# data[].attributes.body
Cycle of poverty hard to break in poorest US city.

This articles about Reading, PA, the poorest city in America where over 40% of people live below the poverty line. It tells about single mothers in the city and what they do to surivive and provide for their children.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In the middle of the night, most children are home in bed. But at the Second Street Learning Center in Reading, Pa., a half-dozen tiny bodies are curled up on green plastic floor mats, fast asleep.

With 41.3 percent of its residents living below the poverty line, Reading, Pa., is the poorest U.S. city with a population of 65,000 or more.

Conversations are hushed. The lights are dim. At 1:30 a.m., day care worker Virginia Allen gently shakes two little sisters, snuggled under the same blanket, to tell them that their mother is there to pick them up.

"Let's go. Mommy's here," she says, telling these children what they already know: It's time to get up, so they can go home for a little more sleep before they have to get up again and get ready for school.

It's another day - or in this case night - at a center where parents can bring their children at any hour of the day or night. And they do, coming and going from round-the-clock work shifts, school or another job search.

Many low-income families in Reading rely on this center, which is something of a safe haven in a troubled city. With a poverty rate of 41.3 percent, Reading has been labeled the nation's poorest city with a population of 65,000 or more. As the economy slowly recovers, many here are being left behind.
Doing It For The Kids
The lives of those who use the Second Street Learning Center, run by the nonprofit Opportunity House, say a lot about what it means to be struggling and poor in America. It isn't starving in the streets as much as it is the countless frustrations that can add up to one step forward, and two steps back.

Take Meghan Gonzales. She's perky and optimistic, but clearly stressed.

"Sleep? What is sleep?" she says with a laugh. The mother of four says she's so tired, she sometimes feels like she's 50 years old. She's only 25. "My oldest daughter's 9, then 8, then 5, and my son is 2," she says. Her husband, the children's father, says there's another child on the way.

Gonzales is trying desperately to get ahead, and things are looking up. A few years ago, she was in a homeless shelter attached to the learning center. But she recently graduated from nursing school and just landed a full-time job at a nursing home.

Still, juggling four kids, school, and full-time work is "really tough," she says. "[My] motivation is probably the kids and setting a good example for them so they can never say ... 'My Mom didn't do it, so why should I do it?' "

You hear that again and again in Reading: I'm doing it for the kids. Many low-income parents seem to know instinctively what studies show, that poor children are more likely to become poor adults, to drop out of school and to become single teen parents.

It's tough breaking that cycle - and complicated, when lives are a messy combination of bad luck and bad choices.
'A Juggling Act'
Lori Lebo, 37, has had a string of setbacks. Her 20-month-old daughter, Mikaela, was born prematurely. She lost her job in February. And Mikaela's father has been in and out of jail, most recently for breaking Lebo's nose, and then for violating parole.

One of the conditions of parole was that he stay away from Lebo. But, she says, he loves the baby, and the baby loves him. So she let him back home. That was a mistake.

"Obviously life is happening around us, and I can't always focus on one thing," she says. "I feel like I'm doing a juggling act."

Lebo says she was let go from her job at the power company after five years because she missed too much work. But, she says, what was she to do? Mikaela weighed 1 pound, 5 1/2 ounces at birth. There were long hospital stays and doctor visits, not to mention court appearances after her boyfriend broke her nose.

"I mean the job market's tough right now. And a lot of employers are now cracking down, that you can't even take the time to take care of your family," she says. "They basically give you a choice. You want your job, or you want your family?"

Initially, Mikaela and her 9-year-old brother, Jeffrey, continued to go to the Second Street Learning Center while Lebo looked for work. But then, after several weeks, Lebo lost her child care subsidy from the state, and she had to remove her kids from day care.

She wasn't having much luck to begin with. But now her job search is more difficult, because she has to hire a baby sitter if she gets called in for an interview, and funds are limited. If she does find a job, she'll have to wait up to a year to get the subsidy renewed because of state budget cuts.
A System Of Dependency?
Modesto Fiume, who heads Opportunity House, says these things make him "crazy." He says it's difficult enough for low-income families to get on their feet without having the rug pulled out from under them at the wrong time.

"It's almost like we've set up a system where we want people to stay dependent," he adds.

