The Commerce Journal

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Discussion

September 14, 2012

Citizens meet to end poverty

By Joseph Hamrick The Commerce Journal

COMMERCE — President of the Commerce Chamber of Commerce Ladonna Patterson said  that Commerce citizens need to be intentional in helping to end poverty in Commerce.

“We can no longer sit and hope it will work itself out,” she said. “We need to be proactive in the lives of the impoverished to end poverty here in Commerce.”

At the EPIC meeting in Commerce on Thursday, Sept. 6, she proposed to work with the National Circles Campaign, an organization she said thinks has the best solution to end poverty.

“There are four solutions to ending poverty,” she said. “The first is to teach people how to manage their money. The second is to make sure that everyone is qualified for the workforce. The third is to reinvent the education and economic development here. And the fourth is to fix the bridge people have to cross to get out of poverty.”

Patterson said the face of poverty has changed and is no longer what citizens think it looks like.

“My family lived below the poverty line and we did not tell anyone we were because of the stigmatism here in America against being poor,” she said. “My brother and I didn’t get jobs in high school so we could have spending money; we got them so we could help support our parents.”

She said that poverty is no longer just a humanitarian issue, but an economic one as well.

“Poverty costs all of us,” she said. “Studies have shown that the higher the poverty rate, the lower the tax base, which leads to the higher the crime rate.”

According to Patterson, it is a vicious cycle.

“We know it will destroy us if we do not stop it,” she said. “So we need to find a way to break it.”

Currently she is working with the Circle in Longview to bring a location to Commerce. To start up a Circle location would cost $5,000 and requires the approval of the Commerce City Council.

“Money is a big issue in this city,” she said. “Right now the money just is not there because the tax base is not there. It is going to take the entire community to solve this issue.”

Maria Garza, coordinator of the Commerce Community Plaza, said her organization is doing its part to end poverty in Commerce and Hunt County.

“We are striving to make a difference in people’s lives so they can make a difference in their communities,” she said. “And we are having a great response from the Hispanic community so far.”

Garza said that CCP is working in joint effort with the No Child Left Behind Act and both Commerce High School and Texas A&M University-Commerce, to offer GED and ESL classes for those who need it.

“Education is an important tool to use in the fight against poverty,” she said. “We have 35 people in our current GED class and plan on graduating 20 people in October to go out to the community prepared to work and give back to the community.”

Luz Olivo, a current student in the ESL class, said that the CCP is helping both her and her children succeed.

“I used to be the Manager of a bank when we lived in Mexico,” she said. “I am grateful for the opportunity to succeed here in America.”

Olivo said she plans on going back into business administration when she graduates.

According to Garza, it will take continued donations and volunteers to help the CCP aid more Commerce citizens in finding sustainable jobs.

“Use your gifts, use your talents to help others,” she said. “I am very pleased to live here in Commerce where we have many people who use their gifts to help others.”

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