Madison Park

On Veterans Day, the City of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs accepted the Mayors Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness, an effort to solidify partnerships and secure commitments to end veteran homelessness by 2015.

During the announcement, the City of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County and the W.G. (Bill) Hefner VA Medical Center formally accepted the challenge through the introduction and implementation of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Housing Our Heroes initiative. This initiative seeks to house Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s 204 homeless veterans by Dec. 31, 2015. The January 2014 Point-In-Time count, a yearly single-day effort to provide an accounting and snapshot of a community’s homeless population, helped determine the number of homeless veterans for this initiative.

We are proud to announce that to date, we have reached 27 percent of our goal! We’ve made a lot of headway, but there is still much to be done. 

Learn more about the effort to end veteran homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg and how you can support the initiative at housingourheroes.charmeck.org.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Youth Council is a diverse network of local teens who engage with and advise community leaders on issues, policies and decisions that impact students. 

The Council, a GenerationNation program and the result of a joint partnership with the City of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS), provides great opportunities for teenagers to make a difference in their communities.

Last month, youth council members representing more than 25 local high schools met with Mayor Dan Clodfelter and CMS Acting Superintendent Ann Clark. In addition to serving on a community panel and providing student perspectives about public education, the students spoke with media about civic issues, taught children about democracy and casted their votes in Election 2014, the nation’s largest community-based mock election.

All local high school students are invited to participate in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Youth Council. For more information, visit www.GenerationNation.org/youth, email info@generationnation.org or call 704-343-6999.

CharlotteBusinessResources.com recently announced Search Solution Group as the winner of its Success Stories: Billboard Giveaway. During the weeks leading up to Small Business Saturday, CharlotteBusinessResources.com asked local businesses to share their success stories for a chance to win free advertising for one month on a digital billboard in uptown Charlotte near the EPICENTRE. 

Search Solution Group, a premier recruiting and executive search firm in Charlotte, submitted a company profile video from the perspective of owner Jeremy Gnozzo’s dog Tanner. Tanner was the reason why Search Solution Group had a “group” when Jeremy initially started the company, which is a pet-friendly office 365 days a year. Search Solution Group also provided its story, which showed the vulnerability of the company’s initial struggles and its path to becoming a headhunting powerhouse.   

The winner of the billboard giveaway was selected by the Business Advisory Committee.

The portal, CharlotteBusinessResources.com, is a collaborative effort between the City and 19 business organizations that are committed to working together to save time and money by providing relevant business resources and information.

To learn more about the winner of the billboard giveaway and to access valuable business resources, please visit CharlotteBusinessResources.com. 

Use these tips to help make your holiday season a little more green!

Wrapping Gifts

• Reuse old wrapping paper
• Use reusable bags or boxes
• Use old magazines and newspaper as wrapping paper
• Combine smaller scraps of wrapping paper to make unique gift wraps
• Bring your own bags when shopping for gifts
• Recycle It! Find out what can and cannot be recycled

Giving Gifts

• Purchase safe plastic toys and gifts
• Buy used or refurbished electronics
• Give gifts from local vendors
• Give gifts that can't be opened. Making dinner, cleaning the house and grocery shopping make great gifts
• Donate money to a charity in honor of a friend or family member
• Donate old toys and food to local charities

Want to see more holiday greening tips? Click here or visit Power2Charlotte for more information.

 

Need a speaker for your community meeting?

The Need a Speaker? program is a one-stop web portal where neighborhood organizations and civic groups can request and book speakers from across City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County departments.

With more than 80 available topics, visitors can gain access to expert speakers on the many programs and services offered by the City and County. 

For more information, visit needaspeaker.charmeck.org
or call (704)336-2175.