Travis County Commissioners Court
September 22, 2009,
Item 6
Item no.
6.
approve resolution renewing support for the partnership between Travis County and the south Austin assistance ministry (saam)
>> whereas the Texas local government code authorizes Travis County to operate facilities, including the post road community center, that provide various types of assistance to its residents with indigent level incomes and other qualified recipients, whereas samm has established a partnership between churches in south Austin and Travis County to better serve those in need; whereas Travis County and saam have successfully collaborated for 10 years in their mutual and joint efforts to further the shared interests of increasing the effectiveness of the provision of personal and professional services in the form of emergency assistance to qualified recipients.
whereas through saam and Travis County, qualified residents have received assistance totaling over $147,000 for supplemental emergency rent, mortgage, utilities and prescription drugs.
whereas saam has created and sustained an active service delivery network comprised of south Austin area churches to best leverage both government and faith community resources with a combined effort of maintaining and sustaining a one-stop shop strategy.
whereas the saam network eases the burden on the customers seeking and needing assistance while allowing participating partners the opportunities to deliver basic service -- basic needs services and reduce duplication of effort, thus supplementing the assistance actual available to recipients of Travis County services.
and whereas Travis County is determined to optimize a successful partnership with saam by improving delivery of emergency assistance services throughout the community.
now, therefore, be it resolved that we the members of the Travis County Commissioners court in commemoration of the resolution entered on December 21st, 1999, do hereby recognize and encourage and value the efforts of saam over the past 10 years and offer this resolution and thanks of its commitment to the residents of Travis County and pledge continued support, coordination, and cooperation for another 10 years and maybe beyond.
i move approval.
>> second.
>> good morning.
>> good morning.
>>
>> [indiscernible]
>> manager for health and human services and veterans services.
we are certainly very blessed in this community to have a lot of wonderful partnerships and particularly through health and human services we have enjoyed a tremendous partnership with the south Austin assistance ministry.
and if you would indulge us just a bit, the -- our wonderful colleagues at channel 17 have been able to resurrect the original -- the original resolution and so if media is ready, we will roll that right now.
media, we're ready for the -- for the resolution.
>> [laughter]
>> that looks suspiciously like us now
>> [laughter]
>> okay, we may be having difficulty.
>> > there it is.
>> we're excited.
i'm -- the pastor of faith church on oltorf on i-35 and somehow I ended up getting stuck with being the chair of this auspicious group.
but it's been a joy to see the churches in our part of the community come together to work, collaboratively.
we need to do that.
churches need to do more of that.
and we believe in this community.
but most of all, it's been a real delight and joy to see the government agencies reach out to us and in turn help provide this kind of collaborative effort to work together.
the needs that we're facing, as you all know, are area than government can do, greater than churches can do, any of us alone, we have to join hands and combine efforts to meet the kind of need that's out there.
this has been a -- a good experience.
first time in 20 years in a ministry that -- that I have not run across an obstacle of separation of church and state.
that keeps -- keeps counties and cities municipalities from working with churches, this has been kind of an encouragement to me being in Austin to see the good relationship that -- mike and his staff have been wonderful to work with.
we're excited about the prospects of helping people in need.
that's what we want to do.
we don't want to run folks who need help around.
we've got to work better so people who are in the same business trying to help folks can do that as effectively and efficiently as we can.
we trust their system.
they have a good system of interviewing, and screening people, determining need.
a lot of us at churches, we're not there all day to do that.
our secretaries don't want that job.
so it helps us.
and we believe that it will help ultimately all of the citizens in the community.
>> yes, sir.
i -- excuse me.
when I received this draft document in the mail, from mike manner, I was simply amazed that anybody could take two years of the ruminations and reflections and the rantings, mainly of preachers and produce such a rational document that holds all of the values that we were concerned about.
this program is very exciting to me.
i have worked with poverty situations for a long time.
this is, for one thing, our way of saying that the primary responsibility for -- for assisting people in society who need help, it's a public responsibility.
the churches are not equipped to -- to take care of people when they come to us the way they need to be taken care of.
so we are putting resources, making resources available, to a public agency which has more knowledge about how to screen people and how really to assist people, so I -- I am very honored as a minister to be a part of this.
and to -- and to work with the county in serving people in a better way.
