This
article is taken from our March 2007 newsletter. To subscribe
to
the print edition, send
us an e-mail or call us at (601) 353-6336.
Check
out our newsletter archive!
|
Operation Shoestring Marks 40th Birthday
Clarion Ledger, Northeast Ledger
Volume 3 Number 52,
Wednesday December 26th 2007
By Susan Marquez |
The year 2008 marks the 40th anniversary of Operation Shoestring, A Jackson organization that began in the basement of Wells United Methodist Church.
The Organization was a direct response to the turbulence of the 1960s and growing divisions in the city of Jackson, as well as around the state. A group of people wanted to reach across racial lines, and their religion manifested itself by working toward racial harmony.
According to the Operation Shoestring website, The Fund for reconciliation was sponsored by the Mississippi Methodist Conference, and Operation Shoestring was its first major project.
Centered in the area around Bailey Avenue and headquartered in the basement of Wells church, Shoestring quickly began to fill critical needs in the community. Within a year, it offered a medical clinic for children and adults, tutorial services, food stamp assistance, an emergency loan fund, a thrift shop, a school lunch program and more. It was done on an operating budget of only $600 a month.
“The future looks bright for Operation Shoestring,” said Robert Langford, executive director and 13-year Shoestring veteran. “I’ve seen the organization grow, and in the past ten years, there’s been a renewed focus on our target neighborhood, which is the south Bailey Avenue area.”
Langford cites positive factors in the area, including the evolution of the Jackson Mall into the Jackson Medical Mall, the new Galloway Elementary School, the Neighborhood Christian Center that serves many kids, the efforts of Habitat for Humanity and the Crestwood Congregation that reaches out to the community.
“And of course, our long-time partner, wells United Methodist Church, continues to be a dynamic and active force in the area.”
As the years go by, needs have changed.
“In the past decade, we’ve seen more people pushed off the welfare rolls, so our food panty is busier than ever,” Langford said. “Unemployment is up in the neighborhood, which is really a reflection of national trends. We mirror the trends that you see in other inner cities in America.”
There are certain dynamics that must come into play for people in the neighborhood to advance,” Langford said.
“There must be economic opportunity so that people can find jobs where they live, adequate affordable housing, good educational opportunities and good and affordable healthcare. We’ve been working to put all those dynamics into place, but they are not all there to the degree they should be yet. However, in the past six to seven years, we’re gradually seeing a positive turnaround.”
The Rev. Martha Alexander signed on as deputy director in July.
“She’s a wonderful and dynamic leader who really gets the vision of community-wide development,” Langford said.
The Jackson native has quickly become a passionate advocate for Shoestring’s programs and harbors hope for expanding them. Alexander served as a pastor for United Methodist Churches in Jackson and Louisville.
“This is where God called me to be,” she said. “Through this appointment I can more fully live out God’s gifts and graces in my life.”
“My passion is for people on the margins. I am on the margins, too, and I have to be an advocate for what I believe.”
Langford is thankful for the many community organizations that partner with Operation Shoestring.
“It’s what helps us do what we do.”
Newsletter
Archive:
