Hope, Nevada

Meet Sydney Roberts & Jenny Angius with Urban Roots, a Reno-based nonprofit striving to change the way our community eats and learns through garden-based education. Their many programs - including farm camps, monthly workshops, preschool programs, and even a Dead Plant Society - enrich lives and create friendships for all ages. Whether you don’t know where to start with gardening in the high desert or are a seasoned green thumb, Urban Roots provides many ways to get outside and grow. Learn more about Urban Roots and get involved at https://www.urgc.org/ Additional links from the episode: Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport: https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Minimalism-Choosing-Focused-Noisy/dp/0525542876/ref=sr_1_4?crid=3V5TF8Z89CBYY&keywords=digital+minimalism&qid=1699558330&sprefix=digital+minimalism%2Caps%2C141&sr=8-4

We welcome Sharon Chamberlain to the podcast this week. Sharon is the CEO of Northern Nevada HOPES, a community health center in Reno providing affordable, high-quality, medical, behavioral health, and support services for all. What started as a single-room clinic to serve those with HIV/AIDS has expanded to providing comprehensive, patient-centered healthcare for 14,000 people in our community. Through their presence on 4th Street, they are turning a healthcare desert into a “Corridor of Hope,” including northern Nevada’s first bridge-housing community called Hope Springs and the new clinic being built across the street projected to open summer 2024. Learn more about Northern Nevada HOPES at https://www.nnhopes.org/

Meet Mallory Morgan, Youth Outreach Coordinator with Destiny Church. Destiny has a heart for young people and for outreach, and they dream of using their building - Destiny Center - as a Youth Center. Mallory walks us through “the beginning of the beginning” of the Traner Project, as she recruits a team to build relationships with students at Traner Middle School. Learn more about Destiny Center at https://destinyreno.com/ Contact Mallory to get involved at [email protected] Financially support Mallory at https://giving.ag.org/donate/700001-299915 Additional links from the episode: - Youth First of Reno/Sparks: https://www.youthfirstreno.org/ - Youth First episode of Hope, NV: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2aQNrHsoF5Olx6YWi7B5E0?si=5978e06126ea47ed - Lectio 365 app: https://www.24-7prayer.com/resource/lectio-365/- How to be Unsuccessful: An Unlikely Guide to Human Flourishing by Pete Portal: https://www.amazon.com/How-Successful-unlikely-guide-flourishing/dp/0281088179/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=how+to+be+unsuccessful+pete+portal&qid=1700174774&sr=8-1- "The Next Right Thing" from Frozen 2: https://youtu.be/kFkClV2gM-s?feature=shared

This week we get to learn from Maricela Gutierrez, Executive Director of the JustIN Hope Foundation. This foundation builds a community of inclusion, empowerment, and support for families and individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities of all ages. She has an impactful and personal history with the foundation and is driven by the potential to meet real needs through sustainable and collaborative partnerships. Their program Hope Works is responding to the youth unemployment rate crisis for individuals with disabilities, benefiting employers and participants alike. As Maricela says, this is more than employment. It is empowerment! Maricela’s passion is evident, and our city is better because she and JustIN Hope are a part of it. Learn more about the JustinIN Hope Foundation and get involved at justinhope.org

Meet Marie Baxter, C.E.O. of Catholic Charities of Northern Nevada. They are a major operation of impact, responding to unmet human needs. With food, clothing, shelter, and a helping hand, they bring hope to people in order to build spirit and self-reliance within them and within our community. Recently, they launched an initiative to interrupt general poverty, and the ways that volunteers can get involved goes on and on. If you have wanted to serve our community and haven’t known where to start, this episode is for you. Learn more about Catholic Charities of Northern Nevada and get involved at https://ccsnn.org/ Additional links from the episode: -Economic Mobility Pathways: https://empathways.org/

RISE - Reno Initiative for Shelter and Equality "You don't need permission to get involved." Meet Benjamin Castro, the Executive Director and founder of RISE, the Reno Initiative for Shelter and Equality. What started as a community potluck has turned into an organization cultivating a greater sense of dignity for our unsheltered neighbors by providing equal access to shelter, knowledge, and opportunity. RISE seeks to create a stronger community through the use of shared resources and mutual aid. This led to the low-barrier and unique shelter - OUR Place, the largest emergency housing provider for women and families in our community. Ben stepped into the opportunity and invited us to do the same. Learn more about RISE and OUR Place at http://www.renoinitiative.org/

Meet Amy Dewitt-Smith, executive director of Neighbor Network of Northern Nevada, or N4. The N4 village connects Northern Nevadans for inclusive, community-based services from volunteer opportunities to affordable transportation. Through this episode, we glean from Amy’s 20+ years of experience working in aging and disability services. The village of N4 is relational, reciprocal, and offers person-centered support for members. Learn more about N4 and get involved at https://neighbornv.org/ Additional links from the episode: -CBS News “Aging in America: Stuck in the Middle” feature: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/aging-in-america-stuck-in-the-middle/ -Beacon Hill Village: https://www.beaconhillvillage.org/content.aspx?page_id=0&club_id=332658 -HourWorld: https://hourworld.org/index.htm

Boys & Girls Club is way more than a day care - and Amber Seifert is here to tell us about it. Amber is the marketing coordinator for the Boys & Girls Club of Truckee Meadows, where each location creates a place for kids to feel safe and connected, finding a place to belong and a place to become. Their over 50 locations serve 13,000 youth annually throughout our region. A resource center for families and the community, they provide low-cost childcare, homework help, scholarships, meals, hygiene supplies, sports leagues, youth leadership development, and more. No child is turned away from the Boys & Girls Club due to inability to pay. Learn more about Boys & Girls Club of Truckee Meadows and get involved at https://bgctm.org/

Meet Paula Jones and Jan Wise, representing the Assistance League of Reno-Sparks. Assistance Leagues across America engage and empower volunteers to strengthen their communities. They do this through conducting community needs assessments and developing programs to meet the needs they uncover. If you have wanted to volunteer in our community and didn’t know where to start, here is your start! Whether helping children receive new school clothes, working with veterans, or delivering food to homebound seniors, there is no shortage of ways to assist our community - and build friendships along the way. Learn more about Assistance League of Reno-Sparks and get involved at https://www.assistanceleague.org/reno-sparks/ Additional links from the episode: The Good Life book: https://www.amazon.com/Good-Life-Lessons-Scientific-Happiness-ebook/dp/B0B3Y7J6PN/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2992A2CWS5W4K&keywords=the+good+life+book&qid=1694716317&sprefix=the+good+life%2Caps%2C738&sr=8-1

Meet Halie Meiners, Executive Director of Scarlet Hope, an organization committed to sharing the hope and love of Jesus with exploited and trafficked women in Reno. Every Thursday night, Scarlet Hope volunteers bring trays of food, meet needs, and build relationships with women in the adult entertainment industry. The scope of the number of women being exploited and turning to the sex industry to survive may shock and disrupt you. Halie and the Scarlet Hope team is paving the way for us to follow Jesus into the shock and disruption with humility, hope, and active love. Learn more about Scarlet Hope and get involved at https://scarlethope.org/reno/