"Scotlandville has no shortage of convenience stores, but a true grocery store is hard to come by for this community of about 18,000 residents, according to Census data. And about 89 percent of these people live a mile or more from a true supermarket, said Edgar Cage, a member of St. Michael's and Together Baton Rouge, which has taken on the task of leading initiatives to make healthy foods more accessible to neighborhoods plagued by "food deserts" — whole communities where a grocery store is absent. "Scotlandville is the largest food desert in Baton Rouge," Cage said."

Read more

When OG&E proposed a $73 Million rate increase, newly launched organization VOICE organized public hearings, in collaboration with the AARP and other entities, in defense of fixed-income families; VOICE succeeded in helping limit the increase to only $4 Million resulting in a residential rate increase of only 2% of the original proposal. VOICE leaders say, "rate increases have become very convoluted, expensive rituals and we are proud to have helped democratize the process...we helped save the public $69.3 Million!"

Regulators OK Settlement in Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co. Rate Case, News OK

When El Paso officials first envisioned a "quality of life" bond they slated $600 Million for stadiums, a zoo and high-art venues. EPISO and Border Interfaith leaders responded with a house meeting campaign in their institutions centered on the question: what would improve the quality of life for El Paso families and individuals? Upon hearing stories about crumbling roads, decaying parks, darkened neighborhoods and unpaved walkways, leaders returned to council members with reports on what would improve the quality of life for residents. Councilmembers resisted incorporating these day-to-day fixes until leaders organized a second round of house meetings that unearthed renewed energy to fight for these improvements. Leaders partnered with the City Manager to add $210M in certificates of obligation to pay for roads, streetlights, sidewalks and parks, and then leveraged a 6:1 council vote in support.

EPISO, Border Interfaith Gather Input on Quality-of-Life Bond, El Paso Times (04/29)

Jackson Free Press

Read more

"Saturday morning, McClellan was one of 49 Inland Valley residents who participated in a jobs workshop organized by the Pomona Valley Cluster of the Inland Empire Sponsoring Committee, formerly known as One LA....

The workshop drew a diverse group of job seekers, among them recent high school graduates, people approaching retirement age, day laborers and out-of-work executives, said the Rev. Robert Linthicum, a retired minister who is a Sponsoring Committee leader.

Read more

"Representatives from approximately 50 organizations based in Jackson, Mississippi came together on June 14, 2012 to kick-off 'Working Together Jackson', a community development initiative three years in the making. The well attended event was held at New Horizon International on Ellis Ave., pastored by Bishop Ronnie Crudup. The majority members of the broad-based coalition of institutions in the Jackson Metro Area are churches. However, the remainder of the groups are service oriented, such as Stewpot, Spencer Perkins Center, United Auto Workers, Mississippi Immigrant Rights Alliances and Zoo Area Progressive Partnership."

Community Welcomes 'Working Together Jackson', The Jackson Advocate

Read more

"Founded last winter at a convention that drew more than 1,200 people, Voices Organized in Civic Engagement (VOICE) hopes to get residents focused on what their biggest needs are, and how those can best be achieved at the local and state level.

"We hope to get citizens engaged in conversations that confront our communities, and we will try to hold public officials accountable for their decisions and votes," said Lance Schmitz, pastor of Capitol Hill Church of the Nazarene and an original member of VOICE's earlier entity, the Oklahoma Sponsoring Committee..."

Read more

"Capital IDEA Executive Director Steve Jackobs quips that when his organization decides to sponsor someone's community college education, it's like a Catholic marriage: "There's only one way out feet first." It's a joke, but indicative of the two-way commitment between Capital IDEA and its participants..."

In photo, student Liz Spinhirne listens to a speaker during a VIP meeting at the ACC Riverside campus.

Read more

"Keep San Angelo Beautiful joined forces with the city of San Angelo, Butts Recycling, 3D's Plumbing, Acme Iron and Metal, Hawkins Batteries, Firestone on Concho, Sam's Club, Trashaway and Stripes to help spruce up neighborhoods throughout the city by accepting residents' refuse and debris...Volunteers from West Texas Organizing Strategy, the River San Angelo Church, 1st Community Federal Credit Union, Lifepoint Baptist Church and the Young Professionals of San Angelo helped organize and operate the event."

Read more

"We understand that when people come together and they are of one accord, things can happen....

We want to engage in a process of contagious neighborliness! We want to get to know each other better in our institutions. At the same time we want to enlarge our neighborhoods. We move forward with the knowledge that together we can change the face of Nevada..."

Read more