9.8 - The Shift featuring Pastor Angelic Williams - Founder of Two Fish & Five Loads, Inc.

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Good morning to the leader in you and welcome back
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to another edition of The Shift. Well, we have shifted
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into the month of September and I tell you, we
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are excited about what's going to be happening eight months
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from now. What will be taking place is the Unlocked
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2027 Business Conference. And so as you plug into our
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show over the next several weeks, over the next several months,
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We're going to have different individuals. That's going to be
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a part of Unlocked 2027. That's going to be featured
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on different segments. But today we have Pastor Williams with us.
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She is the founder of Two Fish and Five Loads. Yes,
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Two Fish and Five Loads. And she's going to break
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down the significance of that. She's going to break down
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who she is and the impact she's made in the community,
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but also other budding young people that she's been able
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to mentor that's been making an impact in the community.
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So without further ado, welcome Pastor Williams.
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Thank you so much for inviting me to be a
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part of the shift and more importantly, Unlock 2027.
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Yes, it is eight months from now and eight represents
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the number of new beginnings. And so we know everyone
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that's going to be there is going to have a
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fresh start, a fresh perspective in their.
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Life, in their business.
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And And it's just an honor to have you with us.
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We announced last week that you are one of the
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keynote speakers heading up the division around civic engagement, community development.
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I mean, you've been doing so much in the community.
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So before we get into Two Fish and Five Loads,
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let everyone know a little bit about who is Pastor Williams.
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Well, until four years ago, I was just Angelic Williams.
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I've been in pastoral ministry about four years, but ministry
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in general for over 25 years preaching the gospel. But
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more importantly, I'm a Baltimore native and I was born
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and raised in Baltimore, which is where civic engagement and
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being involved in community and being the hands and feet
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of Jesus was a part of my upbringing. And so
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I was raised right in East Baltimore and My father
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was a longshoreman and my mom was a Baltimore City
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school teacher for 43 years. So serving people and serving
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community has always been a part of my family's footprint.
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And you're continuing the legacy. That's what I'm hearing. What
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your dad did, what your mom did and continue. What
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does that mean to you? Continuing the legacy of what
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your parents, the footprints of what your parents showed?
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You know, my mom was such a demonstration for being
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present with others. And so One of the things that
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she has always sort of instilled in me and my
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sisters is about the power of the ministry of presence,
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just being present for people, whether that's holding a hand
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when someone is grieving or hurting, whether that's saying a
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prayer or some encouraging words, but also really tangible things
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like showing up with dinner for people who didn't have dinner.
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I can recall when I was probably around nine or
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10 years old, I grew up at Carolina and Federal Street.
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Around nine or 10 years old, there was a woman
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who lived at the other end of our block.
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Her name was Ms. Brown. And Ms.
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Brown had a house full of foster children. And my
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mom would send me up the street with huge pots
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of beans and soup. And I used to be so
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embarrassed to get my friend to lug all the way
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up to the other end of the street this pot
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of soup. I thought it was so embarrassing and I
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was so ashamed. And then I learned years later the
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impact that that had on her ability to raise children
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and provide a hot meal. And how seeing my face
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outside of her door was an answer prayer. And so
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over the years, God has allowed me to see just
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the impact of what it means to be present for
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people and the transformation that can occur in the lives
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of just your neighbors.
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You know, I think it's so powerful.
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And I learned something even just in these past few minutes,
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because I know you're very passionate also about working with
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children in a school setting. And that makes sense. Your
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mom was a teacher, I think you said, for 43 years?
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Uh-huh.
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Yes.
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So my mom was a schoolteacher. I have two godparents
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and both of them spent 30, 40 years in Baltimore
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City Public School. One is a schoolteacher. Actually, my godmother
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who named me was also a schoolteacher. And then I
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had another godmother who was a discipline principal. So lots
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of educators in my family and connected to me.
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And that education of what you've been around, you soaked
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it up. And now you mentor a lot of youth
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in the community yourself. Talk a little bit about that.
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I think that it is just important for us as
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individuals to help somebody with the help that somebody helped
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us with. And growing up, being a part of a
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community meant people looking out for you. It meant people
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taking time and support into you and to be present
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with you. And so I really just tried to be
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present like folks was with me. They didn't have to
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be related to me. They didn't have to be a
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member of my church. They were just present for me
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and cared about my success. And that's what it means
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to be a good neighbor. And so I just endeavor
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to be a good neighbor to all of God's children.
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And so I've been able to build some relationships and
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mentor some young people and walk beside some young people.
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And, um, sometimes I'm just the.
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Phone call, a confidant, a phone call. Um, and sometimes
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I'm just the ear to listen to, um, but always
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trying to push them to the next level and push
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them to the next dimension of what, um, God has
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crafted for their lives the same way that someone did
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for me.
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But, you know, that's what I think is so beautiful.
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Like even when I first met you, um, Ms. Shirley,
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give a shout out to her. She connected us together,
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her and her son, um, collaborating together on a phenomenal
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program called Marlo's Hope Squad. And when she connected me
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with you, when we first met and had our meeting,
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you were very.
