Martin Luther King Jr.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., graduated from Morehouse College in 1948, Crozer Theological Seminary in 1951, and Boston University earning a Ph.D. in 1955. The son of the pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, King was ordained in 1947. In 1955 he led the black boycott of segregated city bus lines and in 1956 gained a major victory and prestige as a civil-rights leader when Montgomery buses began to operate on a desegregated basis.

King organized the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), which gave him a base to pursue further civil-rights activities, first in the South and later nationwide. His philosophy of nonviolent resistance led to his arrest on numerous occasions in the 1950s and 60s. His campaigns had mixed success, but the protest he led in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963 brought him worldwide attention. He spearheaded the August 1963, March on Washington, which brought together more than 200,000 people. In 1964 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

King's leadership in the civil-rights movement was challenged in the mid-1960s as others grew more militant. His interests, however, widened from civil rights to include criticism of the Vietnam War and a deeper concern over poverty. His plans for a Poor People's March to Washington were interrupted in 1968 for a trip to Memphis, Tenn., in support of striking sanitation workers. On April 4, 1968, he was shot and killed as he stood on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel. The Lorraine Motel was established in 1991 as a civil-rights museum.

Here is an excerpt from his acceptance speech of the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo.

I accept this award today with an abiding faith in America and an audacious faith in the future of mankind. I refuse to accept despair as the final response to the ambiguities of history. I refuse to accept the idea that the "isness" of man's present nature makes him morally incapable of reaching up for the eternal "oughtness" that forever confronts him. I refuse to accept the idea that man is mere flotsom and jetsom in the river of life, unable to influence the unfolding events which surround him. I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality.

I refuse to accept the cynical notion that nation after nation must spiral down a militaristic stairway into the hell of thermonuclear destruction. I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right temporarily defeated is stronger than evil triumphant. I believe that even amid today's mortar bursts and whining bullets, there is still hope for a brighter tomorrow. I believe that wounded justice, lying prostrate on the blood-flowing streets of our nations, can be lifted from this dust of shame to reign supreme among the children of men. I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits. I believe that what self-centered men have torn down men other-centered can build up. I still believe that one day mankind will bow before the altars of God and be crowned triumphant over war and bloodshed, and nonviolent redemptive good will proclaim the rule of the land. "And the lion and the lamb shall lie down together and every man shall sit under his own vine and fig tree and none shall be afraid." I still believe that We Shall overcome!

Enjoy the Holiday.

Dan Rogers

The Golden Rule

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Its fairly simple, isn't it? If you want it done to you - do it to someone else ... and if you don't want it to happen to you, don't 'happen' to someone else.

Steven R. Covey in his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People asks this question; "How would life be different if everyone on the planet observed this simple rule?" My guess is the world we all live in (and complain about) can change and experience transformation, if not out right reform, when we all decide a different take on our actions.

This is Samuel 'Golden Rule' Jones.

Samuel Milton "Golden Rule" Jones became Mayor of the great City of Toledo on February 25, 1897. That day would usher in a nearly two decade period of reform government in the city and would propel Mayor Jones to national and even international fame.

As mayor Jones aligned himself with the progressive forces of Toledo who had long championed greater municipal regulation of the economy. With their help Jones succeeded in securing the city's first civil service system, fostered the growth of the city's park system, cracked down on police brutality, and expanded relief programs for the indigent and poor. Unlike other progressives, Jones did not believe in using the city's police power to enforce morality. He refused to prosecute prostitutes or shut down beer halls. Whenever he could, Jones presided over the city's police court and dismissed most of the cases brought before him out of sympathy for the poor. The poor, Jones said, "have no money, they have no council and for petty offenses that are not offenses at all when committed by the rich, they are fined, imprisoned, disgraced and degraded."

Helen Beach Jones, Samuel M. Jones's second wife, was born in Toledo on April 28, 1857. She was his helpmate during the years he made national history as the mayor of Toledo. She composed music, gave lessons, and was active in the Toledo Women's club, the Samagama Club, and laid the groundwork for Beach house, a homeless women's shelter named for her mother.

The Beach House continues to this day as a shelter for women and children to experience life transformation.

The Golden Rule people .... what do you think?

Dan

The 1231 Plan

The leadership of Cherry Street Mission Ministries is thinking ahead - in this case, we're thinking at least three years ahead and have developed The 1231 Plan. The 1231 focuses on a single day in our future; December 31, 2010.

We have asked, and are now answering through careful planning; What will Cherry Street Mission Ministries be doing on December 31, 2010?

Steven R. Covey says in his book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People; "Begin with the end in mind". If we know what we will be doing, then we can reverse engineer the steps necessary to reach the goals of that single day.

Here are some of the objectives we'll be working on and developing for 2008:

• Social Service Enterprises that will begin with schools for the culinary arts and construction.
• Serving the Church to be equipped and effective in reaching, training and supporting parents.
• After care programs that will support and connect our Ready For Life Graduates returning to the communities.
• Moving our Administrative Offices from the Monroe Street facility in an effort to provide improved living quarters for men in our program.
• Adopt A Block Programs that will reach into the systemic and rooted issues of neighborhoods.
• And much more ...
  

