what’s been happening since 1 night on the street (2007)

Click here to view the embedded video.

since the first 1 night on the street in november 2007, i’ve been trying to track the results.

but with an event as essentially organic as the one we pulled off, it’s been a little difficult. after the event, we tracked over 200 people who made a commitment to come volunteer with ministries in the city of cleveland.  within 2 months, phone calls i had received led me to believe that number had grown to over 400.  this info came back to me through partner ministries that were reporting what phone calls that came direct to them was generating.

feeding the folks in ohio city

then, in late february 2008, pastor robert powell invited me to an event at the lonnie burten rec center on the near east side.  lonnie burten is the centerpiece of what was one of america’s original ‘projects’ from the 1930′s.  it’s a tough neighborhood, to say the least.

when i walked in the door, i was greeted by people who had set up a clothing distribution station.  pastor powell took me to the kitchen when a huge meal was being prepared.  dozens of volunteers were making this old rec center buzz.  then came the best part: i was told that the volunteers i saw had come together from at least 12 churches from 3 different counties.

wow.

if i could have had a wish from the genie before the event in ohio city, i would have wished for what i was looking at. and so, if you ask me how many people have become a part of volunteering in the city as a result of 1 night on the street, i must admit…i haven’t got the slightest idea…and that’s ok…right?

african immigrants barbq-ing goat (it tastes like chicken @ trinity

in the late summer, i was asked to speak to the city mission’s ongoing series of community engagement (and networking) called toward a greater cleveland. i felt like a bit of an amateur in front of a gathering that had sunk their lives into joys and challenges of the city.  i was hopeful that what i would have to say wouldn’t fall flat…the question / answer / comment time ran so long the lunch was getting cold. there is great passion for a ‘greater cleveland’.

so…where do we go from here?

in 2009, i am planning for the return of 1 night on the street. one event will take place in akron…another city that has been hit hard in the last 18 months, and another city that is filled with ministries that have been slugging it out in the trenches for a long, long time…and could really use the volunteer help.

in cleveland, the effort could take more of a ‘big event’ form…i have something in the works that i’m hopeful about, we’ll just have to see how things develop.  as they say in my business – ‘stay tuned.’ my gratitude to all who have discovered the joy of the mission field…in their own back yard.

onward…mz

On Jun 26th, Mark Zimmerman traveled to The Union Project in Pittsburgh for the Jesus for President tour.  Chris Haw (l) and Shane Claiborne (r), the authors of Jesus for President (Zondervan 2008) talk with Mark.  You can listen to their conversation about the book, the tour and what they’ve been learning.

(photo by Anna Zimmerman)

Interview Part 1
Interview Part 2
Interview Part 3

If you’d like to see how CNN covered the Pittsburgh tour stop, click for video here… or you can read about it here.

If you want to follow Shane and Chris and the Jesus for President tour you can read their blog here.

Since 1 Night on the Street, I have continued to meet those who have committed themselves to city ministry, and those whose lives have been blessed because of the church’s response.

Recently, I met Esperance Barinakandi at the English as a Second Language (ESL) class run by Building Hope in the City. As we talked, Esperance began to tell me a story that has been repeated tens of thousands of times in the political/religious/ethnic hurricane that is the continent of Africa.

As we talked, I asked Esperance if she would sit with me sometime and record her story. When we did, I sensed moments as we recorded that I was “coming too close” to events that she did not care to relate at that time…and I backed off. What you cannot see from listening to the audio, were the small tears at the corner of Esperance’s eyes as she talked her way through what we did speak of. Photos by Anna Zimmerman.

As a believer, I often wonder how I would respond to true persecution. I wonder how I would respond to true trials. I invite you to listen to the story of Esperance’s family…persecution…trial…and joy.

Part 1…Refugees…from Burundi to Tanzania

Part 2…Coming to America

Part 3…Today – and Tomorrow

SOME NOTES FOR THOSE UNFAMILIAR WITH AMERICA’S “NEW REFUGEES”

Imagine for a moment that you are in the situation that Esperance’s family faced over the last 15 years…how do you think you would respond to -

…leaving the centuries-old home of your family…with nothing but what you could carry?

…facing death because of you tribe, Christian faith…or both?

…spending 11 years living in a tent?

…having to find your own food in a foreign land when the UN missed a delivery to your camp, forgot, or had your delivery hijacked by rebels?

…wondering if God had forgotten you?

Then, suppose the State Department of the United States of America had seen your case, and reacted favorably? Suppose you then had to -

…travel thousands of miles on your first ever ride on an airplane?

…come to a place where the temperature in December is 80 degrees BELOW what you’re used to?

…learn a completely new language and set of customs?

…learn what the following “essentials” of Western society are for – grocery stores, banks, electricity, plumbing, social service agencies, appliances, automobiles…(shall I continue)?

AND WITH ALL OF THAT…LET’S ADD THIS:

You have 180 DAYS to become self-sufficient in this foreign land. After that, your aid from the US Government drops off dramatically.

180 days. Could you do it?

Could you help someone do it?

Visit Building Hope in the City and let them know you would like to help. It’s not about giving cash, making meals, or writing checks…it’s about giving your time. It may be frustrating, and sometimes difficult, but it may be the best chance America’s new immigrants will have to successfully assimilate into American society.

The church on the Building Hope in the City campus is Trinity Lutheran. It was built in 1873…by refugees and immigrants. Those builders were the ones who welcomed our great-grandparents generation to this country…the next wave of immigrant and refugees. 135 years later, the church still stands, and now we are the ones charged with receiving our brothers and sisters who coming to America…may we do it as faithfully as those who came before us.

Next time: some numbers from 2007 on the refugees who have come to the City of Cleveland.

For more information on the situation in Africa these two books have given me a better awareness the first is God Grew Tired of Us by John Bul Dau (there is also a documentary film by the same name) and the second is A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah

note: originally posted 13 Feb 08

Mark Zimmerman recorded this piece (click here to hear) on his recent trip to the Love & Hope Children’s Home in Nejapa, El Salvador. The 11-minute piece gives you a “sound picture” Love & Hope…a ministry that is far more than an orphanage…it’s an oasis in a small Central American country. (SPECIAL NOTE FOR ALL TECHNOGEEKS…with the exception of Mark’s voice-overs and the small clip of music from Jesus Adrian Romero at the conclusion, all audio in the piece was recorded using a Marantz PMD620 palm-sized digital recorder…big sound from a tiny source!)

…begin doing missions well closest to us and then taking it beyond…

...one question…a simple one…what can one person do?

…just want to share the passion of bay presbyterian…