>> and your name again.
>> charles Moore.
pastor of grace united methodist.
>> that's for congregation members who may wonder if that's really you on tv.
yes, sir, any words?
>> aim pastor fred cribs of the lutheran church, secretary of this group.
the needs are great.
we are located very close to 35.
the needs of the community are huge.
many people come to our doors, we need the expertise of the -- of Travis County, mike has just been great in working with us.
and we need to work together as churches and as communities, we need to work together.
>> okay.
and I move, as indicate understand the resolution, that we the Travis County Commissioners court of the state of Texas hereby recognize and encourage the efforts of -- of saam, the south Austin assistance ministry and hereby set forth the intent of Travis County to support the efforts of that partnership by coordinating and cooperating with the south Austin assistance ministry and the provision of emergency assistance through the Travis County health and human services and veterans services department, and further that we not only support the resolution, but that we indicate our intention to do everything we can to give it full force and effect for the benefit of the residents of Travis County.
>> second.
>> second.
>> seconded by Commissioner Davis first.
anything further from the court?
all in favor?
that passes by unanimous vote.
and thank you all very much for coming down.
>> thank you.
>> thank you.
and -- and --
>> those black wigs were popular in those days
>> [laughter] everybody had one it looked like.
>> [laughter] you and I had one on.
>> [laughter]
>> only you, judge, only you.
>> [laughter]
>> I think pastor craig has a few words this morning.
>> judge Biscoe, Travis County Commissioners, we resonate with you, judge, about the wigs.
i want to give a little background about what happened back then and now 10 years later as we're grateful for this new resolution of collaboration.
in 1997 and 1998 several congregations in south Austin found themselves increasingly working together collaboratively to help those in need in the community.
at the same time, our congregations increasingly realized that our churches were not in a position to offer the type of multi-facetted help, which many families and individuals need.
most of our congregations have limited resources for providing the screening, assessment, financial assistance, case management services to persons, families, households seeking emergency assistance with rents or mortgage, food and utilities.
a vision began to develop among several pastors and congregations to work together in a new way, by collaboratively providing resources to a public service agency.
and in this way we could assist people more holistically rather than trying to do what we were not equipped to do, in our parishes.
as we began meeting together, we were introduced to mr.
mike manor, director of the post road community center of Travis County health and human services and veterans services.
and mr.
manor worked tirelessly with us to develop a plan and working document, which would fulfill the vision we had in mind while also complying with separation of church and state.
this working document became the basis for the work of a new organization in 1999, which was named the south Austin assistance ministry or saam for short.
each year the churches that up the saam coalition commit to provide food, clothing, financial support and volunteers to this community ministry.
in turn, our churches are better able to provide the kind of assistance to folks in need by referring them to the post road center for what we call one stop assistance.
any person or family that solicits help from member churches is refer to the post road community center.
the center makes an assessment of the needs of the person or family and provides whatever help it can.
if this help is not enough to meet the needs of the person or family, the department then turns to Sam for additional funds to meet the assessed needs.
thus Sam becomes a safety net of aid for those who may fall through the cracks of the county system.
we are continualully grateful for the fine work of some mike manor and the entire staff of the post road center.
beginning with just four churches, 10 years ago, 17 churches now participate in saam, abiding love lutheran, beautiful savior lutheran, berkeley united methodist, bethany lutheran, christ lutheran, fast presbyterian, faith presbyterian, faith united methodist, grace united methodist, holy cross lutheran, manchaca united methodist, metropolitan community church, prince of peace lutheran, redeeming grace lutheran, saint martyred catholic, saint john's community church of Austin.
saam is grateful for the minutes to serve god -- opportunities to serve god's people in need and continued collaboration with the post road community center and Travis County and specially for this new resolution of today September 22nd.
for continuing collaboration between Sam and the post road center.
