1 00:00:02,960 --> 00:00:05,680 Speaker 1: Hey, everybody, it's a Bill Courtney with an army of 2 00:00:05,760 --> 00:00:08,800 Speaker 1: normal folks. And we continue now with part two of 3 00:00:08,840 --> 00:00:13,080 Speaker 1: our conversation with Pastor Corey Brooks. Right after these brief 4 00:00:13,119 --> 00:00:28,800 Speaker 1: messages from our generous sponsors, let's talk a little church business. 5 00:00:29,280 --> 00:00:36,120 Speaker 1: Let's talk the back office. Absolutely, the work to church 6 00:00:36,200 --> 00:00:41,000 Speaker 1: for the unchurch is a beautiful thing, and I get it. Yeah, 7 00:00:41,040 --> 00:00:44,720 Speaker 1: And I think, you know, I think the corporate church 8 00:00:45,920 --> 00:00:48,440 Speaker 1: since the fifties and sixties in the United States and 9 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:51,519 Speaker 1: large part, has been its own worst enemy in terms 10 00:00:51,560 --> 00:00:58,120 Speaker 1: of declining membership and participation because the narrative believe like 11 00:00:58,200 --> 00:00:59,880 Speaker 1: me or you're going to Hell is a pretty tough 12 00:01:00,520 --> 00:01:07,720 Speaker 1: for sure. And my faith is grace and forgiveness and 13 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:12,200 Speaker 1: love and compassion and service. Yes, I think in large 14 00:01:12,200 --> 00:01:15,160 Speaker 1: part the church has a verse course seeing their ways 15 00:01:15,280 --> 00:01:19,520 Speaker 1: and started to work hard to put the narrative of 16 00:01:19,560 --> 00:01:21,480 Speaker 1: what my faith is out there. But there was a 17 00:01:21,560 --> 00:01:25,040 Speaker 1: long time where that was secondary. And I think in 18 00:01:25,200 --> 00:01:27,200 Speaker 1: large part the church has been some worsetent. 19 00:01:27,319 --> 00:01:27,399 Speaker 2: Me. 20 00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:32,560 Speaker 1: So there's a large population of the unchurched who had 21 00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:35,280 Speaker 1: family members who are Christians or who had been introduced 22 00:01:35,319 --> 00:01:40,039 Speaker 1: to the church that are reachable, right and guys like 23 00:01:40,120 --> 00:01:44,720 Speaker 1: you plopping down in areas of need and reaching out 24 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:48,080 Speaker 1: to those folks and starting to church the unchurched is 25 00:01:48,320 --> 00:01:54,160 Speaker 1: I think incredibly valuable needed. Ok But there's a business 26 00:01:54,200 --> 00:01:59,280 Speaker 1: side of a church. We're not talking about Tammy Fay 27 00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:07,080 Speaker 1: and jets and massive stuff, all right, that's a different world. 28 00:02:07,320 --> 00:02:09,920 Speaker 1: What I'm talking about is the reality of a church 29 00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:12,480 Speaker 1: is it costs some money to run it. Absolutely. You've 30 00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:14,119 Speaker 1: got to keep the lights on. You've got to pay 31 00:02:14,880 --> 00:02:15,960 Speaker 1: I think you have to pay you. I know you 32 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:17,240 Speaker 1: don't have to pay income, but I think you do 33 00:02:17,320 --> 00:02:19,519 Speaker 1: have to pay property tax, don't you No, we don't 34 00:02:19,520 --> 00:02:21,120 Speaker 1: have to pay property tanks. Okay, so you don't have 35 00:02:21,600 --> 00:02:24,440 Speaker 1: but you got to keep the lights on. The men 36 00:02:24,760 --> 00:02:27,280 Speaker 1: and women running the church have to have a salary. 37 00:02:27,280 --> 00:02:30,280 Speaker 1: They free, and you don't want them to be paupers, 38 00:02:30,320 --> 00:02:33,000 Speaker 1: so you're not going to make them bajillionaires. But they 39 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:36,120 Speaker 1: have to feed their family and take care of their children. 40 00:02:36,160 --> 00:02:38,800 Speaker 1: And you know, so there's there's salaries that have to 41 00:02:38,800 --> 00:02:40,880 Speaker 1: be paid, there's phone lines that have to be paid. 42 00:02:41,639 --> 00:02:44,560 Speaker 1: You gotta pay for maintenance on the building. I mean 43 00:02:44,960 --> 00:02:48,200 Speaker 1: it has to take money, absolutely, And the church gets 44 00:02:48,200 --> 00:02:52,839 Speaker 1: its money from tithing. Yes, so many of the pastors 45 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:55,440 Speaker 1: that I've talked to over the years who have started 46 00:02:55,520 --> 00:03:03,359 Speaker 1: churches for unchurched, we're afraid that commitment Sunday was one 47 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 1: of the things that really turned off prisoners because oh, 48 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:10,560 Speaker 1: here they go, ask me for my money, Here comes 49 00:03:10,600 --> 00:03:15,919 Speaker 1: the offering plate. And they walked a difficult fine line 50 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:19,000 Speaker 1: reaching to people who'd been chased out of the church 51 00:03:19,760 --> 00:03:25,200 Speaker 1: to have the church fun churchdom, while still explaining that 52 00:03:25,680 --> 00:03:28,880 Speaker 1: tithing was part of the deal because without the tithing, 53 00:03:28,919 --> 00:03:33,200 Speaker 1: the church doesn't exist, and frankly, were called to do 54 00:03:33,280 --> 00:03:36,800 Speaker 1: it right, how'd you handle that? Because and was that 55 00:03:36,920 --> 00:03:37,840 Speaker 1: a thing? Yeah? 56 00:03:37,880 --> 00:03:42,520 Speaker 2: Absolutely, here's which I'm not just No, you're right on point. 57 00:03:42,720 --> 00:03:48,720 Speaker 2: I've always handled stewardship from the standpoint of financial responsibility 58 00:03:48,760 --> 00:03:53,720 Speaker 2: and accountability. So for us, teaching the tide was just 59 00:03:53,880 --> 00:03:56,560 Speaker 2: part of it. So even to this day, when we 60 00:03:56,600 --> 00:04:00,760 Speaker 2: teach about finances, we're teaching about budgeting. We're teaching about 61 00:04:00,880 --> 00:04:07,480 Speaker 2: living below your mean, not overspending, learning how to be content. 62 00:04:07,680 --> 00:04:10,839 Speaker 2: We're talking about savings. So we teach people the ten 63 00:04:10,960 --> 00:04:14,119 Speaker 2: ten eighty rule, you know, stuff like that. So from 64 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:17,280 Speaker 2: the very start, we've always taught not just tithing, but 65 00:04:17,320 --> 00:04:19,320 Speaker 2: we want you to be better financially. And I think 66 00:04:19,520 --> 00:04:21,640 Speaker 2: that's one of the things that kind of appealed to 67 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:25,480 Speaker 2: the younger group that we were reaching, is that they understood, Look, 68 00:04:25,520 --> 00:04:27,159 Speaker 2: we're not just trying to get you to tie. We 69 00:04:27,200 --> 00:04:30,960 Speaker 2: want you to be financially accountable, we want. 70 00:04:30,839 --> 00:04:31,680 Speaker 1: You to be literate. 71 00:04:31,839 --> 00:04:33,520 Speaker 2: Yeah, we want you to be in a position to 72 00:04:33,560 --> 00:04:35,360 Speaker 2: take care of your family. We're not just trying to 73 00:04:35,400 --> 00:04:37,880 Speaker 2: get something from you. We're trying to give something to you. 74 00:04:38,200 --> 00:04:38,360 Speaker 1: Now. 75 00:04:38,480 --> 00:04:41,320 Speaker 2: Part of that is learning how to give to God, 76 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:44,360 Speaker 2: putting him first. And when you establish that, I think 77 00:04:44,400 --> 00:04:46,560 Speaker 2: people receive it a lot different. So they know at 78 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:49,920 Speaker 2: our church, they know we're not just talking about finances 79 00:04:49,920 --> 00:04:53,159 Speaker 2: and money just so we can get something from you. Yeah, 80 00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:56,599 Speaker 2: that's good stuff, but it's a big thing. You know, 81 00:04:56,720 --> 00:05:00,000 Speaker 2: even even now. You know, just Sunday I was saying, 82 00:05:00,040 --> 00:05:04,560 Speaker 2: and I don't look at weekly and monthly ties and 83 00:05:04,600 --> 00:05:07,560 Speaker 2: offerings and things like that. Annually I'll go back and 84 00:05:07,560 --> 00:05:09,840 Speaker 2: look and say okay. And so this year when they 85 00:05:09,839 --> 00:05:11,719 Speaker 2: brought me to report, I was a little taken back 86 00:05:11,760 --> 00:05:14,440 Speaker 2: because I looked at the tithe and Report of our 87 00:05:14,520 --> 00:05:16,840 Speaker 2: leaders and the tithe and Report of some of our 88 00:05:16,880 --> 00:05:19,560 Speaker 2: staff and people who work and I was like, whoa. 89 00:05:20,000 --> 00:05:22,320 Speaker 2: And I was really really upset, and I was going 90 00:05:22,360 --> 00:05:24,960 Speaker 2: to just write a model letter and you know, go off, 91 00:05:25,400 --> 00:05:29,039 Speaker 2: but the Lord convicted me of and I you know, 92 00:05:29,120 --> 00:05:31,320 Speaker 2: it was and I felt, you know what, it's really 93 00:05:31,320 --> 00:05:34,080 Speaker 2: more of an indictment on my teaching and preaching. Maybe 94 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:37,359 Speaker 2: I need to be a better communicator and teaching about 95 00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:40,760 Speaker 2: financial responsibility. So that's the way I started keeping my 96 00:05:40,800 --> 00:05:44,880 Speaker 2: approach there. It's about financial responsibility and financial literacy. 97 00:05:45,200 --> 00:05:47,960 Speaker 1: The greatest measure of the success of a leader is 98 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:51,880 Speaker 1: the actions of the followers. Absolutely, yeah. And if they 99 00:05:51,920 --> 00:05:54,599 Speaker 1: ain't getting it right, you gotta look at yourself first. 100 00:05:54,800 --> 00:05:57,320 Speaker 1: That's the first place, you know, So go to leaders. 101 00:05:57,320 --> 00:06:01,360 Speaker 1: So go to church, that's right. Yeah, all right, So 102 00:06:01,400 --> 00:06:07,560 Speaker 1: here comes the Route sixty six church and you're in 103 00:06:07,760 --> 00:06:12,360 Speaker 1: Woodlawn and across the street there's a hotel. Yeah. 104 00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:16,640 Speaker 2: So we're in Woodline. We're the toughest area in Chicago, 105 00:06:17,360 --> 00:06:23,359 Speaker 2: on the most dangerous street in Chicago twenty fourteen. The 106 00:06:23,440 --> 00:06:26,560 Speaker 2: Chicago sometimes called it the most dangerous neighborhood in all 107 00:06:26,560 --> 00:06:30,320 Speaker 2: of Chicago. Some think it's even the most make it 108 00:06:30,360 --> 00:06:32,680 Speaker 2: in the country. Yes, something I was going to say. 109 00:06:32,680 --> 00:06:34,680 Speaker 2: Some people think it's one of the most dangerous streets 110 00:06:34,680 --> 00:06:35,279 Speaker 2: in the country. 111 00:06:35,960 --> 00:06:36,760 Speaker 1: So here we are. 112 00:06:37,200 --> 00:06:39,920 Speaker 2: We got this church and it's across the street from 113 00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:44,440 Speaker 2: this motel, and this motel gangs are using it for 114 00:06:44,600 --> 00:06:49,160 Speaker 2: drug sales and gun sales, and prostitution is going on. 115 00:06:49,480 --> 00:06:49,680 Speaker 1: You know. 116 00:06:49,760 --> 00:06:53,880 Speaker 2: It's it's called the stroll, you know, where prostitutes are 117 00:06:54,240 --> 00:06:56,920 Speaker 2: using it to walk in front of and sell them sells. 118 00:06:57,000 --> 00:07:00,120 Speaker 2: So it was really here we are, this church and 119 00:07:00,680 --> 00:07:03,839 Speaker 2: you know this this place is right across the street. 120 00:07:04,000 --> 00:07:08,600 Speaker 2: So something has to be done. So we tried talking 121 00:07:08,640 --> 00:07:13,040 Speaker 2: to the owner and negotiating with the owner, and none 122 00:07:13,080 --> 00:07:16,560 Speaker 2: of that work. And two things happened. We want to 123 00:07:16,560 --> 00:07:18,880 Speaker 2: buy it, Yeah, we wanted to buy it, and he 124 00:07:18,880 --> 00:07:21,000 Speaker 2: wouldn't sell it. Now I understand why he wouldn't sell it. 125 00:07:21,040 --> 00:07:23,080 Speaker 2: You know, the gangs were involved, and he was making 126 00:07:23,120 --> 00:07:26,240 Speaker 2: a lot of illegal money. So and I later found 127 00:07:26,240 --> 00:07:29,960 Speaker 2: out that he that these sleazy hotels were part of 128 00:07:29,960 --> 00:07:34,040 Speaker 2: a lot of sleazy hotels across the America owned by 129 00:07:34,040 --> 00:07:37,040 Speaker 2: a group that was participating in these type of activities. 130 00:07:37,080 --> 00:07:39,680 Speaker 2: But I didn't find that out until it got later 131 00:07:39,760 --> 00:07:41,320 Speaker 2: on in the in the process. 132 00:07:41,440 --> 00:07:45,120 Speaker 1: But this hotel. It is a sleezy hotel, and. 133 00:07:45,040 --> 00:07:47,400 Speaker 2: We're trying to you know, we want to take it on, 134 00:07:47,520 --> 00:07:50,280 Speaker 2: we want to buy it, so he wouldn't sell it. 135 00:07:50,320 --> 00:07:53,720 Speaker 1: Could you see? I think were your parishioners and your 136 00:07:53,720 --> 00:07:57,040 Speaker 1: personal children walking out and seeing all this mess going 137 00:07:57,080 --> 00:07:57,720 Speaker 1: on across. 138 00:07:57,440 --> 00:08:00,960 Speaker 2: The streets, absolutely, especially a prostitution on Sunday were they 139 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:03,040 Speaker 2: were they walking the streets in front of the church. 