Making Poverty Less Permanent

Check out this article in Byfaith magazine. "Making Poverty Less Permanent" by Robert J. Tamasy, Vice President of Communication for leaders in Legacy, Inc. In the article, Tamasy takes a look at Jobs for Life, and their take on "a more efficient kind of ministry."
Here is a summary of Tamasy's Top 5 Reasons for Job Training, taken from Davis Spickard, JFl's president and CEO since 2006.

Why should churches consider job training in their outreach to the poor?

1. As they discover what the Bible teaches about work, they will encounter Jesus Christ in the process.
2. One of the most important things the church can do to transform lives is 'teach the poor to fish', helping them to find value through work.
3.It puts the church in a position to serve where government is overwhelmed.
4. It provides businesses with employees who have strong work values.
5. Engaging in active ministry will change members' lives and transform the church.

Paul Green, Executive director of Hope for the Inner City, points out that successor failure rates are not due to a deficiency in the Jobs for Life curriculum, but "the difficulty in overcoming deep-rooted problems endemic to the poor, including:

The survival mentality
Financial management problems
Basic interviewing and communications skills
High-risk behavior
Inadequate education
Lack of proper role models

...and that is what we are all about. I can't wait.

Northwest Georgia

So if you are following this blog, and are not a resident of Northwest Georgia, you probably have a lot of questions. So do I. I live here, but lets be honest: there is a lot to learn. I've been doing research on the area when I have a break from other Hope-related work, which is not that often. But what I have found is fascinating. I thought I'd try to include some of those little known, fairly interesting facts here, for your getting-to-know-NWGA-better enjoyment.

Check out these links for some really solid info on the counties that make up my area:
Chattooga

*notice the average household income of $37,600
*unemployment is at 10.7%

Walker
*notice the average household income of $40,439.
*unemployment in this area is 6.4%.
This is the central county for our operations at this point. I live in Flintstone, which is in the northern end of the county.
Lafayette is smack dab in the middle and serves as the county seat.
Lookout Mountain is home to America's #1 Hang gliding school. For more information on this one, see your friend and
mine, Elizabeth Tubergen.
Rock town is right outside of Lafayette. It's pretty much one of my favorite spots on the face of the earth and has
America's largest sheer drops inside of a cave. 600 ft. At least I think that is
true.

Dade
*notice: if you work in mfg. the average weekly wage is $624. If not, you'll make an average of $367 each week.
*although the average income is up about $2,000 from Walker, please don't assume that the area is wealthier. Certain sections of Walker, including Lookout Mountain, are slightly wealthier, offsetting other, more impoverished areas.

AND... check out this swank site: ZIP skinny. Get demographics for your area instantly.
Here is the info on mine in good ole' Flintstone.

The Big Box

It's here. The Big Box.
Several weeks ago, Hope for Northwest Georgia
took the plunge and bought the Jobs for Life kit.
This kit includes several training manuals, how-to
instruction guides... lots of good stuff. But most importantly,
it is a box choc-full of HOPE.

So what is Jobs for Life, you ask?

"a rapidly expanding movement rooted in the guiding
principle that to lift people out of joblessness, hopelessness,
despair, poverty, and the roadblocks of circumstance, they
need far more than just a job. They need to have a life. A
life filled with understanding, confidence, self-control,
coaching, learning, guidance, and faith."

check it out at www.jobsforlife.com

I am excited, but don't know where to begin.
So I begin with prayer. Please join me.

along the gulf in march

on the porch in april

on the mountain in may

As usual, I have been delinquent in my blogging, but here is the scoop:

Post-graduation, I have started part-time work for Hope for Northwest Georgia, a ministry currently operating
with the blessing and support of Highlands Presbyterian Church in LaFayette and Chattanooga Valley Presbyterian Church in Flintstone Georgia. We are working hard to gain more support so that I can begin full-time work in the Chattanooga Valley Offices; however, in the meantime I am keeping busy there while nannying for several families in the area.

Please continue to pray as we determine how to best aid those living in our community. We desire to enable the church as opposed to doing its work. This is much more difficult than it may sound. We're hoping to start the Jobs for Life training within the next couple of months, but to be honest, this task is daunting to me, and I tend to forget that it is not just me. I don't want it to be me, really.

Okay, on to more pictures, because who really likes to read these things?

emily is so pro. anybody know what she's doing?

my man

my house

my fran