Fiume says for many of his low-income clients, getting a job isn't enough. Some clients come from very dysfunctional homes and need support. He says the learning center can provide stability in the lives of children who might not get it elsewhere, and that maybe it can help break the cycle of poverty with that next generation.

Kids at the learning center do get a lot more than just snacks and play. There's plenty of organized activity, computer training and homework help. The message is: Work hard and opportunity will follow.
Left Behind
But some things are easier said than done. It's clean and bright inside the center. But outside, the neighborhood is filled with empty lots and tired row houses. Jobs and companies have been fleeing Reading for years.

Tracy Boggs knows that all too well. She lives across the street from the learning center in a three-bedroom town house with her daughters, 7-year-old Emily and 21-year-old Tracine.

Boggs is 49, soft-spoken, tired. She's been working in recent months at a part-time job, cleaning a beauty supply store at the mall to make ends meet.

"My unemployment [benefits] stopped, and [I] didn't know where I was going to turn," she says.

Boggs worked for eight years at a company in Reading that made needlecraft kits. But then it was sold and the jobs were moved to China. At first, things looked promising. The state paid to retrain Boggs in medical billing and coding. There's a big hospital in Reading, so it seemed to make sense.

But when she got her certificate in December and started to look for work, she realized there were no job openings in Reading. "All the offices here outsource their billing and coding to other sources, other companies," she says. All the jobs were far outside the city. The only way to get there is to drive.

But as with many low-income families, transportation for Boggs is an issue. She owns an old car with 81,000 miles on it and a growing list of problems. And she worries about taking it on the highway. Still, she thinks she has little choice and goes for interviews when she can get them. But so far, she's had no luck landing a job.

If it was just me, I would have [given] up a long time ago.
Hope Despite The Bad Times
Like many mothers in Reading, Boggs has no husband to share the bills. Poverty is high, but it's a lot higher for single mothers. An astounding 66 percent of them in Reading live below the poverty line, less than $19,000 for a family of three.

Boggs admits that she made some bad decisions in life and that her daughters' two fathers turned out to be unreliable.

But, she quickly adds, "I wouldn't change anything in the world for my kids, my daughters. They're what keeps me going and keeps me fighting to keep searching, as bad as the economy is. If it was just me, I would have [given] up a long time ago."

You hear that a lot around the learning center: hope that things will get better if you just keep plugging away, despite the bad times.
One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
It's about 8 p.m., and Meghan Gonzales is down the street from the learning center, at home with her four kids and husband. He's on disability with a bad back. She's had a long day with orientation at her new job.

Half-eaten plates of spaghetti are scattered across the kitchen table. Their row house is cheerful, but chaotic and tiny. "It's small, but we actually want to move out of the city," she says.

Gonzales would like her children to go to better schools. She's especially worried about the high school in Reading, where almost 1 out of every 2 students drops out.

"There's like over 4,000 kids [at Reading High School]," she says. "I think it makes it hard for them to do good in school. ... It's not cool to do good in school."

Gonzales dropped out of that same school a decade ago, when she got pregnant. She says she wants better for her kids.

But, again, it's often one step forward, two steps back. Earlier in the week, Gonzales and her family went to the bank to open their first savings account, so they could start putting money aside. But then the family van, with everyone inside, broke down in front of the bank. Another bill to be paid.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Cycle Of Poverty Hard To Break In Poorest U.S. City

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Tens of millions of Americans are still struggling, despite the slow economic recovery. In Reading, Pa., the nation's poorest city, local nonprofit Opportunity House provides a lifeline for families trying to stay afloat by offering day care, housing and other assistance. But many in Reading are still left behind.

# data[].attributes.body
This article talks about the struggle with poverty after it was hit by a class 4 hurricane. U.N. Representatives are trying to get money and supplies to help them but are struggling to get everything that is needed for everyone. People lost their homes, family members, and many possessions and most people do not have the money to replace everything.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A United Nations expert on extreme poverty and human rights met Monday with hurricane victims in Puerto Rico as complaints grow about the U.S. government's response to a Category 4 storm.

U.N. envoy Philip Alston toured one of the hardest hit areas in the capital of San Juan, marking the first time such an envoy has visited the U.S. territory in recent history.

