Reconciliation Services

"This feels like a clean slate. After this, I get to start over." That’s Sandra, whose name we changed for anonymity. Sandra is a single mom of three kids who was laid off at the beginning of the pandemic. She had struggled to find safe work and was falling way behind on her electric bill. When Sandra came into Reconciliation Services for help, her electric bill was in the thousands. She sat down with Katie, one of our case managers (pictured above), and filled out all of t...he paperwork for federal aid through the Emergency Rental Assistance Program. Katie has helped dozens of our neighbors through this process. During every appointment, I hear about layoffs, bills piling up, sickness, eviction threats, shut off notices, and just the overall struggles of the past year, she said. Sandra left our office with her bill completely paid off, no longer worried about an eviction and ready for her fresh start. Katie says that’s what makes her job worthwhile, Every time I help one of our neighbors, I get to see a tangible picture of relief. I see eyes soften, sighs of relief, smiles, and tears of joy. You can tell that some of the weight of the past year has been lifted off of their shoulders. Are you in a position to help us continue to lift up moms like Sandra in 2021? Consider giving a gift of $25, $50, $100, or becoming a monthly donor today. Every gift helps our neighbors in need emerge from the past year stronger and more capable of helping others. Thank you. donate now at : https://www.rs3101.org/donate

Help support Thelma's Kitchen ! As a thank you for everyone who has helped made it possible to serve our neighbors in need, we are running a special over at Thelma's! Buy 9 Thelma's Box Lunches and the 10th is free all through July. Every box lunch purchased helps RS provide life-giving services. We appreciate your support and look forward to serving you soon! See the full menu and order now: ThelmasBoxLunch.org

Every THURSDAY IN JULY, Cliff's Taphouse , our new neighbor at 31st & Gillham in KCMO, is donating 20% of their sales to Reconciliation Services to help provide social and mental health services to our neighbors in need. So plan your Thursday lunches, happy hours, and dinners out at Cliff's in the month of July and you'll be supporting a local business and your neighbors in need. Cheers!

To overcome, I’ve had to look fear square in the face and not shrink, run or hide from it. It’s taken courage, determination and work. That’s Bridgette, a neighbor who first joined our Women’s Group Therapy in 2014 after getting injured on the job and struggling through a season of unemployment. I went through a lot in those years and was just about ready for it all to be over. I was in a bad way when I went up to Reconciliation Services. I was trying hard to go forward wi...th everything, but I was about done. Through Group and Individual Therapy at RS, Bridgette’s mindset shifted 180 degrees, I’m definitely a changing person... I’m more peaceful, my face is softer, and I have greater confidence in myself, she said. Head to our website to read more of Bridgette's story and to learn more about how PTSD affects people who experience trauma: https://www.rs3101.org//uncovering-ptsd-part-4-im-not-alone

Check out this new series from our friends at the REACH Healthcare Foundation on Racial Equity and Mental Health in the U.S. The next webinar is on July 15: Kansas City’s Mental Health Ecosystem: Considering Our Troubled Past. Learn more & register now: https://reachhealth.org/race-equity-and-mental-health-pane/

"There is still grace and beauty in the world." When Jenny first walked in the door to Reconciliation Services, she thought it would be her only visit. Instead, she found a community that has helped her begin to heal from trauma and she has reconnected with her passion for life through urban farming. Click the video down below or watch the video at RS3101.org/blog

This time next week, Father Justin & Jodi will be trekking across the Grand Canyon with the KC Heart of America team, 50 miles in 24 hours, to raise awareness for food insecurity and hunger in our community. HoA has generously donated $5000 and is challenging us to match it by the time they get back to basecamp on Sunday, Nov. 8 at 1 AM. Are you up for the challenge? Donate now: www.rs3101.org/donate

