Act Locally Waco: Lots happening this weekend!

[Thornton, Ashley]

Hello all! 

 

Don’t forget SOS food drive today – drop off items at area Wal-Marts or at Channel 25 studios.  Saturday  check out “Art on Elm Street” on Saturday and then enjoy the “Jr. Wizard of Oz” at Jubilee Theater or dance to the sounds of “After Midnight” to benefit Meals & Wheels.  Lots going on! 

 

Early voting starts Monday at the DeCordova room at the convention center.  Poverty was an important topic at the recent League of Women Voters Candidate forum.  Here’s the article from the Waco Trib: Candidate Forum.

 

Be sure to send me your May and summer events! Thank you for all you do and let’s keep each other informed! – ABT

 

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Job Openings

•  Planned Parenthood of Central Texas in Waco, TX is announcing an opening for: Major Gifts Officer/Media Representative. <MORE> (posted 4-23-2012)
• Lake Shore Baptist Church is seeking a people-oriented individual with great communication and administrative skills for their full-time Office Manager. Find out more details at http://www.lakeshorewaco.org/Employment.htm.   (posted 4-16-2012)

 

 

Announcements

·         Volunteers needed for NeighborWorks event – We are having our annual NeighborWorks Week event in the Carver Neighborhood of East Waco on Saturday, May 19th from 8 am until 1:00 pm. We’ll have lots of opportunities for volunteers to work in this neighborhood on this day. For more information contact Roy Nash at 254-752-1647 x208 or roy...@nw-waco.org (posted 4-26-2012)  

·         Education website – Here’s a website for those of you interested in education advocacy: www.raiseyourhandtexas.org (posted 4-26-2012)

·         Summer Meals Program – Need a summer ministry opportunity for your church, youth group or congregational members? The Summer Meal Program to feed local area school children is gearing up for a busy summer and they need the valuable support from our  churches.  This can be by talking about it during the service, printing a bulletin insert or inviting the families in the community to participate in the Summer Meal sites. If you would like more information, please feel free to contact Jenny Hodge at hun...@wacoregionalbaptistassociation.org. (posted April 27, 2012)

·         Date changes for SNAP outreach program – As many of you know, Central Texs Metropolitan Community Church recently started a SNAP Outreach program on the third Saturday of each month. We recently became aware that Shepherd’s Heart does SNAP outreach on the 3rd Saturday of every month from 10-12 at 1401 north 34th street. In order to provide services to our Central Texas neighbors on as many Saturdays as possible, we will be changing the date of our SNAP Outreach from the third Saturday of the month to the first Saturday of the month, effective Saturday May 5, 2012. Our new hours will be 12:30-4:00 pm. Location: 1601 Clay Avenue (corner of 16th St. and Clay Ave.) Anyone who needs assistance filling out SNAP applications is welcome.  <MORE> (posted 4-25-2012)  

·         Get involved with Crop Walk Planning — Interested in helping with this year’s Crop Walk?  click here for more information: <MORE> (posted 4-24-2012)

·         Important contacts for assistance with electricity – This public utilities flier is available for your clients. We hope you find this helpful to have on hand.  If you wish to order the brochures, please contact me, Rachael Pierce, in TWC’s Communication Department by email at rachael...@twc.state.tx.us. Please specify the quantity you need in your request. <Flyer> (posted 4-24-2012)

·         Work experience key factor for urban teens to overcome poverty – It costs $800 for a urban teen to get three weeks of intensive pre-employment job training then be placed in a local business for three more weeks, earning a paycheck and beginning their road to self-sufficiency. In many cases, the teens are then hired by the local business or organization in which they were placed. Nothing is as empowering to overcome poverty as a good job, yet many lower-income teens do not have the help to navigate the employment system. Mission Waco’s summer youth employment program depends on outside donations to succeed. If you are interested in helping, just let us know! 753-4900 (posted 4-24-2012)

·         Jubilee Theater Performance Camp – What was often a privilege for those who had money, now is a reality for all children. Due to Mission Waco’s Style Show, funding for a full-scale play and scholarships for children to participate in the first Jubilee Theatre summer “Performance Camp” is a reality. This summer, Mission Waco will offer its first acting camp for children and youth (ages 6-18) from all over Waco ($225-$250) on June 25-30. Details are on the Jubilee Theatre website: www.jubileetheatre-waco.org  (posted 4-24-2012)

·         Waco Housing video – The City of Waco has recently launched an amazing new website – www.WacoHousingSearch.org. This short commercial tells all about it; please share with anyone who might be interested: http://youtu.be/UkXequ-HJWM .  (posted 4-24-2012)