To receive additional information about The 1231 Plan, contact our office at 419-242-5141 or send me an email at danrogers@cherrystreetmission.org and we'll invite you to one of our quarterly community briefing sessions, held throughout the year.

On behalf of the Board of Directors, The Chairman of the Board Don Weiss, our Staff and our Guests ... Thank you for a wonderful year of service.

Dan

My Friend Ken

Each early November Cherry Street Mission Ministries participates, rather heavily, in Tent City. In November I blogged about 'An Evening with the Cougar' where I write about John 'Cougar' Mellencamp taking a moment from a busy schedule to visit with our homeless and impoverished fellow citizens.

Tent City is a Homeless Awareness Project where we ask our community ... the whole community to slow down for a moment and think about, and to experience, what CAN be done about homelessness and poverty causing homelessness.

Well ... that's Ken. Ken Leslie started Tent City several years ago, and only in the last two years has the project come back from a short hiatus. For the last several years, Ken has been actively engaged in a newly forming group called the Toledo Lucas County Homeless Board, or TLC for short. Since it's inception, going on five years now, the group has met to form a process to address homelessness. Now, it -like so many groups seems enamored with the mundane slowness of talking. This talking has led to more talking which has led to planning, and now there is talking about the planning.

Finally, Ken had enough and resigned from the Board last month. As a matter of fact if you go to You Tube and search for 'TLC' you'll see a five minute video of Ken talking about his experience. I like Ken, he's got a lot of passion for people and in his heart he wants nothing more than frankly .... the same thing I want; to end homelessness - period. You can also go to www.1matters.org to catch up on some recent events.

Tonight however, we will hold a rally at 7:00 in front of One Government Center to memorialize the men and women who have died this year - homeless. While these annual memorial events sadden me to the core, my hope is in Christ and with His hope we will continue to work and serve together for a better day for ALL people.

Merry Christmas everyone,

Dan

The Mayor's Response

Dear Dan:

Thank you for communicating your position on the Domestic Partners Registry ordinance.

The issue of a Toledo-sponsored DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIP REGISTRY is controversial on the surface.

As some may know, I am a very strong Christian believer. Strong enough since an early age, that in my 20's I visited the Episcopal Seminary of Virginia seeking entrance. Though I eventually chose not to enter the seminary, my religious faith and practice is deep.

While I do not endorse alternative lifestyles, I believe in minority rights, and champion diversity. Most importantly, America is all about protecting the individual rights of each citizen.

While I champion the sanctity of the traditional American family of husband, wife and children, I also have seen the love and trust and nurturing of some non-traditional relationships. There is no magic guarantee of life-long happiness in either case.

The Domestic Partnership Registry is not about endorsing alternative lifestyles. It is about legal and insurance protection being extended to those considered the partners of any insurance covered employee. And, in this country of tolerance, progressive companies, universities, and cities are extending insurance coverage to such partners.

I respect human beings making free personal decisions regarding their friendships and relationships. That should be their call - not mine.

I believe God blesses all men and women who love Him, and seek to live a life of loving their fellow man - even when you may not agree with that fellow man.

City Council passed this legislation with a vote of 10-2, after hearing public comment on this proposal.

Calls and e-mails to my office have been evenly spilt for and against. I would encourage both sides to take a step back, take a deep breath and cherish the true meaning of Thanksgiving to all who came and come to this country seeking freedom.

Yours from Toledo - a City of the Future!

Carty Finkbeiner
Mayor

Mayor - you can't continue to have it both ways.

Dan Rogers

The Upside of Desperation

The other day I was driving to Columbus with four friends, Glen, Andy and Mary, to visit with Francis Strickland the First Lady of the State of Ohio. On the way we got to talking about why people today don't seem to care about what's going on around them whether locally, nationally or in the world.

My observation, for some time now, is that there is an upside to desperation. If necessity is the Mother of invention, then desperation is the father of necessity. Simply put; desperation creates necessity and necessity creates invention.

If we haven't come up with solutions, creative ideas or manufactured new inventive actions regarding broken families, poverty and homelessness its only because we're not discomforted or desperate enough about it. In fact I'm sure you'll agree that we as human beings don't like discomfort causing desperation, and so we avoid it at all costs - naturally. For example I don't like the discomfort of the cold and so I wear a coat ... and maybe even a sweater if I'm feeling even a little cold making it's way through the coat.

I'm not entirely sure however, in our driven state to eradicate all discomfort from our lives, we've thought much about the upside of discomfort causing desperation.

The men and women who graduate each year from our Ready For Life Program, did so because they embraced desperation and made it work through necessity and .... WOW, a new life was born. That's transformation.

Our city, and the things we don't like about it, will change just like the transformed lives of Cherry Street Mission Ministries when we as its citizens and particularly its churches, embrace just enough desperation to create something new.

Tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.

Dan Rogers

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