Voices for Children in Nebraska

Two of us, Philip Rohde and Caryn Vincent, will be working and learning at Voices for Children on the topic of children in poverty living in Nebraska. Voices for Children in Nebraska educates and motivates Nebraskans to take action against social injustices. By taking action we can better the lives of Nebraska’s vulnerable children in the areas of Health, Education, Safety and Economic Stability. The organization is widely recognized across the state and is a trusted expert and advocate for key children’s issues in Nebraska. Rather than doing direct service, Voices for Children works on the level of system advocacy by working with lawmakers, state and private agencies, and concerned citizens to ensure that all children have opportunities to succeed. Deuteronomy 15:7-8 says, “If there is a poor man among you, one of your brothers, in any of the towns of the land which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand to your poor brother, but you shall freely open your hand to him, and generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks.” As followers of Christ, it is imperative that we all advocate for poor and hungry children to help them succeed. We urge all churches to become advocates for children. Write your representatives in Congress asking them to support legislation that helps and protects poor and hungry people. You can obtain additional information about Voices for Children at voicesforchildren.com. We are learning a lot and look forward to sharing this information with a few churches in the districts soon!

VIM Mission Experience: Day 2

We began our day at Together Inc. and started off with a tour of the entire building given by Mike Hornacek, the Operations Director. Mike explained the free services offered to people in need. Together Inc. is unique because it is both a food bank and a food pantry, as well as a source of assistance in other areas. The food pantry at Together houses both USDA food and donated food, all of which is distributed based upon need. Together Inc. also offers clothing, furniture, diapers (when available), and household items. Along with food, Together offers assistance with: medical prescriptions, state-issued ID's and birth certificates, and rent or mortgage payments, when funds are available. As similar to the Heart Ministry Center, Together relies heavily on donations. Together Inc. is supported by the contributions of churches, synagogues, foundations, businesses, and a diverse group of individuals. After sorting clothes and loading up food at Together Inc., we went to our last service site. We next spent time working at the Blue Flamingo, a “thrift and gift” shop that offers both donated clothing and fair trade merchandise, as well as a community garden. The Blue Flamingo is supported by Dietz United Methodist Church.

Because the VIM Mission Experience is focused on integrating mission and justice, we were asked to think about why people are poor and hungry. We didn’t just go out to these sites and serve for a few hours, we reflected a lot on why places like the ones we worked at are needed. As Christians, many of us have done mission work. However, integrating that work with justice is what will really help effect change. “We need to change our way of thinking,” Stephanie Ahlschwede, the Executive Director of United Methodist Ministries, pointed out. One way we can change our way of thinking is to think about how we, as church communities, serve. Stephanie talked with us about the importance of “neighborhood based” service.

“Neighborhood based” service is service that is based upon the input of those in need and takes that input into account to benefit the community as a whole. “Neighboorhood based” service is often a more effective way to meet the needs of the community because it stems from within the community. Often times we, as church communities, tend to participate in “neighborhood placed” service. This type of service has its heart in the right place but often fails to address the true need. “Neighborhood placed” service is, as the name suggests, placed in a community, and does not integrate the input of those in need. By simply re-framing the way that we serve, our efforts will have a much more substantial impact on our communities.

Another way we can change our way of thinking is to advocate for change to the systems that leave so many people in our own neighborhoods poor and hungry. One good place to start would be gathering together as a community to lobby for a living minimum wage. Currently, the minimum wage is far below a living wage, especially for families. Advocating for protection of social services that aid poor and hungry people, such as SNAP(formerly food stamps), is also a way that we can really impact our communities.

Philip loads canned goods at Together Inc.

The Micah Corps outside of Blue Flamingo.

The Micah Corps in DC

Micah Corps at Annual Conference

Volunteers in Mission Experience: Day 1

Today the Micah Corps was part of the United Methodist Ministries VIM Mission Experience. Our day began at the Intercultural Senior Center garden in Omaha. We were introduced to Jaimee Trobough who explained what our first “Big Garden” experience would be like. Jaimee gave us some background information about how the project got started and how it is sustained. We were interested to learn that some of the community gardens are funded by USDA grants. This indicates that federal government decisions have had a positive effect on the “Big Garden Project” thus far. However, this government funding did not simply pop up out of nowhere; it was made possible by the advocacy work done by the United Methodist Ministries Team and many UMC members.

After working on the garden we headed to the Heart Ministry Center. We were met by June Bear who gave us a tour of the center and explained what services the center offered. When we went through the food bank we learned that not everyone in need has access to the food in most food banks. June explained that the Heart Community Center has separate shelves for food sent by the government and donated food. This is because undocumented immigrants are not allowed to access the food sent by the government because of government regulations. June also took us through the center's clothing closet, which is stocked by donated clothing and free to people in need. We also saw the medical facility which offers everything from checkups to vaccinations. The medical services are provided by doctors and nurses from Creighton University. The last stop on our tour was the center's brand new dental room. Beginning later this month, the center will offer dental services to children, and later on will open up the service to adults. While the center is partially funded by the government, its primary funding comes from donations and church support.

See some photos from our day below. Come back tomorrow for photos and updates from the second day of our VIM experience!

The Micah Corps talking with Jaimee about the Big Gardens.

Barbara, Philip, and Caryn work with Evan to build a fence around the garden.

Caryn, Barbara, Philip, and Rachel (me) organizing the shelves at Heart Ministry Center in Omaha.

It's the Micah Corps!

Meet (again) the 2011 Micah Corps! Please check back here throughout the summer to see what we're up to this year. We truly appreciate your prayers and support that you offer us this summer!

Annual Conference

We started the week of Nebraska Annual Conference by participating in the mission day. There were several groups that went to several sites, but the goal was all the same. Each group was leaving the church and serving in the community. The group I went with found ourselves at the Capital City Humane Society. We weren't walking dogs and combing cats though. We had the privilege to remove rocks from their lawn so that the yard could be better mowed. It felt great to be sweating for the Lord (though it was a terrific day and we all remained rather cool in the shade). After a couple of hours we all loaded back up on the buses and returned to St. Marks for a talk about the day.
Wednesday morning put us right in the bustle of annual conference. We set up our booth at the Risk-Taking Missions and Justice team's table and then joined the lay peoples for lunch. That afternoon we attended the opening worship service and were once again amazed by the abilities of the bishop. We also planned an activity with the Youth Annual Conference meeting at Nebraska Wesleyan and at 7:30 put our plan to action. By addressing the immigration issue with them, we found quite a few youth who were interested in making posters to share their thoughts. Overall, I would say the first day at Nebraska Annual Conference was a busy success!!