Part IV. Narrative: Description of Our Activities, Goals, Objectives

Activities

Detailed Narrative  -Organization

Onward Bound Narrative:

Needs Assessment and how we serve:

The increasing breakup of families in our North Minneapolis communities through poverty, youth negative peer pressure and drugs, and direction away from good moral values have led to stranded children and youth.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau's systematic analysis of the social and economic conditions under which households were created and dissolved during the last decade, poor two-parent families were nearly twice as likely to break up as those with income above the poverty line.  Results suggest that the economic stresses and insecurity associated with having very low family incomes contribute substantially to marital separation and the discontinuation of two-parent families.   No where in the Twin Cities are these problems more evident than in North Minneapolis where Operation Living Hope has distributed tons of food to struggling families through its vitally needed food shelf.  Many clients have already been homeless, single parents, physically afflicted, chronically unemployed, victims of crime. We help eliminate food insecurity and in some cases starvation.  Further, the recent tornado has sliced through our neighborhood leaving our area devastated -- everyone having to pick up their own pieces without FEMA government help.  So we at Operation Living Hope have been first responders by helping residents with basic needs. 

The area is fertile ground as opportunity to build our mentoring program.  We know the pain of the people.

 Operation Living Hope/Onward Bound is a rescue mission to help fill the needs of broken families in need of a loving and caring role model-mentor-teacher. We supply good nutrition education to children via our food shelf.  The evidence for the need for spending quality time with children and youth is obviously everywhere - in the media, corporate and government social responsibility reports, universities, discussions in churches, synagogues,  social and psychological research.

Onward Bound comes alongside children and youth at risk who are at the brink of a life ahead of them of either going on a pathway toward:

a) a life of being left behind in school, in and out of delinquency, crime, perpetual poverty, carrying a negative track record, being a burden to the community.

Or

b) a life of hope and promise, filled with success, wise decision making, maximizing God given potential in their lives.

By coming alongside these in need, Onward Bound casts them into the role as prote'ges' under well qualified and trained mentors/role models who are committed to spending quality time with their prote'ges'.

One example is Deldrich, one of our teens in the Hennepin County Juvenile Detention Center who has gained fascination in the manufacturing field and has set up a plan to choose the welding trade as a pathway to finding work in a company.  Another is Emma, then a four year old who was evaluated by her parents and school as far from being eligible for kindergarten.  Now at early five she is guided by her mentor in early reading and basic math.  She is now far exceeding expectations in these areas ready for kindergarten.

Operation Living Hope Narrative:

Activities include recently saving a very precious life from the ravaging fatality of suicide, through coming along side of him, with love, counseling, nurturing, and being there and working with Brian, through his crisis intervention program, therapy, clinical help, and above all hope. We have provided shelter, food, and clothing, and in some situations transportation and a lot of consistent guidance.   By holding others publically accountable, Brian is working on freedom from their oppression, doing well on his job, supporting his children, and being a blessing and asset to the community.  Ask us directly how we have saved taxpayers $40,000 per year in jail expense,  $12,000 per year in welfare expense,  and or at least $36,000 per year social security expense.

Similarly, one of our volunteers have counseled on a consistent basis and brought hope to Matt who had spiraled into depression and also attempted suicide. Matt is now living responsibly, working, and attending church on a consistent basis.

We have opened our Operation Living Hope facility to an single mother who is not fully secure in her current living arrangement. The Operation Living Hope home has also been a  refuge recently for two other homeless women.

We have brought counsel, hope and comfort to a woman whose name is Lola in a very distressful and needy situation. Her husband  has been clinging to life and fed through a tube for many years in their home while she herself had suffered major surgery on her right shoulder.  We had organized a team to provide her and her family with nutritious meals for two weeks during her healing time.  We  have also provided for Christmas presents for her family.

Presently we are continuing to guide and counsel  with most of the above individuals and supplement their needs.  All of the above have become self-sufficient and some even strong enough to join our Operation Living Hope volunteer forces.  Presently we are continuing to uplift, teach, counsel and guide these as they help others in a new direction.