By Khadijah
Ali-Coleman
“If you have a job, think of [hiring] a Southeast Ministry
student,” Valarie Ashley suggests.
Ashley, executive director of Southeast Ministry—a Ward
8-based nonprofit located on MLK Ave in SE that provides job training and
educational services to adults—has led Southeast Ministry since 2009. She has
grown the small nonprofit into a community haven that is attracting the
attention of both those seeking services and those with services to provide.
“Our goal is to help those who come to us become better
participants in family and community,” Ashley says. Many of those served by
Southeast Ministry are often unemployed or underemployed, she adds, so,
training them to become employable is a priority.
“For us, underemployed looks like people who are taking
anything to earn money—temp work, handyman services—jobs with no future
guarantee, no benefits, no guarantee that there will be work tomorrow…many
people who have been locked out of the job market for so long.”
Ashley finds that the first step to making folks who come to
Southeast Ministry employable usually starts with building basic skills and
helping in the area of education. She also finds that teaching from an
African-American cultural perspective also helps makes learning relevant to the
students. For, she says, “ninety-nine percent of who we serve are
African-American.”
Growing at the Root
In just the past two years, Southeast Ministry has helped
hundreds of adults earn their GED and build employable skills while attracting
donors and community partners who offer valuable opportunities to Southeast
Ministry clients as well. One participant, Melissa Moon, a local mom
participating in Southeast Ministry’s GED classes is appreciative of all of the
organization’s offerings.
“I’m trying to get my GED to better my life and my
children’s lives and Southeast Ministry is doing a great job,” says Moon. “With
the help of my teacher Ashley [Luttmer], I’ve been getting helped in things
like percentages and algebra, things I didn’t do so well or understand in
school.”
Valarie Ashley admits that she is grateful that Southeast
Ministry continues to thrive and be available to provide services to adults
like Moon despite the current financial troubles in the US and the specific
issues communities like DC’s Ward 7 and Ward 8 face. She attributes Southeast
Ministry’s longevity to the community partnerships she’s formed with other
organizations in the city. One partnership with the nonprofit organization Byte
Back provides technology training to adults and has been a recent success of
Southeast Ministry.
“The partnership with the nonprofit Byte Back allows us to
add that technology component to our services which is so necessary,” Ashley
says. “So many people are afraid of computers, so at intake, we make people get
an email address to begin the process of being familiar with computers.” Ashley
laughs as she admits that the next step, after having clients set up an email
account, is actually conditioning them to begin using their new email address
to communicate.
“It’s all about training. We have to train people to check
their email.”
Another partnership, this one with DC Public Schools, allows
students to enroll in an External Diploma Program which allows them to take
high school level courses and earn a high school diploma. For the first time,
three Southeast Ministry participants graduated from the External Diploma
Program this past summer.
Ashley, who has worked for larger nonprofits like Covenant
House and Goodwill during her earlier career explains that building
partnerships is one of the most important thing a smaller nonprofit can do to
stay relevant and responsive to the needs of those served.
“I’ve come from someplace big, but when you’re with
someplace big, opportunities come to you , so the question now becomes, how do
I find resources as a very small nonprofit so I can provide quality programming
to the people who come here because we do have the good fortune of being right
here on the avenue.”
What she and her staff have done is scour the city and
create networks with other nonprofits and businesses to lessen the difficulties
those coming to Southeast Ministry will face. One example is the service
integration partnership established with Brighter Day Ministries, located
across the street from Southeast Ministry. To support Southeast Ministry
clients who may have difficulties finding food or having clothes appropriate
for a job interview, Southeast Ministry staff can refer a client to Brighter
Day Ministries to receive fresh food rations or clean and appropriate clothing
to wear for the job while Brighter Day Ministries can refer clients to
Southeast Ministry for adult education classes and job training.
But, sometimes, community offerings walk right up to the
front door.
When Gifts Come
Knocking
“So, this is the best story,” Ashley begins. “So, one day I get a call from our office
manager saying that there are two men downstairs that say that they’re from the
government and they say they can save us money on our energy bills. And, as
they’re coming up, I’m like, ‘Who is this trying to scam me,’ but, it was
real.”
These two men were from the District’s Department of the
Environment, knocking on doors to inform nonprofits about a weatherization
grant which would provide efficiency assistance in the form of replacing
windows, insulating the attic, changing light bulbs to more energy efficient
ones, and bleeding radiators. After a
17-page energy audit and confirmation from Ashley to begin work, contractors
renovated Southeast Ministry in a matter of months.
“We have this space that is more comfortable to have and
windows that we can actually look out of now. We knew that our building was
meager before, but not how meager it actually was. We didn’t realize how
inefficient the building really was,” Ashley says.
With the new building renovation, comes a renewed spirit
that Southeast Ministry definitely plays an integral part in the larger
landscape of Washington DC. Ashley confirms that the goodwill shown Southeast
Ministry only strengthens her resolve to stay focused on serving those who are
most at-risk of being passed over for employment.
“At the end of the day, I don’t have a problem asking for
things if it makes the difference between someone getting a job and not having
one.”
To volunteer, donate and learn more about Southeast
Ministry, visit www.southeastministrydc.org
or call 202-562-2636
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Liberated Muse partners with nonprofits throughout the Washington DC area on arts projects and workshops. Southeast Ministry has been a partner with Liberated Muse since 2009.
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