First week at CRM

The first week on the job has passed, and it moved by quickly. Most of the time was spent settling in to the office, meeting people at the Mission, learning the weekly routine, and making contacts where appropriate. I spent Monday and Thursday in training for the ATR grant, which took me to the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services building just north of downtown Oklahoma City. ODMHSAS was the official recipient of the grant, but since they are not a "service provider" they find others who help hand out the money. Basically the game goes something like whichever grant recipient does the "most work" with the MOST (note, not least) amount of money is highly favored to receive the grant again.

The first client that I met was a guy named Kevin. (Just an editorial note here: I will disclose first names and stories of those people, but I will never use client's last name or any other contact information. It's not like you were going to ask me for it all, but just so we are clear.) Kevin showed up at CRM the day that he was released from prison. He had been there for 28 months... this time, he said. He was very cordial, always using "ma'am" and "sir" when talking to coworkers and myself. By having a very brief conversation with him, I was offered a glimpse of a person's first day back on the street from being "locked up." Where would I even start, I thought? Kevin said that the extent of his possessions was the clothes on his back and a small plastic bag holding his needed medications. What an overwhelming feeling to be reintroduced to the world after being separated from it for over two years. We scheduled an assessment for Kevin (basically a in-depth 4 hour interview that shows what the person is/isn't capable of receiving as far as federal vouchers) on the next day. Unfortunately he didn't show up, and I didn't see him for the rest of the week.

I've also observed that clients memorize two pieces of personal information more often than any other information: a family member's cell phone number, and their Department of Corrections identification number. Beyond that, you are lucky to receive anything else. It is not uncommon to find clients who do not have a SSN, drivers license, state ID card, or even a wallet because of the probable chance of a wallet being stolen by another client.

One other story that comes to mind from this past week was a message that was left on my supervisor's phone. It went something like this: "Hi, I just got out of jail. I'm sitting at the bus stop outside of the jail and I don't really have anywhere to go or anyone to talk to. I don't know where your shelter is. If you could come get me, I am in blue jeans and a black t-shirt at the bus stop." No address to find them at, no cell phone number to call them at... just what they are wearing.

More stories to come this week.