Alston told The Associated Press that there is a disproportionate number of Puerto Ricans living in poverty and that he's trying to assess, among other things, the effectiveness of measures taken by the federal government after the storm hit on Sept. 20, killing dozens of people and destroying tens of thousands of homes. Ten of the island's 78 municipalities are still without power, and thousands of businesses remain closed.

"I've visited areas that are still completely without power. I've seen areas that have lots of damage that hasn't been removed, and that must be very distressing after three months," he said.

He walked past homes with no roofs and a woman still washing sheets by hand three months after Hurricane Maria hit, raising hopes that his visit could help speed up the long recovery process.

Roughly 45 percent of Puerto Rico's 3.4 million people were already living below the poverty line before the hurricane hit.

Alston said he was impressed how local nonprofit organizations have helped Puerto Ricans recover from the storm, adding that one of the challenges is how the government can harness their power.

"There is more resiliency and potential self-sufficiency here than has been acknowledged," he said.

Alston declined further comment, noting that he will present a full report of his observations and a list of priorities on Friday following a two-week trip that also included visits to several U.S. states.

"There are a number of issues I want to take up," he said.

His visit comes more than a month after a group of U.N. experts criticized the U.S. government for what they said was a lack of urgency and priority in helping Puerto Rico, compared with U.S. states affected by hurricanes.

The U.S. approved nearly $5 billion in aid for Puerto Rico in late October, but local officials say they have not yet received any of those funds. Meanwhile, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced on Monday that it has collected 1 million cubic yards of debris in Puerto Rico and FEMA said it has separately approved more than $1 billion in assistance for people on the island.

However, Puerto Rico community leaders said that people living around the contaminated Martin Pena Channel, which was visited by Alston, did not receive any help from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency until a month after the hurricane hit.

"We're not living. We're surviving on what little aid we receive," said community leader and resident Mario Nunez. "We have human rights."

By the time FEMA crews reached the house of one of his neighbors, 59-year-old Margarita Carino, she had already gone to the dollar store to buy a tarp and scavenged a nearby contaminated waterway for pieces of zinc and wood that neighbors used to help rebuild her roof. Carino then used tar and paper towels to patch holes in some areas.

"This has been a disaster...I've fallen into a depression," she said as she used both hands to wipe away tears.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
UN expert on poverty visits Puerto Rico to assess help for hurricane victims

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A United Nations expert on extreme poverty and human rights met Monday with hurricane victims in Puerto Rico as complaints grow about the U.S. government's response to a Category 4 storm. U.N. envoy Philip Alston toured one of the hardest hit areas in the capital of San Juan, marking the first time such an envoy has visited the U.S.

# data[].attributes.body
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/ct-ppn-column-sassone-tl-0104-20171226-story.html

This article is primarily about how children that are affected by poverty, feel as Christmas season rolls around. Most don't make lists for Santa. Most don't even ask for anything. It implies how quickly children are forced to grow up when living a life of poverty.

# data[].attributes.body
I am lucky to say that poverty has not affected me or my family that I know of. I will often see beggers on the corner of the street or homeless people down town, but I am reluctant to give them money because you never know what they will spend it on. A way to end poverty is to help people get jobs. Our community could do this by having a center that people could go to for job search help. This center could offer classes, trainings, and other things needed for jobs. It could also help people find jobs that best suit them. By giving people better opportunities to find jobs, it can be easier for them to find a stable source of income and help them get back on their feet.

# data[].attributes.body
http://www.stltoday.com/news/state-and-regional/missouri-house-votes-to-up-penalties-within-poverty-program/article_526a2c5b-b2aa-5f9f-89e8-05afe5280535.html
Summary: The House in Jefferson City has voted to increase penalties for those who spend their financial help from various programs. There are certain items that people using these programs are not able to buy without receiving a penalty, such as not receiving help for a certain period of time. The hope is that if the penalties are increased, the people in poverty that need the most financially, will receive more.

