Summary of the May 18, 2010 H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg Regional Council Meeting at Mount Zion Methodist Church (Cornelius).
10 people representing 11 separate groups and institutions joined organizer Reverend Toure Marshall for this meeting.
Rebecca Yarbrough led us in an Opening prayer.
Rev. Marshall led read verses 10-25 of the 11th chapter of Numbers as a devotion and the group discussed its main theme which calls to mind how the burdens of the people are a shared responsibility. We also share responsibility with government and business in shaping community. Where there is “shared responsibility, there is shared power.” Rev. Marshall made the observation that we, North Mecklenburg H.E.L.P., need more people interpreting who we are, where we are going, just as Moses had the counsel of 70 elders when the spirit of the Lord descended upon them (Numbers 11:25).
During Rounds, each person in attendance (save one) reflected aloud on the devotional reading.
Ron Potts – Torrence Chapel, Smithville community; feeling overburdened; wants others to join in
Mike Moses - Lake Forest Church – “mercy vs. justice.”
Sean Caldwell – Live Better Ministries, Pottstown.
Rev. Van Pelt – Davidson Presbyterian; repeat the message
Martha Fleming – St. Mark’s Catholic
Tim Tate – Huntersville Presbyterian; “building the brand.”
Suzanne Leitner- CIC
Rebecca Yarbrough – St. Alban’s
Joyce Zagrobelny – St. Mark’s; frustrated with the lack of participation
Greg Ainslie – Mt. Zion; God promises He will provide beyond sating.
Suzanne Leitner presented the minutes from the 4/18/2010 meeting, which were unanimously approved.
Reports:
Weatherization:
1. The Herald Weekly has done some investigating of the response in Smithville on weatherization applications, but after contact by the Herald Weekly’s journalist, there was some renewed activity in Smithville on the part of Gaston Community Action. Apparently, there has been some retraining that has taken place of the inspectors/auditors, as well as new hires, which likely accounts for some of the delay our residents have experienced.
2.A letter has been drafted and, as of the May 18 meeting, was being reviewed by one local representative for signature. The tone of the letter was one of information-seeking regarding the process as it has affected our North Mecklenburg residents. As to whether contact with other applicants has been made in other North Mecklenburg communities besides Smithville, Rev. Van Pelt and Mr. Caldwell said that they know of several people in their respective communities who have been contacted recently.
3. Other support services – Habitat for Humanity has not done rehab work, traditionally, but now Hammers is going to do projects <$5000 with Habitat getting involved in some projects with a higher price tag. This rehab work may only be available in Cornelius, not Davidson or Huntersiville, as part of the CDGB.
Proposals:
1. We will continue to monitor the situation and the pace of progress, utilizing the sources of information we have developed.
2. We need to investigate further in order to find out how the response in other neighborhoods in Huntersville and Davidson has been, whether residents have been contacted by the auditors, etc.
3. We need to find out whether there is a way to get Habitat for Humanity and other organizations involved in Huntersville and Davidson, and we need to have a more thorough understanding of how that CDGB connection/process will work in Cornelius.
Youth Services:
1. Important update: the Urban Institute’s original survey was aimed at the Goodwill Jobs program participants, but we now have a survey that our youth can take. We are going to network with our youth pastors/leaders in order to get as many participants as possible to take the online survey.
2. The North Mecklenburg youth Focus group will be conducted by Susan Furtney of UI or her representative. June 1 and June 3 are the dates that have been thrown out. Rev. Vernon Dodd and Huntersville Presbyterian will host the focus group.
3. Urban Institutes/Goodwill Industries are willing to do an orientation, regarding permissions and administering.
4. Concerns were raised about a couple of the aspects of the online survey: What if a youth doesn’t have access to a computer? Is there a way to take the survey other than online? Is there a Spanish language version available?