How far would you go to fight hunger? Next weekend, Fr. Justin (our Executive Director) and his wife Jodi (our Director of Marketing) are teaming up with the KC Heart of America Crop Hunger Walk team to hike the Grand Canyon! . Father will HIKE FIFTY MILES IN 24 HOURS from the South Rim to the North Rim and back to raise awareness about food insecurity and hunger in our community. . To help kick off our annual campaign, the Heart of America team is generously donating $5000 and we need your help to match it. Please consider making a tax deductible donation to fight hunger right here in Kansas City at www.rs3101.org/donate

Today we had the pleasure of serving the KCMO city council people and their staff Thelma's Box Lunch. Thank you for choosing to #EatWell and #DoGood by choosing... Thelma's Kitchen & supporting Reconciliation Services! . A special thank you to Councilwoman Teresa Loar & her team member Lisa for making it happen. . If you're looking for meals for your next group meeting, be sure to check out our menu: www.thelmasboxlunch.org . . . #RevealStrength #everybodyeats #yummy #nomnom #food #sandwich #foodie #delicious #lunch #yum #eater #kansascity #kcfood #kcfoodie See more

There’s an old saying, Drop by drop the bucket fills. Let’s face it, right now there seem to be so many empty buckets. Job loss, housing instability, threats of shut offs of utilities, depression, isolation, hunger COVID has taken its toll on us all. We see it clearly here at Reconciliation Services, with a near 60% increase in new clients since April 2020. We have had a 114% increase in requests for housing assistance and a startling 156% increase in requests for utilit...ies assistance so far this year. We are incredibly grateful for the ways you have supported our work and today we are asking you to help sustain this life-changing work, by becoming a MONTHLY DONOR to Reconciliation Services. Click the link to see how your monthly gift can extend HOPE year round.

On episode #30 of The Social Leader Podcast Fr. Justin interviews Jarrod Sanderson, Dir. of Housing & Program Design for EPEC, which operates the Grooming Project. On this episode we will dive deep into one of KC's most influential social enterprises, learn about a two-generation approach to breaking the cycle of poverty, and find out about some new initiatives underway at The Grooming Project. Thegroomingproject.org #revealstrength #troost #KansasCity #socialgood #grooming #dogs #socialimpact #reconciliationservices #jobs #poverty #podcast #episode30

Excited to partner with @WomensEmploymentNetwork on the virtual, fall #KCJobFair, which will connect you with Kansas City’s top employers hiring right now. If you’re in a career transition, join Reconciliation Services on Oct, 27 for our presentation at 2 PM. Registration is free! https://www.eventbrite.com/e/kc-job-fairs-2020-tickets-1178... #KCJobFair #JobSearch #KansasCity

Long before 31st and Troost was home to Reconciliation Services and other great nonprofits... before Troost Avenue became infamous as Kansas City's racial and economic dividing line due to redlining and block busting... before Troost was a thriving economic hub for KC's Black community... even before this area was a slave plantation established by the Reverend James Porter in 1834... this area was home to the Osage Nation. On today's episode of the Social Leader Podcast, Fr.... Justin interviews Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear, Principal Chief of the Osage Nation. Now in his second term as Osage Nation Principal Chief, he continues the work of protecting and enhancing the Osage culture, language, and lands. Here are Chief Standing Bear's Social Leadership lessons from Osage Elders: 1. Be good to one another 2. Try hard - with tears 3. We are pitiful, turn to prayer Listen or watch below to learn more, and be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify app so you don’t miss an episode.

Voting is top of mind for many of us right now as November 3rd draws near. While on a national level it seems like we can’t agree on much, chances are if you are reading this you believe in the dignity of all people and can understand just how important it is to give all Americans the access, tools, and support they need to participate in their own success, and that of their family, their neighborhood, our communities, and our nation. CONTINUE TO OUR BLOG to see how through the simple act of getting a new ID our neighbors are taking critical first steps on the road to greater stability, self-sufficiency, and participation in the upcoming election.