140 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:06,320 Speaker 2: There were prostitutes walking the street. And now I know 141 00:08:07,280 --> 00:08:09,920 Speaker 2: from hearing you already, you weren't condemning them. No, you 142 00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:12,320 Speaker 2: probably wanted to reach out, and we were reaching out. 143 00:08:12,320 --> 00:08:13,880 Speaker 2: We were reaching out. We were trying to get him 144 00:08:13,880 --> 00:08:17,120 Speaker 2: in programs. We were trying you know, we never would 145 00:08:17,120 --> 00:08:21,200 Speaker 2: condemn them. We never would still, yeah, but it was 146 00:08:21,320 --> 00:08:24,720 Speaker 2: it was they were there and one Sunday you said, so, yeah, 147 00:08:24,720 --> 00:08:28,560 Speaker 2: One Sunday, the gang somebody beat this guy up so 148 00:08:28,840 --> 00:08:32,240 Speaker 2: bad and he ran into our congregate. Our church was 149 00:08:32,360 --> 00:08:37,000 Speaker 2: jam packed. He ran in the lobby, but naked, bleeding 150 00:08:37,679 --> 00:08:42,000 Speaker 2: he had gotten on Sunday mornings stripped him. We were like, okay, 151 00:08:42,040 --> 00:08:45,360 Speaker 2: we got to do something. So from that point we 152 00:08:45,360 --> 00:08:48,800 Speaker 2: were like, this is it Monday, I'm going over to 153 00:08:48,840 --> 00:08:51,000 Speaker 2: talk to this guy who's gonna have to sell this hotel. 154 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:53,440 Speaker 2: So I can remember going over and having this big 155 00:08:53,520 --> 00:08:57,240 Speaker 2: discussion with him, and I remember saying to me, look, 156 00:08:57,800 --> 00:09:01,080 Speaker 2: there's a church over there, and he pointed at this 157 00:09:01,160 --> 00:09:03,480 Speaker 2: church that was not too far from us, and then 158 00:09:03,480 --> 00:09:05,800 Speaker 2: he said, there's a church on that corner down there, 159 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:08,640 Speaker 2: and they were there before you got here. And then 160 00:09:08,640 --> 00:09:12,760 Speaker 2: he said to me, and what makes you think you're 161 00:09:12,800 --> 00:09:16,240 Speaker 2: gonna do something different? And right there is when I 162 00:09:16,280 --> 00:09:19,240 Speaker 2: feel like, okay, he's throwing down the gatlin. So the 163 00:09:19,280 --> 00:09:21,600 Speaker 2: next Sunday, I told our church, we're gonna be protesting 164 00:09:21,640 --> 00:09:23,880 Speaker 2: out in front of their every Friday and Saturday night. 165 00:09:24,240 --> 00:09:26,600 Speaker 2: We're going to act like we're filming people going in 166 00:09:26,720 --> 00:09:29,160 Speaker 2: doing illegal stuff, and we're going to try to shut 167 00:09:29,200 --> 00:09:32,000 Speaker 2: it down. And so for a whole summer we cut 168 00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:33,040 Speaker 2: his business off. 169 00:09:33,000 --> 00:09:36,280 Speaker 1: And hang on what the gang members not too happy 170 00:09:36,320 --> 00:09:38,600 Speaker 1: with that, Well, you're not worried about a little shooting. 171 00:09:38,720 --> 00:09:39,800 Speaker 1: It was It. 172 00:09:39,720 --> 00:09:43,000 Speaker 2: Was it was confrontations, it was confroation. The good thing 173 00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:46,360 Speaker 2: is that we had been in the neighborhood and so 174 00:09:47,160 --> 00:09:49,920 Speaker 2: people will started joining our church from the neighborhood. So 175 00:09:49,960 --> 00:09:52,800 Speaker 2: some of these same gang guys were related to people 176 00:09:52,800 --> 00:09:57,800 Speaker 2: who were in our church, so our members, our members 177 00:09:57,800 --> 00:10:01,439 Speaker 2: were able to quiet stuff down on a lot, right. 178 00:10:01,559 --> 00:10:04,280 Speaker 2: So we hadn't had that connection, it probably in the 179 00:10:04,280 --> 00:10:08,120 Speaker 2: words of our neighborhood, it would have went up for sure. Yeah, okay, 180 00:10:08,200 --> 00:10:10,960 Speaker 2: so you're protesting. So we're protesting all summer. We're cutting 181 00:10:10,960 --> 00:10:13,959 Speaker 2: this drying his business up. He's he's hurting. So we 182 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:16,280 Speaker 2: got him on the you know, on the ropes. So 183 00:10:16,679 --> 00:10:23,959 Speaker 2: the name of Jesus, you've grinding them up. Jesus real bad. 184 00:10:24,760 --> 00:10:28,160 Speaker 2: So uh, I tell people we were gangstering for God. 185 00:10:28,520 --> 00:10:31,920 Speaker 2: So we're so so new. So the end of the 186 00:10:31,920 --> 00:10:35,960 Speaker 2: summer comes, the fall comes. He's, you know, in a 187 00:10:36,080 --> 00:10:40,480 Speaker 2: tough situation. And in November, a young boy in our 188 00:10:40,600 --> 00:10:45,560 Speaker 2: church gets shot and killed. And that's when things went 189 00:10:45,600 --> 00:10:48,120 Speaker 2: to a whole other level. We had the funeral at 190 00:10:48,120 --> 00:10:50,480 Speaker 2: the church. It was a it was a warm day 191 00:10:50,559 --> 00:10:53,679 Speaker 2: on a Saturday. The kids were walking into the neighborhood 192 00:10:53,920 --> 00:10:58,760 Speaker 2: from five six blocks away, a very large funeral. And 193 00:10:58,800 --> 00:11:00,599 Speaker 2: I'm up in the office getting ready, and all of 194 00:11:00,679 --> 00:11:04,680 Speaker 2: a sudden, I hear semi automatic gunfire and my heart 195 00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:09,440 Speaker 2: sank because just like she said, she was worried exactly happened. 196 00:11:09,720 --> 00:11:13,280 Speaker 2: The kids from the block that our churches on started 197 00:11:13,320 --> 00:11:17,559 Speaker 2: shooting at those kids, and thankfully no one got shot 198 00:11:17,600 --> 00:11:21,000 Speaker 2: and killed, and it was chaotic. We were still able 199 00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:24,000 Speaker 2: to have the funeral. After the police came, we debated 200 00:11:24,080 --> 00:11:26,040 Speaker 2: should we even have it, but I decided, you know, 201 00:11:26,080 --> 00:11:28,720 Speaker 2: look this many young people here. Something positive needs to 202 00:11:28,720 --> 00:11:32,199 Speaker 2: be said about the Lord. So the police stayed, they 203 00:11:32,200 --> 00:11:35,079 Speaker 2: were everywhere, and we finally were able to have this funeral. 204 00:11:35,200 --> 00:11:38,440 Speaker 2: And that's when things kind of like I made a 205 00:11:38,440 --> 00:11:39,480 Speaker 2: commitment to God. 206 00:11:39,640 --> 00:11:40,600 Speaker 1: Look, I'm all in. 207 00:11:41,000 --> 00:11:44,080 Speaker 2: I thought I had been all in, but something has 208 00:11:44,120 --> 00:11:45,679 Speaker 2: to be done about the violence in this name. 209 00:11:46,000 --> 00:11:48,080 Speaker 1: To say about a society that has to have a 210 00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:52,000 Speaker 1: massive police presence or a child can be buried, Man, 211 00:11:52,000 --> 00:11:53,880 Speaker 1: it's very sad. It's nothing like it. 212 00:11:53,960 --> 00:11:54,480 Speaker 2: I mean. 213 00:11:55,920 --> 00:11:56,280 Speaker 1: Broken. 214 00:11:57,800 --> 00:12:01,680 Speaker 2: I can remember thinking and even while the worship service 215 00:12:01,800 --> 00:12:05,720 Speaker 2: was going on, it's going to take a miracle to 216 00:12:05,840 --> 00:12:09,240 Speaker 2: change this neighborhood. And I was thinking, even why the 217 00:12:09,280 --> 00:12:12,679 Speaker 2: funeral's going on, Man, I should just lead this neighborhood. 218 00:12:12,720 --> 00:12:15,480 Speaker 1: Why am I here? I shouldn't. 219 00:12:15,720 --> 00:12:17,640 Speaker 2: Yeah, I started to doubt, and I started I was 220 00:12:17,760 --> 00:12:23,160 Speaker 2: really internally wrestling about the whole situation. But at the 221 00:12:23,240 --> 00:12:26,839 Speaker 2: end of that funeral, something happened that had never happened 222 00:12:26,880 --> 00:12:33,440 Speaker 2: to me. Ever, I really believe that Lord still speaks 223 00:12:33,559 --> 00:12:35,960 Speaker 2: and urges you by the Holy Spirit. I believe that, 224 00:12:36,520 --> 00:12:38,480 Speaker 2: and I really believe that the Holy Spirit was just 225 00:12:39,440 --> 00:12:43,200 Speaker 2: functioning me to say something to those boys who had 226 00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:46,200 Speaker 2: brought illegal guns into the church. And so I said, 227 00:12:46,960 --> 00:12:48,880 Speaker 2: at the end of the funeral, I stopped the process. 228 00:12:48,880 --> 00:12:51,520 Speaker 2: I stopped everybody and told everybody to sit down, and 229 00:12:51,559 --> 00:12:53,240 Speaker 2: I said, you know, I'm not trying to scare anybody. 230 00:12:53,240 --> 00:12:54,880 Speaker 2: I'm not trying to be spooky. I'm not trying to 231 00:12:54,920 --> 00:12:59,640 Speaker 2: be prophetic. But I do believe when God speaks to me, 232 00:13:00,240 --> 00:13:03,400 Speaker 2: gives me a certain function. And I said, there's some 233 00:13:03,480 --> 00:13:05,840 Speaker 2: young brothers in here who brought guns in here illegally. 234 00:13:05,920 --> 00:13:08,480 Speaker 2: And this is what I said, God wants you to 235 00:13:08,520 --> 00:13:12,000 Speaker 2: turn those guns in today, because if you diss Him 236 00:13:12,120 --> 00:13:14,520 Speaker 2: by going out these doors with those guns, He's gonna 237 00:13:14,559 --> 00:13:17,280 Speaker 2: diss you. So I'm gonna say a prayer, and at 238 00:13:17,280 --> 00:13:19,640 Speaker 2: the end of this prayer, we're gonna have a gun 239 00:13:19,679 --> 00:13:21,840 Speaker 2: turn in. And I got the police to agree that 240 00:13:21,920 --> 00:13:23,959 Speaker 2: I could do it. They wouldn't rest anybody. We could 241 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:26,840 Speaker 2: do a gun turn in and I said a prayer, 242 00:13:27,559 --> 00:13:28,679 Speaker 2: and I thought it was gonna be I don't know 243 00:13:28,679 --> 00:13:32,720 Speaker 2: if you're familiar with Billy Graham, but I thought it 244 00:13:32,760 --> 00:13:34,520 Speaker 2: was gonna be like one of them Billy Graham crusades, 245 00:13:34,559 --> 00:13:36,560 Speaker 2: you know what he prays, and then everybody comes down 246 00:13:36,600 --> 00:13:42,600 Speaker 2: and everybody's crying. Everybody's so I thought it was gonna 247 00:13:42,600 --> 00:13:44,920 Speaker 2: be like that. But I said amen, and it was 248 00:13:45,000 --> 00:13:48,280 Speaker 2: so quiet, nobody moved. I thought, oh my god, I 249 00:13:48,360 --> 00:13:50,840 Speaker 2: made a big mistake. And then all of a sudden, 250 00:13:51,280 --> 00:13:54,920 Speaker 2: after about a minute of quiet, this young brother with 251 00:13:55,040 --> 00:14:00,119 Speaker 2: a T shirt on, saggy pants locks, pulls up his pants. 252 00:14:00,800 --> 00:14:03,719 Speaker 2: He's got a nine milimeter clock, holds it up in 253 00:14:03,760 --> 00:14:07,560 Speaker 2: the air, turns it in. Another person turns in the gun. 254 00:14:07,640 --> 00:14:12,079 Speaker 2: Another person turns in the gun, and I said, God 255 00:14:12,679 --> 00:14:14,720 Speaker 2: that this is a miracle. Whatever you want me to 256 00:14:14,720 --> 00:14:18,240 Speaker 2: do from this point, I'm all in. So as we're 257 00:14:18,240 --> 00:14:21,280 Speaker 2: walking out at the end of the funeral, the sergeant 258 00:14:21,320 --> 00:14:24,160 Speaker 2: of police stops me and she's crying and she says, 259 00:14:24,200 --> 00:14:27,280 Speaker 2: passor thank you so much. She said, underneath the seat, 260 00:14:27,400 --> 00:14:29,920 Speaker 2: we found this gun and it was another nine milimeter 261 00:14:30,000 --> 00:14:33,280 Speaker 2: but it had an extended clip and so I just 262 00:14:33,320 --> 00:14:35,400 Speaker 2: recommitted again the same thing I just committed. 263 00:14:35,720 --> 00:14:38,040 Speaker 1: God, I'm all in whatever I got to do this violence, 264 00:14:38,360 --> 00:14:39,040 Speaker 1: I'm all in. 265 00:14:39,840 --> 00:14:42,400 Speaker 2: And little did I know I would walk from the 266 00:14:42,400 --> 00:14:44,320 Speaker 2: back of our church to the front door of our 267 00:14:44,400 --> 00:14:47,360 Speaker 2: church and they're that motel is the first thing I 268 00:14:47,400 --> 00:14:51,160 Speaker 2: put my eyes on, and the same unction I had 269 00:14:51,480 --> 00:14:54,040 Speaker 2: in the funeral, I got that same unction again. This 270 00:14:54,200 --> 00:14:58,480 Speaker 2: time it was more like, go on top of the 271 00:14:58,560 --> 00:15:01,480 Speaker 2: roof for that motel and stay there until you raise 272 00:15:01,600 --> 00:15:04,920 Speaker 2: enough money to purchase it and tear it down and 273 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:06,360 Speaker 2: start building a community center. 274 00:15:06,440 --> 00:15:09,400 Speaker 1: Okay, so now we're gonna get to this part of 275 00:15:09,400 --> 00:15:11,080 Speaker 1: the story, which is phenomenal. 276 00:15:12,680 --> 00:15:15,800 Speaker 3: But brother, are you crazy? Because here I think I was, 277 00:15:16,280 --> 00:15:18,720 Speaker 3: because I think you gotta have a little crazy. How 278 00:15:18,760 --> 00:15:21,600 Speaker 3: you gonna go up on a roof and buy a hotel? 279 00:15:21,880 --> 00:15:24,400 Speaker 3: I mean, here's the truth. You go on the roof 280 00:15:24,400 --> 00:15:26,560 Speaker 3: of this building right now. But that don't mean you're 281 00:15:26,560 --> 00:15:29,360 Speaker 3: gonna buy nothing. Which is is are you gonna find 282 00:15:29,440 --> 00:15:31,680 Speaker 3: enough quarters on the room you're gonna be able to buy? 283 00:15:31,840 --> 00:15:35,280 Speaker 1: How are you gonna buy a hotel by going on 284 00:15:35,320 --> 00:15:37,200 Speaker 1: the roof. That doesn't even make sense. It doesn't make 285 00:15:37,240 --> 00:15:37,640 Speaker 1: any sense. 