Our Blog

On September 3rd and 4th of 2014, representatives from Simon Solutions conducted CharityTracker training sessions for the Stillwater CARES assistance network in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Executive Director Quinn Schipper was nice enough to talk to us about the reasons why Stillwater CARES chose CharityTracker.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Shoals Software Company to Train New Users in Oklahoma

CharityTracker implemented by Stillwater CARES, Inc.

Florence, AL. August 26th, 2014

Members of the Simon Solutions Team will be present in Stillwater, Oklahoma next week to provide onsite training at the launch of a new CharityTracker network sponsored by the collaborative, Stillwater CARES, Inc. (Community And Resource Empowerment Solutions).

“We have been honored to work with Stillwater Cares Executive Director, Quinn Schipper, to get this going. Quinn has a love for his community and a passion and commitment to help others.” says Joey Yarber, Implementation Specialist, at Simon Solutions, Inc.

Stillwater CARES is presently associated with 30 local churches, 26 agencies and organizations, and many motivated members to provide support and offer practical assistance to caregivers within the Stillwater community.

According to the Stillwater CARES website, 31 local organizations already identify as “early adopters” of the CharityTracker software and the organization says “a coherent system of coordination will help circumvent unnecessary duplication, insufficient services, and needless waste.”

Kyle Minckler of Simon Solutions said, "The collaborative led by Stillwater CARES is doing some amazing work to improve the quality of life of individuals impacted by poverty, and I am so excited to share CharityTracker as part of the solution."

CharityTracker representatives will be on hand to train users, demonstrate new features, and answer any questions new users may have about the shared case management software.

In the coming months, Simon Solutions will introduce CharityTracker updates which will allow users the option to track components of the popular Bridges Out of Poverty community support program and track outcomes and assessments from their Getting Ahead curriculum.

“Stillwater is a ‘Bridges Community’ and several agencies use the Getting Ahead Process in working to help people out of poverty. These new updates will prove to be a great tool for this collaborative and its members.” said Yarber.

CharityTracker was developed in Florence, Alabama by Simon Solutions, Inc. in 2007 in conjunction with the United Way of Northwest Alabama and other charitable agencies and is now being used in 756 communities across the country.

Source: Simon Solutions, Inc.

Pictured: Hydrate the Homeless event in Wilson Park and members of the Simon Solutions Team with this year's donation.

Simon Solutions and CharityTracker would like to salute the Homeless Care Council of Northwest Alabama for organizing the Hydrate the Homeless event in Wilson Park in Florence, AL on Tuesday, August 19th!

Local assistance agencies and volunteers handed out information for resources, free bottled water, fans, sunscreen and other cooling items.

Pictured: Nancy (Safeplace), Beth Haddock (United Way of Northwest Alabama), YaShika Ray (Community Action Agency of Northwest Alabama).

Participating agencies included the Shoals chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Partnership for a Tobacco-Free Shoals, Community Action Agency of Northwest Alabama, Safeplace, United Way of Northwest Alabama, North Alabama Housing Assistance, AIDS Action Coalition Housing Department, and the City of Florence.

Pictured: Myra Childs (211 Director, United Way of Northwest Alabama), Danielle McCullar (UNA Social Work Intern), Skyler Mansell (United Way of Northwest Alabama Intern).

Thanks to Marie Waxel, from WAFF 48 News, for covering the event. Please check out the links below.

Providing Heat Relief to the Homeless

Volunteers Supply Homeless with Ways to Beat the Heat

Also, a special thanks to Melanie Dickens, Lyndsey Borden, and Beth Haddock for all of their help!

Great Job Everyone!

BY ALEX STROHM, For The Oklahoman • Published: August 18, 2014

It was 1964 when Lyndon Johnson declared a War On Poverty and 50 years later, it’s a battle the U.S. still hasn’t won.

In a recent article from USA Today, Stillwater was defined as one of nine communities where wealth is soaring. However, poverty is also rising.

To try to prevent as well as to alleviate poverty in Stillwater, Stillwater CARES was founded and has since mobilized a passionate community into action — to not only help others in crisis, but to also give individuals independence.

Quinn Schipper, the executive director of Stillwater CARES, spoke about the mission and community involvement that drives the organization’s mission of helping people get ahead.

Q: What is the mission of Stillwater CARES?

A: CARES stands for Community And Resource Empowerment Solutions. We exist to coordinate strategic community alliances and synchronize best practices so that those who are disadvantaged may be empowered. In short, our mission is helping people help people.

