Letter to Mayor Carlton S. Finkbeiner

Dear Mr. Mayor,

Thank you for reading this letter, and also for absorbing its contents.

I know well, that you are concerned about the home. The death of Detective Keith Dressel by the hands of a boy has led you to conclude that something needs to be done. And so you are actively drafting legislation that makes parents more accountable.

This week you will ignore, sign or veto a city ordinance allowing for domestic partnerships to be registered legally in our city. Because you are concerned about the family, and because there is societal temptation to sign such an ordinance, at the end of the day Mr. Mayor, how will you reconcile the difference in opinion?

I implore you to take a moment and think about the obvious lost connection that Robert Jobe has to society. Young Mr. Jobe’s problems started in the home, with his parents.

The data that Cherry Street Mission Ministries has documented over the last several years make it clear that 80% of the hundreds of men and women, who arrive at our doors each day, grew up in a broken home. This must be a clarion call for a caring community to come to the aid of the broken family.

It’s clear to me, and to other community leaders, that approval of this ordinance pulls on the string of the already unraveling home and family environment. Will you be a part of that unraveling Mr. Mayor, or will you lead the community in an honest open discussion regarding the family?

Your veto this week Mayor Finkbeiner would at the very least, allow time for the community to convene meetings for the purpose of debate and discussion.

Along with many other community leaders, I urge you to strongly consider a veto regarding the domestic partnership ordinance.

Sincerely,

Daniel J. Rogers

If you've been following this story in the Toledo Blade and local news outlets, you already know that in the afternoon of Wednesday, November 22nd Mayor Finkbeiner signed into law the ordinance that allows for the legal registration of domestic partnerships.

I personally know several leaders of the faith community who wrote this kind of letter and either mailed it or hand delivered it to the Mayor's Office the week of the 20th. We were NOT HEARD - why?? The answer I believe is simple; because we haven't used our voice in the last several years, it seems to be unrecognizable to the Mayor.

It's time we find our voice once more - and perhaps the next time the faith community speaks we'll be heard.

Mayor Finkbeiner - I won't forget this.

Dan Rogers

Where are the parents?

Recently Robert Jobe, a 15 year old who shot and killed a Toledo Police Officer, was convicted of murder and will soon be sentenced to 18 years to life.

I'm not sure much more needs to be said, except to try and answer the prevailing question of our community since that fog filled early morning when Detective Dressel's life was swiftly taken from him.

Where were the parents?

Make no mistake, parents are the head waters of our society - what flows from these headwaters and how it flows through the tributaries of our communities determine whether we have a high productive community or a high risk community.

I think there's a bigger question; Who is out there for the parent?

Dan Rogers

A moment with the "Cougar"

For the last two years, Cherry Street Mission Ministries has been one of the driving supporters of the Homeless Awareness Project called Tent City. Tent City is held the first full weekend in November, beginning Friday and ending on Sunday.

Doni Miller who is the host of the weekly Bridges show on TV channel 13 asked Ken Leslie, Richard Langford and myself, as we were being interviewed in preparation for the event; "What are you hoping to fix with Tent City?" The short answer is 'Nothing'. For those of us who serve the community in need throughout the year, we know that a weekend of awareness won't solve or fix any problems the least, last and lost experience each day.

There is a problem though that can be fixed with such an awareness project - AWARENESS. In Toledo the problems of incarceration and poverty causing homelessness are mostly ignored by the key members of government and the media. There are far too many 'drive by conversations' about the systemic causing problems that are plaguing real people and fostering a generation of disenfranchised and disconnected citizenry.

So - the once a year Tent City is designed to put both the problem and the solution visibly in the public eye. We desire for all people to slow down for a moment and realize that with just a little more effort, we can actually change as a city. We can change from being 'sad' about the problems people are facing and actually join in on the solution.

With a few (hundred) phone calls, mostly driven by Ken Leslie, John 'Cougar' Mellencamp who was in town on Friday for a concert, took a moment before the concert and came down to Tent City with his wife and son. I was happily tagged as the one who would chauffeur them to and from Tent City. Upon arriving at Tent City John and his family spent several minutes of private time talking with a few folks who have been homeless and have been restored. He then accepted the key of the City from Mayor Carty Finkbeiner, made a few remarks to all who were in attendance and then to the surprise and delight of the crowd, invited them all to the concert as his guest.

Knowing I would maybe have a total of 15 - 20 minutes 'car' time with John Mellencamp, we talked openly about his own addictions earlier in life and how he overcame them. We talked about the systemic issues of incarceration, poverty and homelessness and how his own problems started very early in his life - it was a great conversation.

By understanding the deep rooted (systemic) dynamics of our community, we can plot a different course than we've been on as a community. I know a lot of people talk this way - especially today, because it's election day here in Toledo. HOWEVER, let's not relegate our responsibility to the politicians and levies.

We've had several decades of this approach and it's not working. Rather, let's rise up as citizens, as volunteers and convene our own meetings and think tanks and produce our own solutions that will solve these problems once and for all - for all!

What do you think?

Dan Rogers