Hi

Wow, so much to report on since our last newsletter. First of all we have restarted the Man Class© in Kansas City with our first cycle ending on Friday the 29th of March with a graduating class of nine men. Our training model has changed to meet the needs of our men and our new business partners. The training now consists of three weeks and includes OSHA10 certification, asbestos handling, and Section 3 certification in addition to our Man Class© copyrighted curriculum. I was very proud of the effort and enthusiasm of the first cycle; the guys were engaged and supportive of one another. Keep up the good work guys!

Second announcement is that ReEngage, Inc. has partnered with The Dalmark Group and Straub Construction to provide employment opportunities for neighborhood and community residents. As a result of this partnership ReEngage, Inc. has launched ReEngage Staffing Services. ReEngage Staffing Services is a temporary staffing agency looking to provide our Man Class© graduates with the opportunity to become employed after successfully completing our 3 week training program. While many employers publicly support hiring long-term unemployed or reentry persons the truth is that many are unable to do so because of the risks involved. As the head of a company they have a fiduciary and a security responsibility to their shareholders, employees, and customers and the risk of employing these persons may be too great for them to bear. If as an employer all you know about a person is what is on the sheet of paper in front of you and if that sheet of paper is not very flattering then the risk associated with hiring that person precludes the opportunity to take a chance and see how they will work out. Also, while we may request our men to become more responsible and engaged if we do not provide the opportunity to make a living it rings hollow. Finally, this provides an opportunity for developers and contractors to invest some of the public funds they may receive for a project back into that community.

I am proud to announce that beginning on Monday April 1st, 2013, six graduates of our 1st Man Class cycle of 2013 began work at the Bancroft Project. We are so proud of these men who have been among the long-term unemployed getting back to productivity and bringing not only new economic activity but also community engagement back into our community. With the help of our business partners we hope to have 50 men employed by the end of this year.

While there have been some challenges in launching these programs and new business models we see them not as challenges, but as opportunities to do things differently. If we are to truly redevelop and revitalize the urban core we must be willing to think about challenges differently. The status quo is broken and cannot be fixed. The time has come for new ideas and new solutions to these entrenched problems. We think we have found one piece of the puzzle and look forward to working with others in the community to overcome these serious challenges. No one group or program is going to solve these issues; they are too entrenched and too widespread. Let us as a community join hands and begin the work of building bridges and pathways out of the poverty that has kept too many of our best and brightest from reaching their potential.

This month we would like to introduce Mr. Otis Cornelious, a graduate of the Man Class© cycle 1 in Kansas City. Otis’ background unfortunately is all too common for too many males in our community. He was born to a single mother without knowledge of who his father was and a mother that had to spend too much time away from her kids working. Otis was born and raised in Kansas City and basically was raised by the streets. His male role models were the street hustlers and thugs he met on the streets who taught him to be hard hearted and cold. Otis entered the Man Class© with a lot of anger and a lack of self-esteem. While he was able to graduate from high school, he had no direction and was just wandering through life from one day to the next. This lack of a vision for one’s life is condemning too many in our community to this day to day survival mode which makes progress and movement very difficult.

As the sessions continued you could see day by day the hardness and anger in Otis slowly dissipate and he became more willing to open up and be honest with himself. One of the obstacles to change is an unwillingness that many have to self-honesty and self-reflection. One of the unfortunate consequences of the civil rights movement was this attitude promoted by certain leaders that a person’s behavior was dependent on the behavior of others, so that if others were wrong then I could be wrong until they got right. The problem with this philosophy is that it assumes two wrongs make a right which we all know is a flawed philosophy. If I am not responsible for my actions, but they are dependent on the actions of others then I have no responsibility to change or to improve. The consequences of this flawed thinking are evident throughout our community in the devaluation of education, drug and alcohol abuse, and the epidemic of unmarried births.

Otis stated that the most important lessons he came away from the training with was an understanding of the 3 P’s of manhood. The 3 P’s of manhood that we use are that men do basically three things: They protect those they love, they provide for those they love, and they praise those they love. Another lesson he talked about was being willing to nurture those around him; because of his difficult childhood he did not receive a lot of nurturing and in turn could not accept or provide nurturing to others. He is now making a conscious effort to nurture those around him. Finally, he stated that he now has a more positive attitude and feeling for the future.

By the time graduation arrived Otis was engaged and participating in the sessions and was remarkably lucid and provided thoughtful comments during discussions. Otis is now gainfully employed and expecting his first child. He is more positive about his future and the future of his family. It is gratifying to see a life change because you know that it will have a rippling effect not just on the individual but also on their family and their community.

