell Coalition for the Homeless

Minutes - Sunday, March 4, 2001

*****New GENERAL PUBLICITY DRIVE COMMITTEE:
**5-6 members so far, head of committee is David Baharvar (DB75)
**The goal: to get more people to know about CCH and attend meetings.
**Starting after Spring Break, we will do chalkings, posterings, and maybe use Koolaid to advertise on the snow?
**We will also contact professor of both large lectures (especially social science) and smaller classes relating directly to poverty/homelessness issues, to ask if we can make an announcement in their class, or at least put up a transparency before their class begins.
**In the mean time, list serves will be forwarded en masse (we pooled our collective connections).
 

*****Rental assistance:
**In late Feburary, the Coalition was approached to help an Ithaca resident
with rental assistance.
**Because half the battle against homelessness is preventing the initial incident which causes a person to become homeless,
we paid for the rent for the rest of the month.
**Unfortunately, this time we were not able to help find a permanent solution.
 

*****HYGIENE PRODUCTS DRIVE
**One of the most degrading aspects of homelessness is not being able to maintain adequet hygiene.  Therefore, the Coalition is gathering hygiene products from Cornell students.
**Everything we collect will be donated to area service providers after Spring Break.
**PLACES TO DONATE:
-Student Agencies in Collegetown
-RPCC lobby
-Willard Straight
-Noyes
**DURATION
March 2 through March 15
 

*****Relationship is progressing with Cornell Law School
**On March 10th, the Asian American Law Student Society will probably participate in an On-Site project to paint Unity House. Organized by Jesse (jlb76), Volunteer Coordinator.  This represents CCH's first actual initiating and running of a project through On-Site, which hopefully will further cement our relationship with them.
**David (db75) met with Keisha Hudson, a Cornell Law student, and through her, CCH will post an announcement of the volunteer opportunities available either every other week or every week, in the newsletter "Scoops" which is placed in every law student's folder.
**David and Keisha will meet soon with the heads of PILU (Cornell Public Interest Law Union, a student group) and BALSA (Black American Law Students Association?) to discuss how they can get more involved.
**David and Jesse (jlb76) will also search for possible projects (perhaps through OnSite?) that more law students can get involved with, perhaps eventually organize/implement such projects in conjunction with PILU/BALSA and other groups, and then eventually pass the buck so that PILU/BALSA can take over, initiate their own projects, and hopefully continue to get law students involved long after we are graduated and gone.
 

*****Other opportunities that we are pursuing for members:
**Training seminar by the staff of the Red Cross Homeless Services Program on Tenant and Landlord rights and responsibilities, and on the services available to the homeless from DSS to Social Security. Ideal time for the Red Cross: a weekday from 3:00-5:00.
**A weekend walking tour through downtown Ithaca, to see and learn about the basic human service agencies in Ithaca. Perhaps led by Rose McGrady, Red Cross Homeless Outreach worker.

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