Marcus Morales at NDCC's food pantry
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The Ability to Make a Difference
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Marcus Morales is no stranger to overcoming challenges. For the past twenty years, he’s navigated a world filled with people who communicate in ways that he is unable. Born deaf, Morales uses sign language, but often faces difficulties with connecting with hearing people.
“When I was twelve years old I started going to church and I was the only one who was deaf,” he shared. “I felt awkward and a little behind, so I was quiet.”
Rosa McGuire, youth leader at
New Dimension Christian Center (NDCC)
agreed, “As much as we love him and have wanted to engage with him, it has been difficult to do so on a consistent basis.”
Still, NDCC was committed to ensuring that Morales could fully participate in everything the youth ministry provided, including opportunities for high-school aged youth to grow in their faith in God and develop leadership skills.
“We want youth to grow and develop in healthy ways so they can transition to being adults that love the Lord, love others and are able to care for themselves, their homes and their families,” explained McGuire. “We also want to instill the value of service and contributing to the community in transformational ways.”
When McGuire learned about the opportunity for a teen or young adult to gain work experience and develop leadership and employment skills over the summer, backed with grant funding from Urban Alliance, she had one person in mind for the job: Morales.
“Marcus has been deaf since birth, but his hearing loss does not affect his ability to do just about anything he sets his heart and mind to...
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Podcast Episode 4: A Generation Rising in Action and Hope
We sat down with Kiley Testa and Rosa McGuire
to learn more about how CT River Academy's partnership with Urban Alliance has provided life-changing opportunities for their scholars and has significantly impacted programs and people in Greater Hartford community.
In case you missed it:
We sat down with Sherry and Stephen Danalis to learn more about their non-profit organization,
Families United Serving and Embracing (F.U.S.E.)
, how it is reaching young women who are experiencing unplanned pregnancies and homelessness, and how Urban Alliance is helping strengthen their programs.
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Trust Doesn't Happen Overnight
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We understand—trust doesn't happen overnight.
And, neither do great partnerships! So, we want to take the first step at getting to know you and give you the chance know us better.
Learn about UA, what makes us unique and how you can partner with us at our next 30-minute
Vantage Point!
Date: Wednesday, November 13
Time: 12:15-12:45pm
Location: Urban Alliance, 62 Village Street, East Hartford, CT 06108
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Gathering and Training Recaps
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Last weekend, 104 youth and youth leaders gathered for the
Next Generation Children
and Youth Leaders Summit, where they worshipped, connected with one another and learned about ways to increase their program's capacity to impact children and youth so they grew in their faith and develop the character, relationships and skills needed to succeed in their schools and communities.
Last month, nine leaders from seven early childhood programs gathered for the
Thrive learning community, where they learned how to effectively create a welcoming and health program culture, and were equipped with the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS-3) toolkit, a user-friendly quality improvement evaluation instrument
for rating early childhood program settings.
And, 29 people from 29 churches and organizations in the UA network gathered for the
Beyond the Basics
learning...
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Featured Program
Development Opportunity
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Your church or organization can develop stronger community programs
with Urban Alliance support through this opportunity:
Although winter is on the way, it's not too early to start planning a community garden for your program in 2020!
UA provides training, toolkits and consultation to programs that are positioned to use community gardening to help people they serve learn how to grow and use fresh produce to support their long-term health and wellness. Program leaders will receive more information about this training if they attend
Revitalize
learning community meetings or they have contacted UA staff to express interest in integrating health and wellness practices into their programming.
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A Generous and Strong Finish!
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Congrats to
Garry Roman
for completing the Hartford Marathon and running the distance to make a difference!
Roman set out to accomplish the admirable goal of running a marathon, but compounded it by raising money for Urban Alliance, to support our work of strengthening programs that are meeting the needs of tens of thousands of people; needs that include poverty, sickness, addiction, broken relationships and other disproportionate opportunities.
While the marathon is over, you can still
make an impact by donating
to Urban Alliance—
100% of your gift will go towards helping people experience hope, get the help they seek and achieve positive transformation in their lives.
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When you
donate
to UA, you're not just supporting one organization, you're strengthening over 130 programs meeting critical needs throughout Greater Hartford.
It's a unique opportunity to leverage your donation to meet a variety of needs or double down on making an impact in an area that matters most to you.
Not sure where to start? Click the button below for some great tips.
"In an effort to overcome that chaotic sky-is-falling-what-do-I-do-first feeling, I have decided to accept that there is only so much I, being one person, can do. I only have so much attention, time, and money, and the best I can do is to..."
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Get Your Feet Wet at an Upcoming Orientation!
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Curious about volunteering but unsure where to start?
Want to learn more before you commit?
We invite you to attend a
UAServe
orientation, where you will learn about available opportunities, ask questions and sign up to serve if you're ready.
Upcoming dates:
- Wednesday, October 30 at 11:00am
- Friday, November 15 at 3:30pm
- Wed., November 27 at 11:00am
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Urgent Need: Basic Needs Program Volunteers
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We support churches and organizations in the Urban Alliance network through our five initiatives, with convening, training, toolkits, consultation, grants, supplies and
volunteers
to build stronger programs in the community.
Currently, there is an urgent need for:
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