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Down to earth. That's the first impression.
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And we were able to have relatable conversations, of course,
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talking about your nonprofit and all the ideas. But what
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I got from you is that you're beyond the four walls.
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Of course, you understand the structure and we're respecting the
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structure of church, but it doesn't just stop in the
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four walls for you.
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Talk about the significance of that.
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Well, I'm really not doing anything that's out of the box.
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I know some people think it's so out of the box,
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it's so innovative, but it really isn't. It's the ministry
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of Jesus. Jesus spent, if I was to put a
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number on it, probably 80% of his ministry outside of
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the walls of the church. And so when we say
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that we're disciples and we're believers, how can we spend
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100% of our time within four walls when he spent
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80% of his outside of those walls? He walked with people.
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He was in community with people. Most of his healings
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and miracle stories that we see, they took place in community.
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They didn't take place always in the walls of a church.
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They took place right out on the streets in the community.
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So I think it's pretty powerful when we bring church
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to the block, into the neighborhood or the hood, however
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you want to say it. But I think it's important
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for us to be present outside.
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And that's why I think it's so powerful. And then
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you started an organization. We're going to talk about Two
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Fish and Five Loaves, but the start didn't start when
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you filed your documentation with the state. It started way
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before that, right?
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Yeah.
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Talk about why you.
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Even named your organization Two Fish and Five Loaves.
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Take us through the story.
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So the name came, me and a good friend of mine's,
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her name is Pastor Michelle Corbett, and I we confided
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in each other about, you know, some of the things
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that God has deposited in our spirit. And I told
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her that I wanted to do food and I wanted
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to do laundry support, but I was finding and sort
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of stumped at how I might be able to fund
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something like that. Like, you know, laundry isn't something that
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is subsidized. And, you know, and so I was like,
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how would I be able to do that? And she
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was like, oh, you can do it. She was like, oh,
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we can do it together. And she was just so
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willing to do it. And we were talking about, And
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the thing that dropped in my spirit was the miracle
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story of Jesus with two fish and five loaves of bread.
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And that's where the story came from, because when Two
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Fish and Five Loaves was starting, we didn't have anything.
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We didn't have any capital.
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All we had was an assignment that there was a
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community that was hungry. And just like in that miracle story,
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there was a community of people that was hungry. And
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Jesus told those disciples, he said, he was like, well,
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what do we have? He didn't say, go and write
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a grant. He said, what do you have among you?
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And what I had was a congregation and a colleague.
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And so what I did was we use what we
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had in our hands. And I leveraged some relationships to
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get a food source. And then we lost that food
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stores within the first 60 days. And so I had
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to go out and build more relationships to fish and
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five loads. Really, we had to get it out the
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gutter and build some relationships. I had some friends with
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the Eastern Stars and the Masons who did some laundry supply,
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donation collection, my congregation bought and stuff. And so we
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were trying to meet people right where they were. And
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we weren't embarrassed about the fact that we only had
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very little to share.
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But we used what we had.
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And just like in that miracle story, the Lord multiplied it.
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And by the time we had our first food distribution,
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we served 187 people in under an hour. I'm talking
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full groceries in under one hour. It was so fast
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and we looked up and all the food was gone.
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So from day one, we recognize that the demand and
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the need was greater than we ever could have imagined.
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Yeah.
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Yeah.
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And when that hits you, when you realize the demand
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and you realize the need, what went through your mind?
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I mean, what was next steps?
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To be honest, it felt way bigger than me. It
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felt way bigger than me. As a matter of fact,
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I was doing it at my church and Pastor Michelle
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Corbett was doing it at her church. Mount Washington, Aldersgate
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at the time up in, that was in a different community.
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They served a completely different demographics and they didn't serve
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as many people as we did because the need in
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their community was different than ours was. But I was
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in the middle of Sandtown and despite the plethora of
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food distributions, very few of them were available on weekends
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where people.
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Had access to it.
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A lot of them was during the daytime and it
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wasn't that everybody was unemployed. Some people were just under,
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and most people were just underemployed. I found that we
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were serving a lot of seniors and people with disabilities
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where we were having to bring food out of the
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church and meeting them in the alley or helping people
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push their baskets home and carry groceries home. It was
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so much bigger than myself. And so I had to
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continue to build relationships and I had to make, I
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couldn't be prideful about it. I had to explain the
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desperation of my community to people who had the ability
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to bring resources, both food and monetary, to my community
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so that I could feed the people that were in need.
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I think that passion is something that is very easy
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to motivate you because once you see hungry people, you
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can't unsee them.
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Yeah.
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Yes.
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That's the thing that keeps you up at night. That's
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the thing that worries you.
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You know what I mean?
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No, 100%.
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But I think you bring up a valid point. The
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timing of when you're distributing the food, when you're distributing it,
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is it during a time when people are going to
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be able to receive it? You know, what time is
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it being given out? Because you just said it's not
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that people, everyone was not employed. They were underemployed. But
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if the food distribution is taking place when they're at
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their job, of course they can't get the food. So
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you identified a gap. That's what I'm hearing. You identified
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a gap. You had to identify when is the best time,
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not for what's going to work for my schedule, but what's.
