Advance Memphis

The Work Life class focused on the importance of following directions as they work toward taking their next steps in advancing their careers! We broke out of the classroom to work on some application of the topic… and enjoyed the “sweets” of their labor😉

Today was the first day of our fourth Work Life class of the year, and Curtis was out this morning making breakfast to welcome our new students! We had 16 students in class today and are excited to get to know each of them better throughout these five weeks. We ask that you pray for our students and staff, that the Lord would bless the time we have together and that we would be open to His leading.

Today marks the 159th year since the first Juneteenth, when Union troops arrived in Galveston, TX to announce that the 250,000 slaves in Texas were free. We are grateful for the many men and women who worked for freedom, during the Civil War and beyond. To see some@ways to celebrate Juneteenth this year, check out the link below.

https://www.localmemphis.com/article/news/local/as-seen-on-tv/find-it/juneteenth-memphis-2024-freedom-day-civil-rights-museum-frayser-library-minglewood-hall/522-b156cdc7-677d-4707-8a2a-d33f623c0cbe

We are thrilled to announce that five out of our six Work Life graduates are working! It was such a joy to work with this class, and we're so proud of each one of them. Please continue to lift up our graduates as they continue on their journey.

Last year, one of our Work Life classes planted a pear tree in our community garden in memory of loved ones they had lost. This summer, it has begun to produce fruit! We are so grateful for the reminder this gives us of a God who both comforts us in our grief and promises to work all circumstances for our good, even the ones that cause us pain.

We're hiring! There are currently two open positions on our staff at Advance Memphis, one for a Communications Marketing and Grant Coordinator, and one for a Warehouse Manager. If you have a passion for helping our city and helping people grow in both their skills and their walk with Christ, than check out the link bellow to learn more about career opportunities at Advance!

https://www.advancememphis.org/careers

Over the past 25 years, countless men and women have graciously shared their time, resources, and talents to pour into our neighbors alongside the staff at Advance Memphis. The work we do wouldn't be possible without the support of our volunteers and it is a joy to work alongside them! To learn more about how you can partner with us and join our awesome volunteer team, click the link below!

https://www.advancememphis.org/volunteer

We are blessed with a great team at Advance Memphis, who are truly committed to helping our neighbors thrive. This week, we wanted to give a shout-out to our Work Life facilitators Milton, Elena, and Hannah, who are incredibly dedicated to helping our participants learn and grow. It's a privilege to work alongside them!

We're so grateful for all our veterans for the sacrifices they've made to protect the freedom we enjoy, and to our current service men and women who continue to uphold their legacy. We pray that we would cherish the liberty others have fought and died to defend, and that our country would be unified in our love for God and for one another. Happy Memorial Day!

This week, we had another guest speaker, Ms. Ursula Madden, come speak to our students about her experiences in the workforce, from working as a news reporter to working with MLGW as their vice president of corporate communications. It was a pleasure to meet and hear from her!

It's planting season here at Advance Memphis! This week, Work Life students worked in our community garden, preparing the ground and sowing some seed to get our vegetable garden going. Thankfully, we beat the rain!

We had a great start to our fourth week of Work Life, beginning the week with none other than Mike Shaw! Mike was a former Advance Memphis employee and now works at Moore Tech. He came out today to volunteer and lead a portion of our Work Life class, talking with students about building skills and character on the job. It was great to have him back at the office!

Thank you to Lehman-Roberts Co. for bringing lunch to our Work Life students! We're so grateful for the partnership that we have with this company and the heart they have to serve our city.

Happy Mother's Day from Advance Memphis! We hope all you moms have a special day, and kids, don't forget to let your mother (or any woman in your life) what a blessing she is. Happy Sunday, everyone!

Tomorrow, Advance Memphis will celebrate 25 years of serving our community in South Memphis!! We're so grateful for all the people who have poured into our neighbors and organization, and we want to invite you to join us tomorrow as we celebrate. Mempops will be coming to our office on 769 Vance Ave from 12:00-1:30, so come on down and grab a popsicle on us! Get there early before the popsicles run out!

A huge thank you to Renaissance Pocket Park for inviting us to their Community Resource Fair last Saturday! Our Program Manager, Milton Craft, had a booth set up and got to meet some new faces and tell folks about the programs we offer. If you know anyone who would be interested in our Work Life or Faith and Finances programs, send them our way!