# data[].attributes.body
My family has never had true problems with money. We always had a couple of stashes, in case something goes wrong, luckily, we haven't seen a real need to use that. I used to know someone whose dad worked in a meat packing factory and their mom used to clean hotel rooms. She didn't have a frugal life, but that has pushed her to studies. She studied extensively and wants to become a lawyer. I think that lack of good jobs, less pay and bad savings skills lead to poverty. Poverty doesn't seem to have a solution, but I believe that if we all work towards having a job, there will be more of a chance that poverty can be reduced.

# data[].attributes.body
Poverty has been a big part of my life. I know what it’s like to go weeks without food. No money to buy new clothes or food. No money to pay the bills. It’s a very scary thing to go through as a child. I’m no longer in that situation, and I am very grateful. Honestly, I feel most who have everything they could need are very selfish and don’t realize what people actually go through. I think it we raised more awareness about what living in poverty is like, people would be willing to help out more

# data[].attributes.body
This article discusses a recent bill that was proposed to regulate the poverty program in Missouri. It would allow the state to punish anyone who spent the money given to them on anything they were not supposed to purchase such as alcohol. The article discusses possible issues such as participants would no longer be able to withdrawal cash that they could need for any cash only businesses.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - The Missouri House passed a measure Thursday that would toughen rules for people who misspent benefit money within a poverty program.

The bill, passed by a 100-46 vote, affects the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, which provides regular cash payments to more than 11,000 families. The bill now heads to the Senate.

Spending benefit money on a prohibited item or business would result in a three-month ban the first time, a six-month ban the second and a loss of benefits for five years for a third infraction, under the legislation.

Currently, if people spend benefit money on tobacco, alcohol or other prohibited items, or at businesses such as liquor stores or strip clubs, they must pay that money back but may remain in the program. Businesses can also be fined for improperly accepting that money.

"We're looking at an effort to give folks an opportunity to correct a series of bad habits," said Republican Rep. Hannah Kelly of Mountain Grove. Kelly amended the bill to include the increased penalties.

"The overall purpose is to make sure we have the funds we need for those in dire need," she said.

The legislation also would bar recipients from using electronic benefit cards to withdraw money from ATMs.

The same benefit cards that contain TANF money also can contain funds from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps, which provides food aid for low-income families. Like TANF, the SNAP program already bars expenditures on prohibited items or places.

Although the ban on ATM withdrawals would apply to both programs, the three-strike policy would only affect TANF.

States can set certain limitations within federally-allowed parameters.

In a statement, the progressive advocacy organization Empower Missouri questioned the legality of the bill and cited instructions from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regarding TANF that say: "States should maximize the flexibility for recipients to access cash withdrawals."

The bill's sponsor, Republican Rep. J. Eggleston of Maysville, acknowledged during a debate that barring ATM withdrawals might require a waiver from the federal government. The bill includes a provision that Missouri will ask for a waiver if the state decides it is necessary.

There were almost 600,000 such benefit cards in Missouri as of December. Legislative researchers estimated that enacting these changes would cost more than $1 million, although that amount would mostly be covered with federal funds.

During a House debate, opponents expressed concern that the proposal could hurt vulnerable families.

"Penalize people enough and they will just magically become not dependent?" asked Rep. Courtney Allen Curtis, D-Ferguson.

Some lawmakers said people could face stiff penalties for unwittingly violating a rule, such as by buying food at a liquor store if there wasn't a nearby grocery store. Another expressed concern that banning ATM withdrawals would prevent people from using benefit money at cash-only business, like laundromats.

The Department of Social Services did not respond to a request for comment regarding how often benefit money is misused.

---

TANF bill is HB 1443

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Missouri House votes to up penalties within poverty program

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - The Missouri House passed a measure Thursday that would toughen rules for people who misspent benefit money within a poverty program. The bill, passed by a 100-46 vote, affects the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, which provides regular cash payments to more than 11,000 families.

# data[].attributes.body
I am lucky to have no previous problems with poverty. But it does affect a lot of the people I am close to. Some of my friends would stay at my house trying to get away from the poor conditions at home and I saw how much it affected them. I think we need more plans in place to help those in need and the federal government needs to do something about the unreasonably large wage gap in America.