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The best time for the people that I'm trying to serve.
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Right.
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And I think that is a huge piece when we
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talk about community engagement and saying we're serving, are we
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serving ourselves or are we serving the people? And so,
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you know, you also talked about meeting a person where
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they are.
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Right.
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A lot of the individuals that have been able to
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either work with you from a volunteer standpoint or they
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receive services.
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Your organization is growing now.
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Would you like to share about some of the strides
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y'all have been making?
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Yeah, sure. One of the things I do want to
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bring up is the dignity piece. Right.
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So before we started and we were doing sort of
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our research.
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Right.
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The time was one of the things. But the other
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thing was the dignity piece. people were made to stand
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in long lines in all kinds of weather conditions, no
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matter if they had disabilities or had children. I mean,
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bitter cold weather, rain, all kinds of things where people
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had access to buildings. And so one of the things
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that we wanted to do was serve people in a
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way in which they didn't feel like they had to
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surrender their dignity and their self-respect in order to eat.
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We're talking about food. These are basic human rights. And
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so how do we do that? And so Two Fish
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is a family. They're not clients we serve. They're not
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people who are hungry. They are family. We are a family.
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And so you will oftentimes see people who are receiving
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services also serving their neighbors as well. So they may
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take a bag of food with them, but they'll stand there.
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They'll break down boxes.
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They'll help us replenish and everything.
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We are a family.
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And that's really the civic engagement piece. It is just
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not somebody who is in need and receiving services. It
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is also the care that they take in serving their
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neighbors as well because many of them become volunteers.
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Yes, it is very much a family. It's very much
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a family.
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And so we've had to look at some creative ways
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and how we can expand. And so it started with
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food distribution and emergency laundry kits. And then it grew
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to community meals. So where people would come, they would
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sit down, they'd be able to talk to their neighbor,
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they'd be able to have a bowl of chili and
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some cornbread or some fajitas or whatever it was that
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we had prepared. They'd be able to talk to one another,
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share resources, and then leave with their groceries as well.
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So their belly's full, their spirit is encouraged, and they
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also can leave with their groceries as well. Because that
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allowed us to be able to really grow the community piece,
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the engagement piece, the us being a family piece. and
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really understanding what people's story is. And so we started
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doing that. We also started making food and also using
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some of our resources to fill fridges all over Baltimore
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City with the organization Baltimore Community Fridges. They have about
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30 something refrigerators all over the city. And so we
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fill those refrigerators regularly. We'll make meals and fill those refrigerators.
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We'll show up at, Laundromats and do laundry support will
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come with laundry detergent and dryer sheets and quarters. And
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we're helping people pay for laundry, fold clothes, whatever it takes.
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Because having the resources, be it food and laundry services,
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is one piece of it. But the ministry of presence,
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having someone that cares enough to stay and help you
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fold a shirt, fold your towels, to help you carry
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your groceries to your car, that is a big piece
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of it too.
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But I've seen youth who are present, that connects back
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to what your mom instilled. Because you said earlier, your
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mom was a woman where she would be present.
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Yes, yes, absolutely.
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So that legacy, it continues even to present day of
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what you're doing in the community and the civic engagement
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and the family interaction. Because that's the, what I'm hearing
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from you is the heartbeat of Two Fish and Five Loads.
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Absolutely, absolutely.
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Maybe about, I guess it was about eight months ago,
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we released our first social entrepreneurship project, which is called
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My God Chicken and Pork Seasoning. And that is an
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amazing seasoned blend that folks use on their meats. And
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I use it on my veggies too, because it's so good.
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That we use proceeds from those sales goals to feed
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more people. And in the next 45 days, we'll be
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coming out with our steak blend of seasoning, which will
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be our second seasoning blend. And those funds raised from
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that we use to go right back into the ministry
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to be able to feed folks.
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So creative idea.
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And I say creative and I'm going to say innovative
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because some of these things, even though, yes, it could be.
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Common, it's not always common. Um, and you created the, the,
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the seasoning blend, right?
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And you talk about social entrepreneurship, but I want you
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to expand on that because many that might be watching me,
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I would have just started a nonprofit or about to
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start a nonprofit. And they're trying to think of creative
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ways to fund their idea.
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Talk about that.
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Cause in the beginning, when you say, when you first
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was going to go out into the community, it wasn't
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a lot of resources, but you reflected on the scripture
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about the two fish and five loaves of what do
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you have in your hands?
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Speak to that in connected with social entrepreneurship.
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So what I had was the way in which God
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has always used me in ministry, be it preaching a sermon,
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doing an outreach project.
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I have always been creative in that, in that land.
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I don't know that I can, Folks call it creative.
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We call it creative.
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But I know that it is divine revelation, right? You
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know that it is God who does this. And so
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what I'm trying to do with the seasoning is we're
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not going to step into a lane that we're not in.
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We're in a food lane.
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So we're not going to be selling sun visors, right?