Commissioners and honorable judge we cordially invite you to the next meeting and luncheon to the post road center at noon on Wednesday, October 21st.
make sure you write that down, Wednesday October 21st at noon at the post road center.
our current chair mr.
peter castles sitting next to me have invitations for all of you which he will be passing out.
please come.
>> thank you.
>> we continue to appreciate your -- your cooperation.
>> mike manor, social service program administrator at post oak community center, Travis County health and human services and veterans service.
i've had the privilege of being part of this experience.
i first would like to acknowledge the court's initiative and out of the box thing that helped this opportunity to come about.
i think it's unprecedented in the state of Texas, to my knowledge, that's been pretty evident today this is a forward-thinking court.
i would like to thank my executive manager sherri flemming and
>> [indiscernible] started out at my coworker, now our director for their I think undying support of attending some of the meetings some of the events that you have heard them talk about.
and it was sherri who really launched the idea and saying wasn't to do this.
and -- I want to do this.
when sherri says I want to do this, we're here.
the court wanted this kind of experience to be made known to the community and she said we need to refire as mona said previously, this type of idea and then want to say to the south Austin community itself, this program not only serves the south Austin community but saam makes the resources available to anyone in any of your precincts who come to our centers.
we help individuals from all areas of the county, there's no restrictions of those funds to anyone who is being supported in the county.
so they may be physically located in south Austin, but they are touching precincts 1, 2, 3, 4 on a daily basis, I think that's commendable.
they want no credit.
they understand no prosethlizeing.
i want to thank marietta gearhart who worked with me during that time.
i'm sorry I laughed.
i have many of the drafts that marietta gave me feedback and coaching on, court, to make sure that it did pass your requirements for making sure that it was up to the caliber and quality of the -- in the community I want to thank you and the fast turn around she gave us during those days.
again, I want to thank sherri when she came over as director, executive manager, actually went around to the other advisory committees, saam also serves on our advisory committees, thank you for allowing that to happen, too, for the south Austin area.
sherri went around to the other areas, wanted other precincts to know about this opportunity.
she stands ready to continue to do that as other advisory committees wants to explore it.
briefly ms.
yolanda estevan the case worker.
she's the person thaumasite work.
she has been there -- she's the person that makes it work.
she has been there 10 years as a social worker assistance and a case worker.
wasn'ted her to be here, she's a grandmother and great grandmother.
i said you need to be here so your children can see the legacy that you helped make in this community.
she's here today to say to you her own words.
i just turn to her say is it happening yolanda?
she says it's happening.
is yolanda okay, I said she's okay.
>> [laughter] so you want to say something first?
>> well, I just want to say thank you, judge, for giving the opportunity today just to say thank you for actually for the citizens, those that are in need.
those that come to us every day that -- that are falling in between the cracks.
that are not eligible for county assistance, so this great partnership that we have makes a big difference.
so we do, you know, I've come in contact with a lot of people.
we all work very hard at post road to try to make it work.
so we're a great team.
and so I just want to say thank you for the citizens, they really appreciate everything that -- and -- in our community.
so -- no honor to me, just I give all honor, everything, to the lord.
thank you.
>> we appreciate your great work.
keep it up.
all in favor?
that passes by unanimous vote.
>> [ applause ] and if you were serious about that invitation to lunch
>> [laughter] we will -- we will see you on about October 21st.
The Closed Caption log for this Commissioners Court agenda item is provided by Travis County Internet Services. Since this file is derived from the Closed Captions created during live cablecasts, there are occasional spelling and grammatical errors. This Closed Caption log is not an official record the Commissioners Court Meeting and cannot be relied on for official purposes. For official records please contact the County Clerk at (512) 854-4722.
Last Modified:
Tuesday, September 22, 2009 1:30 PM