286 00:15:37,680 --> 00:15:40,040 Speaker 2: At all, and I tell people I know it now 287 00:15:40,160 --> 00:15:44,360 Speaker 2: looking back, it made no sense and I didn't even 288 00:15:44,600 --> 00:15:46,720 Speaker 2: think it. I wasn't even thinking it through. I just 289 00:15:46,840 --> 00:15:50,800 Speaker 2: really believed in my heart and mind I'm hearing from God. 290 00:15:50,960 --> 00:15:55,120 Speaker 2: I was believing that because I was in that gun 291 00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:58,680 Speaker 2: turned in kind of like just messing me up and 292 00:15:58,720 --> 00:16:03,800 Speaker 2: have me. Man, you got brothers turning in guns. I'll 293 00:16:03,840 --> 00:16:04,560 Speaker 2: believe it. 294 00:16:09,240 --> 00:16:19,360 Speaker 1: We'll be right back. One of the reasons why at 295 00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:24,560 Speaker 1: the beginning of our conversation, I really wanted to establish 296 00:16:25,080 --> 00:16:30,640 Speaker 1: your pedigree, your educational pedigree political science and Dallas and 297 00:16:31,160 --> 00:16:34,240 Speaker 1: got into law school. I'll tell you another quick story. 298 00:16:35,080 --> 00:16:41,480 Speaker 1: I've done more stories on this. The Rain Hotel over 299 00:16:41,560 --> 00:16:44,040 Speaker 1: here on Mulberry Streets where Martin Luther King was shot 300 00:16:44,040 --> 00:16:53,160 Speaker 1: and killed in Memphis. And Memphis was a major manufacturing 301 00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:57,320 Speaker 1: area prior to nineteen April fourth, nineteen sixty eight, and 302 00:16:57,360 --> 00:16:59,720 Speaker 1: there were riots and riots and riots, and a lot 303 00:16:59,720 --> 00:17:04,440 Speaker 1: of companies Caterpillar International Harvester, Firestone, Firestone had a plant 304 00:17:04,480 --> 00:17:07,919 Speaker 1: over here that was seven hundred acres, couldn't deal with 305 00:17:08,000 --> 00:17:11,040 Speaker 1: it and pulled up stakes. And it's set back this 306 00:17:11,160 --> 00:17:15,480 Speaker 1: city thirty years, not only culturally and racially, but economical 307 00:17:16,480 --> 00:17:18,840 Speaker 1: Memphis is still dealing with it. I mean, Memphis at 308 00:17:18,840 --> 00:17:21,680 Speaker 1: one time was one of the top ten largest cities 309 00:17:21,760 --> 00:17:24,399 Speaker 1: in the country. And the crossing of the river, I 310 00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:28,280 Speaker 1: mean the Memphis has struggled and it's coming back. And 311 00:17:28,320 --> 00:17:31,480 Speaker 1: there are great corporations still here, like International Paper and 312 00:17:31,560 --> 00:17:37,159 Speaker 1: AutoZone and FedEx and others. But that incident, and I 313 00:17:37,200 --> 00:17:39,800 Speaker 1: don't need to mean to downplay the social impact of 314 00:17:39,840 --> 00:17:41,919 Speaker 1: that incident, which is most important, but it had a 315 00:17:42,600 --> 00:17:47,080 Speaker 1: devastating economic impact on the city. As a result, the 316 00:17:47,119 --> 00:17:52,040 Speaker 1: area around the Roman Hotel went to hell, right, And 317 00:17:52,119 --> 00:17:57,360 Speaker 1: so in eighty seven, nineteen eighty seven, I'm at Olmsson College, 318 00:17:57,560 --> 00:17:59,960 Speaker 1: mine of my own business. Well not really, but that's 319 00:18:00,040 --> 00:18:05,640 Speaker 1: where I am, and this TV the news comes over, 320 00:18:07,280 --> 00:18:11,679 Speaker 1: and the city and county and a private public partnership 321 00:18:11,720 --> 00:18:14,919 Speaker 1: of raised enough money to buy their own hotel, do 322 00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:18,080 Speaker 1: millions of dollars with the renovations and make it the 323 00:18:18,160 --> 00:18:22,200 Speaker 1: National Civil Rights Museum and honor doctor King and make 324 00:18:22,280 --> 00:18:27,720 Speaker 1: it a museum that's DC New York quality, which stands today. Great, 325 00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:33,159 Speaker 1: great deal. But the woman who was running that motel's 326 00:18:33,240 --> 00:18:36,600 Speaker 1: name was Jacqueline Smith, not the Charlie's Angel Jacqueline Smith, 327 00:18:37,040 --> 00:18:41,120 Speaker 1: an African American woman named Jackie Smith who was using 328 00:18:41,200 --> 00:18:50,840 Speaker 1: the hotel to house beaten, battered, abused children and mothers 329 00:18:51,960 --> 00:18:54,960 Speaker 1: and people are on the streets caring for the very 330 00:18:55,000 --> 00:19:01,080 Speaker 1: people that your heart cares. And her argument was, museums 331 00:19:01,080 --> 00:19:04,800 Speaker 1: and monuments don't perpetuate the memory of doctor King actions 332 00:19:04,840 --> 00:19:06,840 Speaker 1: to and if we're going to spend twenty five million 333 00:19:06,880 --> 00:19:09,439 Speaker 1: dollars on this place, why don't we rehabit to a 334 00:19:09,480 --> 00:19:13,960 Speaker 1: center for the people that need it the most. Well, 335 00:19:14,280 --> 00:19:17,960 Speaker 1: nobody understood that all the news showed was this black 336 00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:21,320 Speaker 1: woman having all her stuff thrown on the curb and 337 00:19:21,359 --> 00:19:25,440 Speaker 1: being dragged out by her feet and hands down the stairway, 338 00:19:26,200 --> 00:19:30,080 Speaker 1: hollering loud. And you know what she looked like. She 339 00:19:30,080 --> 00:19:33,080 Speaker 1: looked like a crazy street woman, right, crazy black woman, 340 00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:38,240 Speaker 1: angry black woman, crazy angry black woman, just raising hell. 341 00:19:39,680 --> 00:19:41,480 Speaker 1: And then they drop her on the curb with all 342 00:19:41,480 --> 00:19:46,600 Speaker 1: her stuff and put a tarp over it. It's twenty 343 00:19:46,680 --> 00:19:50,120 Speaker 1: twenty four and that woman is still there, Wow, tonight 344 00:19:52,359 --> 00:19:56,639 Speaker 1: because she believes so desperately in her heart that actions, 345 00:19:56,720 --> 00:20:00,359 Speaker 1: not monuments, better support and perpetuate the memory the works 346 00:20:00,359 --> 00:20:03,639 Speaker 1: of a man like doctor King. Now you can argue 347 00:20:03,640 --> 00:20:07,080 Speaker 1: whether or not the Civil Rights Museum as an educational 348 00:20:07,119 --> 00:20:10,720 Speaker 1: tool and as a monument to the greatest civil rights 349 00:20:10,800 --> 00:20:13,880 Speaker 1: leader of our time is appropriate or not. I personally 350 00:20:13,920 --> 00:20:20,760 Speaker 1: think it probably is, But I also understand her. So 351 00:20:21,800 --> 00:20:24,800 Speaker 1: I drove up there, and now this was not a 352 00:20:24,800 --> 00:20:28,240 Speaker 1: place in the city that many folks went, and certainly 353 00:20:28,280 --> 00:20:32,399 Speaker 1: not redheaded, fat white dudes, right, And I ended up 354 00:20:32,440 --> 00:20:34,920 Speaker 1: spending two nights on the sidewalk with her, and Wow, 355 00:20:35,760 --> 00:20:38,840 Speaker 1: heard her story, wrote it down, and wrote an article 356 00:20:38,880 --> 00:20:41,800 Speaker 1: that ended up getting published and like readers, dijust and 357 00:20:41,920 --> 00:20:44,400 Speaker 1: time and all that. So it was my first full 358 00:20:44,400 --> 00:20:48,959 Speaker 1: way into storytelling, frankly. But what I learned about Jackie 359 00:20:49,000 --> 00:20:51,080 Speaker 1: Smith is she had a degree from the University of 360 00:20:51,119 --> 00:20:55,840 Speaker 1: Southern Mississippi and was a lead soprano in the Chicago 361 00:20:55,920 --> 00:20:59,000 Speaker 1: metch Boldern Opera at one time, and she left all 362 00:20:59,040 --> 00:21:01,320 Speaker 1: that to come back home to serve the most disadvantaged 363 00:21:01,320 --> 00:21:06,760 Speaker 1: in community. And her protest was righteous. I'm telling the 364 00:21:06,760 --> 00:21:09,639 Speaker 1: story for this reason. When I first heard the story 365 00:21:09,680 --> 00:21:12,720 Speaker 1: of a black man camping out on somebody's roof in Chicago, 366 00:21:13,200 --> 00:21:15,680 Speaker 1: I thought you were just a crazy, angry. 367 00:21:15,480 --> 00:21:18,760 Speaker 2: Black man yeah, you know, and I can understand that, 368 00:21:19,160 --> 00:21:22,720 Speaker 2: and I think that's not just was your thought. I 369 00:21:22,720 --> 00:21:25,119 Speaker 2: think that's probably what a lot of people thought. Even 370 00:21:25,320 --> 00:21:29,080 Speaker 2: people on my staff thought. Passed, this is crazy, don't 371 00:21:29,160 --> 00:21:30,440 Speaker 2: you know. They were trying to talk to me out 372 00:21:30,440 --> 00:21:33,840 Speaker 2: of doing it. But I was so convinced and still 373 00:21:33,880 --> 00:21:36,359 Speaker 2: am to this day that that's what God wanted me 374 00:21:36,400 --> 00:21:38,960 Speaker 2: to do that I was not gonna No one. 375 00:21:38,800 --> 00:21:40,840 Speaker 1: Could have changed my mind. Tell us what you did. 376 00:21:41,400 --> 00:21:46,399 Speaker 2: So on November the twentieth, twenty eleven, about four am 377 00:21:46,440 --> 00:21:50,760 Speaker 2: in the morning, Rafa, who is our church maintenance engineer, 378 00:21:51,600 --> 00:21:55,320 Speaker 2: we snuck up on the roof and we put a 379 00:21:55,359 --> 00:21:58,840 Speaker 2: tent up there and I just refused to come down, 380 00:21:59,400 --> 00:22:03,720 Speaker 2: and I said I wasn't gonna come down until we 381 00:22:03,880 --> 00:22:04,800 Speaker 2: raised enough money. 382 00:22:04,840 --> 00:22:05,879 Speaker 1: How tall is this fielding? 383 00:22:06,280 --> 00:22:09,320 Speaker 2: It's about three stories, So your three stories up there, 384 00:22:09,359 --> 00:22:10,520 Speaker 2: three stories up in the air. 385 00:22:12,080 --> 00:22:14,399 Speaker 1: People lobbing your cans of beans? How you eating? 386 00:22:14,400 --> 00:22:17,840 Speaker 2: And so at first I was fast, and so so 387 00:22:18,320 --> 00:22:20,000 Speaker 2: I was on the twenty one day fast because I 388 00:22:20,040 --> 00:22:21,560 Speaker 2: was thinking this is what I really just think. I 389 00:22:21,560 --> 00:22:24,040 Speaker 2: was like, Okay, I go up here on this roof 390 00:22:24,720 --> 00:22:27,520 Speaker 2: and people are here about it. It's crazy. Black preacher 391 00:22:27,560 --> 00:22:32,240 Speaker 2: on the roof attend not eating seven days, I'll be down. 392 00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:39,760 Speaker 2: I really thought that's what's going to happen, but it 393 00:22:39,800 --> 00:22:43,000 Speaker 2: did not happen like that. I'm thankful to a lady 394 00:22:43,600 --> 00:22:47,879 Speaker 2: by the name of Hermeane Hartman, who was really close 395 00:22:47,960 --> 00:22:50,920 Speaker 2: to Reverend Jesse Jackson, and she's you know, she's really 396 00:22:51,040 --> 00:22:54,600 Speaker 2: historic in Chicago as far as media is concerned, on 397 00:22:54,720 --> 00:22:58,679 Speaker 2: black radio, and she knows everybody. She just happened to 398 00:22:58,720 --> 00:23:01,680 Speaker 2: hear that I was on the roof, and she did 399 00:23:01,760 --> 00:23:04,600 Speaker 2: not believe it. And so she came by there on 400 00:23:04,640 --> 00:23:07,000 Speaker 2: the second day in her car, her and her friend, 401 00:23:07,720 --> 00:23:12,920 Speaker 2: and she was hollering up and so I come over 402 00:23:12,960 --> 00:23:13,720 Speaker 2: to the side of the roof. 403 00:23:14,080 --> 00:23:16,200 Speaker 1: She said, I didn't I did not believe you were 404 00:23:16,320 --> 00:23:16,720 Speaker 1: up here. 405 00:23:17,119 --> 00:23:21,840 Speaker 2: I'm gonna go and tell everybody, And sure enough she started, Yeah, 406 00:23:21,920 --> 00:23:25,840 Speaker 2: she started spreading the word. I started getting attention. The 407 00:23:25,960 --> 00:23:28,399 Speaker 2: mayor called and we got into a big argument. Man, 408 00:23:29,520 --> 00:23:30,960 Speaker 2: Rommy Manuel on the third. 409 00:23:30,920 --> 00:23:34,240 Speaker 1: Supposed to be a big progressive Democrats support the people 410 00:23:34,359 --> 00:23:34,800 Speaker 1: kind of guy. 411 00:23:34,920 --> 00:23:37,720 Speaker 2: Yeah, I tell people, I didn't know he could cuss. 412 00:23:37,880 --> 00:23:39,560 Speaker 2: I didn't know you could cuss preachers out like that. 413 00:23:40,840 --> 00:23:41,520 Speaker 1: He cussed me. 414 00:23:41,480 --> 00:23:44,440 Speaker 2: Out real good cause you know, he's like, I'm gonna 415 00:23:44,480 --> 00:23:47,600 Speaker 2: get after off and have people on the roofs all 416 00:23:47,640 --> 00:23:49,639 Speaker 2: across the city if he allows it to go. 417 00:23:49,840 --> 00:23:53,800 Speaker 1: And that, yeah, he was gonna start. I'm starting something, 418 00:23:53,960 --> 00:23:57,920 Speaker 1: starting something everybody gonna do. And I control off the 419 00:23:58,040 --> 00:24:02,240 Speaker 1: roof off and you told the mayor, no way, you 420 00:24:02,320 --> 00:24:04,439 Speaker 1: have to come and get me. Let me buy this 421 00:24:04,520 --> 00:24:06,400 Speaker 1: hotel exactly, And he was. 422 00:24:06,400 --> 00:24:09,960 Speaker 2: Like, I can't help you buy the motel, and you're 423 00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:12,159 Speaker 2: gonna come off that roof. Matter of fact, if you 424 00:24:12,160 --> 00:24:14,159 Speaker 2: don't come off by three o'clock, we're gonna come and 425 00:24:14,160 --> 00:24:16,280 Speaker 2: get you. And I tell everyone he should have he 426 00:24:16,359 --> 00:24:19,120 Speaker 2: made a big mistake. He told me the time. When 427 00:24:19,119 --> 00:24:22,320 Speaker 2: he told me the time, I called every gang banger. 428 00:24:22,400 --> 00:24:29,600 Speaker 1: I knew every grandmother, everybody, the whole the block was packed. 429 00:24:29,640 --> 00:24:32,240 Speaker 2: It was so many people that the police and the 430 00:24:32,240 --> 00:24:34,400 Speaker 2: fire department couldn't come up to get me off the roof. 431 00:24:34,800 --> 00:24:37,399 Speaker 2: What it looked like the press was there. The press 432 00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:40,760 Speaker 2: was there. So he called back and he's like, okay, okay, 433 00:24:41,320 --> 00:24:42,840 Speaker 2: I'm gonna let you stay on the roof, but you 434 00:24:42,840 --> 00:24:45,879 Speaker 2: gotta let us inspect it and make sure it's safe. 435 00:24:46,440 --> 00:24:48,879 Speaker 2: So by that time, we had got a lift, that 436 00:24:49,000 --> 00:24:51,280 Speaker 2: rented a lift, so they come all the way up there. 