Meet the Members: Shermaine

Hometown:
I grew up in Flint, MI. Home town of famous people such as Bob Eubanks (old school Newlywed Game) , Sandra Bernhard (actress & comedienne), Terry Crews (actor- Everybody Hates Chris) and Michael Moore (Director-Roger and Me, Bowling for Columbine, Fahrenheit 9/11 and Sicko).

College:
I graduate with both a Bachelor in Biology and Chemistry. I am currently in graduateschool working on my MPH (Master in Public Health) and HIT (health information and technology) certification.

Fun fact:
While being in Chicago Health Corps, I have three amazing children that I teach, mentor and guide through this wonderful life. They are dynamic and a blast to experience! I am very fortunate. I am also a Master Gardner through the University of IL Extension South Suburban Cook County and Child Advocate for CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate). I have a passion for assisting others and working toward transformation, so my life fits me perfectly.


Favorite quote:
"Be the change you want to see in the world" -Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi knew how to "keep it moving" through trouble and conflict. He was a powerful leader and was able to be present and move forward through the many conflicts he encountered.


Before my service:
I worked as a pharmaceutical chemist for a number of years. It was a good career choice but I was not fulfilled and needed to work with people directly in a healthcare setting.

I chose AmeriCorps because:
I wanted to gain more experience in public health and work directly in neighborhoods where there is a lack of expertise and support of health concerns that disproportionally effect them to increase learning of health concerns. Chicago Health Corps was a perfect fit for me and my goals of public health and community engagement.

What are you doing as an AmeriCorps member?
I am returning after a leave of absence and will be supporting a number of activities within the Corps by working with PHIMC, Alliance Chicago and Chicago Dept. of Public Health assisting with a new HIT initiative.

My plans after AmeriCorps: will be to work in the area of Health Information Technology assisting with implementations of electronic health records in public health organizations and increase healthcare literacy. It will be a great completion to an amazing year.

Direct quote: 
"Life is too short, I got this!" "No worries! It's all good." In other words... Keep it movin'.

My favorite part of Chicago Health Corps: is being with everyone and learning from the experiences of others.

Fun Fact: 
We have a cat, Illuminata, Lumi for short. She is great because she sits for her food and comes when I call her (most of the time).

Deep Thoughts by Chicago Health Corps: If you could be a professional athlete, what sport would you play?
I love to watch the human body in motion. I was a marathoner before I tore a ligament. I love running so I would be a distance runner. But what fun is that in my imagination, if I could be like the winged runner, Nike who is the daughter of Ares, the God of War, in Greek Mythology). The wings for extra speed and endurance to boot that would be fabulous!! 

You know you're actually friends...

when you do stuff together, even when you're not required to.

This was not a committee meeting. It was not a teambuilding activity. It was just 6 friends, who like to try new food and enjoy good company. And we just happened to all be Chicago Health Corps members.

Here we are at San Soo Gab San, an authentic and delicious Korean restaurant in Lincoln Square. Last Saturday we decided to give it a try, it was a first time for all of us, except Lisa-Sun. And it was lucky we had her there to show us the ropes.

Sana, Sydney, Jessica, Danielle, and Lisa-Sun. All of us melting in the deliciousness.

National Day of Service in Springfield, Illinois

 post written by CHC member, Becca M.

Barely awake, raining, cold and dreary Devin, Danielle, Nina, Ayla and I waited at Dunkin Donuts for the official road trip to Springfield to begin. Like a shining star the Karen-mobile opened its doors and we were off into the wild blue yonder to meet up with the rest of the corps at another Dunkin Donuts an hour away. We were then scrambled into new cars and continued on the journey to Springfield. While meeting at 6:00 am to drive in the rain for 4 hours might not sound like fun to some, it is when you are hanging out with your CHC friends. We caught up on the past weeks adventures to Latin America, class sessions, and cooking trials, listened to music, watched movies, and found interesting commonalities: seeing the Nutcracker five times live, attending big 10 schools, similarities to Oprah, liking the pink power-ranger to name a few.

arriving in the gray, cruel morning.
Luckily we have these cuddly AmeriCorps sweatshirts to beat the cold.

