Faith-based organizations are often the largest repository of care resources in a community. These include caring power — embedded with tremendous amount of compassion and mercy. These resources also include the largest volunteer labor force and largest repository of charitable giving in a community.
We are seeing an exciting new trend among faith-based organizations that are willing to work together for common good and greater impact. We are also encouraged that they are willing to partner together with all helping agencies to combat poverty, hunger, and other complex community challenges.
How do churches come together to serve with their community? Hear the story of how Stillwater, OK churches came together initially for prayer and created a dynamic collaboration which builds the capacity of all the helping organizations in their community. Through Stillwater CARES, Quinn developed an association of 58 organizations working together to address the prevention and alleviation of poverty - half of those organizations being local churches. In 2014, under Quinn’s leadership, Stillwater CARES launched a CharityTracker network with 28 churches and 14 organizations sharing case management and referrals using this collaborative, cloud-based solution.
Helping agencies, across a community, are learning how to work together more efficiently and effectively to transform the lives of individuals and families. New and exciting breakthroughs in networking and capacity-building technology are happening in over 2,000 cities in 49 states.
Charities, churches, schools, hospitals, food banks, funders, and more are learning how to align their unique strengths and collectively tackle tough community challenges with greater impact and success. Every community, across the country, now has a big opportunity to create an unprecedented model for comprehensive coordinated care that makes a real and lasting difference.
Since 2006, we have worked with many experts and practitioners, who are passionately engaged in combating poverty, hunger, homelessness, and more. Their knowledge and experience have proven to be a "best practice" for collective community impact. Each column is a clickable link to their websites.
Getting Ahead provides people in poverty with the same information found in Bridges Out of Poverty, which was developed for professionals and others in the community working to end poverty. Getting Ahead in a Just-Gettin’-By World is a book and a 45-hour workshop that helps individuals in poverty build their resources for a more prosperous life for themselves, their families, and their communities.
True charity stems from compassion and cannot be legislated. Government is an institution and cannot be charitable in truth. True charity is voluntarily sourced. If charity doesn’t empower the poor, it misses the mark.Empowerment is impossible without some aspect of challenge to help a personbecome self-sufficient. Real charity is “made actual” – it makes a realdifference. Some good or service is rendered to the poor, and outcomes aremeasured to ensure that efforts are actually making a difference in theindividual and community.
We believe our leaders and organizations must be equipped with the resources, tools, and talent necessary to tackle deeply rooted problems that exist in our communities. Too many times, those entrusted to make a difference are expected to do so with extremely limited resources and insufficient support. On a mission to change the odds. Spark Consulting Group works alongside courageous organizations that dare to combat social epidemics plaguing our community – providing expertise, technical support, and strategic leadership.
Tom Wolff and Associates bring forty years of experience in coalition building, community development, collaborative solutions and collective impact. We can advance and support your community and agency initiatives. We have the tools and resources necessary to mobilize the power of collaborative processes in your communities. Through collaborations and coalitions, individuals, organizations and communities become empowered to impact the world around them. Our work is dedicated to bringing greater joy and a deeper sense of spirit and purpose to those seeking to create healthy communities.
Since 2005, Significant Matters has worked with individuals, businesses, city government, non-profits and especially the faith-based community both domestically and internationally to explore and develop more sustainable waysof doing good. Though we still have a long way to go, we believe it’s possibleto accelerate the learning curve in this arena through an initiative we haveentitled SATtalks, which stands for Sustainability and Transformation Talks.
GoodCities specializes in coaching those who are facilitating the development of a city transformation movement. Our coaches understand the dynamics of leading citywide kingdom coalitions which seek to serve God and their city. Each coach understands the stages of transformation and the skills needed to move from one stage to the next. Our coaches are capable of teaching these skills or can bring in trainers who can. Coaching is a dynamic partnership between the coach and one being coached, helping that person/team move from where they are toward the person/team’s desired destinations. Those destinations are defined and shaped by the person/team being coached with the help of the coach to unlock the vision, build confidence, focus on goals, take practical steps and celebrate progress.
The following is a list of books that you will find informative and encouraging. These resources will help individual organizations and communities to build capacity for collective community impact.
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