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Or beach apparel. We cook. I have a personal love
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for cooking.
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It is the way that my grandmother showed her love
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was all the things that she put on the table
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and we sat around the table and so much happened
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in what we call table encounters, right? Even if you
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follow the ministry of Jesus, all those table encounters around
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food and gathering was something that was about more than
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the food. It wasn't just about so that people could eat,
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but it was about invitation and It was about discipleship.
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It was about.
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Inclusion and belonging and love. And so these are the
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things that happen and that we encounter around the table.
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So the seasoning is really just something that adds in.
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and makes sense for us as an organization because it
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fits our brand. I think one of the things that
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we try and do oftentimes is we try to have
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fundraisers that have nothing to do with what we do.
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And so you've got to think about what it is
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that we do, what it is that is connected to
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us And how can we use what is connected to
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us to fit what it is we're trying to accomplish?
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We're trying to feed more people. So it makes sense
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for us to do a seasoning blend and maybe even
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in the future, a line of cookware. That stuff makes
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sense to us as an organization because it reinforces the
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reason why we do this work.
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No, 100%. And I think that is important, right?
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Because looking at social entrepreneurship, I think everybody has some
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type of entrepreneurship seed in them.
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It's just how to cultivate that, how to bring it out.
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And particularly also if you're in the non-for-profit sector, a
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huge piece of that puzzle is fundraising. But I think
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it's important when you're looking at your organization, looking at
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your mission, looking at what you do, connecting whatever that
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business element is to generate the funds, make it make sense.
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That's what I'm hearing from you, make it make sense.
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And so your blend, so it's out now and people can, okay.
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Yes, yes.
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You can follow us on at Two Fish and Five
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Loads on Facebook.
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You can DM me.
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We're hoping to get it in this next phase because
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we did an initial rollout. We're hoping in the next
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phase to get it in some local stores. We're coming
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out with a second blend so that we can test
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our blends in the communities and in our circles of support.
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But the chicken and pork went, did very, very well.
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It is completely sold out. And so now we're going
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to try our steak blend and see how that does.
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And then we'll put both of those into some local establishments,
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but everything in its phases, you know, just trying to
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take our time, but more importantly, not rely on all
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of our resources to come from one place, right? So
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there's grants, there is maybe some donors, you know, like
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be it businesses or individual donors or supporters. There is,
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you know, monetization from our social media platforms. It is
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the congregations that I serve that will support and that
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kind of thing. But it's also coming up with things
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like a seasoning blend where we'll have some regular income
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that we can expect, just never depending on funding to
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come from one source. So to diversify, if you will,
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the sources of the funds that are coming in, because
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the work is so important that we can't afford a.
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Gap. And I say that.
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Because I'm United Methodist and I got reappointed in July
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to a new church. So I left the church in
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the community that I was in and they were going
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to get a new pastor and I was going to
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another community, not far away, but another community. But the
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food program at that church with my leaving had to
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be paused. And one of the clients before I left
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stood on the corner as he was talking to me
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and with tears in his eyes, I said, it's just
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going to pause for a moment so the new team
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can regroup and get back going and And he had
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tears coming down his face and he says, but pastor,
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we can't afford a pause. And so that struck me
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so deeply because it meant that this work cannot afford
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to take a breath. And so I don't have the
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luxury of laziness and I don't have the luxury of
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procrastination because Somebody is dependent on the work that we
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do to make ends meet, to be able to put
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meals on the table and to be able to nourish themselves.
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And so that's why, even though I'm rather, you know,
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been doing nonprofit for a while, this is my first,
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you know, nonprofit that I am running that I've given
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birth to.
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Yeah.
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I have to engage with things like unlock and strategic
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collaboration because my demographic that I serve can't afford a
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gap in my knowledge. And so I think that many
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for-profit business as well as nonprofits have the same issue.
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The people that you serve and the.
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Product that you are producing, it can't afford the gap
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that you have in knowledge. And so you got to
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You got to run after the knowledge just as much
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as you run after the clients in the business.
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Absolutely.
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Absolutely.
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And I thank you for sharing.
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I mean, you talked about so many things, diversified funding
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for your organization. And as we pivot, let's pivot and
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talk a little bit now about the conference Unlock 2027.
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So for those that's watching now, we ask that you
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just share this segment to your network. You can share
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00:25:12.829 --> 00:25:15.109
it on social media. You can send the link out.
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We want to get the word out. about Two Fish
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and Five Loaves. This is not their beginning. This is
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a continuation of work that's already been going on, but
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they are official 501c3 nonprofit organization. So even if you're
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hearing this segment and you want to pour into their organization,
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00:25:33.319 --> 00:25:35.539
they are registered. And so you can definitely do that.
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But as we talk about this conference coming up, Unlock 2027, well,
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you was a part of Unlock 2026. You was there.
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Could you just take a quick to share your sentiments
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of what you experienced this year, what do you anticipate
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next year? And you are also one of the keynote speakers.
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So just share a little bit about that.
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So last year was absolutely phenomenal, right? I think it
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is one of those events that you come to and
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you leave with practical tools about how it is that
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I can take the next step.
