During my internship at The Hub here in Highway City I have had the privilege of working at the Sierra Mobile Park (SMP) after school program located at the Gloria Aldama Community Center inside the mobile home park. It has been a growing experience and has contributed most to my growth as leader and my calling to ministry in an urban context.
The program serves 20-30 pre-kinder through middle school-aged students that currently live in the Sierra Mobile home park, most of whom come from first-generation Hispanic families. It is one of many programs in the area whose goal is to help improve the area’s struggling schools. Many of the schools in the area, for example, are Program Improvement (PI) schools, which are Title I funded schools and local educational agencies are not making adequate yearly progress and are receiving corrective action measures from the state.
We are also there to provide some positive adult influence in the lives of the kids. A lot of their parents both work and they are often raised by older siblings. Our after school program is a positive environment where the kids of SMP can come and not only get homework help but also play games, sports and computers and receive a often much needed snack. We try to help them develop as leaders and limit their exposure to some of the harmful elements that can be found in any urban context.
Leadership development is one of the factors of the program that happened without our help or influence. It was a need that was unconsciously brought to our attention by the students themselves. In working with the program I was always concerned with how I should be leading and what I could bring to the program to make it better. If the program needed more resources—whether it be snacks, educational supplies, or volunteers etc—It was Bryan Henry the program’s director, or myself who sought out and provided the solution. We were working from the perspective that we had the best ideas for our program’s development. It wasn’t until our third or so time of running out of snacks that the student’s decided they wanted to help.
After being declined to continue receiving snacks from a snack provider, we had been relying on donations from sponsors/supporters of the program, but those weren’t as reliable. We were also having issues with the kids pocketing extra snacks to take home which caused them to deplete mush faster. So some days we would have nothing to give. When inquiring as to why we were without snacks one day, some of the older middle school aged girls in the program offered their own solution,
“Why don’t some of us go around and ask for donations from the families of SMP?” one of the girls asked.
Bryan consented and they came back with a ton of snack foods beaming with excitement for the work they did and the results they helped produce. From there they began meeting together planning other ways of getting snacks and raising money for the program. Some days we have been keeping the program open late so they can hold their brainstorming meetings and also bake some cookies to sell. One day I went in during a meeting and they asked if they could practice a speech with me they had put together that they were going to use to ask for donations. It was very clear and persuasive. I offered some insight but mostly encouraged them and left it up to them create. They were doing great without me. They even mentioned wanting to involve parents in the meetings to include their input on how to improve the program and gather more resources. This came from the same girls who had been rebelling at our attempts to control how the program ran and had been some of the hardest to work with.
Some of the younger kids have also been stepping up to help clean up at the end of the program everyday. From doing dishes to vacuuming to mopping they are also wanting to get more involved in making the program better.
The most amazing part is seeing these kids take ownership of the program and step up as leaders. It makes the whole experience more genuine when you feel like you have a stake in it. This is leadership development and it wasn’t even our idea. I thought I knew what the program needed in order to be sustained or improve. Maybe those ideas would have been helpful, but then the program would be ours and the kids would continue to have an indifferent point of view. Now no one was trying to steal snacks because they were now theirs, not ours. Kids are fighting over who gets to clean because they want to be leaders in their program too. Once we were able to put a bit of trust into them they responded in this amazing and mature way. I am very proud of them and hope to see this ownership continue and grow!
Most veterans of community and leadership development and urban ministry, will tell you not to expect to see a great deal of change right off the bat. This is true, real growth in our underprivileged and resource lacking areas takes many years of prayer and dedication. The Hub is in its first year in Highway City and some amazing roots have been planted and it is our prayer that their growth can be sustained as more future Hubbers come and go—or stay.
Most veterans of community and leadership development and urban ministry, will tell you not to expect to see a great deal of change right off the bat. This is true, real growth in our underprivileged and resource lacking areas takes many years of prayer and dedication. The Hub is in its first year in Highway City and some amazing roots have been planted and it is our prayer that their growth can be sustained as more future Hubbers come and go—or stay.
Elliot Cavale
Apply your life for one year in Biblical Community, Leadership Development, and Urban Ministry through the Hub or Pink House. Visit www.fiful.org or www.highwaycitycd.com to apply. Applications for the Hub or Pink House 10-month internship are due April 20, 2011. Apply yourself today.