·         Cornerstone Assistance Network of Central Texas Website – Cornerstone Assistance Network of Central Texas is a non-profit intermediary that builds collaboration and advances programs and services that promote restoration of offenders, ex-offenders, their families, victims and communities. Their new website is almost complete (www.cornerstone-centx.org), take a look to learn more about this exciting initiative. You will find online under the heading of ‘Partners’ a Memorandum of Understanding that you may use to request to be a partner or affiliate of Cornerstone Assistance Network Central Texas. Contact Dane Fowlkes, Interim Executive Director, at (254) 495-4170 or ad...@cornerstone-centx.org  for more information or if you are interested in having someone come speak to any sized group about the Cornerstone vision. (posted 4-24-2012)

·         Food Network documentary – Here is the link to the food network documentary that aired recently  http://www.foodnetwork.com/share-our-strength/package/index.html  you can view the whole thing online if you missed it when it was on TV. The video highlights a lot of things many of us may already know, but it still a great way to raise awareness and make people understand why they need to support things like food drives, food pantries, SNAP and other hunger fighting efforts/programs. (posted 4-23-2012)

·         New “Road to Damascus” Organization provides assistance, needs volunteers - The Road to Damascus Resource Center & Transition Homes, Inc. is a new organization in East Waco.  Our organization is a ”one-stop” mobile resource center that will provide services to at-risk youth and their families in McLennan and surrounding counties. We are in need of some volunteers to help with intake/case management. We will be providing mobile services in the high risk communities, for example Kate Ross, Estella Maxey, East Waco, etc. We will have a event at the Doris Miller YMCA in East Waco on April 28 , 2012 from 10-2pm and we need some volunteers to help assist us. For more information about our services or about how you can help please contact Mia Thomas by email at mialyn...@yahoo.com. <MORE> (posted 4-12-2012)

·         CWJC Matching Grant Opportunity – An anonymous donor has offered to match funds up to $10,000 for CWJC, find out how you can make your donation stretch twice as far. <MORE>  (posted 4-12-2012)

·         Truth Be Told Graduation at Gatesville’s Hilltop Prison - Truth Be Told provides transformational tools to women behind and beyond bars. Please join us in the powerful experience of a Truth Be Told Graduation. Your presence will help heal the hearts of an invisible group of women behind bars in Gatesville, Texas. At this graduation, you will hear every participant’s voice as the women perform or share in some creative way what they have discovered about themselves as they’ve faced the trauma and secrets of their past, and moved into a safe community for truth telling and character building. For inmates, the experience of being listened to by respectful and compassionate witnesses is rare. TBT graduation witnesses are typically deeply moved by the courage and honesty of these women. We especially need guests from Waco, Temple, and Gatesville to witness this journey with us. For more information.  RSVP deadline is May 1.  Graduation ceremony is May 17. <MORE>  (Posted April 12, 2012)

·         Get involved with the Urban Gardening Coalition — Using the garden as our gathering grounds, the Heart of Texas Urban Gardening Coalition (HOT UGC) strengthens the local food system, improves access to healthy food, and empowers folks to grow their own. Want to find out more?  Interested in how you can help?  Click here to learn more about HOT UGC school programs or here to learn more about the HOT UGC training farm. (Posted 4/10/2012)

 

More Announcements…

 

April

• April 27 - Spring onto Summer Food Drive - S.O.S or Spring onto Summer is an annual food drive dedicated to collecting food for local food pantries so they are prepared for the summer months. The main theme of S.O.S is children feeding children. During the summer food pantries face an increased demand for food because kids are out of school and do not have access to school meals. <MORE>  
• April 27 & 28 – Jubilee Theater presents “The Jr. Wizard of Oz “ <MORE>
• April 28 – Art on Elm Avenue, sponsored by NeighborWorks Waco <MORE>
• April 28 – “Rock ‘n Roll for Meals & Wheels” Dance featuring “After Midnight” <MORE>
• April 30 – Early voting starts for Waco elections. Early voting location: Waco Convention Center,DeCordova Room,100 Washington Avenue   <City> <School Board>