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00:26:07.619 --> 00:26:11.700
It's so invigorating, right? And so if you.
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Are feeling stagnant in the work that you are doing,
492
00:26:14.490 --> 00:26:17.130
This is what you need to jumpstart that creativity, to
493
00:26:17.170 --> 00:26:22.750
jumpstart that passion. Because oftentimes, whether it's for-profit or nonprofit,
494
00:26:23.009 --> 00:26:27.630
sometimes we can lose steam, right? Because we don't have
495
00:26:27.650 --> 00:26:30.470
the money. We don't have the funding. We can't figure
496
00:26:30.630 --> 00:26:33.859
out how it's going to work. This unlocking is about
497
00:26:33.930 --> 00:26:39.279
you getting tools and networking with people, building relationships. Whether
498
00:26:39.299 --> 00:26:43.400
you're in nonprofit or for-profit business, You can, you cannot
499
00:26:43.440 --> 00:26:45.450
be a man on its own island. You have got
500
00:26:45.769 --> 00:26:48.329
to network with other people and you've got to be
501
00:26:48.369 --> 00:26:50.789
able to share your knowledge and allow people to pour
502
00:26:50.890 --> 00:26:53.509
into you. This is a give and a take, and
503
00:26:53.529 --> 00:26:57.069
it allows you to be able to really, really jumpstart
504
00:26:57.089 --> 00:26:59.490
what it is that you're doing wherever you're at.
505
00:27:00.630 --> 00:27:02.250
Have you ever been in neutral?
506
00:27:02.930 --> 00:27:06.630
Listen, if you're in neutral, it's going to get it
507
00:27:06.690 --> 00:27:08.630
in gear, you know, and, and, and, A lot of
508
00:27:08.640 --> 00:27:11.569
the people that attended this year, their sentiments was that
509
00:27:11.690 --> 00:27:16.470
they really walked away feeling unlocked and with the strategies
510
00:27:16.509 --> 00:27:18.109
and the tools. And so for those that's listening and
511
00:27:18.170 --> 00:27:21.329
watching now, or you may see something online and say, oh,
512
00:27:21.369 --> 00:27:22.710
this is just another conference.
513
00:27:23.109 --> 00:27:24.710
One of the things that I'm very.
514
00:27:24.589 --> 00:27:28.130
Conscious about, I do not put together myself or the
515
00:27:28.210 --> 00:27:30.839
team put together a conference just for us to come
516
00:27:30.859 --> 00:27:31.650
together to be.
517
00:27:31.579 --> 00:27:32.559
A hype session, right?
518
00:27:32.859 --> 00:27:35.299
We want to make sure that people are walking away
519
00:27:35.339 --> 00:27:37.779
with specific tools that they can learn.
520
00:27:38.079 --> 00:27:40.099
And it's an engaging environment.
521
00:27:40.180 --> 00:27:42.819
I've been in conferences where you're going to fall asleep,
522
00:27:43.079 --> 00:27:46.400
but that is not how we structure Unlocked.
523
00:27:46.799 --> 00:27:49.359
Now, you are one of the speakers for next year.
524
00:27:49.380 --> 00:27:50.589
What can people anticipate?
525
00:27:50.609 --> 00:27:52.829
Because you're going to be heading up the civic engagement
526
00:27:53.690 --> 00:27:57.490
component of a lot of your key points that you're
527
00:27:57.509 --> 00:27:59.450
going to be talking about. What can they anticipate?
528
00:28:00.970 --> 00:28:03.250
I think that one of the things that they can
529
00:28:03.289 --> 00:28:06.470
anticipate is the lesson that I learned very early on.
530
00:28:07.819 --> 00:28:10.380
What do you have in your hand? Because we can
531
00:28:10.420 --> 00:28:13.680
talk all day about what you don't got, what you
532
00:28:13.720 --> 00:28:14.180
don't have.
533
00:28:14.220 --> 00:28:16.250
I don't have enough money. I don't have any volunteers.
534
00:28:16.309 --> 00:28:18.069
I don't have a team. I don't have an X.
535
00:28:18.130 --> 00:28:20.809
I don't have a Y. And we can complain all
536
00:28:20.849 --> 00:28:21.410
day long.
537
00:28:21.710 --> 00:28:23.890
But at the end of our complaining session, you won't
538
00:28:23.930 --> 00:28:27.069
be any more further along. So what do you have
539
00:28:27.109 --> 00:28:30.769
that you are failing to recognize as valuable? What do
540
00:28:30.789 --> 00:28:32.970
you have in your hand that you are failing to
541
00:28:33.049 --> 00:28:37.960
recognize the potential in? Are you leveraging relationships? It don't
542
00:28:37.980 --> 00:28:40.960
cost any money to build relationships and network. Are you
543
00:28:41.039 --> 00:28:45.849
leveraging them? Are you sharing what you have inside of
544
00:28:45.900 --> 00:28:50.490
you with someone? Because people invest in what you are
545
00:28:50.609 --> 00:28:53.630
passionate about. You can't expect people to get on your
546
00:28:53.710 --> 00:28:56.289
train with the idea that you won't get trucking.
