It's a coincidence that Tuesday was the day I picked to spotlight organizations; Tuesday is also when my Circles workshop is held. Last Tuesday was discouraging, so I didn't have it in me to write. Part and parcel of the work. It is a difficult to thing to completely change one's habits and mindsets and orient oneself to a new worldview. Which is what the participants of the workshop have to do. It is hard work for them. When they are done, we put on a big graduation celebration for them.
They aren't done, though. Now they are called "Circle Leaders," and they are matched with two Allies.
(This is where the volunteer part comes in).
An Ally is a volunteer, who agrees to partner with a Circle Leader and walk alongside them as they work on meeting the goals they have set for themselves, whether that be earning a GED, eliminating a chunk of debt, or starting college. The Allies and Circle Leader form a "Circle," and it meets the first Thursday of every month for two hours, for 18 consecutive months. All of the Circles meet together for a meal and sharing "New and Goods" (at every Circles event, each person in the room takes a turn sharing something new and/or good that has happened to them since the last meeting. It could be "I got a job!" or "My grandbaby smiled at me for the first time!" or "Thank goodness soccer practice ends this week!"). Then each Circle meets together, catching up and sharing progress (or lack thereof) on goals.
The idea is to give Circle Leaders both more resources and more support. It is also to involve middle class individuals in the fight against poverty, upping their investment in making the community a better place for EVERYBODY.
Speaking of that, people can also volunteer to be part of our Guiding Coalition, a group that works to make changes in the larger community. But I'll talk more about that next week. Because I skipped last week and I still get one more week to talk about this. Because, you know, I make the rules about this blog;)
It is tough work being an Ally, too, I'm not going to give false illusions. But I will say, as I often do, that sometimes the most rewarding things to be involved with are kind of hard sometimes. As an Ally, you will form new friendships and gain new perspective. You might even be completely inspired.
How's that for a pitch for volunteers? :)
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