Spiritual Sisters
Spiritual Healing Serene Salad
Spiritual Voices Creativity Bakery
Abolishing Barriers
We braced ourselves for the possible eruption of World War VII.
The Study Circles Resource Center describes the Study Circle process as, "A five-session discussion guide to help people talk about poverty in their community and take action to create a place where everyone can thrive." Additionally, for those living in Making Connections neighborhoods, the Annie E. Casey Foundation has grant monies available to implement the Study Circle recommendations.
So I prepared a flyer offering dinner and gift cards as incentives and had it distributed throughout the street at a time of day when nearly everyone was home. The first eight people to come see me would be designated as Study Circle participants. Those first eight to sign up were diverse--in every sense--and did not necessarily speak to each other.
The first evening saw us sitting awkwardly through dinner before being challenged to describe life in our ideal neighborhood. As the evening progressed and people opened up to describe their dreams of a better world, new appreciation and understanding of each other began to grow.
The next meeting, when the topic was about the street as it is and ugly comparisons to the ideal neighborhood began to emerge in each participant's consciousness, there was a return of the coldness so apparent at the beginning, but the soft words and gentle nudging of a skilled facilitator kept the conversation somewhat civil.
By the last meeting when recommendations of the group were voted upon, the room was energized with friends on a mission to create a version of that ideal neighborhood by, each in turn, volunteering to assume responsibility for one of the group's recommended action items. As the meeting closed, they mutually agreed on the importance of continuing to meet once a month so each volunteer could report back on the current status of their individual project and all would be able to offer assistance to each other if needed.
As we turned our attention to our long-forgotten dessert, one member revealed that she was making plans to sell her home and get out of the area when she came to the first Study Circle. She was now re-evaluating the decision.
Jane Mullikin
They lived on the same street; they lived worlds apart. The old-timers would greet each other and recollect times when "nice" people lived on the street. The newcomers built walls around themselves and defied anyone to penetrate their perimeters. This street was a world divided between financially stable and those on the verge of homelessness with the situation further compounded by multiple ethnicities. This was the street where we proposed creating a neighborhood filled with neighbors through bringing them together in the Study Circle process.
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