Confirmed churches: CIC, Huntersville Presbyterian, Mt. Zion
We need others: We are looking at listening campaigns in the fall, but having the surveys completed by June 10. We need to get other churches involved: Names? Donna Smith at St. Mark’s; St. Albans; Davidson Presby., Lake Forest; Pottstown; Davidson United Methodist; .
Members of the Youth Task Force leadership will follow up with Susan Furtney regarding the survey timeline, training, etc.
Update on Sidewalk campaign:
Martha Fleming of St. Mark’s also has been working independently on this issue and attended the meeting to update us. DOT will be responsible for the upkeep once the owner (CMS) puts in a sidewalk. Huntersville Priority 2 to connect the sidewalks. Bill Coxe or Mr. Max Buchanan have been suggested as contacts. Danae Caulfield has been a good partner with H.E.L.P. on this issue, but now Huntersville is saying it’s a money issue.
Suggested action: We will follow up with whomever we need to re: the funding.
Weatherization: Monitor the situation, check in Davidson and H-ville whether they have been getting auditors in, CDGB process in Cornelius – but is there a way to get Habitat involved even if not through the CDGB.
Suzanne will contact Chris and ask if we can get an orientation
Next Meeting, June 15, 2010
Rev. Van Pelt closed in prayer.
Summary of the April 20, 2010 H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg Regional Council meeting at Mount Zion United Methodist Church (Cornelius)
11 people (including two organizers, Chris Bishop and Touré Marshall) representing 8 institutions or groups were present.
Tim Tate opened the meeting with prayer.
The group opened with rounds.
Chris Bishop presented the minutes of the 3/16/2010 meeting, which were unanimously approved. Chris then led the group in a discussion of how a “campaign” compares to an “activity”:
- Campaigns have beginnings and ends.
- Campaigns have targets (people who have the power to effect change; political leaders, eg.) and specificity.
- Campaigns are led by a group, but there is en masse participation.
- Campaigns create leader development opportunities.
- Campaigns provide an opportunity to build relationships in order to build power to act for the benefit of North Mecklenburg County.
Reports:
Weatherization: Some of our North Mecklenburg neighbors are seeing no progress with respect to their application process, and the response to their questions/inquiries has been unsatisfactory. There is, of course, some fear that frustration with the process will lead to a failure of qualified applicants simply not engaging.
Proposals:
1. Find an interested listener within North Mecklenburg representation on the issue of federal/state/local institutional accountability. Express the concerns/findings/experiences of the community. Suggest/request/draft a letter addressed to the appropriate entities at both the local and state levels, in order to get some movement on this issue.
[As of 4/29: At least one local representative has been contacted and has done some independent research into this issue, identifying some of the known problems and possible reasons for the lag in the process. A letter is being drafted with the hope that some of our interested local politicians will be signatories.]
2. For our neighbors who have weatherization and serious home repair needs, what are the alternatives to the federal program? Hammers (in conjunction with the Davidson Housing Coalition)? Habitat for Humanity? Rebecca Yarbrough agreed to investigate these possibilities and follow-up.
Youth Services: Goodwill Industries (Youth Job Connection) is partnering with UNCC’s Urban Institute in order to conduct a survey of area youth (ages 14 – 21). This survey is aimed at discovering youth attitudes about available activities, services, and employment, among other things. This survey provides a starting point for a youth listening campaign (the survey can be viewed here). Parental consent is required for minors to participate in this survey. Pastors/leaders should be forwarded the email with the consent forms attached so that they can co-ordinate with parents. According to our information, the survey will close out at the end of June, 2010.
We are in the process of contacting youth pastors and leaders at our member institutions in order to invite their respective groups’ participation in the survey and a future listening campaign. Goodwill would also like to conduct a meeting with a focus group of 15 – 25 young people, and we have agreed to work with them in order to identify a representative group of young folks from North Mecklenburg County who would be willing to participate in the focus group.
Proposals:
1. Recruit as many youth as possible to complete this survey before June 10 through our member congregations, associations and neighborhoods.
