Junior League starts local welfare-to-work program

by Karen E. Culp

SBJ Staff

The local women who can dish it out are hoping to serve up a better-prepared work force.

The Junior League of Springfield is starting a new project Sept. 9. Women Helping Women is designed to prepare women for the work force. Junior League volunteers will each pair with a woman who has been selected through Ozark Area Community Action Corporation for her desire to gain independence by moving into the work force.

"We were looking for an area where we could make the biggest difference, and it came to our attention that welfare reform was going to become one of our community's biggest concerns. We took that idea and started looking at how the Junior League could address welfare reform, and through our research came up with this idea," said Karen Shannon, who chaired the Junior League committee that developed the idea.

The local club decided to form a program that provides counseling, support and training to women entering the work force as a result of changes to the welfare system. The first project will include 8 to 12 women who will each be paired with a peer partner from the Junior League.

Starting Sept. 9, the group will meet each Thursday night for eight weeks. Each workshop will include child care, said Kathy Steinberg, who chairs this year's Women Helping Women committee.

The program will feature volunteer speakers and trainers who will lead the group through a variety of topics aimed at workplace readiness. Topics include decision making and problem solving, money and time management, resume preparation and interviewing skills.

The Junior League will have the 1998-1999 Leadership Springfield class as its assistants for the program.

"The Leadership Springfield class was looking for a community project, and they chose Women Helping Women as their first project," Shannon said.

The program is funded through Junior League of Springfield, though it has received some significant donations, Steinberg said.

"We have been really pleased with the way the donors have come forward. We've had everything from food and resume paper donated to free haircuts," Steinberg said.

The group plans to run another program like this in the spring, Shannon said.

The main goal of the program is to provide the women participating with a level of self-sufficiency, Shannon said.

"It is not hard to find a job in our community, necessarily, but it can be difficult, without the right skills, to find a job that adequately supports your family," Shannon said.

The Junior League of Springfield is an organization of women who volunteer to support local charities and other community groups. Among the Junior League's projects are a cookbook, "Women Who Can Dish it Out," the Plaid Door resale shop, and the Discovery Center, which is now an independent nonprofit.

"It's difficult to find a project in Springfield the Junior League hasn't been involved in. We are involved in nearly every aspect of the community," Shannon said.

For more information on the Women Helping Women program, call the Junior League office at 887-9422.

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