437 00:24:52,320 --> 00:24:55,800 Speaker 2: So the fire chief gets on and here the fire 438 00:24:55,840 --> 00:24:58,240 Speaker 2: and the chief of the fire department in Chicago coming 439 00:24:58,320 --> 00:25:00,480 Speaker 2: up on the roof. So he comes up there and 440 00:25:00,480 --> 00:25:03,719 Speaker 2: he's he's really laughing because he knows that, you know, 441 00:25:03,760 --> 00:25:05,840 Speaker 2: he's laughing about rom them trying to make me get off. 442 00:25:05,880 --> 00:25:08,800 Speaker 2: So he's like, listen, man, I just do this, do this. 443 00:25:08,920 --> 00:25:10,440 Speaker 2: And all the things he told me to do were 444 00:25:10,480 --> 00:25:12,880 Speaker 2: safety things. And I'm glad he did because on the 445 00:25:12,920 --> 00:25:16,840 Speaker 2: third day, once we got everything up, that night a 446 00:25:16,920 --> 00:25:19,879 Speaker 2: snow It was the only snowstorm that hit while I 447 00:25:19,920 --> 00:25:24,560 Speaker 2: was up there. This is the winter, yes, November, the twentieth. 448 00:25:24,960 --> 00:25:26,680 Speaker 1: Wind's blowing. Yet Wins. 449 00:25:27,040 --> 00:25:30,879 Speaker 2: The wind is blowing, I'm freezing. I'm really not prepared 450 00:25:31,480 --> 00:25:33,199 Speaker 2: for a snowstorm. 451 00:25:33,560 --> 00:25:36,200 Speaker 1: And I was like, oh my god. 452 00:25:36,359 --> 00:25:40,200 Speaker 2: But when that snowstorm hit, we had sealed the inside 453 00:25:40,240 --> 00:25:42,760 Speaker 2: of the tent down with two by fours and drilled 454 00:25:42,800 --> 00:25:45,320 Speaker 2: it to the roof so it wouldn't blow away. And 455 00:25:45,400 --> 00:25:53,040 Speaker 2: so I was glad. He's going crazy. The bank's going crazy. 456 00:25:53,440 --> 00:25:55,720 Speaker 2: So we're fighting with the bank. We're fighting with them, 457 00:25:55,960 --> 00:25:58,240 Speaker 2: but they couldn't. They couldn't get me off because the 458 00:25:58,280 --> 00:26:01,040 Speaker 2: neighborhood by that time, they were like in full support, 459 00:26:01,040 --> 00:26:02,560 Speaker 2: and it was like it had become a thing of 460 00:26:03,480 --> 00:26:06,040 Speaker 2: man pasting bricks is on the roof. We're gonna so 461 00:26:06,160 --> 00:26:08,720 Speaker 2: everybody so the games. Instead of being mad, they started 462 00:26:08,760 --> 00:26:11,480 Speaker 2: protecting me, and it was it was amazing. It was 463 00:26:11,480 --> 00:26:17,920 Speaker 2: an amazing sight to behold. And it lasted ninety four days. 464 00:26:18,240 --> 00:26:21,480 Speaker 2: That's over three months. Yes, I thought it was gonna 465 00:26:21,480 --> 00:26:22,840 Speaker 2: they come down for Christmas. 466 00:26:23,160 --> 00:26:26,240 Speaker 1: Nothing. I came down. The only time I came on Sunday, 467 00:26:26,840 --> 00:26:29,520 Speaker 1: I preached and they streamed it in. 468 00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:32,480 Speaker 2: So before all the streaming and stuff was going on, 469 00:26:33,119 --> 00:26:35,639 Speaker 2: we had already figured out streaming. So they would they 470 00:26:35,640 --> 00:26:38,840 Speaker 2: would put me on the roof. I was passing from 471 00:26:38,920 --> 00:26:40,760 Speaker 2: the roof. I would preach a sermon from the roof 472 00:26:40,800 --> 00:26:41,560 Speaker 2: and they'd be in there. 473 00:26:41,640 --> 00:26:45,200 Speaker 3: It was about this, what about using the bathroom? 474 00:26:45,640 --> 00:26:47,960 Speaker 2: So you know, I'm a country boy, so I knew 475 00:26:48,040 --> 00:26:53,240 Speaker 2: it ain't got my I don't remember a lot about 476 00:26:53,240 --> 00:26:56,920 Speaker 2: my childhood, but I do remember being six and seven 477 00:26:56,960 --> 00:27:00,360 Speaker 2: and we had an outhouse in Kenton, Tennessee, So going 478 00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:02,760 Speaker 2: and using it outside was no big deal to me. 479 00:27:02,840 --> 00:27:06,920 Speaker 2: So we I got this camping little thing it's used 480 00:27:06,960 --> 00:27:09,080 Speaker 2: for camping that you use it to a porter pot 481 00:27:09,160 --> 00:27:12,480 Speaker 2: with powder. Yeah, the powder, and you bought like a 482 00:27:12,480 --> 00:27:14,520 Speaker 2: little it's like a little trash bag. You use it 483 00:27:14,560 --> 00:27:16,760 Speaker 2: and in the pot. You tied it up and throw 484 00:27:16,760 --> 00:27:19,920 Speaker 2: it out. So by that time I was did you 485 00:27:19,960 --> 00:27:21,919 Speaker 2: have I was I was a ported pot expert. 486 00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:23,240 Speaker 1: Did you have any electricity? 487 00:27:23,760 --> 00:27:26,760 Speaker 2: We we finally got some electricity up there, because after 488 00:27:26,760 --> 00:27:29,320 Speaker 2: that third day I almost froze to death. I was like, 489 00:27:29,440 --> 00:27:30,879 Speaker 2: I'm not going to be able to make it. So 490 00:27:30,920 --> 00:27:34,359 Speaker 2: we we hijacked the electricity from across the street at 491 00:27:34,359 --> 00:27:38,760 Speaker 2: the church, wired it all the way across the electric 492 00:27:38,800 --> 00:27:42,440 Speaker 2: poles without the city knowing. Yeah, we we We used 493 00:27:42,440 --> 00:27:45,280 Speaker 2: some some ghetto tricks and. 494 00:27:45,200 --> 00:27:49,960 Speaker 1: We So, man, just sitting across from you, you got. 495 00:27:49,760 --> 00:27:53,639 Speaker 4: This warm smile and this warm presence, right, yeah, I 496 00:27:53,680 --> 00:27:54,440 Speaker 4: appreciate it. 497 00:27:54,560 --> 00:28:00,479 Speaker 1: I gotta believe though you were tight lift and you 498 00:28:00,520 --> 00:28:03,080 Speaker 1: weren't showing that warmth from the top of that roof. 499 00:28:03,240 --> 00:28:06,760 Speaker 2: No, no, no, you know I have a warm side 500 00:28:07,320 --> 00:28:14,959 Speaker 2: the form the nice, fuzzy, cuddly warm side, but I 501 00:28:15,040 --> 00:28:20,399 Speaker 2: also have that side that you know, I'm an edgy, 502 00:28:20,640 --> 00:28:23,520 Speaker 2: and I think I have to be that way because 503 00:28:23,560 --> 00:28:26,880 Speaker 2: I don't think you can passor in our neighborhood without 504 00:28:27,240 --> 00:28:29,480 Speaker 2: without being a man's man. 505 00:28:29,520 --> 00:28:31,480 Speaker 1: I don't know how you're a Peter Disciple. 506 00:28:31,960 --> 00:28:36,840 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, definitely, that would be me. I'm always learning 507 00:28:36,880 --> 00:28:39,600 Speaker 2: to turn the other cheek, and you know, I'm always 508 00:28:39,760 --> 00:28:43,280 Speaker 2: learning how to be humble. But the guys laugh a 509 00:28:43,320 --> 00:28:46,120 Speaker 2: lot with me because you know, I've gotten into some 510 00:28:46,200 --> 00:28:50,760 Speaker 2: major confrontations with guys who from the neighborhood. So but 511 00:28:50,840 --> 00:28:52,920 Speaker 2: I try to be as golly and as golly example 512 00:28:52,920 --> 00:28:53,320 Speaker 2: as I can. 513 00:28:53,360 --> 00:28:55,600 Speaker 1: But I'm just not gonna let you bully me. So 514 00:28:55,720 --> 00:28:58,840 Speaker 1: you up there for ninety three days, and at this point, 515 00:28:59,560 --> 00:29:02,000 Speaker 1: I don't know how that's going to help you to 516 00:29:02,080 --> 00:29:06,320 Speaker 1: buy the building. It may bring attention to the flight. 517 00:29:06,800 --> 00:29:10,240 Speaker 2: So I was bringing it. So I tell people I'm 518 00:29:10,240 --> 00:29:13,160 Speaker 2: on this roof for two reasons. One to bring attention 519 00:29:13,200 --> 00:29:17,000 Speaker 2: and awareness to the violence in the Woodline, Chicago area 520 00:29:17,160 --> 00:29:19,200 Speaker 2: that is out of hand. 521 00:29:19,320 --> 00:29:20,120 Speaker 1: It's too much. 522 00:29:20,400 --> 00:29:22,320 Speaker 2: No one should have to deal with as much violence 523 00:29:22,360 --> 00:29:24,920 Speaker 2: in any neighborhood. Children should be able to walk to 524 00:29:25,000 --> 00:29:27,080 Speaker 2: the store without being shot. They should be able to 525 00:29:27,120 --> 00:29:29,400 Speaker 2: go to the playgrounds, and play without being shot at. 526 00:29:29,560 --> 00:29:31,880 Speaker 2: They should be able to go to school safely. So 527 00:29:31,920 --> 00:29:34,120 Speaker 2: that's I was trying to bring as much attention to 528 00:29:34,480 --> 00:29:37,120 Speaker 2: that I could to the to the violence. And that's 529 00:29:37,160 --> 00:29:39,040 Speaker 2: what I did. And so even while I was on 530 00:29:39,080 --> 00:29:41,200 Speaker 2: the roof. The one time I did come down, it 531 00:29:41,280 --> 00:29:43,680 Speaker 2: was for a young boy who had gotten shot at 532 00:29:43,680 --> 00:29:46,880 Speaker 2: a Lee's Chicken and New York Times came and did 533 00:29:46,880 --> 00:29:48,520 Speaker 2: a story on it. But that was the only time 534 00:29:48,560 --> 00:29:51,160 Speaker 2: I came down to do that funeral of that young boy. 535 00:29:51,800 --> 00:29:56,280 Speaker 2: But I was committed toward, you know, toward that effort 536 00:29:56,520 --> 00:29:59,480 Speaker 2: and bringing attention and awareness. And then number two, I 537 00:29:59,480 --> 00:30:02,360 Speaker 2: would tell people, well, I'm raising money to purchase this 538 00:30:02,520 --> 00:30:07,280 Speaker 2: motel to turn into a community center. Now, I'll be honest, 539 00:30:07,400 --> 00:30:10,320 Speaker 2: I think one of the reasons why it took so long. 540 00:30:11,080 --> 00:30:12,760 Speaker 2: I think one of the reasons why it took so 541 00:30:12,880 --> 00:30:17,920 Speaker 2: long is that in our community, people are used to 542 00:30:18,040 --> 00:30:21,240 Speaker 2: preachers saying they're going to build something and do something, 543 00:30:21,760 --> 00:30:25,680 Speaker 2: and sometimes we don't do it. So I think I 544 00:30:25,720 --> 00:30:29,600 Speaker 2: had I had that uphill struggle to deal with and 545 00:30:30,200 --> 00:30:32,800 Speaker 2: getting the message out to convince people that hey, I'm serious, 546 00:30:32,840 --> 00:30:34,560 Speaker 2: I'm going to do it. But I think over time. 547 00:30:34,800 --> 00:30:37,720 Speaker 2: Once people saw man, this man must be serious because 548 00:30:37,720 --> 00:30:43,000 Speaker 2: he's not coming down. It's Christmas, it's Martin Luther King's birthday, 549 00:30:43,080 --> 00:30:45,480 Speaker 2: it's Groundhog Day, it's Valentine. 550 00:30:45,520 --> 00:30:47,920 Speaker 1: True, your wife get pretty angry at some point. 551 00:30:48,080 --> 00:30:49,840 Speaker 2: You know what, It got tired of you being on 552 00:30:49,880 --> 00:30:52,040 Speaker 2: the Only thing my wife got mad about is I 553 00:30:52,120 --> 00:30:53,440 Speaker 2: kept begging her to come up there. 554 00:30:53,600 --> 00:31:05,360 Speaker 5: You know, got you go past her roof pical business. 555 00:31:06,560 --> 00:31:12,160 Speaker 4: She wouldn't cooperate. She used to tell me. She used 556 00:31:12,200 --> 00:31:14,320 Speaker 4: to tell me, I don't want to come up there. 557 00:31:14,360 --> 00:31:16,840 Speaker 4: People are gonna think we're doing it. And I'm like, 558 00:31:18,080 --> 00:31:20,000 Speaker 4: that's because we're gonna be If you come up here, 559 00:31:24,480 --> 00:31:26,440 Speaker 4: let me show you my let me show you the 560 00:31:26,520 --> 00:31:28,080 Speaker 4: r ruth. 561 00:31:28,000 --> 00:31:35,120 Speaker 1: To believe that you come up here, Lord, expect to 562 00:31:35,200 --> 00:31:39,560 Speaker 1: go that way. We'll be right back. 563 00:31:47,680 --> 00:31:50,440 Speaker 2: I kept a diary and I wrote every day in 564 00:31:50,480 --> 00:31:53,760 Speaker 2: the diary. On day ninety two, I wrote about God, 565 00:31:53,800 --> 00:31:56,960 Speaker 2: I'm really expecting you to do something soon. I just 566 00:31:57,040 --> 00:31:58,880 Speaker 2: feel it, And I said, I just want to thank 567 00:31:58,960 --> 00:32:02,720 Speaker 2: you right now for what I believe you're going to do. 568 00:32:02,840 --> 00:32:04,520 Speaker 2: I know you're going to do it, so thank you 569 00:32:04,560 --> 00:32:08,200 Speaker 2: in advance. That was day ninety two. On day ninety four, 570 00:32:09,400 --> 00:32:12,960 Speaker 2: I got a bunch of calls. People calling me and said 571 00:32:12,920 --> 00:32:14,520 Speaker 2: they're talking about you on the radio. They're trying to 572 00:32:14,520 --> 00:32:17,080 Speaker 2: get in touch with you my phone. It was so 573 00:32:17,120 --> 00:32:20,640 Speaker 2: many calls. I'd never experienced this that my cell phone 574 00:32:20,840 --> 00:32:23,080 Speaker 2: got locked because so many people were trying to call me. 575 00:32:23,560 --> 00:32:29,080 Speaker 2: And so finally Tyler Perry got through. Cayler p Yeah. 576 00:32:29,120 --> 00:32:32,920 Speaker 2: On the ninety fourth day, Tyler Perry and Tom Joyner. 