2. Organize one focus group with Urban Institute before June 10 – with 20-25 youth from across the region.
3. Coordinate with Commissioner Bentley an initial conversation with County Manager Harry Jones and our youth pastors/top youth leaders (see summary of March16 meeting) before June 10.
4. Gear up for multiple youth listening campaigns, which will be a pre-cursor to a larger youth gathering/assembly this fall.
Communications:
Suzanne Leitner discussed the new blog as a primary source of information for H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg members and others interested in finding out about H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg. As we are a young organization, we are still trying to discover the best ways to co-ordinate information, and will continue to improve our methods and means of communication. Suzanne has agreed to be the primary “blog coordinator” until we get more people signed on as administrators and contributors.
All members are encouraged to send story ideas, posts and photographs for consideration to be used on this blog to Suzanne at sbl81897[at]gmail.com.
Tim Tate closed the meeting with prayer.
Next Regional Council Meeting: May 18, 2010, Mount Zion United Methodist Church (in the Sunday School Bldg.) 7:00 – 8:30 p.m.
End of Summary
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Summary of the March 16, 2010 H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg Regional Council meeting at Union Bethel A.M.E. Zion Church
H.E.L.P. members in attendance: (sign up sheet)
Minister Tim Tate (Huntersville Presbyterian Church) opened the meeting with prayer.
The Rev. Touré Marshall, Organizer, led the group in a devotion/reflection using the Book of Nehemiah 2:1-18 as inspiration.
Church leaders and H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg members present introduced themselves and offered reactions/reflections to the devotion.
Following the devotion, Chris Bishop (Organizer) facilitated the conversation re: the organization’s issue campaign development.
Reports:
Weatherization:
H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg members presented reports on recent actions that were held in all three towns to promote the weatherization program of the federal stimulus legislation. It was agreed that the actions, while smaller than anticipated (on average 15-20 people per action who canvassed), were successful for several reasons.
1. We established opportunities for H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg members to act together.
2. We established opportunities for our organization to build relationships with Town Government through the actions.
3. We increased our relationship with Gaston Community Action for the purposes of this program, as well as our assessment of their capacity and operations.
4. Most importantly, we got qualified homeowners into the pipeline for support through this stimulus program.
It was expressed and unanimously affirmed that more action is needed, both in terms of further canvassing/registration, led through H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg with other allies (i.e. Mayors and Town Governments, etc.), and broader promotion through media outlets, actions at Town Board meetings, etc.
H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg members assessed potential lead churches/neighborhoods within our network for future actions, as well as allies. Dates will be coordinated with our members, staff and allies in the respective towns, and a report is to be made at our April Regional Council meeting.
It appears that Gaston Community Action is unclear about the current state of applications received from North Mecklenburg. Their figures sound extremely low, in comparison to the outreach our organization has done. Additionally, there are still several hundred application slots that are open for eligible homeowners. It is disturbing that people who were registered before Christmas have yet to receive work on their homes. An accountability discussion will be raised with Mecklenburg County Commissioner Karen Bentley at our meeting with her next week.
The Herald Weekly is planning to run a story on our weatherization work in the next edition.
Youth Services/Youth Programs:
H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg members and staff discussed the need to identify youth leaders from our network, in addition to adult allies, who can be approached about the current gaps and issues facing young people today in the area.
The group discussed the need to build a body of youth, with support from adult allies, who can participate in H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg’s brand of advocacy ministry, for the purpose of identifying pressing issues, concerns, stories, and the talent in our midst that can be cultivated to seek solutions to meet the need.
Chris Bishop referenced two opportunities for the group to consider. First, in previous conversations that H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg clergy have had with Mecklenburg County Commissioner Karen Bentley (District 1, representing North Mecklenburg), there is a desire on her part and that of County Manager Harry Jones to hold a town hall meeting in the region. We could shape that conversation to include as a centerpiece of the agenda the looming cuts to youth programs within County Government, as well as the stories and issues being raised by H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg-affiliated youth.