ReEngage, Inc., is proud to announce the formation of ReEngage Staffing Services a new division under ReEngage, Inc. ReEngage Staffing Services is a temporary staffing agency looking to provide our Man Class© graduates with the opportunity to become employed after successful completion of a 3 week training program. Thanks to the partnership of the Dalmark Group and the Straub Construction Company we will be able to place workers at job sites around the city. Our first site is the Bancroft School Project located at the 4300 block of Tracy, which is a former school being converted into affordable apartments and townhouses. We were fortunate enough to place six of our first nine graduates into employment this week. ReEngage Staffing Services is also exploring partnerships with other contractors and trade unions. After completing our three week training our graduates will be OSHA10 certified, asbestos awareness training, and Section 3 certified.

Some may ask why we started this venture and is it needed. We believe that it is needed for a number of reasons. First, while many employers publicly support hiring long-term unemployed or reentry persons the truth is that many are unable to do so because of the risks involved. As the head of a company they have a fiduciary and a security responsibility to their shareholders, employees, and customers and the risk of employing these persons may be too great for them to bear. If as an employer all you know about a person is what is on the sheet in front of you and if that sheet is not very flattering then the risk associated with hiring that person precludes the opportunity to take a chance and see how they will work out. Second, while we may request our men to become more responsible and engaged without the opportunity to make a living it rings hollow. Finally, this provides an opportunity for developers and contractors to invest some of the public funds they may receive for a project back into that community.

We are excited about this opportunity and look forward to expanding these opportunities into other areas of business and in other areas of the state. God continues to bless this ministry beyond what we could ever imagine.

I first met Jim Nichols a couple of years ago when I was the president of the Manheim Neighborhood Association. Mr. Nichols had responded to our neighborhoods desire to repurpose the then shuttered Bancroft School. The neighborhood had been seeking a development partner for about two years and had been unable to secure a developer or financing for repurposing the school. The neighborhood had realized that the largest asset as well as the largest eye sore was the Bancroft School building and that redeveloping our neighborhood would have to revolve around the school. Mr. Nichols impressed me because he came to the meeting seeking the opinions of the neighborhood and was willing to listen to our concerns as well as our ideas. I stated to Mr. Nichols that in order for me to support any project the project would have to provide jobs for neighborhood residents and also allow the neighborhood to have a presence in the complex.  Mr. Nichols agreed and our relationship began from there. As the time has passed Mr. Nichols and the Dalmark Group have been our largest benefactor and most vocal supporter. If it were not for their support ReEngage, Inc. would not be in the position it is in today.

Mr. Nichols has stated on numerous occasions that his support for ReEngage is rooted in his own personal experiences. When he initially got started in the real estate development field there were people who for whatever reasons would not give him an opportunity and he struggled getting his business off the ground. Well, Dalmark has gone on to become very successful, but Jim never forgot his own personal struggles and believes that everyone deserves an opportunity to demonstrate what talents they have. He is also a firm believer in providing second chances. “We have all made mistakes and if we are able to learn from those mistakes then we should be afforded a second chance.” stated Mr. Nichols.

It is due to Mr. Nichols and Dalmark’s unwavering support of ReEngage that we are able to announce our new staffing venture and that we have given six men the opportunity to once again collect a paycheck and provide for their families. Mr. Nichols generosity extends beyond ReEngage as he has provided expertise, funding, and mentoring to a number of small and minority businesses throughout his career. Thank you Jim and the Dalmark Group for your generosity and support to ReEngage. We couldn’t have done it without you!

http://www.dalmarkgroup.com/

The first cycle Man Class held its graduation on Friday 3/29/13 with a class of nine men who completed the training and received their certificates, which included OSHA10 and hazardous materials handling. We were fortunate to have City Councilman Jermaine Reed in attendance, along with Mr. Parker Young representing the Straub Construction Company. We are proud to announce that six of the men will be reporting to work Monday 4/1/13 at the Bancroft School Project thanks to our partnership with The Dalmark Group and Straub Construction.

Cycle 1 Graduates:
Mr. Andre Beard
Mr. Travis Bray
Mr. Otis Cornelious
Mr. Curtis Iverson
Mr. Jerry Jackson
Mr. Luther Long
Mr. Ronnie Long
Mr. Anthony Marshall
Mr. Allen Tate

Let’s give a big congratulation to these men who have decided to help in the redevelopment of their community. A key component in the ReEngage program is volunteerism and these men have agreed to volunteer 2 Saturdays a month in their communities in neighborhood projects. Our hope is that you will begin to see these men in the community helping bring about positive change!