# data[].attributes.body
Everyone is affected by poverty. No one can say they are not. You may not personally be living in poverty, but it exists. It is in our school and around our community. I dont think poverty is caused by a lack of resources but the lack of awareness of how to ise a get resources. There are many agencies that go unnoticed and unused because people are not aware of them (such as those funded by United Way in Jefferson City). Also, poverty is caused by the lack of awareness of the community. If more knew the number of people living in poverty, and prioritized differently, then there would be more resources to donate and share for those in need.

# data[].attributes.body
Bebeto clarke
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/ferguson-s-little-library-caught-the-nation-s-attention-in/article_9361daf6-692f-5eb5-a989-bf9742250731.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1

# data[].attributes.body
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/ferguson-s-little-library-caught-the-nation-s-attention-in/article_9361daf6-692f-5eb5-a989-bf9742250731.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/ferguson-s-little-library-caught-the-nation-s-attention-in/article_9361daf6-692f-5eb5-a989-bf9742250731.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
FERGUSON * Back in 2014, the Ferguson Municipal Public Library's offerings beyond checking out books were scant - just a summer reading program.

That was before an unarmed teenager was shot to death by a police officer on Aug. 9, spawning protests and unrest that put the city in the national spotlight.

Some of that attention came to the small library downtown. It stayed open following the Nov. 24 announcement that a grand jury did not indict police Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown, just as it did when the Ferguson-Florissant School District delayed starting classes because of protests after Brown's death.

Hundreds of books and $450,000 poured in, including $175,000 in two days after authors including Neil Gaiman tweeted their support. The gifts, many made online, came from around the world.

Now those donations are running out, and by mid-2020, that money will be gone. So voters in Ferguson must decide April 3 whether to increase their property taxes to continue the programs added since 2014 and make improvements to the building at 35 North Florissant Road.

If the ballot measure fails, the library anticipates cutting staff, reducing or eliminating hours on Saturdays or weeknights as well as not replacing broken computers. It also means an end to programs funded with the donated money.

The library has stretched that money as best it can, said Scott Bonner, its director, and relying on donations is not a stable way to run it. The library's governing board has been hesitant to use the donations to hire more staff.

"You can't offer someone a job and take it away two years later when the money runs out," he said.

But the board did put $8,000 of the contributions toward creating a full-time children's librarian, a position largely made possible because two part-time employees left. Bonner said he pledged to find the money from somewhere after the donations ran out, saying the position is needed for long-term, sustainable programming.

New programs made possible because of the donated money include computer and coding classes for kids and adults, storytimes at schools and day care sites, as well as sponsoring a FIRST Robotics Lego League team.

It also means hosting book clubs, including the monthly Readings on Race discussion. The March book was " Policing America, Policing Ferguson" by Tom Jackson, the police chief when Brown was killed and in the unrest that followed. Previous selections included " Tell the Truth & Shame the Devil" by Lezley McSpadden, Brown's mother, and "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates.

In 2015, the library replaced 10 outdated computers with 17 new ones, a laptop lab, and an interactive whiteboard. If the hike passes, the library will begin a four-year technology replacement cycle. It also has used the donations to install handicap-accessible front doors, renovate the library's bathrooms, replace two 20-year-old heating and air-conditioning units, replace ripped and mismatched carpet and to buy tables and chairs.

The library also wants to replace shelves so they're easier to see and find for children and people with disabilities, and to install better lighting and energy-efficient windows.

It also wants to add more programs, especially after-school hours, and hire a full-time adult-services librarian whose duties would include providing reference services for small-business owners and job seekers. Also on its wish list is improving services to homebound and disabled patrons, and hiring more part-time staff and evaluating whether salaries and benefits should be increased.

The library hopes to increase its movie and book collections, including large-print books - it only acquires four such titles each month - as well as increase its selection of ebooks and databases.

To do that, Ferguson voters must increase the library levy by 18 cents per $100 in assessed value, from 22 cents to 40 cents. The library projects that will increase its tax revenue from $386,000 to $710,000 in the next fiscal year - a $324,000 bump.

If passed, the owner of a house worth $100,000 would pay an additional $34 a year.

