October 27, 2008
Community voice mail inspiring the homelessness
Dallas, Texas—In a world where good news is hard to come by and an economy that’s potentially heading into a downturn, encouraging words from Life’s Little Instruction Book can truly be a bright spot in the day for a homeless person.
"Take care of your reputation. It’s your most valuable asset.” “Never give up on anybody. Miracles happen every day.” “Don’t deprive someone of hope; it might be all they have.”
These are just some of the messages that 950+ Dallas Community Voice Mail (CVM) clients hear weekly from Life’s Little Instruction Book as they are read by Larry Sykes, Project Manager of The Stewpot’s Community Voice Mail program in Dallas. CVM’s broadcast messaging advertises over 200 job opportunities monthly to its mostly unemployed clients experiencing homelessness. The messages go directly to the client’s personal phone messaging service; clients hear these messages along with readings from Life’s Little Instruction Book, and it lifts them up. “One gentleman stopped me in The Stewpot a few weeks ago almost crying—he was so taken by these readings and begged me to not stop broadcasting them,” says Mr. Sykes. “But don’t just take my word for it—listen to what the clients have to say in their own words by dialing 972-918-3590.”
H. Jackson Brown, the author of Life’s Little Instruction Book, had no idea that so many people experiencing homelessness were drawing inspiration and emotional support from his writings. Mr. Brown is so taken by the work of Community Voice Mail that he jumped at the chance to provide his book to the 46 CVM agencies across the country. Thanks to H. Jackson Brown and the technology of Community Voice Mail, next year 45,000+ CVM clients will potentially hear over five million bits of wisdom that will help them get through the day with readings from Life’s Little Instruction Book.
Community Voice Mail is the only nonprofit organization in the U.S. that has created, replicated, and sustained a nationwide voice mail program dedicated to assisting people in crisis and transition in their efforts to become self-sufficient. It is the leader in applying telecommunications tools to facilitate both personal change in individual’s lives and systemic change in how health and human services systems serve people in need. Community Voice Mail's mission is to empower people in crisis and transition by distributing free, 24-hour, personalized telecommunications access nationwide, directly linking people to jobs, housing and stability. For further information visit www.cvm.org.
Listen to testimonials
For immediate release Contact: Larry Sykes (214) 746-2785 x 248
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