547
00:28:57.730 --> 00:29:00.089
Use what you got to get where you need to be.
548
00:29:00.390 --> 00:29:01.289
So whether or not.
549
00:29:01.210 --> 00:29:03.970
You're moving from space A to space B, you're not
550
00:29:04.029 --> 00:29:06.549
at space A anymore. What do you have that you're
551
00:29:06.609 --> 00:29:11.519
failing to leverage? What is in your community that you
552
00:29:11.619 --> 00:29:17.140
aren't using? What about all the young people that you
553
00:29:17.160 --> 00:29:19.079
think get on your nerves and just making noise and
554
00:29:19.099 --> 00:29:21.039
you say they ain't never doing anything, but you won't
555
00:29:21.059 --> 00:29:26.400
pour into them. You won't leverage them in your business.
556
00:29:26.819 --> 00:29:29.740
How can you use them? How can you strengthen them?
557
00:29:30.200 --> 00:29:34.500
How can you create a relationship with young people that
558
00:29:34.680 --> 00:29:37.730
is both give and take where you are mentoring them
559
00:29:38.049 --> 00:29:41.400
and teaching them business, teaching them how to engage, teaching
560
00:29:41.440 --> 00:29:44.299
them how to speak to other people, teaching them how
561
00:29:44.339 --> 00:29:47.539
to be professional? What is it that you have? And
562
00:29:47.640 --> 00:29:50.960
at the same time, leveraging that for the good of
563
00:29:51.009 --> 00:29:53.190
the work that you're doing. What do you have that
564
00:29:53.250 --> 00:29:56.769
you are failing to recognize is valuable? And I think
565
00:29:56.809 --> 00:29:59.190
that we're walking around with some jewels today.
566
00:29:59.720 --> 00:30:05.119
We're walking around fully loaded, but we can't see the
567
00:30:05.200 --> 00:30:06.619
forest at all.
568
00:30:07.759 --> 00:30:11.339
All we see is the one tree. And we've got
569
00:30:11.359 --> 00:30:15.829
to change that. We've got to change that. We also,
570
00:30:15.849 --> 00:30:17.910
I think another thing that you'll be able to see
571
00:30:18.250 --> 00:30:23.670
is that people care about what you care about. And
572
00:30:23.730 --> 00:30:25.829
the way that you show somebody that you care about
573
00:30:25.869 --> 00:30:27.400
something is to do it.
574
00:30:28.210 --> 00:30:28.450
Mm-hmm.
575
00:30:29.700 --> 00:30:32.089
But the problem is nobody will sow into what you're
576
00:30:32.119 --> 00:30:34.240
doing because you're just talking and you're not doing.
577
00:30:36.630 --> 00:30:38.529
And you said, well, I can only be able to
578
00:30:38.569 --> 00:30:38.890
do that.
579
00:30:39.190 --> 00:30:42.849
When we first started, I had no idea what we
580
00:30:42.890 --> 00:30:45.089
was going to run out of food in an hour.
581
00:30:45.109 --> 00:30:46.390
That was it.
582
00:30:46.950 --> 00:30:50.150
But it also gave me more knowledge and more information
583
00:30:50.329 --> 00:30:52.710
about what the demand was so that I could be
584
00:30:52.789 --> 00:30:54.549
more prepared the next month.
585
00:30:55.170 --> 00:30:55.450
Mm-hmm.
586
00:30:56.549 --> 00:30:58.029
I didn't have more food the next month.
587
00:30:58.690 --> 00:30:58.890
Mm-hmm.
588
00:31:00.470 --> 00:31:03.390
But what I could do next month was be better organized.
589
00:31:03.450 --> 00:31:05.750
What I could do next month and then I started
590
00:31:05.869 --> 00:31:09.210
thinking of ways and building ways in which we could expand,
591
00:31:09.230 --> 00:31:11.710
which is how the community meal came in place, right?
592
00:31:12.250 --> 00:31:14.490
So you can fill your belly now and you can
593
00:31:14.529 --> 00:31:17.269
take some groceries with you, right? And some people just
594
00:31:17.329 --> 00:31:18.910
came to eat. They didn't need groceries.
595
00:31:18.930 --> 00:31:21.809
Some people were homeless. They couldn't take groceries, but they
596
00:31:21.869 --> 00:31:24.119
could come and get a full belly. That was a
597
00:31:24.190 --> 00:31:27.079
whole segment of people that I wasn't serving that I
598
00:31:27.099 --> 00:31:32.460
didn't know initially. So hunger comes in so many different forms.
599
00:31:32.779 --> 00:31:35.529
Not everybody can take my pack of hot dogs and
600
00:31:35.569 --> 00:31:37.329
bag of rice and go home and cook it. They
601
00:31:37.349 --> 00:31:41.930
live in hotels. They're living outside, but they still are hungry.