Our focus is really weighted in helping people get ahead. There will always be a need for crisis relief and aid, but if we are just providing that without restoration and development then we feel like we are doing people an injustice. We can do far more collectively than we can individually. Traditionally, data reporting tells, for example, the X amount of food baskets or the X number of clients came to this service. There’s a big focus on output rather than outcome. Outcome is how a life has been changed and how has our work together made that difference.

Q: Whom do you serve?

A: Stillwater CARES does not provide direct services in the traditional sense. Our clients are the pastors of churches, leaders of agencies, and those who are serving others. Right now we have 56 churches and agencies that identify as associates to Stillwater CARES. The dominant focus of the association is how to address the prevention and alleviation of poverty in a way that helps people get ahead and bring stability and hope for their future.

Q: What kinds of services and resources do you provide?

A: Our focus is coordination. We provide the most comprehensive web-based service directory in the area. There are 51 categories with more than 275 resources for the services listed, which are provided by our associates. Anyone can access it.

Workshop Wednesday, a community benefit discussion series, is designed to help build capacity for social service agencies. We bring industry leaders to Stillwater or select them from within Stillwater to address topics. It’s been really helpful in building common language, practices and thinking in how we can do benevolence differently.

A discussion emerged out of the 2012 series about a one-stop resources center. It’s not a traditional service, but we’re looking at a way to bring agencies and social services together, literally, under one roof but also virtually. Our virtual network revolves around a product called CharityTracker, which is a data management system that is designed not only to track the giving out of services and resources, but also to engage clients.

We have also facilitated and co-hosted two one-day Bridges Out of Poverty workshops with more than 200 people attending. We have 27 Getting Ahead facilitators, 17 of those in Stillwater.

Q: What is Bridges Out of Poverty?

A: Bridges Out of Poverty is an international network started by educator Ruby Payne. Oklahoma is the only state in America that has a statewide initiative, called Bridge the Gap, to address the prevention and alleviation of poverty. Stillwater was asked three years ago to be one of the first pilot communities for the Bridge the Gap initiative, now under the Salvation Army. However, it’s not just what’s being done in Stillwater. There’s a bigger picture of what is being done around the state. As poverty reduces, you’re elevating the quality of life for everybody.

We have a curriculum out of the Bridges Out of Poverty network called Getting Ahead in a Just-Gettin’-By World. It’s a class in a kitchen table-type small group setting that is designed to help people identify what they need to develop to get ahead. Here in Stillwater we have churches and community people who sponsor individuals to go through the class.

Here's a link to the original article.

NEW SYSTEM STREAMLINES HELPING OTHERS

Fort Madison, Iowa

Posted: Friday, August 8, 2014 12:00 pm | Updated: 12:02 pm, Fri Aug 8, 2014.

by Cindy Iutzi

The Salvation Army has adopted a way to organize giving in Lee County that all but eliminates duplication of services, and strenuous searches for support by needy families are no longer necessary.

“It has been about four months since we have opened up the Charity Tracker network to agencies and churches in Lee County,” said Maj. Mark Litherland, Lee County headquarters, Keokuk. “At present we have about 13 agencies/churches who have joined and I know of another five or six from Fort Madison that are talking about joining and just working it through the deacon boards.”

Several additional Keokuk churches are discussing membership in the system at summer’s end.

The list of local agencies and churches using Charity Tracker includes both Salvation Army offices (Keokuk and Fort Madison), both United Way offices (Keokuk and Fort Madison), All Saints Catholic Church, First Christian Church, Lee County General Assistance, Trinity United Methodist Church and several more.

“We have seen great networking with the other organizations who didn’t know what was being handled by other groups,” Litherland said. “We have found that we take the most information from people and smaller groups can take a look at our information.

“This program helps us to coordinate efforts like the family that came in recently with a rather high utility bill. The family has not used the services of The Salvation Army or other agencies often (maybe once a year). They have just gotten a bit behind and are at risk of having their utility turned off. We were able to do our normal intake interview and enter the family information on Charity Tracker, and then post a bulletin that was emailed to all Charity Tracker members.”

The bulletin indicated the family’s needs, that the intake was completed and that the need was verified. Moreover, it showed that the family needed help getting commitments to complete the need. “Within one day, two other agencies in the network emailed back that they would partner with The Salvation Army,” Litherland said. “By the end of that first day, the need was met and we were able to tell the family exactly where they needed to go to complete their assistance, saving time for the family in need as well as all the agencies involved.”