Many people walk to the library, which was founded in 1930. It is not owned by the city of Ferguson or the St. Louis County library system, whose closest location is the Florissant Valley branch at 195 South New Florissant Road. The Ferguson library has its own tax levy and is one of nine independent libraries - and the only one in North County - that make up the Municipal Library Consortium. The eight others are in Brentwood, Kirkwood, Maplewood, Richmond Heights, Rock Hill, University City, Valley Park and Webster Groves.

The Ferguson library's last tax increase came 23 years ago.

"Our mission is lifelong learning and cultural literacy and bringing the community together. And we pursue that by whatever means we can. Those things will always be necessary," Bonner said. "And as long as the community needs those things, the library's there for them. The question is will they want us to be in active mode or a more passive mode."

Last week, Quinndale Jernigan did geometry homework on a library computer as part of training to become an ironworker. He's at the library about three times a week.

"It's easier to do it at the library," said Jernigan, 32, of his online work.

The timing of the ballot measure could benefit the library.

Home prices in Ferguson had been slower to rebound than in other parts of the St. Louis region. But last summer, St. Louis County's once-every-other-year property reassessment suggested that homeowners in north St. Louis County saw their property values stabilize.

Data provided by MORE Realtors showed that home sales in Ferguson were up during the previous 12 months before June, with the median sale price rising by double-digit percentages.

Bonner said he has mostly heard support for the tax increase, but has heard from people who don't want to pay more.

That includes one man who wrote on the library's Facebook page, "Sorry. Taxed Enough Already."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Ferguson's little library caught the nation's attention in 2014. Now the donations are running out.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
FERGUSON * Back in 2014, the Ferguson Municipal Public Library's offerings beyond checking out books were scant - just a summer reading program. That was before an unarmed teenager was shot to death by a police officer on Aug. 9, spawning protests and unrest that put the city in the national spotlight.

# data[].attributes.body
This article is about a nonprofit th

# data[].attributes.body
This article is about a nonprofit that helps low-income families. There’s a man named Terry McDonald, who is the executive director of the St. Vincent de Paul Society of Lame County. McDonald is also known as “the junkyard king,” because he spends his time trying to turn America’s wast into cash. McDonald goes and visit a facility in Oakland. A worker in Oakland, California works in a warehouse and dismantles mattresses. The nonprofit has turned mattress recycling into a big business that supports for low-income families. The model is inspiring other nonprofits to start salvaging junk to support poor families.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The bad economy has hurt many nonprofits around the country, even as demands for their services have grown. That's certainly the case in Reading, Pa., which has been labeled the poorest city in America, with a poverty rate of more than 41 percent.

Now, one local nonprofit, Opportunity House, hopes to salvage some of its services by salvaging junk.
Looking For Help
Opportunity House has provided day care, housing and other services to low-income families in Reading for many years. Because of state budget cuts in Pennsylvania, the nonprofit now gets less money to subsidize round-the-clock day care for parents who might not otherwise be able to work. To make matters worse, enrollment in the day care center is down because unemployment is so high, leaving the nonprofit with a $335,000 deficit.

As a result, the charity's president, Modesto Fiume, did something he hoped he'd never have to do: He laid off 20 percent of his staff.

"It was an absolutely horrible, horrible experience," he says.

Seventeen low-wage workers, including teacher aides and assistant teachers, lost their jobs. Fiume knows that most of them will have a hard time finding other work.

"It was a lot of tears and a lot of people upset because some of these people had worked with us for a number of years," he says.

Fiume has also had to cut back day care services on Sundays. He says donations and volunteers help his organization make ends meet, but not nearly enough. Like many nonprofit leaders, Fiume is desperately looking elsewhere for help.
The Junkyard King
One place he's looking is clear across the country, where another charity uses junk to help support services for the poor.

At a 26,000-square-foot warehouse in Oakland, Calif., a worker with thick gloves puts a stripped-down box-spring mattress on what looks like a big meat slicer at a deli. As he pushes the mattress forward, the metal springs are sheered off the wooden frame.

"He just literally pulled about a hundred staples out of that piece of wood," explains Terry McDonald, who oversees the operation. "But he did it with that machine in just a few seconds."

McDonald is known to some as "the junkyard king," because he spends so much of his time trying to turn America's waste into cash. But his real job is executive director of the St. Vincent de Paul Society of Lane County in Eugene, Ore.