We finally arrived at the state’s capitol in the dreary morning and headed to the convention center. There we were greeted by smiling faces handing us AmeriCorps goodie bags, almost as good as the ones Karen gave us that morning filled with snacks. If we were tired before it was hard to remain that way as we were surrounded by over 800 other AmeriCorps members from around the state. It was then that I was reminded of the purpose of the trip, while reconnecting with everyone was fun, we were here being honored and recognized for our service.



CHC Members: Becca, Ayla, Sydney, Lily, and Sana



Check it: the old capitol building.
Quaint, even charming, right?
Wait til you see the replacement. You're gonna flip.



CHC Members: Becca, Devin, Matt, and Nina

 Governor Pat Quinn named October 13, 2011, National Service Day to honor and promote service in Illinois. While he could not join us that and other presenters had fallen sick, the news anchors were MC’s for the day and they kept the day flowing for the most part. The Mayor of Springfield talked about the importance of service, we watched videos of AmeriCorps members sharing their story and we listened to a former AmeriCorps member share what she learned in her term of service and teach us asset-based thinking. This was followed by the recognition of each AmeriCorps group specifically, while other groups jumped up eagerly when their name was called, CHC acted cool letting the suspense build after PHIMC was called and we realized this was us. At this time we were also given the opportunity to donate blood, where James let the vampire get him, and he potentially saved the lives of others in need of blood.

James: our local hero, sporting the badge
of courage from his blood donation. 



practicing our smiles for
the actual group picture that
happened seconds later.



After the session ended, the march to the capital began. CHC held up the caboose of the train. The parade blocked streets as some admirers who had no idea what was really going on cheered. At the capital we were charged to all work together instead of fight in separate groups for funding. We then got our picture taken as a group. The celebration continued as CHC found a spot on the capitol lawn to reflect, share our unique qualities, and ambitiously plan to meet for dinner.

in the very back of the parade. because we're the cool kids.

After a quick pit stop for some at Starbucks, it was back on the road again for another 4 plus hour drive home. While the day in Springfield might not have been as exciting as we might have expected, it was a wonderful day none the less. I got to spend time with people I truly enjoy spending time with as our friendships continue to strengthen. We were honored and recognized for the hard tasks and difficult things we do. It was a great road-trip and it leaves me looking forward to the next one together.


March to the Capitol: feeding that activist spirit in each of us






enough suspense, already. here she is in. in all her beauty. The New and Improved Illinois State Capitol.



chatting it up after starbucks run. please note: karen popping her head out to say hello!

beautiful fall colors in Springfield. Thanks for the good times!

Meet the Members: Devin

College attended and major(s) and minor(s)

University of Arkansas-Social Work

Fun fact:
I've been skydiving.

Favorite quote:

"Only a life lived in the service to others is worthliving" -Albert Einstein

What you did before AmeriCorps? 
I was an Executive Assistant for a local Realtor Association.

Did your past work experience/schooling apply to your year of service?
My degree has definitely helped me prepare, but it is different actually having names and faces for the facts I learned in school.

Why did you choose to do AmeriCorps?
 I chose AmeriCorps to get experience in the Public Health field.

What are you doing as an AmeriCorps member?
 I educate Chicago Public School students on oral health and teen pregnancy prevention. In addition, I provide support to the Primary Care Providers in groups that educate women and men about
pregnancy and parenting.

What are your plans after AmeriCorps, and how does your year of service apply to your future
plans?

I haven't figured out my plans after AmeriCorps, but I hope to continue providing service throughout my life.

Favorite part of CHC so far?

Meeting great people!

Deep Thoughts by Chicago Health Corps: If you could domesticate any wild animal successfully, what would it be?

If I could domesticate any wild animal it would be a giraffe!

How did you celebrate Columbus Day?

Let me guess. You got some sweet deals?

In addition to buying cars and mattresses at insanely low prices, we discovered that you can also receive First Aid and Adult/Child CPR training at the American Red Cross of Greater Chicago, even on Columbus Day!

