On any given day, you might find a small crowd outside Karidat’s new office in Chalan Kanoa under the awning in front of the building, browsing through the blouses and pants hanging on the long metal rack—the kind you might find at a clothing store. The donated clothes were carefully sorted and organized by a full-time volunteer and then tidily displayed on hangers.
This is one of the improvements to our services that have come about thanks to the larger space we have at our disposal, now that Karidat occupies the Sister Remedios Community Center.
It is also thanks to our new Family Services Coordinator, Consalacion “C.C.” Sablan.
C.C.’s first day of work was in early September and over the last six weeks she has introduced several new organizational systems and has already left her mark on the place. Her energy and enthusiasm confirm this self-professed “people person’s” belief that the job is just right for her.
“The work is both mental and physical, and I love staying busy,” she explains. Her office mate knows just how busy C.C. is at any given moment by how rapid the clicks of her heels on the tiles ring out: six quick steps to the front window to speak to a client and six heel clicks back to the desk! When I ask her if she finds the work difficult, she hesitates: “Not difficult, no…but time-consuming.” She has to set an alarm to remind herself to take a lunch break and at the end of the day she goes home spent, but happy.
“I love helping people and I love to be with people, so this is ideal for me.” C.C. loves being in the center of things, and is a practical thinker and problem-solver. She says that some of the changes she has instituted are still not working perfectly, so the systems need to be tweaked. But in her words, it’s just a matter of “trial and error” and figuring out what works best for the various needs of different clients.
And, even if she doesn’t have it all figured out yet, she is not intimidated by the process.
C.C. calls herself a good judge of character and she’s not afraid of being “tough” when the situation calls for it. She is no pushover and she is not easily frazzled, and that is important for those moments when the needs are great, and the lines of waiting customers are long.
“I tell my kids to keep dreaming big, not to be lazy and to get out there and help people, so I wanted to model that and it was time for me to make a change.” And then she tells me that she didn’t know what “Family Services Coordinator” meant when she applied for the job, but it turns out that she is well suited for the position and she just cannot be happier at how good of a fit it is for her strengths.
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So there has been a lot of change at Karidat: a new office space, some new services and protocols—and now, a new face at the front desk. If you stop by, be sure to welcome C.C. to the Karidat family. We are as happy to have her with us, as she seems to be here!