602
00:31:42.210 --> 00:31:44.670
How do I meet that need too? And so I
603
00:31:44.710 --> 00:31:49.470
think that there are a lot of valuable tools that
604
00:31:49.490 --> 00:31:52.390
are already in our toolbox, but we don't recognize them
605
00:31:52.450 --> 00:31:57.009
as valuable because we want something else. We think that
606
00:31:57.049 --> 00:32:00.349
if we get a check, from a donor that that's
607
00:32:00.390 --> 00:32:03.670
going to solve all our problems. But the issue is
608
00:32:03.690 --> 00:32:05.450
you still have to be a steward. You still have
609
00:32:05.470 --> 00:32:07.130
to have a plan and you still have to be
610
00:32:07.150 --> 00:32:07.890
able to execute.
611
00:32:08.529 --> 00:32:09.599
Yeah. Yeah.
612
00:32:10.119 --> 00:32:12.299
And so for those that are watching, this is going
613
00:32:12.319 --> 00:32:16.640
to be a hands-on session leading up to unlock 2027
614
00:32:16.640 --> 00:32:20.690
for those that have nonprofit organizations. we're going to have
615
00:32:20.730 --> 00:32:23.329
a segment on the SCN website where you can actually
616
00:32:23.369 --> 00:32:26.210
download worksheets in terms of how to create a budget
617
00:32:26.319 --> 00:32:28.279
with what you have. So we're going to have these
618
00:32:28.500 --> 00:32:34.480
tangible documents and breakout webinars leading up to April 17th, 2027.
619
00:32:34.480 --> 00:32:38.720
And then it all comes together while we're together in
620
00:32:38.779 --> 00:32:40.339
person as a work session, right?
621
00:32:41.339 --> 00:32:42.599
So I want you to know.
622
00:32:42.440 --> 00:32:45.839
For those that's listening, those that's watching, so those that
623
00:32:45.880 --> 00:32:49.019
might be sharing this link, This is going to be
624
00:32:49.140 --> 00:32:52.500
a conference of execution. This is going to be a
625
00:32:52.559 --> 00:32:55.380
conference of meeting of the minds. This is going to
626
00:32:55.420 --> 00:32:57.680
be a conference where you're going to be able to
627
00:32:57.740 --> 00:33:00.819
take and use what you have. And then the multiplication
628
00:33:00.880 --> 00:33:01.660
comes from there.
629
00:33:01.700 --> 00:33:01.960
Right.
630
00:33:02.380 --> 00:33:04.559
And then can you just expand a little bit on
631
00:33:04.940 --> 00:33:05.940
the five lows part?
632
00:33:05.980 --> 00:33:06.500
You touched on it.
633
00:33:06.500 --> 00:33:08.180
I just want you to kind of take us through
634
00:33:08.200 --> 00:33:10.829
that evolution, because I want people to see that you
635
00:33:10.849 --> 00:33:14.410
started from where you started. But even that has began
636
00:33:14.430 --> 00:33:14.829
to blossom.
637
00:33:15.740 --> 00:33:19.319
Yeah, so two fish is the food portion and five loads,
638
00:33:19.460 --> 00:33:22.829
as in loads of laundry, is the laundry support. So
639
00:33:22.880 --> 00:33:26.410
at food distributions, we gave out emergency laundry kits, enough
640
00:33:26.670 --> 00:33:30.990
laundry pods and dryer sheets, et cetera, to do five
641
00:33:31.049 --> 00:33:33.329
loads of laundry. Okay, so that's where the five loads
642
00:33:33.390 --> 00:33:36.089
portion come in. But we also go to laundromats, do
643
00:33:36.109 --> 00:33:39.869
laundry support, which I talked about earlier. Now we're in
644
00:33:41.309 --> 00:33:43.589
the phase where we're going to be putting in a
645
00:33:43.650 --> 00:33:47.140
laundry center. in a local elementary school, in our community,
646
00:33:47.829 --> 00:33:50.609
so that they can help parents to keep uniforms clean
647
00:33:50.990 --> 00:33:58.009
and be able to support. Because again, that dignity piece, right?
648
00:33:58.309 --> 00:34:03.369
That everybody should be able to engage socially, academically, educationally, right?
649
00:34:03.690 --> 00:34:08.800
With clean clothes, right? Oftentimes we don't connect clothes and
650
00:34:09.219 --> 00:34:10.880
hygiene to poverty.
651
00:34:11.320 --> 00:34:12.300
That stuff costs, right?
652
00:34:12.849 --> 00:34:13.130
Right?
653
00:34:13.449 --> 00:34:15.590
And so if you can't afford to feed yourself, you
654
00:34:15.630 --> 00:34:19.210
might be having trouble washing clothes. And laundry is super expensive.
655
00:34:19.489 --> 00:34:22.010
So we're going to be putting in our first laundry center,
656
00:34:22.050 --> 00:34:23.840
Loads of Hope, in a local elementary school a few
657
00:34:23.880 --> 00:34:27.619
blocks from us. And so we're super excited about that.
