Portraits of Hope
While the statistics about poverty paint a picture of a country in need of change, here are the stories of people who are working in their communities to make a difference.
Blocks Together
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Some days, as Delores Collins walked to work, she would kick needles into the sewer so kids wouldn't step on them. Her Chicago neighborhood was "a tough area, with lots of drugs and gangs." Then George Goehl from Blocks Together (BT) showed up at her door and invited her to join the CCHD-funded neighborhood group working with residents to improve the community. |
Family Farm Defenders
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In Wisconsin, the farm crisis has hit families especially hard. So Family Farm Defenders (FFD) is turning to the state's best-known export - cheese - among other foods as a way to keep these family-owned businesses in operation. The group is organizing farmers and establishing a cooperative system to bring high-quality food to market at fair prices. |
ICARE
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In Jacksonville, Florida, one group's push to improve reading skills in a neighborhood elementary school is a study in community empowerment. For Beverly Coffey, it's just what her son needed. The group, ICARE, implemented a teaching method for reading, called direct instruction, in her son's school district. |
Beacons and Bridges
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James Lawrence knows how hard it can be to start a business. Last year, he opened Prestige One Landscaping in Jonesboro, Ark., with no equipment or inventory but the dream of being his own boss. Although he made nearly $100,000, he spent three-quarters of it on advertising, franchise fees, and materials. Thats when he turned to Beacons & Bridges (B&B), a local non-profit started in 1998 by the Blessed Sacrament Church. |