Urban Compassion: How To Employ the Hard to Employ  

One of the greatest acts of compassion is to give someone a job. For those without home, food, or clothes, employment is key to changing their lives – and is one of our greatest challenges. As leaders of compassion ministries, we have the opportunity for a greater impact on our cities. As we help residents to secure jobs AND to follow the Gospel, salvation can infiltrate cities from the grass roots. In order to accomplish this goal for a significant number of people, it will take creative alliance and collaboration within the Christian community. The Compassion Track is designed to gain from expert experience, share best-known practices, and to brainstorm strategies. 

Ideas that will emerge include how to: 1) prepare difficult to employ people for solid employment, 2) create sustainable and scalable employment strategies and 3) partner with existing resources that already work.  


TRACK OBJECTIVES/GOALS:

  1. Gain understanding from in-the-field experts on employing the difficult to employ. 
  2. Understand key strategies: 
    • internal training programs 
    • utilizing outside resources where possible 
    • develop internal ‘social enterprises’ that employ people and are self-sustaining 
    • partner with community employers to hire residents 
    • partner with employers to create entrepreneurial for-profit ventures that employ residents
     3.   Brainstorm in small groups and present findings to the track participants about developing ______compassionate employment initiatives.  
     4.  Identify the key alliances upon which sustainable employment strategies can be built


TRACK SPEAKERS/PANELISTS:  

/files/Images/head shots/Cebert Danvers_cropped.jpg  Cebert Danvers, Career Center Manager, Bowery Mission, New York City

Cebert Danvers is the Career Center Manager at The Bowery Mission, overseeing job skills training for over 60 men in residence at the Bowery Mission Discipleship Institute. Originally from Jamaica, Cebert has over two decades of experience as a computer technician and educational practitioner.    

Jamey Nordby, Vice President for Finance & Development, The Bowery Mission, New York City

Jamey Nordby serves as the Vice President for Finance and Development at The Bowery Mission in New York City, also overseeing Human Resources, IT, and Social Enterprises. Jamey comes from a business background, having worked with international, national, and entrepreneurial companies – including a company that he founded and operated for over 13 years. Jamey also spent several years in Life and Business coaching for business leaders nationwide.

Jamey spent most of his life in Colorado, moving to New York two years ago with 2 of his 5 sons and Annie, his wife of 27 years who he met at the University of Denver. Personal interests have included Boy Scout leadership, played baseball/softball for 30 years, USA swimming official, skiing, and church leadership.   		  /files/Images/head shots/Jamey Nordby headshot.JPG

/files/Images/head shots/Jim Reiner- cropped.jpg  James Reiner, Executive Director, Belay Enterprises

James Reiner joined Belay Enterprises as Executive Director in June of 1999 and continues to direct the organization. While at Belay, James has overseen the introduction of four new social enterprise businesses: Baby Bud’s, the Good Neighbor Garage, Freedom Cleaning Services and New Beginnings Custom Woodworks. He has also continued to grow Bud's Warehouse, one of the nation’s first home improvement thrift stores and on-the-job training program for individuals with addictions or felony convictions. He is also currently assisting in the development of a commercial kitchen business in partnership with the Denver Jail and a coffee shop to employ homeless young adults.

James is passionate about working with Christian entrepreneurs interested in creating, resourcing and partnering with businesses that employ individuals rebuilding lives from addiction, homelessness, prison, or poverty. He writes about developing business ventures for disadvantaged communities at www.faithventureforum.org. James graduated from the University of California at San Diego with degrees in Economics and Political Science. In addition, he has taken graduate classes in the Denver Seminary MDIV program as well as in the Regis University Masters of Non Profit Management program. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, backpacking, climbing 14ers, biking, and being the father of two daughters and twin sons.      

Catherine Rohr, Founder & CEO, Defy Ventures, New York City

Catherine Rohr is the founder and CEO of Defy Ventures, a New York City-based nonprofit that provides carefully selected, ambitious men who have criminal histories with transformational entrepreneurship, leadership, and career opportunities. Defy hosts high-stakes business plan competitions and recruits business executives to serve as judges, mentors, and faculty, who in turn provide clients with legitimate pathways to succeed as business owners, income earners, fathers, and community leaders.

Catherine brings to Defy Ventures her five years of experience as the founder and CEO of the Prison Entrepreneurship Program (PEP), a nonprofit organization that serves men throughout the Texas prison system. Under Catherine’s leadership, PEP was recognized for its innovation and results by NBC Nightly News, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Economist, and Entrepreneur Magazine.

It took a life transformation for Catherine to follow her calling, and she’s proud that her aspiring entrepreneurs also embrace a changed lifestyle to show the world that we can collectively “defy the odds.” Catherine graduated with a degree in Business Administration from University of California, Berkeley.   		/files/Images/head shots/Catherine Rohr_4website.png  

TRACK DESIGN TEAM MEMBERS:

Jamey Nordby   VP Finance and Development, The Bowery Mission
Laura Herrod Fresh Start Administrator