We write this message with great news and with great expectation. This letter is three-fold: an update, a challenge, and an invitation.
Leadership Update: We are excited to welcome two new members to the ECEN Leadership Team: Djuanna Brockington (Director of Empowerment at East Cooper Community Outreach) and Reverend Dr. Chuck Watkins (Servant Pastor of Greater Goodwill AME Church). Additionally, LaBruce Trammell has been hired to serve as our Community Coordinator. These additions to our team are just a few of several updates that we look forward to sharing with you.
Challenge: ECEN has received a request from our agency partners (East Cooper Community Outreach, East Cooper Meals on Wheels, and East Cooper Habitat for Humanity) to assist community members, especially elders, living in ill-fit conditions. Physical hazards and security issues in these homes range from rotten porch floors and sagging doors that cannot be locked to broken windows and leaking roofs. At first blush, it appears that the majority of the home issues could be solved with simple repairs. The attached request letter from our partners gives us, once again, the chance to step up and be the catalyst for positive action. Our response to this challenge will be a significant part of our next meeting agenda.
Invitation: The recent ECEN updates coupled with the call to help from our agency partners prompted the need to reconvene our next meeting. We cordially invite you to attend the next ECEN meeting from 6:00-7:30pm on Monday, March 18. The meeting will be held at the Hibben United Methodist Church Chapel located at 690 Coleman Boulevard. We encourage you to bring any interested person(s) along with you as we will be introducing our new team members at this meeting as well as discussing the opportunity to respond to our community needs. In order to ensure a meaningful and productive conversation, please come to the meeting prepared with the following:
- Does your church or agency have an outreach initiative that handles simple repairs for needy homeowners? If so, please invite the contact person to attend with you.
- If you have such an initiative, are you open to others joining in?
- If you do not have such an initiative, are you willing to start an initiative (assuming none exist)?
- If you do not have an initiative and are not willing to start an initiative, are you willing to recruit volunteers and resources from within your church/organization to work with an existing outreach team at another church or agency?
Please send an email to LaBruce at labruce.trammell@ecensc.org if you are able to attend this meeting or if you would like to request additional information regarding ECEN initiatives. We appreciate your commitment to build a community where all of its members are safe, healthy and have the opportunity to achieve their full potential. We look forward to seeing you in March!
In the spirit of Micah 6:8,