Thank you to our friends at the American Red Cross.

Enjoy these photos of members practicing life saving techniques. And if you live in the Chicago area, take confidence in knowing we are riding the trains and walking the streets of your city, ready and willing to give a rescue breath or two, as needed.

Shermaine and Lily practicing proper bandaging technique.

James and Lisa-Sun wrapping up an imaginary wound.

We asked them if they were okay. There was no response.
So of course we began resuscitating. 

Favorite picture of the day? Quite possibly. We practiced hugging in a new special way that would save someone's life if they were choking. Please take note of Matt, fake choking in the background.

Checking for signs of life. Our blue men were not doing so well before we came along.

Pre-Service Orientation: September 6-10

What is bringing individuals from all across the country to Chicago for a year of service? Welcome to the Chicago Health Corps. An AmeriCorps program implemented to reduce health disparities and improve health outcomes for under-served communities in the Chicago area.

Morning of September 6, 2011, 9 am. Roughly 18 young adults convene in an unfamiliar office building on Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL.

A seemingly relaxed group of individuals, just taking it all in. Some are locals to the Chicago area, bringing special concern for and knowledge of their hometown. Others traveled from all corners of the United States, including New Mexico, Connecticut, and Missouri to be here, in downtown Chicago this morning. This is Pre-Service Orientation (PSO) for the Chicago Health Corps, 2011-2012 members. 

What exactly is a "Pre-Service Orientation," you ask?

Karen Berg, program director of the Chicago Health Corps arrives with bagels, granola bars, and juice and coffee. 

Next, introductions, a little thing called "team-building,"and a variety of trainings ensue over the following hours and days.

Team-building, as best we can tell, is the grown-up version of "get-to-know you games." By now, "get-to-know-you games" live in infamy in the hearts of most adults, hence, the name change. To be fair, team-building is not merely a name change, but sometimes a truly more age-appropriate brand of game. These activities tend to dig a little deeper, provoke more discussion, inspire deeper thinking, self-awareness, reflection. So we roll with the punches.

Trainings, this first week included learning about cultural competency, the public health systems in Illinois, Health Care Reform, Illinois public benefits, safety net providers, such as Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), health literacy, and effective communication. We were also trained on specifics of being an AmeriCorps member and a Chicago Health Corps (CHC) member. 

Scavenger Hunt through Downtown Chicago. Part of Pre-Service Orientation.

The first three days of orientation were held at the office building of the Public Health Institute of Metropolitan Chicago. On Friday we met at The Erie Family Health Center in West Town, a service site for two of the CHC members. This gave us a chance to tour a FQHC and become familiar with their methods, and policies for providing care. For instance we learned that service is provided regardless of ability to pay and without regard to a patient's resident status.

Service and Self-Defense: The last day of Pre-Service Orientation we provided service at the local Lakeview Pantry, a food bank that serves the food needs of its neighbors. We were especially impressed by their home-delivery program which carefully caters to the special dietary needs of clients with diabetes or heart health concerns. We then traveled to a nearby self-defense/martial arts studio for an afternoon of practical and actually pretty fun (yet serious) self-defense training.

Host-site orientations began the following week, September 12, at each member's respective site. More updates to come. And PICTURES! Keep an eye-out.

For the People, By the People

Posts on this blog will be written under the direction of the Chicago Health Corps Communications Committee, with shared input from all Chicago Health Corps members. This blog is created with the purpose of informing, inspiring, and educating the general public of Chicago Health Corps happenings. Feel free to share the link with parents, grandparents, cousins, poets, rebel rousers, psychics, economists, postal workers, and prospective Chicago Health Corps members alike.

Any unauthorized reproduction of this blog would be totally ridiculous, and therefore, prohibited. The opinions expressed are solely our own and our candor and humor should not be attributed to the Chicago Health Corps, PHIMC, or AmeriCorps, but rather us, the individuals, and perhaps our parents/legal guardians who helped make us so especially candid and humorous. Questions, suggestions for posts, and corrections should be sent to chicagohealthcorpsblog@gmail.com.