Second, the Urban Institute of UNC-C is conducting a major survey of the gaps in youth services and youth programs, with a primary focus on workforce development but with the flexibility for participants to offer other comments (i.e. after-school program deficiencies connected to workforce development, etc.). There is not a North Mecklenburg voice in the survey currently, and the H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg staff have assessed that Urban Institute and partnering Goodwill Industries want our network to be ‘the voice’ of the region in the survey.
Sidewalk at St. Mark’s Catholic/School:
Updates were given by the Rev. Marshall re: the “St. Mark’s Sidewalk” development on Stumptown Road in front of the parish community. Because of H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg’s conversations with Huntersville Town Commissioner Danae Caulfield, the town has elevated this infrastructure project to number 2 on their priority list. Members of the parish – Jean Veatch and Brian Sisson, in particular – with members of the school community – specifically Martha Fleming and Principal Debbie Butler – are assessing the potential costs and timeline for the project, to be shared with the Regional Council of H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg.
Next Meetings:
Monday, March 22 at 12 p.m. – Karen Bentley (District 1, County Commission) and Danae Caulfield (Huntersville Town Commission)
Tuesday, April 20 at 7 p.m. – Regional Council meeting at Mount Zion United Methodist Church, Cornelius
END OF SUMMARY
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Summary of the February 16, 2010 H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg Regional Council meeting at Union Bethel A.M.E. Zion Church:
Reports:
1. Rev. Michael Moses on Meeting with Huntersville leadership:
H.E.L.P. Leadership (Chris Bishop, Touré Marshall, Chad Lacy and Rev. Moses) met with County Commissioner Karen Bentley and Huntersville Town Commissioner Danae Caulfield to build an understanding on issues of common concern. Several action items came from the session:
* Weatherization – Commissioner Caulfield proposed that Huntersville set a date to work with H.E.L.P. on a Weatherization Action. Mr. Beatty (Barber Shop Owner and community activist), will be helpful in identifying individuals/households where weatherization services are needed. Caulfield reported the results of H.E.L.P. meeting to Town Board.
* St. Mark’s Sidewalk (Stumptown Rd) – Shared concerns about the need for a safe walking and crossing area in and around St. Mark’s Catholic Church. No specific action was determined.
* Human Services in North Mecklenburg – Shared concerns and needs for social services in North Mecklenburg. Commissioner Caulfield agreed to set up a meeting with County Manager Jones (of Charlotte) and H.E.L.P. to discuss this further.
* $27 Million allocated for Youth/Senior Center - No specific action was defined.
H.E.L.P. needs to work with Lead/Target from Huntersville Township on each of these specific initiatives.
2. Rev. Touré Marshall, on Weatherization Action:
* Davidson Weatherization Action, scheduled for Feb. 13th was postponed due to weather. It was suggested to combine the Cornelius and Davidson Weatherization Action Events on March 6th for impact.
* Rev. Marshall discussed the components of the Weatherization Action:
- 2.5 Hour Event
- Featured Partners: Gaston Community, Mitchell Smith, who will Lead Q&A with participants; Media; Town Leaders; North Mecklenburg H.E.L.P. Church Leaders
- Plan for 10 – 15 Weatherization Applicants in attendance to meet with Gaston Community
- Materials needed: flyers, applications
- Plan Ahead
- Know what to say
- Target 10+ Streets
- Target Physical addresses (Davidson - 140 homes)
* Concerns were voiced that several Cornelius families had been approved and were waiting for work to get started. Need clarification from Gaston Community as to the expected timetable.
* Ideas were shared as to how to more effectively reach the target community. Kitty Giese shared idea of how to get more applications through local establishments which serve the target community.
