The Case Manager
By Rayla Claypool, Alison Kaiser, Aishina Shaffer, Jazmine Hawes
Deborah K. Layman was the only warmth we were met with when we ventured into an Osage neighborhood to visit the Scott’s Run Settlement House.
It was raining — and had been all day — and Scott’s Run Road was a sorry sight. Potholes, dilapidated storefronts, abandoned buildings, a stray cat. It all made for a drab ride. The Settlement House itself sits across the street from a decommissioned elementary school. Cass Elementary: Main Sanitation of Osage.
We soon put that aside when the Scott’s Run Settlement House case manager Deb greeted us. She’s a small woman, short, thin, and soft-spoken, but she was passionate and caring. There was no mistaking the look in her eyes as she gave us the grand tour of the Settlement House. It was a combination of pride and determination. Deb knew exactly why she does what she does.
“I just wanna feed my people!” Deb said. “These people — they’re my people […] I’ve gotta take care of them.”
She came to Scott’s Run Settlement House from a senior center, working a senior nutrition program called Home Delivered Meals. Drowning in all the paperwork that job required, Deb felt compelled to do more. Scott’s Run Settlement House allows her to be a direct influence on feeding the community.
“Food is very important, and we do everything that we can to make sure that we are decreasing the amount of food insecurity in our community,” Deb told us.
As she showed us around the Settlement House and all of the resources they offer, Deb’s confidence was clear. Without looking, she could identify the expiration dates of the products on the top shelf. With her back turned to the storage room, she listed off back-to-front the stacks of products crowding the center of the room. For every question we asked, Deb had an answer.
Even though she’s only been there for a year, Deb is an integral part of the Settlement House. As the case manager, she knows the people who come to Settlement House as well as the food she has to give them. Building rapport with clients, learning their struggles, giving them support. That’s all part of what Deborah K. Layman does.
“To have somebody come with a problem that is so huge […] how do I help them to navigate this? What would I do if I was in their circumstances?” Deb said. “I always have to keep tissues in my office because pretty much on a daily basis I’m making someone cry. There’s a lot of challenges.”
According to Deb, some of the prevalent challenges are staying stocked and staying funded while giving out as much food as possible. A lot of the Settlement House’s resources are donation-based; they don’t have the products — or the same amount of product — week to week. Another issue is variety. Food pantries like the Settlement House will often restock the same products, which can get monotonous for families or individuals receiving assistance.
Deb is no stranger to the challenges of food insecurity. In addition to what she knows from working at the Settlement House, Deb has lived through situations similar to those of the families she’s feeding.
“I’ve established that I grew up dirt poor,” she said. “I know I ate spaghetti a lot enough as a child; I won’t eat it now. So I don’t wanna have a part in the next generation of kids that won’t eat spaghetti.”
Deborah K. Layman is dedicated to helping her community overcome the same difficulties she faced growing up. Through her work at Scott’s Run Settlement House, she is doing exactly what she feels calls to do.
