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AmeriCorps |
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Jeri Hirsch |
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Communities Investing in Families - Minnesota |
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Jeri Hirsch is in her second term as an AmeriCorps*VISTA member with Communities Investing in Families, a program serving five counties in east-central Minnesota. Hirsch administers Congregations in Community, an initiative designed to help churches respond to poverty-related issues. Hirsch has organized conferences for the 250 participating churches and 300 agencies involved in Congregations in Community. She helps congregations develop programs, such as a car donation project that one church took on to help provide low-income families with reliable transportation. In the project’s first year, eight donated cars were repaired and given to families, with another eight awaiting reconditioning by a mechanic who donates his services. The goal with each project, according to Hirsch, is to provide congregations with support they need to get started, then have congregations take over completely. When she completes her AmeriCorps*VISTA service, Hirsch plans to take a full-time position with the organization, which has asked her to continue the project. As a single mother of four who was homeless for a time after leaving her abusive husband, she said her experience is beneficial to those she serves, who know she understands what they’re going through. “I want to help others do what I did, battle our way out of poverty into a much brighter future,” she said. |
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