Odessa Links has set its 9th Annual Community Conference from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 25 at the MCM Elegante Hotel, 5200 E. University Blvd.
This year, the gathering is called “The Power of You” and the featured speaker is Patricia Ann Vasquez. Usually, 100 to 150 people attend.
According to the flyer, “the purpose of this discussion is to help individuals understand purpose and vision by understanding themselves, their individual talents and unique contributions to society.”
Vasquez is the president and co-founder of STAR FORCE USA — a nationally respected company specializing in the design and delivery of organizational, workforce and community training solutions.
She is also COO of Ignite Community Solutions, a nonprofit dedicated to helping create a society in which generational poverty is a thing of the past by utilizing their evidence-based curriculum, “ClearPath,” the event flyer said.
Vasquez has more than 20 years of private and public corporate experience in training, personal development, educational assessment and financial operations.
She earned her master’s of business administration with honors from the University of the Incarnate Word and is a keynote speaker, consultant, media guest, certified professional coach in personal development, certified public accountant (retired), certified peer support specialist, community servant and mentor.
As an educator and inspirational speaker, she is constantly seeking creative ways to foster dynamic learning environments, which promote the proper aligment of purpose, people and business processes.
Vasquez has coached/mentored over 3,000 adults and youth from all avenues of life to include the unemployed, veterans, the homeless, at-risk youth, cognitive and physically challenged individuals, immigrants, foster youth and adults, persons recovering from substance abuse, incarcerated and previously incarcerated individuals, the LGBTQIA+ community and persons suffering from domestic violence, the flyer said.
Andrea Quiroz is the executive director of Odessa Links, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary. This is her third time in the role.
She had been home for five years and decided it was time to find work. She was approached about the executive director’s position, interviewed and was welcomed back.
“… I’m catching on and I’m so very fortunate that the previous director is a phone call away. I enjoy that. I can call her and we’re good and she’ll help me out,” Quiroz said.
A native of San Antonio, she has been in Odessa since 1991. Quiroz has been in nonprofit for 32 years.
“I kind of feel that I’ve had a path paved for me. I worked in marketing and in sales and retail. And when I worked at the Odessa Sam’s Club, actually I was the second employee hired there, and they invested a lot in me and my marketing and that kind of introduced me to nonprofits and I’ve been involved in … nonprofit work” ever since, she said.
The variety of ways she can help people is what appeals to her about Odessa Links.
“… We’re a resource center and so we get a variety of calls from homelessness, unable to pay their bills. Where can I find a thrift store? Where can I volunteer? You never know what the ask is when you answer our phone and asking the client why they’re in the position they’re in and then kind of navigate them to the services that they need and hope that they help. Then when we call them back in a couple of days to see if they got that assistance, it’s rewarding — if they got help,” Quiroz said.
She has had to refresh herself on the services different agencies provide and has attended interagency meetings.
“I’ve been out anywhere that I can where all the agencies are at so I can update myself with the resources, or I send staff to different areas. Wednesday mornings at our staff meetings, we all share that information — who has funding, who doesn’t have funding, and changes of programs that are out there. So, and it also helps that we’re a United Way agency because I already have 15 agencies that I’m aware of what they do, so that’s our first … point of contact,” Quiroz said.
She added that the only way the community can be helped nowadays is by agencies working together.
“… Right now it’s difficult with funding and so if we can help each other out with the different types of resources and and talking with each other, communicating. If I do this, you do that, you do that and that’s how we can help people,” Quiroz said.
It does get overwhelming at times, but the agencies work together to try and help people. Some of their challenges right now are hotel stays, deposits for housing and help with evictions.
“Our local agencies mostly pay for their rent so they don’t get evicted. But here lately, we’ve been having a lot of evictions and it’s very difficult because a lot of our clients or people that call us, they can only find part-time jobs. They’re not able to find full-time jobs, so they’re having to work two jobs to try to make it just to pay their rent and food all that,” she said.
Quiroz said Odessa Links ties clients in with the Texas Workforce Commission and job fairs.
“We have two different types of clients – our information referral … but then we also have our Project Hope program and we house homeless families. It’s a self-sufficiency program. Our case manager, she maps out their self-sufficiency plan. …,” Quiroz said.
They start off by housing them, building credit and pointing them toward careers, for example.
Quiroz said there was a recent client that exited the program after eight months and was able to save $7,000 and has a career.
“… It’s amazing because when they’re ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work, go to school … be a parent, to stop that cycle of poverty they do it and it’s amazing when their eyes light up and finally have that empowerment to do things,” Quiroz said.
Examples like that are what keeps Quiroz and those who work with her going. There are times when things get daunting.
“… But I look at more of the reward and just continue doing our job for those that need our help and want our help,” Quiroz said.
She added that right now everything is quiet, but the agencies are overwhelmed.
“There’s a high turnover rate. You’re overwhelmed with so many calls every day, listening to the same thing, getting frustrated because there’s no funding to help everyone that’s calling and you tend to kind of be short and not realize that this client is still needing guidance and help …,” Quiroz said.
She added that they still have to be compassionate with them because “they’re being tossed around everywhere.”