Today on Episode of the Social Leader Podcast Fr Justin is interviewing Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear, Principal Chief of the Osage Nation. He is the great- grandson of Osage Principal Chief Fred Lookout. Now in his second term as Osage Nation Principal Chief, he continues the work of protecting and enhancing the Osage culture, language, and lands. Chief Standing Bear's Social Leadership lessons from Osage Elders: 1. Be good to one another 2. Try hard - with tears... 3. We are pitiful, turn to prayer ~~~~~ RESOLUTION NO. 060556 Declaring May 21, 2006, as Osage Nation Day to be celebrated at The Troost Avenue Festival. WHEREAS, the City of Kansas was originally founded on former Osage territory; and WHEREAS, the culture, ways, and traditions of the Osage people are highly respectful of diversity and the environment; and WHEREAS, European settlement and displacement of original peoples throughout the region has caused them and the citizens of Kansas City great pain; and WHEREAS, the Osage value of community is desperately needed; and WHEREAS, the Troost Avenue Festival being held on May 21, 2006, will recognize the City was land that was formerly inhabited by the Osage Nation and especially true of Troost Avenue which was a former Osage canoe trail; and WHEREAS, historians believe that the Osage Indians carved out routes and that todays city is built upon these old Osage trails; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF KANSAS CITY: That the Mayor and Council hereby declare May 21, 2006, as Osage Nation Day to be celebrated at The Troost Avenue Festival; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this Resolution be spread upon the Minutes of the Council in testimony thereof and that a copy hereof be presented to Geoffrey Standing Bear, representative of the Osage Tribal Council, in token of the high esteem with which the Osage Indians are held in the hearts of the Mayor, Council and citizens of Kansas City.

RECONCILIATION SERVICES IS HIRING!!! We have FOUR OPENINGS so be sure to give our Careers page a close look and please share with anyone you feel would be a great candidate for: -- FT Mental Health Licensed Therapist... -- Building Maintenance Contractor -- PT Box Lunch Volunteer Ambassador (Thelma's Kitchen) -- PT Box Lunch Assistant and Group Order Coordinator (Thelma's Kitchen) WE NEED YOUR HELP: We especially want to extend this opportunity to our local community right here in the urban core of KCMO. If you know a great candidate, please tag them in the comments (it takes a village!) Thank you!!

Tune in today for this FABULOUS COMMUNITY EVENT that shines a light on #Troost area businesses, organizations, entrepreneurs, and artists! #transformtroost #revealstrength #troosttransformed #gatheringplace

Our Foster Grandparents are taking part in a, first of it’s kind, digital literacy training being held at Reconciliation Services as part of a new partnership between the Kansas City Foster Grandparent Program and the Kansas City Public Library TechAccess program. Before COVID-19 forced strict limitations on schools and early education facilities, 68 Foster Grandparents served as role models, mentors, and friends to children with exceptional needs in classrooms at 27 sites across the Kansas City metro. They plan to do every thing they can to keep supporting the young people they work with, even if it is virtual. >>> CONTINUE TO OUR BLOG TO SEE HOW FOSTER GRANDPARENTS ARE GAINING THE SKILLS THEY NEED TO CONTINUE SERVING.

Our friend Michael Brown has generously offered to donate proceeds from his artwork to support the social and mental health services we offer at RS. Check him out on Facebook and message him for details. Also... GO CHIEFS!

Our Foster Grandparents are in the house this week getting trained on online tools by our friends from the Kansas City Public Library so that they can continue to mentor and support students throughout the metro as virtual learning continues into the school year. . The Foster Grandparents Program connects low-income volunteers age 55 and over with opportunities to provide one-on-one mentoring, nurturing and support to children with exceptional needs, or who are at an academic, social or financial disadvantage. They are there, online and in-person when possible, to help the kids of our community in a caring and consistent way, but they are also improving their own well being at the same time. It's a real win-win, heart-to-heart relationship!