The nonprofit has turned mattress recycling into a big business that supports services for low-income families. It's the largest mattress recycler in the country. With one facility in Oakland and another in Oregon, it recycles about 175,000 mattresses a year.

McDonald holds up a piece of quilted cloth and foam that's been stripped from one of the mattresses in the Oakland warehouse.

"That material is recycled into commercial carpet," he says. "The next layer underneath, that is generally a polyurethane foam pad, and that's recycled into residential carpet pad."

McDonald says about 90 percent of a mattress can be recycled into something else and sold.
Reinventing The Model Of Help
Mattress recycling is only one of many businesses, or social enterprises, that McDonald runs. St. Vincent de Paul Society of Lane County also operates thrift shops, repairs appliances and makes furniture - anything McDonald can think of to use stuff that other people discard.

And the payoff is big. These enterprises raise enough money to cover more than half of the Oregon charity's $24-million-a-year budget.

"The model is that if there's an opportunity to add value to something, let's do it," says McDonald.

If you want to survive as a nonprofit ... then you have to kind of reinvent yourself.

That model is getting lots of attention these days, as nonprofits struggle to survive. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has given McDonald a half-million dollars to spread the word. He's already helped set up mattress-recycling operations in Orlando, Fla., and Bridgeport, Conn.

Now, he's talking to Opportunity House and officials in Reading about how they too might tap into trash.

Fiume, Opportunity House's president, says a recycling facility would create "meaningful" jobs that pay above-minimum wages and provide health benefits. That would mean a lot in a city that's been bleeding jobs for years. Fiume knows it could also make Opportunity House less dependent on donations and government funds.

"If you want to survive as a nonprofit and you want to continue to meet the needs of the folks who are most in need of support, then you have to kind of reinvent yourself," he says. "So that's what we're doing."

Fiume is now trying to figure out the next step: where to get a warehouse, equipment and startup funds. For a nonprofit more accustomed to helping the poor than running a business, it's a whole new world.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Turning Trash Into Cash To Help Nation's Poor

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The bad economy has hurt many nonprofits around the country, even as demands for their services have grown. That's certainly the case in Reading, Pa., which has been labeled the poorest city in America, with a poverty rate of more than 41 percent.

# data[].attributes.body
I don’t think poverty has affected my family and I, but sometimes we have struggles. Yes, I’ve seen some of my family members struggle to make ends meets. They can’t pay bills and they can’t provide for their family. I think the cause of poverty is the status you’re born into. I think we could increase pay wages to end poverty.

# data[].attributes.body
This article is about a new program called “Dinner for a Difference”. It is a dinner that is meant to show people the problem in our society that is poverty. Placemats at the tables are different colors. These colors indicate your assigned socio-economic status. Each table has a middle-class, upper-class and lower-class placemat with quotes from around the city “capturing the reality of poverty”. During the dinner the upper class were served first on nice plates with the salad seperate from the main course, as well as glass cups. The middle class were then served next with their salad and main meal on the same plate. They had normal glasses. After everyone was served the lower-class was told to pick up thier dinners at the bar. These dinners were served in styrofoam container along with plastic utensils. This was to make people feel uncomfortable and understanding of the unfair treatment that the owner class especially gets.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Central Missouri Community Action offered a unique dining experience in its second annual "Dinner for a Difference."

CMCA hopes to raise awareness of the issue of poverty in Mid-Missouri and the reality it entails.

After a chance to socialize and listen to the music of live band Rose Ridge, diners were invited to sit and were told the color of their place mats indicated their socio-economic status.

Each table had lower-class and upper-class mats, while the other place mats indicated the middle class. The tables also contained quotes and sayings capturing the realities of poverty such as "Not everyone who needs help is on welfare" and "I make $9.50 an hour, 12-hour shifts, I barely get to see my family."

As the dinner started, the upper-class diners were served first. Their meals were served on nice plates with salads on a separate plate from the main course. Their status also gave them glass goblets.

Middle-class diners received their meals with the main course and salad on single, smaller melamine plates. Regular glasses were filled by waiters who offered them attention, though not as much as the upper-class diners.

Once everyone else was served, the lower-class diners were informed their meals were ready to be picked up by the bar. Their meals were served on Styrofoam plates with plastic utensils and paper napkins. Water pitchers were set up around the room with plastic cups for them.