So far, we've had six graduates roll over to permanent employment! Tommy was working at Memphis Plywood on a two week assignment, but they decided they just couldn't do without him and made him a permanent employee as of April 22nd! Give it up for Tommy, everybody🥳🥳

Join us this day in prayer as we lift up our neighbors, city, and world. As believers, we recognize the power of prayer. It is a way to both bring our requests before the throne of grace, and to have our spiritual "batteries" recharged by spending intentional time with the Father. But, there is so much need, and sometimes it's hard to even know what requests to bring. However, Romans 8:26 says, "For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words." Praise God that we are not alone, even in our prayers!

This week, our third Work Life class of the year began! This is the largest class we've had in 2024, and we're excited to get to know these students better. Since Advance Memphis began, Work Life (formerly known as Jobs for Life) has been foundational to our work, and just like the workforce, it's seen a lot of change over the years! Click the link below to learn about the latest updates we've made to better equip our neighbors!

https://www.advancememphis.org/advance-memphis-blog/q1-2024-newsletter-rhxej #:~:text=Strengthening%20Work%20Life%20and%20Deepening%20Work%20Competencies

Mark your calendars!!! Art for Jobs 2024 is on the way, and we want to see all of you there! Stay tuned for more details about the event, this year's artists, and more!

We're so grateful for our business partners who help support our neighbors by providing employment opportunities for our grads. One partner, Joffa, was recently highlighted in an article by the Daily Memphian. Joffa is not only a sister nonprofit, they also share our commitment to empower communities by providing work opportunities not only for people in Memphis, but around the world. Click the link below to learn more about Joffa and how you can support their work!

https://dailymemphian.com/section/arts-culturevisual-arts/article/43331/memphis-e-commerce-biz-joffa-celebrates-slow

If you have the privilege of knowing our employment development team, you know first hand what a stellar group they are! Juanita, Curtis, and Thelma work tirelessly to support our neighbors as they prepare for and go to work, and as the needs of the job market change, these three flex right along with it. Check out the link below to read more about the updates to our staffing team has made to better support our community!

https://www.advancememphis.org/advance-memphis-blog/q1-2024-newsletter-rhxej #:~:text=Employment%20Development%20is%20Meeting%20People%20Where%20They%20Are

Everyone, meet Advance Memphis grad Alvin Davis! Alvin recently celebrated his transition from temporary to permanent employment with Memphis Plywood in February of this year. But, this journey to permanent employment didn't happen overnight. Click the link below to read more about Alvin's story in our latest newsletter!

https://www.advancememphis.org/advance-memphis-blog/q1-2024-newsletter-rhxej

We had a visitor drop in today to sign up for our Work Life class! Sheranna met Steve and Milton the other day as they were passing out flyers to recruit for our next Work Life class, and she came in today to register. If you or anyone you know are interested in joining the class, stop by our office this week to sign up!

Earlier this month, our first Faith and Finances class of 2024 graduated! Ten students completed the 12 week course, and one of the Allies for the class was a Faith and Finances graduate herself. We're so proud of the commitment our students demonstrated and are excited to keep walking alongside them!

Yesterday, we got to celebrate one of our most faithful volunteers, Mark Brommer! He's served faithfully with us since 2022 and is passionate about developing long-term relationships with our neighbors and sharing Christ's love with them. It's a joy every time he comes to the office (usually with some sort of sweet treat😊) Click the link below to learn how you can join Mark in helping our neighbors achieve economic stability!

https://www.advancememphis.org/volunteer

Incoming graduate update! Earlier this month, our Work Life graduate, Olaf, was made a permanent employee at WMBarr as a Forklift Operator 🥳🥳 We're so proud of him, and so glad that he stopped by our office to share this moment with us. Congratulations, Olaf!!

Quick snapshot of our block party last Saturday, class reunion style! We're so grateful for everyone who made it out, and to First Evangelical Church for all their help in putting the event on. We had a blast!

Today we celebrated our second Work Life graduation of 2024!! There were eight graduates, and two are father and son. It was a privilege to spend the last five weeks with this group and we look forward to seeing where they go next!