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Oregon's next round of unemployment numbers are due to be released on April 13 and the news is not expected to be good. More than 236,000 people across the state are already unemployed. We'll explore the people behind the numbers — are you perhaps one of them? — and discuss how many are learning to thrive (or at least cope) during very difficult economic times.
Take Seth Reams as an example. He lost his job as a concierge at a downtown Portland apartment building in December. After sending out countless resumes and finding nothing, he became depressed. Finally his long-time girlfriend suggested that he just get out and do some volunteering to keep busy. Then he met some other people who felt the same way. Seth created the blog We've Got Time to Help and now, just a couple of months later, he's created a community of over 50 (mostly unemployed) people helping others who are struggling. While Seth still hasn't found a job, he has certainly found fulfillment.
Meanwhile, this February at the Clackamas County dog shelter FIDO, volunteers began to receive calls from people who had lost their jobs, and found themselves unable to feed their pets. Then donations started to come in, including some from the "We've Got Time to Help" crew. ("People helping people helping pets," they say.) Now FIDO's running a monthly Dog Food Bank. In March they gave away 3,600 pounds of kibble (that's enough food for 191 dogs for a month). They've also expanded their service past just Clackamas County to the entire Portland metro area — or basically "anyone who can get here," as one volunteer told me.
Are you recently unemployed? What's your story? How are you coping? Have you found a new way to make your way in these difficult economic times? Are you involved with a community of people trying to help others? What are you doing to keep busy, help others, or at least ward off the blues?
Tagged as: business · community · recession · unemployment
Photo credit: Inoneear / Flickr / Creative Commons
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Congratulations to Seth Reams for finding the opportunity to help others despite his own personal adversity. I know that none of us are insulated from layoffs, I mediate against that knowledge through gratitude. For example, I try to remember to be grateful to remain employed, especially on my most stressful days, and I'm grateful for the network of support I have around me.
I'm also a mental health therapist here in Portland, OR, working to become a full-time entrepeneur so I exercise more control over my livelihood. In my practice to help clients cope with anxiety and stress, I have found that the practice of gratitude has helped to buoy spirits and maintain positive attitudes.
Having a positive attitude is the most important thing you can do to keep yourself motivated and healthy. Read more about coping with stress at my blog post at http://davelcsw.com
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With so people out of work, many are doing childcare in their home. I own a preschool/childcare center and have been loosing children steadily. When a dad gets laid off I not only lose a preschool student but the mom now does childcare in her home, thus creating a new competitor. When I had to reduce my staff by one third, one of the former employees now does childcare in her home, thus creating another competitor. Oregon is very loose in their childcare regulations so anyone can watch up to three children that are not their own without any State oversight (quality control, sanitation standards, first aid trainnig, etc.) With preschool becoming a luxury and childcare becoming an unregulated cottage industry, it is hard to compete when I have fixed overhead. I have a professionally trained staff, but even with a high quality program we can't compete with "the bottom line" when parents are only looking at the cost.
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I was laid off March 20 and the next morning, I woke with a wonderful feeling that I had been given a gift of time to help organizations such as Mercy Corps, The Food Bank, and others...and I could donate platelets at the Red Cross during the day, leaving the precious after-work hours for those who had to be at work during the day.
It is also an opportunity to participate in The Telling Project, a stage production about veterans dealing with memories of their military experience.
My goodness folks, with inspiration like today's Morning Edition obituary for Catherine Royce, (whom I was privileged to know as a friend) we have a wonderful tool for seeing layoffs as gifts, helping to override the despair of our personal problems. Like it or not, we are being forced to approach life differently, and whether we make that a crushing terror, or a gift, is up to us.
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Are there plans to expand to other areas? Like Eugene?
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I am a freelance art director in the clothing industry here in Portland. The apparel company I worked for for 2 years filed for banruptcy last May, and in the same week of losing my job, the lease came up on my apartment. In less than a week I sold as many possessions as I was willing to part with, and crammed everything else into the attic of my father's house in SW Portland. I then took off, left the country until the Fall, traveling to India among other places. I waffled between feeling selfish and indulgent, and then relieved for being out of the US, to gain a greater perspective of what it means to live in the world. Maybe there really is more to life than buying and selling wares? Yup, turns out there is.
The most profound experience I've had with this recession is the way unemployment has brought me closer to my core family. I'm 31, single, female, and when back in Portland my father, his wife, and their 9 year old son folded me into their family (and their basement) without hesitation. We've grown much closer than we ever would have had I been living on my own.
I'm back on my own now and in a great place, overwhelmed with freelance work, and while this is all I could hope for, I find myself missing my family, and missing India. Unemployment deepened my connection with both of these things. Many of my friends have since been laid off, and I try to assure them that new, unexpected opportunities arise from this kind of loss, but that's hard to hear in the beginning.
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If you're a graphic designer and having trouble finding work, and getting antsy, I found an awesome pro bono gig through Jackie Mathys at Stimulus Staffing. Her thing is to match up unemployed designers with nonprofits who need design work. It's really cool, since these groups need help and I want to work...it doesn't directly solve the bill-paying issue, but it feels WAY better than sitting at home checking craigslist every 5 minutes. : ) Here's the address: stimulusstaffing.com
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My coworker and myself were both fired last week, the only retail employees at a nw boutique. It was unexpected, and a slap in the face when I found out we were replaced either before our firing or directly afterwards. Employee value did not seem at all applicable here, regardless of our dedication and hard work. I worked part-time and will not qualify for unemployment until June. For the first time I have food stamps. I have no idea how I will survive, except from my small savings, cheap rent, and the offered financial support from my parents. I work hard, and this is not a situation I expected to find myself in. Thankfully I only have to worry about supporting myself. My coworker has a child, and expenses greater then my own. Our company gave us no thank you, our time and countless hours of work and contribution seemingly meaningless. Security, even when employed, does not seem reliable anymore.
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I am self-employed, and have been for 30 years. I watched the growing unemployment numbers with dismay. Then I realized I could offer a bit of help.
On my website, I'm publishing a Freelancer's Survival Guide for free. The advice contained in it applies to the self-employed, people who are trying to earn money during a layoff, and people who want to be self-employed. It will also help job seekers organize themselves and their time.
The first 3 posts are up at http://kriswrites.com/category/freelancers-survival-guide/.
I hope it helps some folks.
Kristine Kathryn Rusch