Kalamazoo native Curtis Putman arrived for his honeymoon in Puerto Rico only to discover his wallet had not completed the journey. He credits the 60th District Service Office (DSO) with saving him and his wife from being stranded.
"She suggested we could sell sunglasses on the beach if we couldn't get home," he says with a laugh. "But the DSO worked with the Secretary of State's office to overnight me what I needed to get back on the plane home. They worked faster than my credit card company.”
Curtis is one of hundreds of area residents helped this year by the DSO, established in 1973 by the late Howard Wolpe to provide local services so constituents wouldn't have to travel to Lansing for help. Staffed by volunteers and supported almost exclusively through private donations, the office is overseen by Constituent Services Director Edie Trent.
"We see people every day just trying to figure out the solutions they need," says Trent. "By the time they come ask for help, they really feel they're in over their heads, and frustrated after trying the usual channels without resolution."
The office works to connect people with resources and solve their challenges around unemployment, housing, disability benefits, utilities, homelessness, and other urgent situations.
Recent successes include helping a paroled father appeal a state lien placed on his bank account due to child support in arrears with the Friend of the Court; assisting a downtown retailer who was getting notices in error from the Michigan Treasury indicating its quarterly sales taxes hadn't been paid on time; and helping a constituent without a bank account get a check written to his insurance company. A frustrated Winchell neighborhood resident was connected with the Kalamazoo Water Department to test his water, which kept getting murky after rainstorms or snowmelts. The city replaced a nearby hydrant and valves to solve the problem.
Gratitude Breakfast
The DSO will hold a Gratitude Breakfast Nov. 17 for the area's first responders, to thank them for keeping Kalamazoo safe during the emergency challenges of 2016, and also to remind the community of the office's mission is to help residents solve challenges with benefits, housing, utilities, homelessness, and other urgent needs. The event is sponsored by the Michigan Nurses Association.
The 60th District Service Office, 315 N. Burdick, was one of the first in Michigan, and remains the oldest continuously operating such office in the state. Mary Brown represented the office after Howard Wolpe was elected to Congress, and served the district for 18 years. She continues to volunteer as a board member, and commends the leadership of current State Representative Jon Hoadley.
"I'm very proud. The office makes sure that state services actually work for people," she says. "People shouldn't need us to intervene, but they do. We're also the watchdog. Those state offices know we're paying attention."
Other emeritus legislators for the district include Ed LaForge, Alexander "Sandy" Lipsey, Robert Jones, and Sean McCann.
Among the helpers who staff the DSO are high school and college students, and young professionals who gain real-world leadership training while the office gets valuable staff support, says Hoadley.
"The office has always invested in the next generation through internships, externships, and paid summer fellowships—which are supported by the generosity of the Sally Appleyard Trust," he says. "These young leaders learn how to interact with state offices, legislators, other agency staff, and most importantly how to work with individuals in need seeking help from a real human being."
An MSU graduate in criminal justice, Autumn Fields works midnights at her new career in probation and parole services, but still finds time to volunteer—and is now considered an "ace community volunteer," according to Trent.
"Working in my field and volunteering at the DSO has provided me a unique opportunity to gain insight and understanding in both criminal justice and political science," she says.
Otsego native and Yale University graduate Matt Chavez says of his experience, "It was great to help serve the community that I've grown up around. While I was at the DSO, I listened to constituents and helped them resolve their problems on a daily basis."
Hoadley is proud to follow the lead taken by his predecessors to make the local service office a priority. "Those who represent the district have made the choice for more than 40 years to have a staffer here in Kalamazoo so we can be solving problems hands-on," he says. "We are here for folks from all walks of life who need help, who are trying to do the best they can, looking for a little bit of assistance from a human being to get their problem solved."
To learn more about the DSO or support its services call Edie Trent at 269/382-4676, email edie.trent@gmail.com, or stop by the office at 314 S. Burdick, Monday through Friday, 9 am – 5 pm or by appointment.
The DSO is a non-profit corporate entity providing services at no charge on a non-partisan basis. The Community Services Charity is the DSO's 501(c)(3) partner, organized for the charitable purposes of providing financial and human resources to lessen the burdens of government and to assist the poor, the distressed, or the underprivileged.
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