8A
November 4, 2011 Young job seekers fi nd inspiration, help through church Now, like many young
graduates, she is living back at home with her family. She values the time she has now to reconnect with her family, but her dream is to be a forensics accountant working with the FBI or the IRS. “I know how strong I am, and I
Juanita V. Pierre, 24, chats with Mimi Kelly (left), who works the volunteer information desk as part of RUMC Job Networking.
UMNS PHOTO BY KATHLEEN BARRY
BY KATHY L. GILBERT United Methodist News Service
ROSWELL, Ga.—Emily
Hatcher, 26, is working overtime to fi nd a job. She keeps a strict schedule. On
Monday, Wednesday and Friday she spends six to eight hours applying for jobs. T e other days of the week, she sharpens her skills by taking computer classes online and networking. T e college graduate with a
degree in early childhood education works as a babysitter and a substitute schoolteacher. “I put maybe 200 résumés in
before I actually get a call,” says the pretty, quiet young woman, dressed for success in dark sweater, skirt and sensible shoes, attending RUMC Job Networking, a ministry of Roswell United Methodist Church. “Most of the girls I know are
nannies, looking for other jobs,” she says. “It is diffi cult because of the economy. I know a lot of people my age are looking for other jobs not in their fi eld.”
A dire need Hatcher is part of a job-
networking group that meets at the church every other Monday. T e table host for the 21/29
group is Mark Reynolds, 26, who has been a member of the church all his life. As he puts it, “I started out in the babies’ class.” Katherine Simons, coordinator
of the job-networking ministry, approached Reynolds about starting a group for young job seekers last year. “She said she thought the need was pretty dire,” Reynolds recalls. He has 53 people on his contact
Kitchen Equip. & Supplies Buy at our prices and $ave 1-800-482-9026 or 228-0808 AIMCO EQUIPMENT CO.
Arkansas United Methodist
list for the group. He says one of the fi rst lessons
he learned was “to manage people’s expectations.” Young people coming into the
church have degrees from schools like Penn State, Georgia State, Tennessee, Colorado, Vanderbilt and Boston—even Harvard. “A young woman came in last
week, and she has an MBA from Penn State,” Reynolds says. “An MBA from Penn State is considered one of the best in the nation.” Still, she has not been able to
fi nd a job. “Some of her confi dence has
been shattered; some of her ability to portray herself in the best light has been shattered,” Reynolds says. “T e job I have and the job others here have is to restore some of that confi dence and introduce her to Christ and a faith-based confi dence, rather than skills and talents-based confi dence.” It is his job to remind her that
her potential is just as high as it was when she graduated.
Building a network Juanita V. Pierre, 24, just
graduated with dual degrees in accounting and Spanish. In college, she focused all her energy and time on making good grades. She expected to graduate, get a job and start her life.
believe in myself,” she says. “I am hard working, and they are going to see that. T ey are going to hire me. I feel like maybe in the next six months, hopefully, I will get exactly what I am looking for.” David Hampe, 25, just
graduated with a degree in civil engineering. He has a part-time job at the school from which he graduated but is coming to Roswell to “launch my career right the fi rst time.” He says he is technically homeless. All his stuff is packed in boxes, and he lives at his sister’s house during the week and goes to his parents’ home on the weekends. “Nobody is designed to go
through this job search on their own, to go through life on their own
in general,” he says. T e 21/29 group gives him accountability with people his age and introduces him to a new group of professionals outside the range of his normal group of friends. “When you build and establish
a relationship with people who are in a job search with you, you build a bond of people who care and are willing to pay it forward to help everyone out until everyone in the group is hired,” he says.
Finding hope Hatcher says everyone told her
to go to Roswell United Methodist Church to join the job-networking ministry. “I have actually gotten more
interviews through their job postings than other job postings. Instead of just going online and applying for jobs, I have had a lot more contacts through career networking,” she says. “A lot of people fi nd their identity
in their job,” she adds, “especially
when you are young and trying to fi nd your fi t. I think a lot of people think their career is who they are.” T at’s where faith steps in, she
says. “We talk about that at RUMC,
that you are God’s workmanship, that he created you with special qualities and spiritual giſt s. He is going to use those as long as you know who you are and you use them in the best way you can.” Hatcher, her older sister and
brother—all in their 20s—are living at home with their single mom, who is caretaker for her mother. Hatcher feels blessed to have her family, and she knows God will take care of her. “I just keep applying, keep
looking, and I think the economy is going to get better. T at’s my hope. I think there will be a lot more jobs created.”
Gilbert is a multimedia reporter for the young adult content team at United Methodist Communications, Nashville, Tenn.
UMFA grant supports professional development program for the Crossing Jordan Movement
T e United Methodist Foundation of Arkansas (UMFA) has made a grant to fund a new professional
development program for the Crossing Jordan Movement, an interdisciplinary approach for renewal, strengthening and advancement of African-American congregations in the Arkansas Conference. “We are pleased to support the Crossing Jordan Movement,” said Jim Argue Jr., UMFA President and CEO. “Our
grant expands training for selected African-American pastors in their initial assignments, fosters relationships between these ministers and ultimately helps retain their service to Arkansas congregations.” Begun in 2008, the Crossing Jordan Movement has sponsored district and statewide meetings of African-
American clergy and lay people. T ese events bolster relationships and provide leadership training. Members of the movement are preparing a new comprehensive plan for ethnic ministries to be presented at the 2012 Annual Conference. “T e UMFA grant is being used to provide additional professional development and mentoring to African
American pastors beyond the resources already off ered by the Conference,” said the Rev. Maxine Allen, Conference Minister for Ethnic Ministries. “T rough this grant, Retired Bishop Felton May is serving as an individual mentor to seven African-American pastors in the state who also come together for group meetings and peer interaction.” UMFA manages $106 million in endowment funds and other charitable assets that benefi t churches and United Methodist ministries, and is sixth largest in assets among the 49 United Methodist Foundations in the country.
STAINED GLASS
BUSINESS & PROFESSIONAL DIRECTORY Daily Bread Counseling
COUNSELING COUNSELING (Member of Clergy Counseling Network) Rev. Garry D. Teeter, MS, LPC, NCC, CBIST Offices in Benton, Hot Springs, Little Rock, & Dardanelle
Call for confidential appointment 501.847.2229 | 1.877.847.2229
www.dailybreadcounseling.com
www.arumc.org
CHARTERED BUS
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20