Dear Johnson City Neighbors,
Fellow Change Agents and Interested Community Members;
The George F.
Johnson Dream Center is calling the residents of Johnson City and the greater
community to converge on the south side of Johnson City on three Sunday
afternoons in the Fall of 2011.We are assembling
the community to keep the Johnson legacy of goodwill alive by mobilizing residents
for neighborhood restoration on September 11, 25, and October 16.We encourage faith and service groups,
students, and others interested in making a difference to come alongside residents
ready to help in some way.We will
provide tools and supplies and are also asking volunteers to bring brooms,
clippers, weedwackers, leaf blowers, power washers, trimmers, to use throughout
the neighborhoods.Meet in the parking
lot of Sarah Jane Johnson Church, 308 Main Street Johnson City, across from the
JC Post Office, next to Wilson Hospital, at 1 PM and work until 4 PM.The southside neighborhood extends from
Floral Avenue to Grand Ave and our hope is that we will garner enough support
from the community and residents themselves to create a strong sense of
community and begin the process of the restoration of neighborhoods.Residents of the south side, who participate in
the clean ups, will be eligible to receive a $50.00 gift card to Kovarik
Hardware after participation September 11, to purchase supplies to make improvements
to the front of their homes and yards.
On each clean up date, canopies with supplies and refreshments will be located at various locations in our target area.
The initiative for
restoration and renewal was begun the Spring of 2011, with six prior
beautification dates, and then boosted when the Dream Center was awarded a $24,000.00
grant from the Upper New York Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church.The generous grant we have received will
enable families to beautify the exterior of their homes and yards,
regardless of whether they "rent or own" the building in which they reside. The hope
is for renewal on every level, renewal which will gird up foundations which, in
our day, under our watch, are very weak. We are calling on leaders
to seize this day and set aside "the tyranny of the
urgent" for that which is vitally important to us all, the chance to
bring hope to places where there sometimes is very little. The
effort is a plan to empower everyday people to make their lives better, for the
greater community to come alongside people who live in an area that needs the
help of others. For if there are no messengers, there is no
message. There is no change. This is an opportunity for individuals
to build a sense of community.
Now that we have
the means, we need the human power. We need your time, effort and commitment
and will not be successful in this call, unless you see yourself as a link
to your family, friends and neighbors to communicate its great
potential to plant hope. Please spread the word and act as a center of
influence in the circles with which you associate.
If you would like to be
involved in the work of the Dream Center at Sarah Jane, please let us
know. Sub-committees and planning teams on various initiatives meet
regularly. There are many ways to be involved. From
capacity-building to strengthening existing infrastructure for long-term
success, to youth programs aimed at drop out and gang prevention, involvement
does not hinge on your ability to attend our regular advisory board
meetings. We are making a difference and are actively looking
for stakeholders who wish to commit to the important work of "keeping
the legacy of goodwill alive in Johnson City."
Sincerely,
Your friends and neighbors at the GFJ Dream Center,