May

• May – May is Older Americans Month.  Meals & Wheels is celebrating with several fun activities. <MORE>
• May 1 – The Community Race Relations and the Cen Tex Hispanic Chamber of Commerce are sponsoring Dinner and a Movie on Tuesday, May 1, 5:30 to 8:30pm at the Chamber digs at 915 LaSalle Avenue. PLEASE RESERVE A SPACE by calling 836-4599 or emailing Jo_W...@hotmail.com. This event is free and open to the public. Dinner is provided by the CRRC board, with donations accepted. Feature film for the evening is La Misma Luna (Under the Same Moon). La Misma Luna is in Spanish, with English subtitles. <MORE>
• May 1 – RSVP deadline for Truth be Told Graduation at Gatesville Prison Your presence will help heal the hearts of an invisible group of women behind bars in Gatesville, Texas. <MORE>
• May 1 – Habitat for Humanity Church Roundtable Luncheon, 12 – 1p, Waco Habitat, 220 N. 11th St.A Habitat informational session for communities offaith. RSVP by April 30, em...@wacohabitat.org.
• May 4 – Foxfire Friday: Dumpster Diving. 6pm. Meet in the Common Grounds parking lot. Find a friend with a truck – or very large trunk space – and learn the art of dumpster diving (as well as helping to recover office supplies for the Urban Gardening Coalition and donate other reclaimed products that still have life). For more information contact Zacary Bryan (zac...@gmail.com).
• May 4 – Chick-fil-A Leadercast Waco 2012  8AM-4:30PM, free lunch, $69 per ticket (with group rates available), at the Waco Convention Center. Chick-fil-A Leadercast Waco is a leadership development simulcast that features world-renowned content from award-winning speakers and an opportunity to network with over 200 Waco professionals and leaders! It offers up to 5.5 credit hours of continuing education credit for nursing, human resources, and other professional fields! Speakers include John Maxwell, Patrick Lencioni, Marcus Buckingham, Tim Tebow, Soledad O’Brien, and more! Baylor Athletic Director Ian McCaw will speak during lunch. Visit www.leadercastwaco.com  for more information or call or e-mail Josh at 254-644-7271 or leaderc...@gmail.com.
• May 5 – Kentucky Derby Party benefitting Waco Lions Park Complex<MORE>
• May 5 – 6th Annual Kite Festival sponsored by Heart of Texas Sertoma – 10 AM-3PM at the Heart of Texas Miniature Aircraft Club facility near Speegleville Park. Sertoma is a non-profit (501(c)(3) organization that works with Baylor Audiology Clinic to provide hearing aids to deaf and hard of hearing children in McLennan County who do not have any government assistance for hearing aids. <MORE>
• May 5 – Triple C Car Show Benefiting Waco Habitat for Humanity.  10a – 2p. Central Christian Church, 4901 Lake Shore Dr. Free to spectators.  For more information contact em...@wacohabitat.org.
• May 5 - SNAP Outreach at Central Texas Metropolitan Community Church first Saturday of the month. Hours are  12:30-4:00 pm. Location: 1601 Clay Avenue (corner of 16th St. and Clay Ave.) Anyone who needs assistance filling out SNAP applications is welcome.  <MORE> 
• May 8 – Community Visioning Expo <MORE>
• May 10 – McLennan County Hunger Coalition Meeting<MORE>
• May 10 – “Near Northside” Walking Tour - North 15th and Colcord Ave have changed….a lot! From a blighted neighborhood only fifteen years ago, the area now proudly shows off the changes. <MORE>
• May 11 – Census Workshop – Several of us in Waco use census data regularly for grant applications and other information needs. The 2010 data is being reported in the new version of the American FactFinder which features a completely re-designed user interface. This free workshop will be led by a representative from the Census Bureau in Dallas who will give us some pointers on using the new system. <MORE>
• May 12 – City of Waco elections.  Please note:  some polling places have changed.  <City> <School Board>
• May 15 – Older Americans Month Senior Picnic featuring Classie Ballou <MORE>
• May 17 – Urban Gardening Coalition (UGC) Monthly Meeting. 6pm. Brazos River Plaza Community Room – 715 Elm St, East Waco. Join us for our monthly meeting – to discuss all things gardening in the Heart of Texas. Our website is hotugc.org and our events page is http://hotugc.org/upcoming-events/. For more information contact Zacary Bryan (zac...@gmail.com ).
• May 17 - Truth be Told Graduation at Gatesville Prison Your presence will help heal the hearts of an invisible group of women behind bars in Gatesville, Texas. <MORE>
• May  18 – Heart of Texas Homeless Coalition Meeting <MORE>
• May 19 – “RSVP Volunteer Recognition Event”, celebrating the service work of over 1,000 senior volunteers that serve in 90+ non-profit organizations in the Heart of Texas region. Lunch, program, entertainment and awards from 12:00-3:00 P.M. at the “Deering Community Center”, behind St. Louis Catholic Church, 2001 No. 25th Street, Waco. For more information or sponsorship opportunities, call 254-299-8577.
• May 19 – The Community Race Relations Coalition is sponsoring a facilitated workshop on the issues raised by the book The New Jim Crow:Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander. 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 pm. <MORE>
• May 20 (Date Change!) - Meals on Wheels Sunday Brunch featuring Baylor Lady Bears Head Coach Kim Mulkey <MORE>
• May 21 - Please join us for Act Locally Waco Book Club. We will continue our discusison of American Dream by Jason DeParle. Please come even if you didn’t come in April, you will not be lost. We will meet at 6:00 on Monday, May 21 at the home of Ashley Thornton, 626 N. 30th. Light snacks provided. Please RSVP to Ashley_...@baylor.edu.  
• May 22 – Women’s Day Style Show and Luncheon celebrating Older Americans Month <MORE>
• May 24 – Habitat for Humanity Application Meeting (English).  Attending an application meeting is the first step in applying for a Habitat Home. <MORE>
• May 27 – Global Day of Prayer <MORE>

 

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