577 00:32:33,160 --> 00:32:37,840 Speaker 2: He was on the Tom Joyner Morning Show and somebody 578 00:32:37,840 --> 00:32:40,680 Speaker 2: had told him about what I was doing, and he 579 00:32:40,840 --> 00:32:43,400 Speaker 2: called me and they had me live on the radio 580 00:32:43,880 --> 00:32:46,960 Speaker 2: and he said, is this the crazy Black Preacher on 581 00:32:47,000 --> 00:32:49,840 Speaker 2: the roof in Chicago? And I was like, yes, it is. 582 00:32:50,320 --> 00:32:53,400 Speaker 2: And he was like, hey, this is Tyler Perry. And 583 00:32:53,640 --> 00:32:57,120 Speaker 2: I got a movie coming out called Good Deeds. He said, 584 00:32:57,680 --> 00:33:00,000 Speaker 2: I want to give you the motorcycle from the movie 585 00:33:00,120 --> 00:33:02,840 Speaker 2: be Good Deeds. And I was like, oh, man, thank you, 586 00:33:02,880 --> 00:33:04,560 Speaker 2: but I'm thinking in my mind, man, I need more 587 00:33:04,600 --> 00:33:06,480 Speaker 2: than a motorcycle. I'm trying to get off this roof. 588 00:33:06,880 --> 00:33:09,320 Speaker 2: But I didn't want to say that on the lote. Yeah, 589 00:33:10,160 --> 00:33:13,440 Speaker 2: thank you for the motorcycle, but you know, so he 590 00:33:13,520 --> 00:33:15,640 Speaker 2: goes on he said I got this movie coming out 591 00:33:15,920 --> 00:33:19,200 Speaker 2: called Good Deeds. I want you to attend it, I said, 592 00:33:19,600 --> 00:33:22,240 Speaker 2: miss spiriy I. Man, I really would love to attend 593 00:33:22,280 --> 00:33:25,920 Speaker 2: the movie, I said, but I can't because, yeah, unless 594 00:33:25,920 --> 00:33:27,560 Speaker 2: I have the money to come down off the roof, 595 00:33:27,600 --> 00:33:30,320 Speaker 2: you know. So I'm going into it now. Unless I 596 00:33:30,360 --> 00:33:32,560 Speaker 2: have the money to come down off the roof, I can't. 597 00:33:32,880 --> 00:33:34,440 Speaker 2: And then he's like, well, how much more do you need. 598 00:33:34,560 --> 00:33:37,480 Speaker 2: I was like, we need one hundred thousand dollars, and 599 00:33:37,520 --> 00:33:39,920 Speaker 2: he's like, I'm going to give it to you. Come 600 00:33:39,960 --> 00:33:44,320 Speaker 2: on down, I said, missus Perry, I would come down, 601 00:33:44,400 --> 00:33:46,280 Speaker 2: but I made a vow to God. I couldn't come 602 00:33:46,320 --> 00:33:50,840 Speaker 2: down till we have it all in our possessions. So 603 00:33:50,840 --> 00:33:53,640 Speaker 2: so they started laughing. He said, okay, my people gonna 604 00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:55,840 Speaker 2: talk to your people. There's gonna be done by two o'clock. 605 00:33:56,800 --> 00:33:58,960 Speaker 2: This is early in the morning. Sure enough, by two 606 00:33:59,000 --> 00:34:02,040 Speaker 2: o'clock they had transfer the funds. I had learned a 607 00:34:02,040 --> 00:34:04,200 Speaker 2: little bit about pr and all that stuff, and I 608 00:34:04,240 --> 00:34:07,360 Speaker 2: knew that we're gonna need the momentum to build the center. 609 00:34:07,880 --> 00:34:10,320 Speaker 2: So even though we had the money at two o'clock, 610 00:34:10,360 --> 00:34:13,200 Speaker 2: I said, We're gonna wait until five o'clock, so we 611 00:34:13,280 --> 00:34:15,560 Speaker 2: catch the five o'clock news and six o'clock news and 612 00:34:15,600 --> 00:34:17,680 Speaker 2: all of that, and it'll make a big deal. 613 00:34:17,520 --> 00:34:17,960 Speaker 1: Out of it. 614 00:34:18,000 --> 00:34:20,680 Speaker 2: And we had the streets packed and the neighborhood was packed, 615 00:34:20,680 --> 00:34:24,279 Speaker 2: and it was a real big thing. And so that's 616 00:34:24,320 --> 00:34:26,319 Speaker 2: how I got off through Tyler Perrygate the last one 617 00:34:26,400 --> 00:34:28,360 Speaker 2: hundred thousand dollars and then. 618 00:34:28,600 --> 00:34:31,000 Speaker 1: Our total of five hundred and something. 619 00:34:30,760 --> 00:34:33,960 Speaker 2: Yeah, five, that made us have four hundred and fifty thousand, 620 00:34:35,000 --> 00:34:38,080 Speaker 2: and then that's what the building costs. And then we 621 00:34:38,120 --> 00:34:40,359 Speaker 2: had a gentleman by the name of Marty Ozinga from 622 00:34:40,360 --> 00:34:43,680 Speaker 2: Ozinga Concrete that came. He came up there probably around 623 00:34:43,719 --> 00:34:46,720 Speaker 2: about three o'clock, wanted to see me his Ozinga Concrete. 624 00:34:46,719 --> 00:34:50,200 Speaker 2: There's like four generations of Thoozinga's the Osinger Concrete company. 625 00:34:50,760 --> 00:34:52,480 Speaker 2: And Marty came on top of the roof. He said, hey, 626 00:34:52,560 --> 00:34:55,600 Speaker 2: he hadn't heard about Tom Jonner. You know, they don't 627 00:34:55,600 --> 00:34:58,240 Speaker 2: listen to Tom Joinner. So he says, me and my brothers, 628 00:34:58,719 --> 00:35:01,319 Speaker 2: we want to give you something. And it was one 629 00:35:01,360 --> 00:35:04,160 Speaker 2: hundred thousand dollars. And I was like, Marty, thank you 630 00:35:04,239 --> 00:35:07,840 Speaker 2: so much, I said, But in all honestly, I cannot 631 00:35:08,120 --> 00:35:11,640 Speaker 2: take this because Tyler period gave us all the money 632 00:35:11,640 --> 00:35:14,359 Speaker 2: that we needed, and so I have the money to 633 00:35:14,400 --> 00:35:18,520 Speaker 2: purchase the building. And then he said, well, well, I 634 00:35:18,520 --> 00:35:20,040 Speaker 2: don't want to take it back. I want to we 635 00:35:20,080 --> 00:35:21,319 Speaker 2: want to give it to you. He said, well, how 636 00:35:21,360 --> 00:35:23,080 Speaker 2: much money you got to tear it down? Right, He's 637 00:35:23,080 --> 00:35:25,319 Speaker 2: got to tear this building down. I said yeah. He said, 638 00:35:25,320 --> 00:35:26,640 Speaker 2: well how much is it going to cost to tear 639 00:35:26,680 --> 00:35:34,399 Speaker 2: it down? I said probably about one hundred thousand. So 640 00:35:34,440 --> 00:35:37,680 Speaker 2: he gave thousand This just so happens, one hundred thousand 641 00:35:37,760 --> 00:35:39,960 Speaker 2: dollars and so he gave us the money and that's 642 00:35:40,000 --> 00:35:43,000 Speaker 2: how we tore it down. Then we started our journey 643 00:35:43,080 --> 00:35:45,680 Speaker 2: to you know, we want to turn this into a 644 00:35:45,719 --> 00:35:46,439 Speaker 2: community center. 645 00:35:46,480 --> 00:35:51,920 Speaker 1: And that was a long, long journey. That is a phenology. 646 00:35:53,520 --> 00:35:55,440 Speaker 1: One of the things we talk about all the time 647 00:35:55,680 --> 00:35:59,839 Speaker 1: is when our discipline and our passion meet opportunities, when 648 00:35:59,840 --> 00:36:03,120 Speaker 1: I'm amazing, things can happen. I believe you're passionate about 649 00:36:03,160 --> 00:36:07,560 Speaker 1: this neighborhood. You had the discipline to bring notoriety to it. 650 00:36:08,040 --> 00:36:12,200 Speaker 1: You saw an opportunity and for ninety four days, yeah, 651 00:36:12,880 --> 00:36:16,879 Speaker 1: you filled it. So you got the thing down right. 652 00:36:16,960 --> 00:36:20,400 Speaker 2: Yep, that's two thousand. So in twenty twelve the building 653 00:36:20,680 --> 00:36:24,160 Speaker 2: came down. It's just vacant land, and so we put 654 00:36:24,160 --> 00:36:28,120 Speaker 2: some basketball courts up there. We drew up some plans 655 00:36:27,920 --> 00:36:30,239 Speaker 2: the type of center that we wanted to have. We 656 00:36:30,280 --> 00:36:33,680 Speaker 2: created an organization called Project Hood while I was on 657 00:36:33,719 --> 00:36:36,600 Speaker 2: the roof. Project Hood stands for helping others attain destiny. 658 00:36:36,920 --> 00:36:38,560 Speaker 2: And we started looking at all the issues that we 659 00:36:38,600 --> 00:36:40,320 Speaker 2: needed to deal with to get rid of the poverty 660 00:36:40,360 --> 00:36:43,080 Speaker 2: and the violence in the neighborhood. And so that was 661 00:36:43,120 --> 00:36:46,239 Speaker 2: in twenty twelve, and so the land was there. We 662 00:36:46,320 --> 00:36:48,319 Speaker 2: put some basketball courts on it. We used it as 663 00:36:48,360 --> 00:36:50,719 Speaker 2: a place where kids could play. We beautified it, make 664 00:36:50,800 --> 00:36:54,360 Speaker 2: it look nice, made it look nice, but we didn't 665 00:36:54,400 --> 00:36:57,280 Speaker 2: have at that time. It started off being a twenty 666 00:36:57,280 --> 00:36:58,240 Speaker 2: million dollar building. 667 00:36:59,280 --> 00:37:02,160 Speaker 1: Then you wanted to be that. We wanted to build communities, 668 00:37:02,160 --> 00:37:04,440 Speaker 1: a community center. Now is this a community center for 669 00:37:04,480 --> 00:37:07,600 Speaker 1: the church or like a private community center for the 670 00:37:07,760 --> 00:37:08,520 Speaker 1: just the community. 671 00:37:08,560 --> 00:37:11,080 Speaker 2: Yes, it's a community center for the community. It's a 672 00:37:11,080 --> 00:37:13,240 Speaker 2: place where we teach where we're going to be teaching 673 00:37:13,280 --> 00:37:19,720 Speaker 2: the trades. We have a culinary art school, construction, automotive, electrical, plumbing. 674 00:37:20,160 --> 00:37:23,440 Speaker 2: We have a theater, two gyms, a golf simulator, an 675 00:37:23,520 --> 00:37:26,560 Speaker 2: Olympic sized swimming pool, three restaurants. 676 00:37:26,760 --> 00:37:28,160 Speaker 1: This is all on the plant, This is all in 677 00:37:28,200 --> 00:37:31,040 Speaker 1: the plans. What I like though, is it's a place 678 00:37:31,080 --> 00:37:33,040 Speaker 1: for kids to come and everything else. But it's also 679 00:37:33,120 --> 00:37:36,080 Speaker 1: a place people can learn the hard skills. Yes, it's 680 00:37:36,080 --> 00:37:37,560 Speaker 1: a place to learn skills. 681 00:37:37,600 --> 00:37:41,360 Speaker 2: It's about it's a place about for transformation for young people. 682 00:37:41,440 --> 00:37:44,279 Speaker 2: It's about them having safe spaces and places to go 683 00:37:44,760 --> 00:37:48,800 Speaker 2: because in our community, unfortunately, so many times young people 684 00:37:49,000 --> 00:37:52,840 Speaker 2: just didn't don't have safe places. The YMCA is about 685 00:37:52,880 --> 00:37:55,960 Speaker 2: a mile and a half and kids in our neighborhood 686 00:37:56,040 --> 00:37:59,160 Speaker 2: they can't There's no way possible they can walk to 687 00:37:59,200 --> 00:38:02,239 Speaker 2: that YMCA because they have to walk out across so 688 00:38:02,320 --> 00:38:03,520 Speaker 2: many gang turns to do it. 689 00:38:03,600 --> 00:38:07,160 Speaker 1: So I didn't understand that. I bet you know. R 690 00:38:07,200 --> 00:38:12,440 Speaker 1: Shae Cooper. Yes, Archae was a guest and he said 691 00:38:12,560 --> 00:38:16,319 Speaker 1: from He's also from not this neighborhood, but that side 692 00:38:16,320 --> 00:38:20,160 Speaker 1: of the city, south side right, I mean west side, right, 693 00:38:20,680 --> 00:38:24,480 Speaker 1: So he said. One of his dreams as an eight 694 00:38:24,560 --> 00:38:28,240 Speaker 1: year old, he could see the top of Sears Tower 695 00:38:28,560 --> 00:38:32,279 Speaker 1: from the top of his apartment building. And one of 696 00:38:32,320 --> 00:38:35,000 Speaker 1: his big dreams was just to go one day be 697 00:38:35,080 --> 00:38:41,239 Speaker 1: able to see the serious town. And that means one 698 00:38:41,239 --> 00:38:43,560 Speaker 1: of the kid's biggest dreams was just to be able 699 00:38:43,600 --> 00:38:47,680 Speaker 1: to drive ten miles across his city. Yes, or ride 700 00:38:47,719 --> 00:38:50,760 Speaker 1: on a bus. Yes. And I said, well, why didn't 701 00:38:50,760 --> 00:38:52,399 Speaker 1: you just go there and see it? He said, I'd 702 00:38:52,400 --> 00:38:56,000 Speaker 1: have been killed, yep, because I had to cross four 703 00:38:56,120 --> 00:38:59,239 Speaker 1: or five or six different neighborhoods with different gangs, and 704 00:38:59,280 --> 00:39:02,560 Speaker 1: I had never there and back. You never ventured off 705 00:39:02,560 --> 00:39:04,319 Speaker 1: your block never. You know. 706 00:39:04,840 --> 00:39:07,839 Speaker 2: There's a guy who's a kid, who he lives with us. 707 00:39:08,280 --> 00:39:11,480 Speaker 2: His name is Da Marius. He's my son's best friend. 708 00:39:12,120 --> 00:39:14,279 Speaker 2: And I can remember when he was sixteen years old. 709 00:39:14,320 --> 00:39:15,920 Speaker 2: I was taking all of them to open up an 710 00:39:15,920 --> 00:39:21,480 Speaker 2: account at Chase Bank, and the Marius Chase Bank from 711 00:39:21,480 --> 00:39:26,320 Speaker 2: our church, from their neighborhood is exactly nine blocks away. 712 00:39:26,920 --> 00:39:29,640 Speaker 2: It's on We're on Keen Drive there on Stony Island, 713 00:39:30,280 --> 00:39:32,600 Speaker 2: and I can remember as we're going across like four 714 00:39:32,640 --> 00:39:35,520 Speaker 2: or five blocks, he's looking around. I'm like, I notice 715 00:39:35,560 --> 00:39:38,759 Speaker 2: he's kind of anxious, nervous, and I find it's like, 716 00:39:38,800 --> 00:39:39,520 Speaker 2: what's going on? 717 00:39:39,560 --> 00:39:43,359 Speaker 1: What's wrong? All right? He's like, I have never been 718 00:39:43,400 --> 00:39:47,759 Speaker 1: over here. I was, like, never been over with five blocks? 719 00:39:47,920 --> 00:39:51,960 Speaker 1: He said, my mom would not allow us to cross Vernon. 720 00:39:52,400 --> 00:39:58,120 Speaker 1: Vernon is only two blocks. And I thought, man, this 721 00:39:58,280 --> 00:40:04,120 Speaker 1: is crazy showing people say I don't get it about 722 00:40:04,200 --> 00:40:11,320 Speaker 1: these people. Yeah, quote these people. We got free education. 723 00:40:11,960 --> 00:40:15,239 Speaker 1: You go, get you a breakfast and a lunch, you 724 00:40:15,280 --> 00:40:19,319 Speaker 1: can study up and learn. We give away food stamps, 725 00:40:21,520 --> 00:40:30,360 Speaker 1: government assistant housing. I mean, as a country, we literally 726 00:40:30,440 --> 00:40:35,759 Speaker 1: provide free education, free meals, all of this stuff. All 727 00:40:35,800 --> 00:40:39,279 Speaker 1: people got to do is take advantage of the opportunities, 728 00:40:39,320 --> 00:40:41,880 Speaker 1: pull themselves up by their bootstraps and go to work. 729 00:40:45,640 --> 00:40:49,120 Speaker 1: How are you ever going to grow as a child 730 00:40:49,480 --> 00:40:52,879 Speaker 1: when you can't even go beyond two blocks? And what 731 00:40:52,920 --> 00:40:56,120 Speaker 1: does it say about a part of our culture. They're 732 00:40:56,160 --> 00:40:59,040 Speaker 1: not dreaming to be doctors, they're not dreaming to be accountants, 733 00:40:59,080 --> 00:41:01,719 Speaker 1: they're not dreaming to go to college. Their dream is 734 00:41:01,800 --> 00:41:04,200 Speaker 1: to be able to go eight miles to downtown Chicago 735 00:41:04,239 --> 00:41:07,920 Speaker 1: to see a tower. Yeah. If that is the apex 736 00:41:08,080 --> 00:41:12,760 Speaker 1: of your ability to dream, what are you ever going 737 00:41:12,800 --> 00:41:14,560 Speaker 1: to achieve? Yeah? Exactly. 