All the diners were given the same meal, but the effect of the different treatment left people feeling uncomfortable.

Every diner was served dessert at the same time on a real plate. The effect was to show how differently people treat those of different socioeconomic classes, especially the poor, but everyone deserves the same treatment.

"We need to understand the realities of poverty," CMCA Executive Director Darin Preis said.

He said he wasn't sure last year how the event would be received but it had turned out to be a lot of fun.

"Poverty does exist in our community," Angela Hirsch, the chief program officer at CMCA, said. "We are a community and we are stronger together."

Carolyn Lewis spoke after the dinner about her experience not only being a recipient of some of the programs available to people from Central Missouri Community Action, but also about her successes and her experience as a board member for the organization.

Dr. Roger Drake, president of Central Methodist University, spoke of his youth in poverty and his experience being in the first head start program. CMCA supports various programs such as Head Start, Missouri Work Assistance, Energy Assistance program and MO Ride, amongst others. These programs are designed to provide "help for today, hope for tomorrow."

Drake said 58,000 people in Mid-Missouri live in poverty, noting 15,000 are children. CMCA's mission is to provide assistance to those people.

"It's such a mission-driven organization. It makes me very, very proud to be associated with them," Drake said.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Community action group drives home impact of poverty

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Central Missouri Community Action offered a unique dining experience in its second annual "Dinner for a Difference." CMCA hopes to raise awareness of the issue of poverty in Mid-Missouri and the reality it entails.

# data[].attributes.body
In my life I had not been directly effected by money stuggles until this year. We were selling our house and bought a new one so we had to pay double mortgages. Even this was not a terrible change in my quality of life. It was little things like: no more eating out, no more gas station. Simple things that didn’t really effect me at all. However, I know that my parents, my aunt and uncle, and some of my cousins have felt with poverty. Some of them, including my parents during the first 5 years of their marrige raising my brother, have had to get help from the government to feed their kids and themselves at times. Poverty effects everyone I think. It’s not just  you that is effected, but your loved ones and your community.

# data[].attributes.body
Improving Student Test Scores Begins at Home
Researchers are trying to wrap their heads around why test scores around the country and plummeting. One reason they add, may be due to the impoverished areas children live in. Schools are trying different methods to see what can solve the failing epidemic and regulate attendance for all students.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Regarding your editorial " Is scrapping PARCC test about helping kids or making Illinois schools look better? " I am dismayed that you write of schools "performing." Schools are inanimate objects that hold students and their teachers. It is students who perform up to grade or fail to perform on statewide exams.

Why is it that students perform under expectations? According to Chicago Public Schools demographic data, in some grades upward of 80 percent of students are eligible for free or reduced-cost lunch, which is an indicator of poverty.

I began teaching in Chicago in 1972. There was a seismic change from 1972 to 1982. In my early years, parents would come to me to volunteer. By 1982, women had entered the workforce, as salaries had diminished while productivity had skyrocketed.

Students who live in poverty tend to face many hurdles. They may not eat dinner with their parents, when language skills can develop. They may not be tucked into bed with a bedtime story. Social scientists will tell you that the word count of children in professional homes is exponentially higher than that of children who live in poverty, and children who enter school deficient in language may fall further behind as they progress through higher grades.

Over a decade ago, the Chicago Tribune followed a student who left her "failing" school to attend a school on the North Side. For awhile she performed well, but as the year wore on, she began to miss class and to be tardy. Her progress plummeted.

The Chicago Tribune Editorial Board writes of "school accountability." I rarely hear of the hurdles teachers and students face each and every day. Averages dictate that some will exceed, some will pass, and some will fail. Ever hear of a bell curve? When poverty enters the picture, is it any wonder that fewer than 40 percent of students pass both reading and math exams?
- Janice Gintzler, Crestwood

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Improving student test scores begins at home

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Regarding your editorial " Is scrapping PARCC test about helping kids or making Illinois schools look better? " I am dismayed that you write of schools "performing." Schools are inanimate objects that hold students and their teachers. It is students who perform up to grade or fail to perform on statewide exams. Why is it that students perform under expectations?