Street Roots Vendor Coach Annette “Nettie” Johnson’s new role at Street Roots is a perfect fit — combining her love of Street Roots with her background working with people and inspiring others to believe in their own talents and abilities. The Street Roots vendor moved into her job as vendor coach July 1.
The new role with Street Roots has her spending about 10 hours a week working with vendors, new and experienced, to identify prime sales spots and increase sales.
“I go to different locations to scout out new options,” Johnson said. “Then I have a list of identified spots for new and returning vendors at orientation. I can then match them up to a spot and give tips to improve their belief in themselves and increase their income. At that point, Street Roots becomes not just a day-to-day survival tool, but a means to improve all aspects of life.”
Johnson has worked hard to earn the responsibility and trust of the organization in this important role, working on her degree in addiction counselor education and finishing it just as the pandemic was beginning. Her work with Street Roots gives her opportunities to meet elected officials and national figures, like the interview she did with Black Lives Matter figure Deray McKesson in 2018.
Her background provides her with tools to help vendors facing challenges. Johnson was homeless herself for about 22 years. She grew up in Seattle and came to Portland to seek freedom from addiction.
“I knew I couldn’t get clean in Seattle — Portland provided some relief but I was still addicted,” she said. “I loved coming to Portland with my mom when I was little. We would come in a van as a family. My mom loved to play the horses. We would go to Portland Meadows racetrack.”
She lives by the lessons she learned in recovery.
“There’s a saying to ‘chase your recovery like you did your addiction,’ I try to do that,” she said. “I’ve got some goals for the next year. I hope to achieve a closer relationship with vendors — I try to encourage people with my story, sales tips and work ethic. My top tips are show up on time, get an ID and treat it like a regular job. Then, vendors will feel more self-sufficient, independent and make better choices for themselves.
“What’s the best part of her new role at Street Roots?
“I get to wake up every day, knowing Street Roots believes in me, and that I get to work somewhere where the values of Street Roots are to believe in people like me,” Johnson said. “I see hope in me and I see hope in people that the average person doesn’t. That’s the work that keeps us all together here. Street Roots meets people where they are, without judgment.”
Recently, Johnson had to put down her beloved dog Sunny, who was her companion for nearly thirteen years. She has also had brain surgery. And like many, she has witnessed the toll the pandemic has taken on the community and the city she loves.
“My hope is that we can get more love for each other,” she said. “I pray for the leaders here in Portland that they will be blessed with wisdom for how to deal with the pandemic crisis. Everyone is doing the best they can. I wish for more wisdom, more love and a lot of patience until we can come together to figure this out — this is a human problem.”
Johnson can be found in the Street Roots office, meeting with vendors and assisting with the monthly vendor orientation. She’ll have her new friend Neeeko with her, an eleven-week-old Shih Tzu and Yorkie mix.
Street Roots is an award-winning weekly publication focusing on economic, environmental and social justice issues. The newspaper is sold in Portland, Oregon, by people experiencing homelessness and/or extreme poverty as means of earning an income with dignity. Street Roots newspaper operates independently of Street Roots advocacy and is a part of the Street Roots organization. Learn more about Street Roots. Support your community newspaper by making a one-time or recurring gift today.
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