United Way holds Opportunity Conference this Saturday | Community Spirit

From a press release

On Saturday, May 8,  an innovative and powerful new poverty-reduction event is being held by United Way of Lane County called the Opportunity Conference.

The Opportunity Conference will be held May 8 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Eugene Faith Center, 1410 West 13th Avenue in Eugene.  Attendees will be individuals and families currently living in poverty who are determined to end the cycle in their lives now.  They will learn strategies for moving out of poverty such as sharing skills and strengths to support each other, how to build a network of people who are not in poverty, and how to connect to resources and opportunities.What is an Opportunity Conference? An Opportunity Conference is one of the strategies of PovertyBridge, a Portland-based organization that provides a comprehensive approach to assist people in poverty to build the capacity for moving out and staying out of poverty; programs and services that do more than just help people “cope” with their current poverty conditions.  http://www.povertybridge.org/

Opportunity Conferences are day-long events for and by people living in poverty. Designed to be inspiring and educational, the agenda is focused on building hope, motivation and skills for moving out of poverty. An Opportunity Conference curriculum includes connecting “Captains” (people in poverty) to “Navigators” (people who do not live in poverty)  who will assist with their journey out of poverty.

Who are Captains? People in the community who are committed to ending the cycle of poverty in their lives and whom are seeking tools and information to that end.   The Captains who will attend the local conference on May 8 were recruited through local human service agencies and faith communities. The Conference’s aim is to assist both newly impoverished families and those caught in intergenerational poverty in gaining long term stability.

What is a Navigator? Navigators are volunteers, members of the community who commit to sharing their contact information and using their networks for breaking poverty barriers, working with one or more people over a six month period. The volunteer Navigators are provided with a day of training on May 7th in order to gain a deeper understanding of poverty, and tools for communicating and working effectively with people who live in poverty and the agencies that serve them.  

Renowned poverty expert Dr. Donna Beegle developed the Opportunity Conference model and will be speaking there.  After growing up in generational migrant labor poverty, leaving school for marriage at 15, having two children and continuing to cope with poverty, she found herself, at 25, with no husband, little education, and no job skills. What followed in 10 short years were: self-confidence, a G.E.D., an A.A. in Journalism, a B.A. (with honors) in Communications, a Master’s Degree in Communication with a minor in Gender Studies (with honors), and completion of a Doctorate Degree. 
Donna is a nationally-known public speaker, discussion leader, trainer, and the author of “See Poverty, Be The Difference,” a resource book for professionals who work with people in poverty. Her inspiring story and work have been featured in national newspapers, magazines and television.