When the network opened in April in Lee County, The Salvation Army and several local network agencies/churches checked their records from the start of the fiscal year in October 2013 for services rendered. From October 2013 to the present day, the network can account for 1,718 individuals receiving assistance. There were 1,573 acts of assistance offered to those individual. The assistance is valued at $98,889, according to Litherland.

Future plans

At the request of the Keokuk School District, The Salvation Army is taking over the Long Weekend Food Program for elementary school students, Litherland said.

“We have named this new program The Salvation Army Feed My Sheep meal program,” Litherland said. “Starting with Labor Day, The Salvation Army is providing food packs for elementary school students on the free or reduced lunch program. The program is designed to feed the children through the weekend.”

The Feed My Sheep program is intended for the six long weekends that occur in the school year when there are no classes on Friday and/or Monday.

“We are pleased to share that there is a major corporation in Keokuk who has already volunteered to step up and come to The Salvation Army and pack each of the meal packs for this program,” Litherland said.

Food packs will include food for breakfast, lunch and dinner that needs little or no help from an adult or older sibling.

Social Worker

The Salvation Army is in the process of hiring a social worker who has a degree in social work to manage the organization’s Pathway of Hope Program, according to Litherland.

“The program is designed to partner community leaders with families who are in poverty and want to be independent, but do not know how to take those steps,” he said. “It is a program designed to set up mentor partnerships and help walk a family from poverty to independence. It is expected that this program will start slowly by mid-August and then by January (after the Christmas rush) really get into the heart of the matter.”

Litherland said The Salvation Army has seen “great success” with the Pathway of Hope program.

“It’s similar to the Bridges Out of Poverty Program,” he said. “Caseworkers access other groups and individuals to help with the mentoring process.”

Charity Tracker can link people from one program to another such as Pathway of Hope.

“It really helps us to see what the real problem is,” Litherland said.

Here's a link to the original article.

We are very excited about the great things that Stillwater CARES, Inc is doing in Oklahoma! Great work Quinn!

July 31, 2014

Q5: Stillwater CARES unites nonprofits

By Elizabeth Keys

Stillwater News Press

STILLWATER, Okla. — Quinn Schipper is the executive director of Stillwater CARES, a nonprofit community benefit organization.

1 What is the purpose of Stillwater CARES?

Simply put, Stillwater CARES is a nonprofit community benefit organization that is dedicated to helping people who help people. We exist to assist other nonprofit organizations that address the prevention and alleviation of poverty in Stillwater. We specialize in coordinating strategic community alliances and synchronizing best practices so that the maximum number of residents can be served with the available community resources.

2 Who are clients of Stillwater CARES?

Stillwater CARES is unique in that we don’t serve traditional clients, that is, individuals who need services provided by local nonprofit organizations; rather, our clients are the leaders of social service organizations, the faith community, and those from other sectors who want to help people build resources for a better life. We currently have 54 agencies that have committed to the mission of Stillwater CARES.

3 Why is an organization like Stillwater CARES needed in the community?

Government statistics indicate that 30.1 percent of Stillwater residents are with income below the poverty level. This is nearly double the state’s average of 14.7 percent.

In 2010, there was expressed need in the community for coordination of social services in order to assist under-resourced people out of their circumstance, to reduce duplication of services and needless waste, and make the best use of community resources. Stillwater CARES was birthed from this effort.

4 How does Stillwater CARES assist nonprofits in efficiently providing services?

One of our greatest assets is the community service directory. With more than 275 resources in 52 categories, we provide a comprehensive, web-based resource and service directory.

In conjunction with our 211 Essential Services partnership, we are committed to creating an exhaustive resource directory. We also cosponsor Workshop Wednesday, a free monthly program that features speakers who discuss current trends that are relevant to the nonprofit sector and the community at large.

5 What programs does Stillwater CARES offer for individuals hoping to break the cycle of poverty?

As a pilot community of the statewide “Bridge the Gap” initiative, Stillwater CARES facilitates Bridges Out of Poverty workshops and Getting Ahead classes that assist individuals break the cycle of poverty.

Stillwater has 17 Getting Ahead trained facilitators and there will be two classes graduating this summer.

On Sept. 1, Stillwater CARES will launch CharityTracker, a resource that enables agencies to work together to create a cohesive life plan for their clients.

Here's a link to the original article.

(pictured: This mural in downtown Joplin is made from photos of many proud residents with the overall message, "We Are Joplin.")

On the afternoon of Sunday, May 22nd, 2011 Joplin, Missouri was leveled by a devastating EF5 tornado that took the lives of many and changed the city forever.