Action Plans
1. Weatherization
* Cornelius Weatherization – March 6
- Lead, Ron Potts
- Invite Mayor Tarte (Ron Potts)
- Target Streets – Hill Street, Burton Lane, Ferry Street, Vivian, Smithfield Lane, Meridian, School Street
* Davidson – Reschedule March 6th
- Lead, Ron Potts and ??
* Huntersville – Date (TBD)
- Leads: Rev. Moses, Chad Lacey
- Julie & Laura will take lead to contact Joe Dixon of Gaston Community
2. St. Mark’s Sidewalk on Stumptown Road
* Meeting scheduled with St. Mark’s School Principal (Donna?) to identify St. Mark School Parent who can work with HELP and Huntersville Town Leaders to lead this effort.
3. Human Services for North Mecklenburg county
* Brainstorm of services needed – Senior Center, Transportation to Senior Center, Activities for Seniors, Activity Center for Youth, Job Training Center
Next Meetings:
- Feb. 26th – Transit/Traffic Meeting – Lake Norman Chamber
END OF SUMMARY
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Summary of the January 19, 2010 H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg Regional Council meeting at Union Bethel A.M.E. Zion Church:
Opening prayer led by Minister Tim Tate of Huntersville Presbyterian Church.
Brief rounds of the19 people from 9 institutions in attendance which included name, name of institution and one thing each individual would like to see H.E.L.P. North Mecklenburg accomplish in 2010. It is significant to note here that the two most recurring hopes for this particular group were: 1. Activities for our middle and high school youths and 2. The availability of social services in North Meck that people now have to travel to Charlotte to receive.
After some brief opening remarks from the Rev. Touré Marshall (Organizer), the Rev. Mike Moses of Lake Forest Church talked about our November meeting, and stressed that we have now been recognized publicly by our political leaders. Our public recognition as a partner in shaping our communities was, as you will recall, one of our goals around this, our first public meeting. The Rev. Moses also related that he had recently attended a workshop in Charlotte, hosted by Charlotte Mayor Anthony Fox, about affordable housing. The Rev. Moses introduced himself to the mayor and County Commission Chair Jennifer Roberts as a member of North Mecklenburg H.E.L.P., and was encouraged by the response and the recognition. The takeaway is that it is time to build on that recognition to achieve some of our other actions in 2010.
The Rev. Moses, Mr. Ron Potts of Smithville community, and the Rev. Rebecca Yarbrough of St. Albans Episcopal Church updated the group on the weatherization application progress in each of their institutions. The Rev. Marshall also stated that a representative from the Gaston Community Action organization has informed him that 400 applications are currently in the queue, but he had no information on how many of those 400 were from residents of North Mecklenburg. There was some discussion about the sensitivity of the information collected on the applications. Several leaders indicated that their groups had been using pre-addressed envelopes and providing those to the applicants, rather than have that information in their own hands. This is a prudent course, but it also makes it difficult to know how many applications have actually been sent.
Our stated goal was to have 96 applications from this area approved. In order to ensure we meet this goal, we will engage in the following: 1. Targeted canvassing of neighborhoods in order to put applications in people’s hands; 2. Providing the information through services like Meals on Wheels, Friendship Trays, Angels and Sparrows; and, 3. a Media blitz in the local outlets such as The Citizen of Lake Norman, Cornelius Today, etc. Each person in attendance signed up to participate in one of these activities.
Since this is our first action, one that would benefit so many in our community (especially seniors), and one that we should be able to count as a success for us as an organizing group, we have agreed to focus all of our efforts on this action for the next 6–8 weeks (although there will be opportunities to prepare for our next actions).
We will meet again on Tuesday, February 16, 2010 at Union Bethel A.M.E. Zion at 7:00 in order to gauge our progress and evaluate the weatherization campaign, as well as prepare for future actions in the other priority areas – youth, traffic/transit and jobs/economy.
The Rev. Dora Dubose of the Davidson African-American Coalition led us in an inspirational closing prayer and the meeting was adjourned.
END OF SUMMARY
Suzanne
chrisbishophelp