658
00:34:28.280 --> 00:34:33.760
But just looking to continue to leverage support in the community,
659
00:34:34.579 --> 00:34:38.030
you know, that'll impact those that we serve in a
660
00:34:38.070 --> 00:34:38.610
greater way.
661
00:34:39.829 --> 00:34:41.050
Well, I just.
662
00:34:41.639 --> 00:34:44.539
I'm grateful. I'm thankful that we've been able to make
663
00:34:44.559 --> 00:34:51.159
a connection. And it's opened my perspective on many things
664
00:34:51.179 --> 00:34:53.440
that like kind of told you on a one-on-one basis,
665
00:34:53.480 --> 00:34:56.659
but just in seeing how you allow the Lord to, to,
666
00:34:56.699 --> 00:34:59.019
to work through you. And, and I know you say
667
00:34:59.039 --> 00:35:01.929
that people say it's not innovative, but it's a drought
668
00:35:02.010 --> 00:35:06.269
in many situations. You've taken what should be in making
669
00:35:06.309 --> 00:35:08.730
it what it is in the present and in the now.
670
00:35:08.869 --> 00:35:12.380
And so, I'm so grateful that you will be with
671
00:35:12.440 --> 00:35:15.239
us again at Unlock 2027. And now from this perspective
672
00:35:15.579 --> 00:35:19.920
in the keynote, um, under the keynote umbrella and how
673
00:35:19.980 --> 00:35:20.929
can people reach you?
674
00:35:22.630 --> 00:35:27.510
People can follow me on, um, uh, TikTok or Instagram
675
00:35:27.929 --> 00:35:31.719
at girl preach number seven. And on Facebook, I'm just
676
00:35:31.800 --> 00:35:35.809
under my name, Angelic Williams. And, um, I look forward
677
00:35:35.889 --> 00:35:40.489
to being at the Unlock conference and continuing my relationship
678
00:35:40.550 --> 00:35:44.639
with Strategic Collaboration Network because it has really, really been
679
00:35:44.659 --> 00:35:47.760
a source of great encouragement and to help me gain
680
00:35:48.159 --> 00:35:50.719
just the practical skills. Like I said, we have to
681
00:35:50.780 --> 00:35:55.630
fill that knowledge gap that we have so that we
682
00:35:55.670 --> 00:35:58.289
can serve more effectively. But I am looking forward to
683
00:35:58.429 --> 00:36:01.130
each and every one of you to join us at
684
00:36:01.170 --> 00:36:05.480
the Unlock 2027 conference where you will become a doer.
685
00:36:05.500 --> 00:36:07.050
You're not going to be a talker no more. You're
686
00:36:07.070 --> 00:36:08.849
going to be a doer because you're coming to get
687
00:36:08.969 --> 00:36:12.389
unlocked so that you can walk in your God-given purpose,
688
00:36:12.690 --> 00:36:15.769
that you can complete the assignments and serve the people
689
00:36:16.130 --> 00:36:20.110
in the for-profit or nonprofit sector as God has already
690
00:36:20.150 --> 00:36:21.889
poured into your heart. And I can't wait to partner
691
00:36:21.909 --> 00:36:23.059
with each and every one of you.
692
00:36:23.800 --> 00:36:24.440
Absolutely.
693
00:36:24.539 --> 00:36:27.139
Family, we want you to go to the website, go
694
00:36:27.159 --> 00:36:29.800
to strategiccnetwork.com.
695
00:36:30.099 --> 00:36:32.199
Again, that's strategiccnetwork.com.
696
00:36:32.599 --> 00:36:37.050
You can click on the tab that says Unlocked 2027,
697
00:36:37.050 --> 00:36:40.250
and you're going to get so much information about the conference.
698
00:36:41.150 --> 00:36:45.190
It is going to be absolutely powerful. Stay locked and
699
00:36:45.230 --> 00:36:47.389
loaded to the website. Stay locked and loaded to our
700
00:36:47.489 --> 00:36:52.690
Instagram and Facebook under Strategic C Network. We will be
701
00:36:52.769 --> 00:36:55.610
rolling out a lot of information as the weeks and
702
00:36:55.650 --> 00:36:58.989
months progress forward, but you do not want to miss it.
703
00:36:59.659 --> 00:37:02.239
I have a colleague out in Boston, Massachusetts, and he
704
00:37:02.260 --> 00:37:05.039
put on his LinkedIn page, he said, tickets will sell out.
705
00:37:05.159 --> 00:37:08.030
And I really believe that is going to happen. So
706
00:37:08.119 --> 00:37:09.769
we want to be a part of it. And for
707
00:37:09.809 --> 00:37:12.349
those of you that do represent nonprofit organizations, we have
708
00:37:12.389 --> 00:37:14.289
something special that we'll be able to announce down the
709
00:37:14.349 --> 00:37:16.750
road and how we're going to support leaders in the
710
00:37:16.769 --> 00:37:19.719
nonprofit community. And with that being said, we're going to
711
00:37:19.760 --> 00:37:21.480
see everybody at the top.
712
00:37:22.300 --> 00:37:23.400
See you then.
713
00:37:23.440 --> 00:37:23.940
See you then.