Jacksonville Gives 2019
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J6 Sunday, November 10, <strong>2019</strong><br />
JACKSONVILLE GIVES FRESHMINISTRIES<br />
PROGRAMS ENRICHING LIVES<br />
“We’re so excited about<br />
the future. We know we<br />
can make a difference<br />
— we already have! We<br />
have had an impact<br />
on the lives of nearly a<br />
million young people in<br />
our 27-year history. We<br />
are not about to put the<br />
brakes on now.”<br />
— Dr. Robert V. Lee III<br />
Chairman and CEO<br />
FreshMinistries<br />
FreshMinistries Inc.<br />
1131 N. Laura St.<br />
<strong>Jacksonville</strong>, FL 32206<br />
(904) 355-0000<br />
freshministries.org<br />
Weaver Center<br />
for Community<br />
Outreach<br />
616 A. Philip Randolph<br />
Blvd.<br />
<strong>Jacksonville</strong>, FL 32202<br />
(904) 854-6770<br />
Beaver Street<br />
Enterprise Center<br />
1225 W. Beaver St./728<br />
Blanche St.<br />
<strong>Jacksonville</strong>, FL 32204<br />
(904) 265-4700<br />
bsecenter.net<br />
Goal is to empower<br />
individuals to<br />
taste success<br />
FreshMinistries focuses<br />
on core-city <strong>Jacksonville</strong><br />
through programs, facilities<br />
and initiatives to teach financial<br />
literacy, life skills, job<br />
preparation, business incubation<br />
and other initiatives.<br />
Adhering to the<br />
Millennium Development<br />
Goals adopted by the United<br />
Nations as a framework to<br />
end poverty in our time,<br />
FreshMinistries is active on a<br />
global level. Local programs<br />
include the Beaver Street<br />
Enterprises Center, Fresh<br />
Futures/Fresh Paths Youth<br />
Programs, Weaver Center<br />
for Community Outreach,<br />
LifePoint Career Institute<br />
and Native Fresh Economic<br />
Development Center.<br />
It all started<br />
In 1992, the Rev. Dr.<br />
Robert V. Lee III, an<br />
Episcopalian priest with a<br />
master’s degree from Yale<br />
University and doctorate<br />
of theology from New<br />
York Theological Seminary,<br />
turned down an invitation<br />
to assume leadership of a<br />
large church in Houston,<br />
Texas, stepped down from<br />
the pulpit, and answered<br />
what he describes as a calling<br />
on his life. Desiring to<br />
be a direct provider of services<br />
to those in need, Lee<br />
started FreshMinistries.<br />
Where we are today<br />
Last month,<br />
FreshMinistries traveled<br />
to New York City to<br />
launch its newest initiative,<br />
the Desmond Tutu<br />
Project for Global Hunger.<br />
“Through this initiative,<br />
we are helping some of<br />
At-risk teens gain life skills and employment in summer jobs thanks to partnerships with community<br />
employers. Of the 1,350 young people who have participated in this life-changing program, 93<br />
percent maintained a minimum of a 2.5 grade-point average to earn a summer job. [PHOTS PROVIDED BY<br />
FRESHMINISTRIES]<br />
the poorest, most desperate<br />
people on the planet<br />
through a global network<br />
of Agribusiness Economic<br />
Development Centers — all<br />
within reach by the Anglican<br />
Communion and other initiative<br />
partners,” Lee said.<br />
“We are working to create<br />
agricultural business incubation<br />
programs to alleviate<br />
food insecurities in the<br />
Virgin Islands, Haiti and<br />
other island states and Africa<br />
through aquaponics. This is<br />
state-of-the-art, climateresilient<br />
greenhouse farming<br />
in areas that currently must<br />
import nearly all their food.”<br />
Aquaponics uses 96%<br />
less water than traditional<br />
farming, produces exponentially<br />
more growth with<br />
no soil required. Much<br />
less land area is required.<br />
A production farm can be<br />
built on one-seventh of an<br />
acre. FreshMinistries has<br />
an active, USDA-approved<br />
farm in <strong>Jacksonville</strong>, just<br />
a few blocks from the<br />
Laura Street office.<br />
FreshMinistries’ local<br />
initiatives are dedicated to<br />
building hope, changing<br />
lives and investing in the<br />
future. An interfaith nonprofit<br />
outreach organization,<br />
FreshMinistries has one goal:<br />
eliminate extreme poverty<br />
by empowering communities<br />
and individuals to realize<br />
their full potential.<br />
Or, as Chief of Staff Shelly<br />
Marino describes it, “leveling<br />
the playing field.”<br />
“And, we do that by educating,<br />
providing economic<br />
opportunities and health<br />
initiatives to people struggling<br />
with poverty in our<br />
inner city and other underserved<br />
areas,” Marino said.<br />
“People don’t choose poverty<br />
and homelessness, but<br />
they become stuck in those<br />
circumstances. We offer<br />
hope and a helping hand.”<br />
A basic operating principle<br />
of FreshMinistries is that<br />
when opportunities are made<br />
available to overcome the<br />
barriers to success, people<br />
will respond and accept a<br />
helping hand that respects<br />
them as individuals.<br />
Beaver Street<br />
Enterprises Center<br />
“Beaver Street Enterprise<br />
Center was created in 2004<br />
to restore economic health<br />
in an area that has been<br />
economically distressed,”<br />
Lee said. “By providing<br />
the resources, individuals<br />
empowered to start<br />
their own businesses and<br />
taste success. They are<br />
empowered and thrive on<br />
the dignity and self-respect<br />
that success brings.”<br />
Resources provided by<br />
Beaver Street Enterprise<br />
Center include professional<br />
office space, receptionist<br />
services and technical<br />
assistance with marketing<br />
strategies, business plans and<br />
networking. In 2010, Beaver<br />
Street Enterprise Center<br />
was voted by more than 500<br />
See FRESH, J7<br />
LifePoint Career Institute has trained 1,500 individuals, with an impressive employment rate of 96 percent. Open to the public, vocational training and certification are designed for<br />
unemployed and underemployed adults. Scholarships from funding partners cover expenses for up to 99 percent of students. It is also possible for LifePoint students to earn a GED<br />
from Florida State College at <strong>Jacksonville</strong> while attending vocational training.<br />
The Weaver Center hosts some FreshMinistries activities and serves the larger community<br />
as a gathering place for adults such as money-management workshops, neighborhood<br />
meetings, parent training, tutoring and much more.<br />
Growing produce without soil or water is an innovative approach to the problem of<br />
world hunger. Nature Fresh produce is grown in a 6,000-square-foot hot house near<br />
Springfield. Duval County schools purchases Nature Fresh for student lunches, and<br />
school children learn the science on a field trip to the farm.