Saturday, November 17, 2012

Waiting

     Last night I stood in front of 250 people as I introduced myself as the Executive Director and held up my cell phone, "My wife is pregnant.  Very pregnant.  9 months and 10 days pregnant.  The baby could come any moment.  So I am keeping my cell available so I can dash out of here if need be.  Ideally the labor would start at 9:30 so that I can be here for the entire event and then leave before clean up starts."  The room laughed; the event went great; my wife did not go into labor.  9 months and 11 days.

     We are waiting for baby at the Menaker household.  Just waiting.  We clean or reorganize or pay bills, but every major obligation has either been removed, rescheduled or completed for this week.  The first words out of everyone's mouths when they see me are, "Have you had that baby yet?"  I shake my head and then they mutter something like "That Poor Woman," "Bless her heart," or they begin to tell me their horror pregnancy/delivery story.  One friend actually told me that her husband knew when the baby was about to come because she had a gleam in her eyes that suggested that she would take a sharp knife and cut the child out herself.   These stories are meant to be encouraging...I guess.

     Waiting is hard.  It reminds us that we do not have control of our lives.  It reminds us that life continues, and can even be good, even when our plans fail.  Waiting taunts us with the promise of good things to come and can fill us with an ache of not having those things yet.


     Waiting builds patience.  Waiting builds hope.  Waiting builds peacefulness.  Waiting builds community as others share in the experience with you.  Waiting allows us to grow as God puts the finishing touches on the remaining pieces of His plan.  Waiting allows the unexpected to fall upon our lives.  Waiting is a gift if we are willing to enter into it without filling our time and our attention with superficial entertainment and distraction (that would be video games for me).

     I am waiting for youth and donors and volunteers to pour into Joel's Place.  I am waiting for the young people in this place to reject the negative voices in their heads and become everything that God made them to be.  I am waiting to see healing fall on our community and state. 

     But mostly I am waiting for my baby girl to arrive.

Saturday, November 10, 2012

The Buy-In

     Joel's Place has staff meetings every Friday afternoon led by Kelli, our Program Director.  Sometimes I get to sit in on them; most times I have other appointments and can't make them.  This past week I finished my other meetings early and stopped by.  The topic of the day was Membership Dues for the kids that use Joel's Place.

     The cost of membership is very straightforward: $10 per year for access to Joel's Place which increases to $50 per year if you want to participate in any biking/skating sessions.  Annual membership fees are due in October (so the youth can use some of their dividend if needed) which has led to some grumbling the past few weeks.  Our staff have talked with the kids and their parents, handed out scholarships as needed and sought out those who felt that money was keeping them out of Joel's Place.  The downside has been a little bit more paperwork to fill out and a few uncomfortable conversations.  But it has led to some really good discussions among our staff:

     Why do we charge money to kids who are at risk?  Why not just offer our facility for free?  $10, or even $50 per member is not going to make or break our organization.  Wouldn't it simply be easier, and more compassionate, to not ask for any money from these kids who are barely making it? 

     The answer is:  Yes.  It would be easier to not ask the members for money.  It would eliminate unpleasant conversations and awkward silences.  It would be easier...in the short run.  Long term, though?  Charging a minimal fee creates an environment that is so much better than the alternative.  That environment is created not by increasing our bank account, but by increasing ownership.

     People invest their heart where they invest their money.  When they put their own money into Joel's Place, suddenly they care about what it looks like, what kind of people hang out there, what behavior is acceptable and what is not.  Joel's Place goes from "Them" to "We" and the youth help police themselves.

     Kelli gave an example:  When we set out free soda in the cafe, what we end up with is half-drunk cans that are scattered everywhere, everywhere throughout the building.  There are puddles of soda across the floors and furniture and skate ramps...it is a complete mess.  When kids have to buy their soda from the counter or the machine, they drink it all and dispose of their cans neatly...usually.  They invest their money in something as small as a Coke, and it takes on extra value.

     We are not going to let $10 keep a teenager out of Joel's Place.  We value the kids too much for that.  But we are going to find someway for them to invest themselves here, whether that be volunteering, helping other kids, cleaning or something else.  That is the buy-in.  That is young people becoming stakeholders in Joel's Place.

     We also need community buy-in so that money does not come keep teenagers out of Joel's Place.  We need individuals and corporations, churches and government programs to invest in us so that at-risk youth have a place that they can feel invested in.  We need people who are willing to allow their hearts and their finances to be poured into young people who are starved for both.  We need people who will buy in to these young men and women who often go unnoticed.

     This is why we are having our Ramp It Up Fundraiser this Friday.  It is not just for the money; I can go ask for money any time.  It is an opportunity to bring together our community and proclaim that if we buy in, if we invest our hearts and our time and our money into our members, not only will we be saving lives...we will be transforming lives.  And when we transform the lives of those who reside in the fringes of society and have fallen through the cracks of the system, we transform our community. 

     You want to change the world?  It starts here and now with the sweaty, stinky, loud and obnoxious youth who long desperately to be loved and valued and affirmed by someone.

     I invite you to come join us at Ramp it Up.  Friends Church.  6:30pm.  Friday the 16th of November.  Tickets are available for $40.  I'll see you there.

James

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Ramp It Up

     Joel's Place has its annual fundraiser coming up on November 16th:  Ramp It Up 2012!  This is our opportunity to showcase who we are and what we do while inviting the community to partner with us in our mission to care for the at-risk youth of Fairbanks.  I am excited for a number of reasons:

  1. This is my first fundraiser as the Joel's Place Director.  When I think back to where I was a year ago, my head spins.  In one calender year I have written a book, drastically changed jobs and added a new child to my family.  It is hard for me to fathom what will be happening next year at this time.
  2. Dessert.  Ramp It Up will include a Dessert Auction.  Anyone who knows me knows that I love desserts...and we are going to have some amazing options to bid on.
  3. Community.  It is rare that I have a chance to be in a room with a lot of people who are supporters of Joel's Place.  This event will allow us to come together with over 250 people who are committed to helping Joel's Place succeed. I feel both enthusiastic and humbled at the same time.  I am eager to meet new people, establish new connecions, dream new dreams, and share our vision for the future of Joel's Place.
  4. Dessert.  Did I mention there would be food?
  5. Our Guest Speaker.  Ron Ruthruff has years of experience ministering to the urban poor and at-risk youth in Seattle.  He is a gifted speaker and teacher who will expand our ideas of what is possible.  I found a talk he gave at a conference in Spokane on Youtube.  The talk is in 4 parts; if you want to hear all of it, parts 1, 3 and 4 are online also.



     6.  Turning "Ramp It Up" into "Fill It Up."  My goal for the funds that we raise are necessary but utterly and completely boring:  Heating Oil.  We go through about 100 gallons each week to heat Joel's Place during the winter.  What that works out to is 3000 gallons and $12,000 to get us through the winter.  So far we have purchased 600 gallons...only 2400 more to go.
     
     November 16th will be a great night, I really hope you can attend.  If you are interested in helping with the event itself, we still need a few companies/individuals to sponsor a table of eight for $320.  For tickets, you can contact Joel's Place at 452-2621 or e-mail me at joelsplacealaska@gmail.com.

     Thank you all for your support and encouragement.

James