738 00:41:15,239 --> 00:41:18,960 Speaker 2: And you know, the lack of exposure with a lot 739 00:41:19,000 --> 00:41:22,600 Speaker 2: of the kids in Chicago is tremendous. You know, people 740 00:41:22,600 --> 00:41:26,520 Speaker 2: would be really amazed that there are young people in 741 00:41:26,600 --> 00:41:32,080 Speaker 2: Chicago who have never ever been downtown. They would be 742 00:41:32,120 --> 00:41:36,279 Speaker 2: amazed that there are kids who never seen, never been 743 00:41:36,280 --> 00:41:39,719 Speaker 2: to the beach at Lake Michigan. And that's you know, 744 00:41:40,719 --> 00:41:43,480 Speaker 2: a mile away, a straight shot. It's not like they 745 00:41:43,520 --> 00:41:46,440 Speaker 2: have to go zipping around corners a straight shot and 746 00:41:46,440 --> 00:41:47,800 Speaker 2: they've never been to the lake. 747 00:41:48,200 --> 00:41:51,279 Speaker 1: Because they're too afraid to walk outside. Absolutely, Now, how 748 00:41:51,320 --> 00:41:54,360 Speaker 1: you're gonna learn, how you gonna dream, how you gonna achieve, 749 00:41:54,440 --> 00:41:56,759 Speaker 1: how you gonna be anything? Yeah? Absolutely. You know. 750 00:41:57,800 --> 00:42:00,400 Speaker 2: One day, I remember, probably about a year and a 751 00:42:00,440 --> 00:42:03,879 Speaker 2: half ago, it was some gunshots that rang out near 752 00:42:03,880 --> 00:42:08,120 Speaker 2: the school ground and all the kids new to hit 753 00:42:08,160 --> 00:42:13,800 Speaker 2: the ground. They taught they teach the kids shooting drills 754 00:42:13,800 --> 00:42:16,560 Speaker 2: on how to hit the ground on the playground. And 755 00:42:16,640 --> 00:42:20,640 Speaker 2: when you're in environments like that where kids don't feel safe, 756 00:42:20,880 --> 00:42:23,839 Speaker 2: they don't want to go outside their environments, it's hard 757 00:42:23,840 --> 00:42:26,000 Speaker 2: to get them exposed. It's hard to get them to dream, 758 00:42:26,040 --> 00:42:27,399 Speaker 2: it's hard to get them to think that they can 759 00:42:27,440 --> 00:42:29,560 Speaker 2: be something. It's hard to think get them to believe 760 00:42:30,040 --> 00:42:32,640 Speaker 2: that they can achieve anything that they you know that 761 00:42:33,000 --> 00:42:35,480 Speaker 2: people tell them they can achieve. It's just it's just 762 00:42:35,520 --> 00:42:37,080 Speaker 2: a hard, hard sell. 763 00:42:39,800 --> 00:42:45,680 Speaker 1: We have all kinds of organizations that are dealing with 764 00:42:45,800 --> 00:42:48,520 Speaker 1: are greater and greater understanding over the last decade and 765 00:42:48,560 --> 00:42:52,640 Speaker 1: a half about our service people coming back around the 766 00:42:52,719 --> 00:42:55,560 Speaker 1: rock wherever they serve, in their PTSD and the trauma 767 00:42:55,800 --> 00:43:01,799 Speaker 1: and the anxiousness and the triggers associated with violence. They're 768 00:43:01,800 --> 00:43:08,160 Speaker 1: involved in defending our country and for a living. When 769 00:43:08,200 --> 00:43:11,680 Speaker 1: our children know more about how to respond to gunfire 770 00:43:11,719 --> 00:43:15,920 Speaker 1: than they do about curious George, what is the trauma 771 00:43:16,000 --> 00:43:19,360 Speaker 1: in their lives? What is their PTSD? And how do 772 00:43:19,400 --> 00:43:25,359 Speaker 1: you expect those people to learn? Second point is man, 773 00:43:25,440 --> 00:43:27,800 Speaker 1: the first time I ever heard the term white privilege, 774 00:43:27,800 --> 00:43:35,239 Speaker 1: it pissed me. Also bad Cory. It made me so angry. 775 00:43:35,080 --> 00:43:37,640 Speaker 1: My mama did her best, but we didn't have much 776 00:43:37,640 --> 00:43:39,799 Speaker 1: of nothing. I went to school on a scholarship. I 777 00:43:39,880 --> 00:43:43,760 Speaker 1: worked three jobs, and you know it wasn't no white privilege. 778 00:43:45,840 --> 00:43:48,520 Speaker 1: I worked hard, and I'm gonna tell you something. I've 779 00:43:48,560 --> 00:43:51,600 Speaker 1: got a nice business and all, but to this day 780 00:43:51,960 --> 00:43:54,399 Speaker 1: I owe the bank a bunch of money. And if 781 00:43:54,440 --> 00:43:56,720 Speaker 1: I don't make my notes, they're coming to get my house. 782 00:43:56,800 --> 00:44:00,520 Speaker 1: In my wife's car and it's a lot of stress. 783 00:44:01,120 --> 00:44:04,960 Speaker 1: But I can tell you this, I wasn't dreaming about 784 00:44:05,000 --> 00:44:08,319 Speaker 1: walking across the block. That was no big deal. And 785 00:44:08,400 --> 00:44:12,520 Speaker 1: the truth is, despite how hard I've worked to do 786 00:44:12,600 --> 00:44:17,920 Speaker 1: everything else, by comparison, the kids are growing up in 787 00:44:17,920 --> 00:44:22,000 Speaker 1: the neighborhood you're serving, I was quite privileged, and you've 788 00:44:22,000 --> 00:44:25,480 Speaker 1: got to understand, white privilege is not a knock on 789 00:44:25,680 --> 00:44:32,120 Speaker 1: white people who've done well. It's just trying to open 790 00:44:32,239 --> 00:44:36,040 Speaker 1: eyes to there's a segment of our urban populations that 791 00:44:36,200 --> 00:44:40,319 Speaker 1: is largely African American that children don't even have the 792 00:44:40,480 --> 00:44:45,320 Speaker 1: chance to go to blocks from their homes safely. And 793 00:44:45,360 --> 00:44:49,799 Speaker 1: the fact that I never experienced that is a privilege 794 00:44:50,160 --> 00:44:52,680 Speaker 1: That does not mean it makes me bad or discredits 795 00:44:52,719 --> 00:44:54,520 Speaker 1: any of the hard work I've put in. In fact, 796 00:44:54,680 --> 00:44:57,920 Speaker 1: most people celebrate it, and that's great, but we also 797 00:44:58,120 --> 00:45:01,000 Speaker 1: have to remove ourselves and our ego from that and 798 00:45:01,120 --> 00:45:05,759 Speaker 1: try to start understanding the desperation these children are growing 799 00:45:05,840 --> 00:45:06,040 Speaker 1: up in. 800 00:45:06,200 --> 00:45:08,480 Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, I may not agree with the term 801 00:45:08,520 --> 00:45:12,200 Speaker 2: white privilege, but I'll say this that I think all 802 00:45:12,239 --> 00:45:15,920 Speaker 2: of us have different situations and circumstances that make us privileged. 803 00:45:16,400 --> 00:45:19,080 Speaker 2: Even I would call myself when as it relates to 804 00:45:19,160 --> 00:45:23,520 Speaker 2: those kids, I was privileged. I wasn't in an environment 805 00:45:23,800 --> 00:45:27,160 Speaker 2: even though I was my stepfather was abusive and crazy 806 00:45:27,160 --> 00:45:30,400 Speaker 2: and deranged. I wasn't in an environment where I couldn't 807 00:45:30,400 --> 00:45:34,640 Speaker 2: walk to school. I can remember walking to school safely. 808 00:45:35,120 --> 00:45:37,360 Speaker 2: I can remember going to the playground, not having to 809 00:45:37,360 --> 00:45:39,480 Speaker 2: worry about was gunfire going to break out. I can 810 00:45:39,520 --> 00:45:42,760 Speaker 2: remember having friends, not having to worry about was another 811 00:45:42,800 --> 00:45:44,680 Speaker 2: gang gonna jump us and we're gonna get a fight. 812 00:45:45,200 --> 00:45:50,200 Speaker 2: Those were environments shot and killed as as a kid, 813 00:45:50,400 --> 00:45:55,360 Speaker 2: just one one. Yeah, the kids you're pastoring, according to 814 00:45:55,400 --> 00:45:57,640 Speaker 2: what you just told me, they've all had at least 815 00:45:57,719 --> 00:46:03,240 Speaker 2: twenty five exactly. My son, my youngest son, Kobe, deals 816 00:46:03,280 --> 00:46:07,640 Speaker 2: with a lot of trauma, and at first it was 817 00:46:07,640 --> 00:46:12,120 Speaker 2: hard for me to understand, but then I realized how 818 00:46:12,160 --> 00:46:15,960 Speaker 2: many friends he had that were actually shot and killed 819 00:46:17,120 --> 00:46:20,120 Speaker 2: or in prison because we never sheltered them from the 820 00:46:20,120 --> 00:46:23,960 Speaker 2: neighborhood we grew up. They grew up in the neighborhood. 821 00:46:24,040 --> 00:46:27,839 Speaker 2: Those kids, their their friends, their brothers, their sisters, and 822 00:46:27,920 --> 00:46:31,280 Speaker 2: so he's had to deal with a lot of traumatic experiences. 823 00:46:31,360 --> 00:46:35,000 Speaker 2: You know, of people that he's been close with to 824 00:46:35,040 --> 00:46:37,759 Speaker 2: be shot and killed, and I really didn't understand it 825 00:46:37,800 --> 00:46:42,520 Speaker 2: at first, but when I started looking at it, I'm like, man, 826 00:46:42,600 --> 00:46:45,680 Speaker 2: he's even though he has a mother and a father 827 00:46:45,760 --> 00:46:50,080 Speaker 2: that love him and siblings, he still has a traumatic 828 00:46:50,160 --> 00:46:53,040 Speaker 2: experience because he's in this environment with all these young 829 00:46:53,040 --> 00:46:54,160 Speaker 2: people who have been killed. 830 00:46:54,239 --> 00:46:56,080 Speaker 1: Did you ever worry about him getting brought into the 831 00:46:56,120 --> 00:46:59,320 Speaker 1: life by his friends that mak good. You had to 832 00:46:59,360 --> 00:46:59,959 Speaker 1: keep them close? 833 00:47:00,440 --> 00:47:03,799 Speaker 2: Oh, for sure, you know, we definitely, we definitely had 834 00:47:03,800 --> 00:47:06,239 Speaker 2: to keep an eye on. Are the two youngest ones, 835 00:47:06,320 --> 00:47:10,000 Speaker 2: my daughter Danielle and Kobe. They were our hardest cases. 836 00:47:10,160 --> 00:47:13,320 Speaker 2: But thankfully they're turning out to be some great kids. 837 00:47:13,320 --> 00:47:16,640 Speaker 2: But Kobe definitely, you know, because those boys, the group 838 00:47:16,680 --> 00:47:20,600 Speaker 2: that he was with that was that's a tough little 839 00:47:20,600 --> 00:47:23,840 Speaker 2: group rounders. Huh yeah, definitely a tough little group. 840 00:47:25,800 --> 00:47:36,680 Speaker 1: We'll be right back. So you're not just being nice 841 00:47:36,719 --> 00:47:39,239 Speaker 1: to build to try to build this community center. It's 842 00:47:39,239 --> 00:47:43,000 Speaker 1: a need. It erases some of the lack of privilege. 843 00:47:43,040 --> 00:47:45,360 Speaker 1: You can go across the street, you can get exposed 844 00:47:45,400 --> 00:47:47,799 Speaker 1: to trades, you can get exposed to ideas. This thing 845 00:47:47,920 --> 00:47:54,000 Speaker 1: is is a way for children to eradicate themselves with 846 00:47:54,080 --> 00:47:57,520 Speaker 1: the trauma of what is their daily lives in your 847 00:47:57,640 --> 00:48:01,280 Speaker 1: church's block. Absolutely block is called Oh Block. 848 00:48:01,800 --> 00:48:03,719 Speaker 2: And the reason why it's called Old Block is because 849 00:48:03,760 --> 00:48:06,120 Speaker 2: it's named after a young man named Ode Perry who 850 00:48:06,160 --> 00:48:08,680 Speaker 2: was shot and killed and the games picked up the 851 00:48:08,719 --> 00:48:10,960 Speaker 2: O in his name and they started calling it Oh Block. 852 00:48:11,680 --> 00:48:15,480 Speaker 2: If you Google it or up, you know it's gonna 853 00:48:15,480 --> 00:48:17,640 Speaker 2: talk about. Old Block is mentioned in all kinds of 854 00:48:17,719 --> 00:48:20,399 Speaker 2: rap lyrics, all kinds of things is being said about 855 00:48:20,400 --> 00:48:23,319 Speaker 2: Old Block. Well, we decided, you know, okay, cool, We're 856 00:48:23,320 --> 00:48:26,040 Speaker 2: gonna keep the O, but we're gonna turn into Opportunity Block. 857 00:48:27,800 --> 00:48:29,120 Speaker 1: We're gonna, we're gonna, we're. 858 00:48:29,040 --> 00:48:31,839 Speaker 2: Gonna transform it, and we're gonna take this and make 859 00:48:31,880 --> 00:48:35,520 Speaker 2: it a place where people's lives can be totally changed 860 00:48:35,520 --> 00:48:40,120 Speaker 2: and not are destroyed. And so this center is a 861 00:48:40,160 --> 00:48:42,920 Speaker 2: beacon of hope of what can be done when you 862 00:48:43,200 --> 00:48:46,239 Speaker 2: work hard to transform a community, not just so you 863 00:48:46,280 --> 00:48:48,719 Speaker 2: can have a big community center, but when you work 864 00:48:48,760 --> 00:48:51,600 Speaker 2: hard to transform something to help change people's lives. And 865 00:48:51,680 --> 00:48:54,479 Speaker 2: so that's what it's really all about. So we're we're 866 00:48:54,520 --> 00:48:58,040 Speaker 2: really adamant about how it looks, We're adamant about the 867 00:48:58,080 --> 00:49:01,160 Speaker 2: excellence that it's going to have. We're adamant about the 868 00:49:01,239 --> 00:49:03,840 Speaker 2: programs that it's going to have because we wanted to 869 00:49:03,880 --> 00:49:07,759 Speaker 2: be a model for what can be done, even in 870 00:49:07,760 --> 00:49:11,440 Speaker 2: places like Memphis where they're having situations with gangs. You know, 871 00:49:12,239 --> 00:49:14,759 Speaker 2: they just had some big murders here two hundred and 872 00:49:14,800 --> 00:49:17,319 Speaker 2: fifty four last year exactly, So we need to be 873 00:49:17,400 --> 00:49:21,000 Speaker 2: in places like Memphis showing a different way Saint Louis, 874 00:49:21,040 --> 00:49:23,759 Speaker 2: New Orleans. So we're creating a model for something that 875 00:49:23,800 --> 00:49:26,400 Speaker 2: we know works and we can change oh block, we 876 00:49:26,440 --> 00:49:31,799 Speaker 2: can change any block in America. And you've been thinking 877 00:49:31,800 --> 00:49:34,400 Speaker 2: about this since you tore that building in twenty twelve 878 00:49:34,520 --> 00:49:37,040 Speaker 2: every single day. So now you're on a twelve year 879 00:49:37,040 --> 00:49:38,640 Speaker 2: mission and you hadn't broke ground yet. 880 00:49:38,800 --> 00:49:40,319 Speaker 1: Yeah, so no, we broke ground so. 881 00:49:40,400 --> 00:49:43,600 Speaker 2: Oh yeah recently there, Yeah, we recently broke ground. 882 00:49:43,640 --> 00:49:45,400 Speaker 1: So how much money does this thing cost? 883 00:49:45,560 --> 00:49:48,520 Speaker 2: So now it's up to thirty eight million dollars thirty 884 00:49:48,600 --> 00:49:50,439 Speaker 2: eight thirty eight road. 885 00:49:50,560 --> 00:49:52,359 Speaker 1: You had to stay on a roof for ninety three 886 00:49:52,480 --> 00:49:54,719 Speaker 1: days to get four fifty and Tyler Perio to bail 887 00:49:54,760 --> 00:49:56,279 Speaker 1: you out. How you gonna get thirty eight million? 