Joplin is home to one of the oldest and most established CharityTracker networks in the country and at the time of the storm, CharityTracker was already being used in Joplin.

We are proud that our solution has been one of the tools implemented to assist the residents of Joplin in the aftermath of the storm and during the lengthy recovery period that has followed.

Joplin has rebuilt itself stronger than before and is a powerful example of how an entire community can collaborate to improve and heal itself from within.

(pictured: This newly dedicated monument in Cunningham Park represents homes that were lost in the 2011 Joplin tornado. )

During the third week of May, Isaac Simon and Derek Dailey had the opportunity to visit Joplin on behalf of the Simon Solutions Team.

While in Joplin, they were able to speak with many CharityTracker users about their experiences and to collect feedback which will enable our team to continue to improve our solutions.

On the 3rd anniversary of the storm, our representatives were able to attend the dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the beautiful new memorial overlook and butterfly garden at Cunningham Park. The park also features several other moving memorials, including a plaque with the names of those lost, a tribute to the volunteers, a children's memorial reflection pond, a memorial fountain, and 161 trees have been planted on the property to honor those who perished.

KY3 News was there to cover the dedication ceremony. Here's a link to their story.

Simon Solutions would like to extend a special Thank You to the following people, and the organizations they represent, for their time, courtesy, input, and caring spirits.

They are indeed, JOPLIN STRONG.

April O’neil, Holly Hoyeer, Greg Spink, and Larry Hazelett
Watered Gardens Gospel Mission

Kathy Lewis
Crosslines Churches of the Joplin Area, Inc.

Dave Wood
College Heights Christian Church

James Whitford
Watered Gardens Gospel Mission, Joplin True Charity Initiative

Brad Campbell and Andrea Minor
Catholic Charities of Southern Missouri

Misty Frost and Lisa Bushnell
Mission Joplin

Terri Giarratano
St. Peter’s Outreach House, St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church

Pastor Dave Burgess
First Presbyterian Church Joplin

Georgia Jones
Souls Harbor

Caroline Jones and Debra Gaskill
Salvation Army of Joplin

Regina Shank
River Street Food Pantry

Chris Cotton
Joplin Parks and Recreation Department

A couple of weeks ago Jacob Senecal and Shae Erisson were able to attend the National Human Services Data Consortium Spring Conference in beautiful Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The conference was held on May 1-2, 2014 with the theme “Data in Action: Transforming Systems and Lives”.

There were about 250 attendees from homeless care continuums around the country and also from various foundations, non-profits and government agencies.

These sessions were bursting with in-depth information and dialog on how to best gather and use real-world data to help end homelessness. There was also a great deal of discussion surrounding the newly released 2014 HMIS data standards.

Topics ranged from visualizing data with maps and dashboards to protecting the privacy of personal client information. Throughout the consortium, it was clear that these folks sincerely desire to change the status quo and really impact the lives of those struggling to find and keep stable housing.

All of us here at Simon Solutions are committed to being a partner in these efforts and we were honored to be a part of this conference.

The Simon Solutions team had a wonderful time yesterday attending the 11th Annual Empty Bowl Luncheon at the Marriott Conference Center hosted by The Salvation Army Women's Auxiliary of The Shoals.

There were over 60 delicious soups for guests to sample which were provided by local restaurants, bakeries, and culinary programs.

A panel of judges, made up of local celebrities, helped to pick this years "Best Soup in the Shoals", with The Pie Factory taking home the trophy for their Corn Crab Bisque.

With hundreds in attendance, the luncheon was a grand affair, complete with a fashion show, a silent auction, and lots of volunteers with smiling faces.

Simon Solutions was proud to help sponsor the Empty Bowl Luncheon and we would like to thank The Salvation Army Women's Auxiliary of The Shoals for organizing such a remarkable event and for their tireless effort to end hunger in the Shoals area.

Here's a link to WAFF 48 Huntsville's coverage of the Empty Bowl Luncheon..

Earlier this week, researchers disclosed a critical vulnerability in recent versions of the OpenSSL library, known as the Heartbleed bug.

You'll be glad to know that our servers were patched two days ago (4/9/14) and new security certificates were put in place yesterday (4/10/14).

Heartbleed cannot affect our servers now.

While we have received no indication that CharityTracker or Oasis Insight were compromised in any way, we recommend changing the passwords your team uses to log in as a precautionary measure.

Our security team will continue to monitor this issue and provide more information as necessary.

If you have concerns related to the security of your CharityTracker or Oasis Insight account, please send us an email.