Resources

So you know something about the story of need. Now what?

Take a personal inventory – Before you write yourself into a particular story of need, reflect on your own story, and your unique passions, dreams, gifts, talents and experiences. Our narrative-based inventory helps you answer the question, “Who am I and how can I help?”
Create an action plan – If you already have a group of people you want to help, a problem you want to tackle or a place you want to help revitalize, you need to learn as much about it as possible. Among other things, that means doing some research, getting some hands-on experience, meeting some new people and learning some new systems. The questions you need to answer at this point include, “Where do I start? What needs to be done? What’s already being done? Who can I partner with?”
Develop the disciplines – To avoid growing disillusioned or discouraged by the story of need you’ve written yourself into, it helps to integrate certain disciplines and practices into your daily routine. This resource helps you answer the question, “How can I develop the emotional and spiritual resources to share in the story of need for the long haul?”

“Curb” Kits — We created these kits informally several years ago, and have shared the idea behind them with friends, family and a homeschool co-op. Now we’ve decided to put them on our website. We try to have a “care” kit or two in both of our vehicles in case we see anyone in need, especially anyone holding a sign at a stoplight or intersection. Shopping for the kits and putting them together is a great project for parents to do with their kids, and it only costs a few dollars per kit.
“Help” Card – This pocket-sized resource is one of the items in the homeless care kits described above. It contains important information on local social services, food banks, health providers and more, and is easily adaptable to different contexts. Researching the information for these cards can be a great way to get to know your area and build partnerships with local non-profits and government agencies.
Community Needs Assessment — Every community needs one. Not every community has had one done lately. This toolkit project is underway and will hopefully be complete by the second half of 2012.
Perspectives on Poverty — Economic poverty is a lightning-rod issue in our society today. We are in the process of developing an informational toolkit to present the main perspectives on poverty and poverty reduction. We hope to help readers form their own opinions about what should be done and who should do it. Projected completion: second half of 2012.

Everyday Epics