888 00:49:56,560 --> 00:49:59,800 Speaker 2: So a the tenth year anniversary of when I was 889 00:49:59,840 --> 00:50:03,960 Speaker 2: on Ruth. The first time my son and Brian came 890 00:50:04,000 --> 00:50:06,800 Speaker 2: to me. They were like, listen, either you got to 891 00:50:06,800 --> 00:50:09,319 Speaker 2: build this center or you got to change your vision. 892 00:50:09,320 --> 00:50:11,800 Speaker 2: Because you've been talking about this center for ten years. 893 00:50:12,360 --> 00:50:14,319 Speaker 2: What are you gonna do? So I said, okay, you 894 00:50:14,360 --> 00:50:17,359 Speaker 2: got much did you have? That's what I asked him. 895 00:50:17,400 --> 00:50:19,399 Speaker 2: I said, go and see, you know, look and see 896 00:50:19,400 --> 00:50:22,399 Speaker 2: what we got what we can work with. They came back, 897 00:50:22,680 --> 00:50:26,160 Speaker 2: they said, man, we don't have any money. We got 898 00:50:26,239 --> 00:50:29,239 Speaker 2: zero to work with. Yeah, we got zero to work with. 899 00:50:29,600 --> 00:50:32,359 Speaker 2: And so I said, okay, I'm going to pray and 900 00:50:32,760 --> 00:50:34,719 Speaker 2: figure it out. And so I came back to him 901 00:50:34,760 --> 00:50:36,839 Speaker 2: and said, I want to get eight train containers. 902 00:50:37,160 --> 00:50:38,120 Speaker 1: I want to put them together. 903 00:50:38,160 --> 00:50:40,520 Speaker 2: I'm going to build a deck on that property, on 904 00:50:40,560 --> 00:50:42,920 Speaker 2: the train containers, and I'm going to go up there 905 00:50:42,920 --> 00:50:44,920 Speaker 2: and stay and raise the money. And everybody was like, 906 00:50:45,040 --> 00:50:48,480 Speaker 2: oh no, not again this. We don't want to go 907 00:50:48,520 --> 00:50:50,600 Speaker 2: through this ordeal. It is not gonna work. You've already 908 00:50:50,680 --> 00:50:52,680 Speaker 2: done that. Some of the people on my board. One 909 00:50:52,680 --> 00:50:56,080 Speaker 2: of my one of my mentors, Patrick Milligan, this old 910 00:50:56,120 --> 00:51:00,520 Speaker 2: Irish guy, he's about seventy seven. He's like, oh, you 911 00:51:00,560 --> 00:51:03,400 Speaker 2: already did that. Let's not do that again. So everybody 912 00:51:03,480 --> 00:51:06,920 Speaker 2: was against it not but again I just felt that 913 00:51:07,080 --> 00:51:09,640 Speaker 2: unction that I think this is gonna work, and I 914 00:51:09,640 --> 00:51:12,680 Speaker 2: think the Lord is gonna gonna do it. So I 915 00:51:12,680 --> 00:51:15,640 Speaker 2: went up there on the roof again, and this time 916 00:51:15,719 --> 00:51:16,719 Speaker 2: I thought, okay. 917 00:51:16,560 --> 00:51:17,600 Speaker 1: At least do it in the summer. 918 00:51:17,640 --> 00:51:21,640 Speaker 2: This time, well part of the summer. But I went 919 00:51:21,719 --> 00:51:25,480 Speaker 2: up on the November the twentieth again, on the exact 920 00:51:25,520 --> 00:51:31,239 Speaker 2: anniversary date, and I thought, Okay, this time, maybe it'll 921 00:51:31,280 --> 00:51:35,319 Speaker 2: take one hundred days, because you know, we raised five 922 00:51:35,400 --> 00:51:39,239 Speaker 2: hundred and fifty in ninety four days, and so I 923 00:51:39,239 --> 00:51:41,560 Speaker 2: think we can raise enough money in one hundred days. 924 00:51:41,640 --> 00:51:44,320 Speaker 2: Back then, we didn't have any of the social media stuff, 925 00:51:44,640 --> 00:51:47,200 Speaker 2: or we didn't have any of the now yeah, we 926 00:51:47,239 --> 00:51:49,960 Speaker 2: got social media, we got a little movement people know 927 00:51:50,040 --> 00:51:54,719 Speaker 2: about us. Twenty twenty two, this would have been so yeah, 928 00:51:54,719 --> 00:51:56,399 Speaker 2: this would have been twenty twenty one. So I thought 929 00:51:56,400 --> 00:51:59,960 Speaker 2: one hundred days at least, And so I committed to 930 00:52:00,120 --> 00:52:00,960 Speaker 2: hundred days. 931 00:52:01,200 --> 00:52:03,319 Speaker 1: And you think you're gonna weigh thirty something million dollars 932 00:52:03,320 --> 00:52:04,960 Speaker 1: an under that, Yeah, I'm thinking I'm gonna raise this 933 00:52:05,000 --> 00:52:07,279 Speaker 1: twenty five because at that time they become twenty five 934 00:52:07,320 --> 00:52:08,080 Speaker 1: million dollars. 935 00:52:08,160 --> 00:52:09,600 Speaker 2: That's how much it was gonna cost. So it went 936 00:52:09,600 --> 00:52:12,200 Speaker 2: from twenty million to twenty five million because we changed 937 00:52:12,200 --> 00:52:14,680 Speaker 2: some stuff in prices had gone up. I'm like, okay, 938 00:52:14,760 --> 00:52:17,880 Speaker 2: I'm gonna raise this money. I just believed it. I 939 00:52:17,880 --> 00:52:18,560 Speaker 2: didn't know how. 940 00:52:18,680 --> 00:52:19,520 Speaker 1: I just believed it. 941 00:52:20,080 --> 00:52:24,680 Speaker 2: And so we started getting the word out and people 942 00:52:24,719 --> 00:52:26,920 Speaker 2: started giving, and somewhere around. 943 00:52:27,400 --> 00:52:28,480 Speaker 1: Like day. 944 00:52:30,120 --> 00:52:35,799 Speaker 2: Sixty five, Fox called me and asked me, hey, can 945 00:52:35,840 --> 00:52:38,960 Speaker 2: you do a story about what's going on in Chicago 946 00:52:39,040 --> 00:52:43,400 Speaker 2: from the rooftop? And I was like sure. Now, I said, like, 947 00:52:43,400 --> 00:52:45,200 Speaker 2: what's the parameters? So they said here and here are 948 00:52:45,239 --> 00:52:47,359 Speaker 2: the parameters. You can do the story anyway you want 949 00:52:47,400 --> 00:52:49,719 Speaker 2: to do it. We won't edit it, just stay within 950 00:52:49,760 --> 00:52:53,200 Speaker 2: our parameters. And I was like okay. So I did 951 00:52:53,239 --> 00:52:55,759 Speaker 2: the story and it ended up being one of their 952 00:52:55,880 --> 00:52:59,480 Speaker 2: top stories on their website and they were I think 953 00:52:59,520 --> 00:53:02,719 Speaker 2: they were little surprise too. I didn't tell them, but 954 00:53:03,200 --> 00:53:05,640 Speaker 2: it was also the top money day as far as 955 00:53:05,640 --> 00:53:07,120 Speaker 2: people donating to our costs. 956 00:53:08,080 --> 00:53:10,480 Speaker 1: And so they called me again. 957 00:53:10,640 --> 00:53:13,680 Speaker 2: They said, hey, that story, what was was really good 958 00:53:13,760 --> 00:53:15,799 Speaker 2: and really well, can you do another one? And I 959 00:53:15,840 --> 00:53:18,960 Speaker 2: was like sure, So I did another one, and again 960 00:53:19,800 --> 00:53:23,359 Speaker 2: we had a great response, and so then they came back, 961 00:53:23,360 --> 00:53:26,759 Speaker 2: they said, hey, why don't you do something until you 962 00:53:26,800 --> 00:53:30,680 Speaker 2: come down. I was like every day, every day, and 963 00:53:30,760 --> 00:53:32,400 Speaker 2: so they let. 964 00:53:32,280 --> 00:53:32,680 Speaker 1: Me do this. 965 00:53:32,760 --> 00:53:37,800 Speaker 2: That's they're giving you a national commercial. It was that 966 00:53:37,840 --> 00:53:41,080 Speaker 2: about five minutes. It's about I wrote a story. 967 00:53:40,840 --> 00:53:42,880 Speaker 1: Five minutes of national airs. 968 00:53:44,040 --> 00:53:47,439 Speaker 2: I wrote a story for every every everything. We called 969 00:53:47,480 --> 00:53:51,880 Speaker 2: them rooftop revelations, and so so I wrote a story 970 00:53:51,960 --> 00:53:54,600 Speaker 2: and I would tackle issues that people were concerned about 971 00:53:54,920 --> 00:53:55,720 Speaker 2: around America. 972 00:53:55,840 --> 00:53:56,359 Speaker 1: We were talking. 973 00:53:56,400 --> 00:53:58,400 Speaker 2: We wouldn't just talk about the violence in Chicago, but 974 00:53:58,440 --> 00:54:01,480 Speaker 2: we would talking about just a lot of views that 975 00:54:01,480 --> 00:54:07,080 Speaker 2: that people were concerned and race, school choice, You kept music, yes, 976 00:54:07,400 --> 00:54:13,360 Speaker 2: woke uh DEI everything I talked about it, Yes, And 977 00:54:13,920 --> 00:54:17,839 Speaker 2: people loved it and responded well. And as a consequence, 978 00:54:18,520 --> 00:54:21,280 Speaker 2: I ended up being on the roof for three hundred 979 00:54:21,320 --> 00:54:26,280 Speaker 2: and forty three days a year, yes, almost. 980 00:54:25,880 --> 00:54:27,799 Speaker 1: A year, and didn't come down. 981 00:54:27,840 --> 00:54:30,880 Speaker 2: The only time I came down was for my mom's funeral. 982 00:54:31,320 --> 00:54:32,720 Speaker 2: My mom's funeral. 983 00:54:32,800 --> 00:54:37,640 Speaker 1: And you your mind, bro, Yeah yeah? Vote After that, 984 00:54:37,719 --> 00:54:39,880 Speaker 1: did you still have the extension cord and everything? 985 00:54:40,000 --> 00:54:41,480 Speaker 2: I did it at this time, I had it right 986 00:54:41,520 --> 00:54:46,560 Speaker 2: though we had the extension cord still and we set 987 00:54:46,600 --> 00:54:49,080 Speaker 2: up three tenths. This time, we sat, we had my tent. 988 00:54:49,840 --> 00:54:53,239 Speaker 2: Then we had a guest tent where we invited CEOs 989 00:54:53,640 --> 00:54:56,839 Speaker 2: from around the country and people would influence to stay 990 00:54:56,880 --> 00:54:58,759 Speaker 2: all night and people would come and stay all night. 991 00:54:59,120 --> 00:55:00,799 Speaker 2: And then we had a middle that we called the 992 00:55:00,840 --> 00:55:03,080 Speaker 2: Ten of Meeting and Ten of Prayer that we would 993 00:55:03,080 --> 00:55:04,399 Speaker 2: have meetings and things like that. 994 00:55:04,560 --> 00:55:06,080 Speaker 1: So we had figured it. 995 00:55:06,080 --> 00:55:08,000 Speaker 2: We kind of figured it out a little bit, and 996 00:55:08,440 --> 00:55:13,960 Speaker 2: we really used social media. Fox was so gracious to 997 00:55:14,040 --> 00:55:17,440 Speaker 2: let us, you know, do the platform, the stories on 998 00:55:17,480 --> 00:55:21,760 Speaker 2: their platform. We went from about having one hundred national 999 00:55:21,800 --> 00:55:27,200 Speaker 2: donors to having over twenty one thousand new donors from 1000 00:55:27,239 --> 00:55:32,280 Speaker 2: across America, and we raised about twenty five million dollars. 1001 00:55:33,400 --> 00:55:36,960 Speaker 2: After it was all said and done, we had two 1002 00:55:37,280 --> 00:55:40,239 Speaker 2: really big gifts from a one eight million dollar gift 1003 00:55:40,280 --> 00:55:42,640 Speaker 2: from a foundation and another five million dollar gift from 1004 00:55:42,680 --> 00:55:46,320 Speaker 2: Ken Griffin who moved from Chicago to Miami. Ken Griffin 1005 00:55:46,360 --> 00:55:50,239 Speaker 2: from Citadel. That movie if you ever seen the movie 1006 00:55:50,320 --> 00:55:53,640 Speaker 2: Dumb Money, where that Yeah, that Ken Griffin is one 1007 00:55:53,680 --> 00:55:56,560 Speaker 2: of the financial guys in that movie. Yeah, So he 1008 00:55:56,640 --> 00:55:59,680 Speaker 2: gave us five million dollars and then all the rest 1009 00:55:59,680 --> 00:56:01,560 Speaker 2: of it from all over the place. 1010 00:56:05,360 --> 00:56:08,480 Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, and now across the country, a twelve year 1011 00:56:08,560 --> 00:56:11,880 Speaker 1: vision and you have broken ground. We've broken ground. The 1012 00:56:11,920 --> 00:56:12,920 Speaker 1: building is being built. 1013 00:56:12,920 --> 00:56:15,680 Speaker 2: If you go to our website projectthood dot org, you 1014 00:56:15,719 --> 00:56:18,239 Speaker 2: can see a wonderful facility being built there. 1015 00:56:18,320 --> 00:56:18,640 Speaker 1: Now. 1016 00:56:19,200 --> 00:56:22,200 Speaker 2: This week we reached the milestone because they're pouring concrete 1017 00:56:22,239 --> 00:56:25,279 Speaker 2: on the second floor now. So the second floor is 1018 00:56:25,320 --> 00:56:29,000 Speaker 2: being poured and it's an exciting time in our neighborhood 1019 00:56:29,120 --> 00:56:32,840 Speaker 2: the building because it's taking it so long. The cost 1020 00:56:32,960 --> 00:56:36,600 Speaker 2: is now thirty eight million dollars. We raised thirty one 1021 00:56:36,600 --> 00:56:39,799 Speaker 2: million dollars, so our goal is to raise another ten 1022 00:56:39,880 --> 00:56:42,160 Speaker 2: million so we can pay for We want to pay 1023 00:56:42,200 --> 00:56:45,160 Speaker 2: for debt free, so we don't have debt, and we 1024 00:56:45,200 --> 00:56:47,000 Speaker 2: want to make sure that we have some some money 1025 00:56:47,000 --> 00:56:50,080 Speaker 2: in our endowment so that something ever happens to me 1026 00:56:50,320 --> 00:56:53,160 Speaker 2: or that the center can go on and continue to 1027 00:56:53,160 --> 00:56:55,719 Speaker 2: do all the wonderful programs, because that's what's really important. 1028 00:56:56,440 --> 00:56:59,600 Speaker 1: I mean, this, this thing's the money you're talking about. Besides, 1029 00:56:59,600 --> 00:57:01,120 Speaker 1: you're talking about the sin's got to be able to 1030 00:57:01,200 --> 00:57:01,800 Speaker 1: survey a. 1031 00:57:01,680 --> 00:57:04,839 Speaker 2: Lot of people, yes, a lot of people, and we're 1032 00:57:04,840 --> 00:57:08,000 Speaker 2: not charging for memberships, so We're not like the YMCA 1033 00:57:08,320 --> 00:57:11,239 Speaker 2: where they charge you for a membership, or we're not 1034 00:57:11,360 --> 00:57:13,759 Speaker 2: charging like a school that charges you to take the 1035 00:57:13,800 --> 00:57:18,120 Speaker 2: construction classes. We just recently, you know, the need is 1036 00:57:18,160 --> 00:57:20,720 Speaker 2: so great in our neighborhood that we have these cohorts 1037 00:57:20,800 --> 00:57:25,720 Speaker 2: construction cohorts where we teach construction. And our cohort's getting 1038 00:57:25,720 --> 00:57:29,040 Speaker 2: ready to come up this month. There's only thirty slots. 1039 00:57:29,480 --> 00:57:31,920 Speaker 2: Thirty people can get in. We had a three hundred 1040 00:57:31,960 --> 00:57:34,880 Speaker 2: and sixty sign up, but only thirty can get in. 1041 00:57:34,880 --> 00:57:37,400 Speaker 2: But when we open the center, we'll be able to 1042 00:57:37,720 --> 00:57:44,240 Speaker 2: take on hundreds. So we're really excited about that. 1043 00:57:45,520 --> 00:57:55,560 Speaker 1: We'll be right back. I'm so encouraged to hear you 1044 00:57:55,640 --> 00:58:00,240 Speaker 1: talk about carpentry courses and all of that, you know, 1045 00:58:00,720 --> 00:58:03,880 Speaker 1: learning the skills like we talked about. I just want 1046 00:58:03,880 --> 00:58:06,680 Speaker 1: to kind of go down a list of stuff I've 1047 00:58:06,680 --> 00:58:09,080 Speaker 1: read and then just have you comment on this thing. 1048 00:58:09,200 --> 00:58:16,920 Speaker 1: Because Project Hood is phenomenal. You've got Chicago Adventure Therapy, 1049 00:58:17,280 --> 00:58:21,160 Speaker 1: which I love that especially for kids who are afraid 1050 00:58:21,200 --> 00:58:23,560 Speaker 1: to go more than two blocks from their house. Re 1051 00:58:23,840 --> 00:58:29,400 Speaker 1: Entry services to prevent recidivism, which is huge because I imagine 1052 00:58:29,280 --> 00:58:31,600 Speaker 1: a lot of people returning to your neighborhood are returning 1053 00:58:31,680 --> 00:58:35,000 Speaker 1: from prison and trying to get it right. And we 1054 00:58:35,120 --> 00:58:39,200 Speaker 1: know that if we don't have intervention for returning citizens 1055 00:58:39,200 --> 00:58:41,600 Speaker 1: from prison, that eighty five percent of them will be 1056 00:58:41,640 --> 00:58:44,920 Speaker 1: back in jail within three years. Absolutely, so you're working 1057 00:58:44,960 --> 00:58:48,720 Speaker 1: on cutting that off. For project hood, You've got entrepreneurship courses, 1058 00:58:49,360 --> 00:58:56,320 Speaker 1: you've got coworking, office space, camp refuge, you've got the 1059 00:58:55,880 --> 00:59:02,280 Speaker 1: world's largest baby shower hoops, You've got violence predict prevention. 1060 00:59:02,640 --> 00:59:07,600 Speaker 2: Yes, I mean this is more than a Saint No YMCA. No, 1061 00:59:07,680 --> 00:59:10,240 Speaker 2: it's not an YMCA. We tell people it's more like 1062 00:59:10,280 --> 00:59:14,880 Speaker 2: a YMCA church trade school on steroids all mixed together. 1063 00:59:15,280 --> 00:59:18,120 Speaker 1: Talk about a few of those things that project to 1064 00:59:18,160 --> 00:59:21,320 Speaker 1: it is I love the Chicago Adventure therapy after hearing 1065 00:59:21,320 --> 00:59:24,560 Speaker 1: what the kids and then maybe the re entry. 1066 00:59:24,400 --> 00:59:28,120 Speaker 2: Proctice us about the Chicago Adventures is about when we 1067 00:59:28,200 --> 00:59:32,480 Speaker 2: discovered that kids were not being exposed even to the 1068 00:59:32,480 --> 00:59:37,520 Speaker 2: city of Chicago. We start taking excursions, taking trips downtown 1069 00:59:37,760 --> 00:59:41,200 Speaker 2: so they can see certain sites, taking trips to museums, 1070 00:59:41,680 --> 00:59:46,040 Speaker 2: taking them to the beach, taking them to sporting activities. 1071 00:59:46,560 --> 00:59:50,320 Speaker 2: We even take them camping, which is phenomenal. You know, 1072 00:59:50,600 --> 00:59:53,200 Speaker 2: we're even now trying to find land where we'll take 1073 00:59:53,240 --> 00:59:53,880 Speaker 2: kids camping. 1074 00:59:53,920 --> 00:59:56,840 Speaker 1: I'm thinking about har Shane Cooper. He told me the 1075 00:59:56,880 --> 01:00:00,280 Speaker 1: first time they put him in a boat. Right, this 1076 01:00:00,400 --> 01:00:04,000 Speaker 1: is a kid, right, I've never been swimming. Yeah, that 1077 01:00:04,160 --> 01:00:06,520 Speaker 1: he had a gang banging one of the toughest guys 1078 01:00:06,560 --> 01:00:10,280 Speaker 1: he knows, sitting behind him on a lake right and 1079 01:00:10,600 --> 01:00:13,000 Speaker 1: right off Lake Michigan. But just like one of them 1080 01:00:13,080 --> 01:00:17,040 Speaker 1: those downtown before they ever put a powder on the water, 1081 01:00:17,200 --> 01:00:21,360 Speaker 1: was crying like a baby, scared to death. I believe swim. 1082 01:00:21,560 --> 01:00:24,840 Speaker 1: Never been in a boat. You can go back. And 1083 01:00:24,960 --> 01:00:26,840 Speaker 1: I'm not even gonna say it, but what Arche said 1084 01:00:26,880 --> 01:00:29,320 Speaker 1: about his friends talking about black folks in a boat, 1085 01:00:30,680 --> 01:00:34,120 Speaker 1: you could imagine a lot of kids don't know how 1086 01:00:34,120 --> 01:00:34,640 Speaker 1: to swim. 1087 01:00:34,760 --> 01:00:37,240 Speaker 2: That's one of the reasons why we're that's that's a big, 1088 01:00:37,280 --> 01:00:40,240 Speaker 2: big reason why we haven't a limp about. 1089 01:00:40,040 --> 01:00:41,800 Speaker 1: Taking kids from the hood and putting in a tent 1090 01:00:41,840 --> 01:00:44,600 Speaker 1: in the woods. Oh yeah, you know that's. 1091 01:00:45,720 --> 01:00:48,400 Speaker 2: There was one of the kids we took them camping. 1092 01:00:48,680 --> 01:00:52,320 Speaker 2: Brian was with this group and he said they were 1093 01:00:52,320 --> 01:00:54,360 Speaker 2: trying to get this kid to go to sleep in 1094 01:00:54,440 --> 01:00:57,680 Speaker 2: the tent, but he wanted to stay outside, and they 1095 01:00:57,760 --> 01:00:58,640 Speaker 2: kept asking. 1096 01:00:58,680 --> 01:00:59,960 Speaker 1: What what's the big deal? 1097 01:01:00,040 --> 01:01:02,120 Speaker 2: Yea, And all he kept doing was looking up in 1098 01:01:02,200 --> 01:01:05,280 Speaker 2: the stars and he said he had never seen so 1099 01:01:05,400 --> 01:01:08,240 Speaker 2: many stars in all of his life, and he was 1100 01:01:08,320 --> 01:01:13,080 Speaker 2: just amazed to see the stars. So taking these kids camping, 1101 01:01:13,560 --> 01:01:17,560 Speaker 2: exposing them is really important because they get to see 1102 01:01:17,560 --> 01:01:19,200 Speaker 2: a lot of things that they don't get to see. 1103 01:01:19,320 --> 01:01:23,760 Speaker 2: Even now, we're planning our first trip out of the country. 1104 01:01:23,800 --> 01:01:26,919 Speaker 2: We're trying to take thirty kids off the block. It's 1105 01:01:26,960 --> 01:01:30,000 Speaker 2: called oh Block goes off the Block, and we're trying 1106 01:01:30,000 --> 01:01:35,800 Speaker 2: to take them to Africa. So we're gonna, yeah, we're gonna. 1107 01:01:35,520 --> 01:01:36,080 Speaker 1: Take them to you. 1108 01:01:36,240 --> 01:01:40,440 Speaker 2: I think it's Uganda and South Africa, and our goal 1109 01:01:40,560 --> 01:01:43,360 Speaker 2: is for them to it's either Zambia or South Africa 1110 01:01:43,520 --> 01:01:46,560 Speaker 2: or I can't even remember which one is near South Africa. 1111 01:01:46,640 --> 01:01:50,160 Speaker 2: Unfortunately I'm not good in geography. But we're going to 1112 01:01:50,280 --> 01:01:54,800 Speaker 2: We're going to those two countries in Africa and taking 1113 01:01:54,840 --> 01:01:57,600 Speaker 2: those kids, and we're gonna take some adults with us. 1114 01:01:57,640 --> 01:02:02,800 Speaker 2: But the goal is to expose them that Listen, I 1115 01:02:02,840 --> 01:02:05,520 Speaker 2: know you're on old block and you're in a tough area, 1116 01:02:05,640 --> 01:02:07,800 Speaker 2: but we're going to show you there's some tougher areas 1117 01:02:08,000 --> 01:02:10,360 Speaker 2: and some areas in the world where people are really 1118 01:02:10,400 --> 01:02:14,040 Speaker 2: poor and to poverished and impoverished, and we're going to 1119 01:02:14,080 --> 01:02:15,640 Speaker 2: teach them how to serve people who are in a 1120 01:02:15,640 --> 01:02:19,680 Speaker 2: worse off condition than them. And so we're really hoping 1121 01:02:19,680 --> 01:02:22,000 Speaker 2: that that's going to turn into an annual trip to 1122 01:02:22,040 --> 01:02:26,240 Speaker 2: take kids. So that's what that's what the Chicago Adventure 1123 01:02:26,280 --> 01:02:26,840 Speaker 2: is all about. 1124 01:02:26,960 --> 01:02:30,080 Speaker 1: What about the returning Yes. 1125 01:02:29,920 --> 01:02:32,560 Speaker 2: So we have a big recidivism program. It's going to 1126 01:02:32,560 --> 01:02:36,920 Speaker 2: be it's featured on the news in Chicago coming up 1127 01:02:36,960 --> 01:02:39,920 Speaker 2: in the next week or so. But we get brothers 1128 01:02:39,920 --> 01:02:42,920 Speaker 2: and sisters who are coming back home from prison and 1129 01:02:42,960 --> 01:02:45,720 Speaker 2: we try to make sure we remove every obstacle that 1130 01:02:45,720 --> 01:02:49,160 Speaker 2: would keep them from that would keep them from going back. 1131 01:02:49,240 --> 01:02:52,400 Speaker 2: So we help them deal with the trauma of family counseling, 1132 01:02:52,840 --> 01:02:55,280 Speaker 2: we help them find jobs, we help them do training, 1133 01:02:55,280 --> 01:02:59,640 Speaker 2: we help them get housing, IDs, licensing, anything that would 1134 01:02:59,680 --> 01:03:01,840 Speaker 2: make sure that we help them stay on the track. 1135 01:03:01,800 --> 01:03:04,840 Speaker 1: Learned is huge. Yeah, after doing this show now our 1136 01:03:04,880 --> 01:03:06,360 Speaker 1: year and talking to a lot of people that work 1137 01:03:06,400 --> 01:03:09,640 Speaker 1: in that space, just getting an idea of license the 1138 01:03:09,720 --> 01:03:14,080 Speaker 1: BA basics just and you like, what's the big deal? Well, 1139 01:03:14,240 --> 01:03:16,120 Speaker 1: if you ain't got tramp station and you don't have 1140 01:03:16,200 --> 01:03:19,160 Speaker 1: forty five dollars and you don't know how to do it. Yeah, 1141 01:03:19,200 --> 01:03:21,280 Speaker 1: and you're intimidated by the system. That's it. 1142 01:03:21,360 --> 01:03:25,000 Speaker 2: You're intimidated having to go and wait in the line 1143 01:03:25,080 --> 01:03:28,280 Speaker 2: and never have done that before and not really knowing 1144 01:03:28,280 --> 01:03:32,480 Speaker 2: about the test. That's it's challenging. So we help prepare 1145 01:03:32,560 --> 01:03:35,680 Speaker 2: them to face those challenges so they can make sure 1146 01:03:36,040 --> 01:03:37,840 Speaker 2: that they get back on track. So that's one of 1147 01:03:37,880 --> 01:03:40,520 Speaker 2: our better programs. And then our violence prevention program is 1148 01:03:40,560 --> 01:03:44,160 Speaker 2: made up of which is our top program to stop violence. 1149 01:03:44,520 --> 01:03:49,160 Speaker 2: In our neighborhood in Chicago, violence was going up and 1150 01:03:49,240 --> 01:03:51,720 Speaker 2: we were featured on CBS because we had fifty two 1151 01:03:51,760 --> 01:03:55,000 Speaker 2: reducts fifty two percent reduction in violence in what they 1152 01:03:55,040 --> 01:03:57,880 Speaker 2: call the worst neighborhood in the city, and that was 1153 01:03:57,920 --> 01:04:02,440 Speaker 2: because of our violence prevention program. We have fourteen full 1154 01:04:02,520 --> 01:04:06,480 Speaker 2: time employees all made up of the different gangs in 1155 01:04:06,520 --> 01:04:10,000 Speaker 2: our neighborhood, where we teach them about conflict resolution, We 1156 01:04:10,080 --> 01:04:13,360 Speaker 2: send them to trauma counseling, We get them to recruit 1157 01:04:13,400 --> 01:04:16,960 Speaker 2: for us for our construction classes for our other programs, 1158 01:04:17,320 --> 01:04:20,600 Speaker 2: and their goal is to mediate conflicts and so those 1159 01:04:20,640 --> 01:04:23,800 Speaker 2: individuals help us to curb violence a big deal in 1160 01:04:23,840 --> 01:04:27,720 Speaker 2: our neighborhood. And then they help to oversee forty part 1161 01:04:27,760 --> 01:04:30,520 Speaker 2: time workers from the different gangs who are part of 1162 01:04:30,560 --> 01:04:34,360 Speaker 2: our BOLEESCE prevention team as well. So those programs are 1163 01:04:34,360 --> 01:04:36,160 Speaker 2: some of the things that are helping us to make 1164 01:04:36,200 --> 01:04:38,600 Speaker 2: a major transformation of the neighborhood. 1165 01:04:38,680 --> 01:04:42,200 Speaker 1: Yeah, this community center ain't basketball courts and a few 1166 01:04:42,280 --> 01:04:44,960 Speaker 1: bouncers hand them with no sir, no sir. Now, this 1167 01:04:45,280 --> 01:04:51,080 Speaker 1: is a revitalization of entire neighborhood project based around the 1168 01:04:51,160 --> 01:04:52,600 Speaker 1: community center type model. 1169 01:04:52,720 --> 01:04:56,000 Speaker 2: Right, we call it a leadership and economic opportunity center. 1170 01:04:56,920 --> 01:05:03,320 Speaker 1: It's phenomenal. Yeah. Yeah, you're not only shepherding and pastoring 1171 01:05:03,400 --> 01:05:10,200 Speaker 1: to this community. You are now literally providing work force training. Yes, 1172 01:05:10,600 --> 01:05:11,600 Speaker 1: financial literacy. 1173 01:05:11,760 --> 01:05:16,280 Speaker 2: Yes, we have a bank right now in our church lobby, 1174 01:05:16,600 --> 01:05:19,360 Speaker 2: win Trust Bank. They're going to be in the center, 1175 01:05:19,680 --> 01:05:23,200 Speaker 2: but they decided, which is unheard of, hey let's get 1176 01:05:23,200 --> 01:05:26,080 Speaker 2: a jump start and can we have a portion of 1177 01:05:26,120 --> 01:05:30,240 Speaker 2: your lobby. So they came and put a bank, Southside 1178 01:05:30,280 --> 01:05:34,080 Speaker 2: Community Bank in our lobby until we get the center open. 1179 01:05:34,800 --> 01:05:38,960 Speaker 2: So we have a full full bank with tellers and everything. 1180 01:05:41,640 --> 01:05:47,720 Speaker 1: You're turning this neighborhood on tire exactly. That's what that's 1181 01:05:47,800 --> 01:05:48,960 Speaker 1: the goal. You know. 1182 01:05:49,360 --> 01:05:52,800 Speaker 2: When Chicago sometimes wrote that article on twenty fourteen, the 1183 01:05:52,840 --> 01:05:56,880 Speaker 2: most dangerous block in all the Chicago everything in me 1184 01:05:57,800 --> 01:06:01,920 Speaker 2: from Dallas came up, you know, and I can remember 1185 01:06:03,080 --> 01:06:05,880 Speaker 2: being that missions week. I can remember them talking about, 1186 01:06:06,680 --> 01:06:08,760 Speaker 2: if a church is in a neighborhood and a neighbor 1187 01:06:08,840 --> 01:06:11,760 Speaker 2: and it's not making any difference in the neighborhood, what 1188 01:06:11,800 --> 01:06:14,280 Speaker 2: are you there for. I can remember them talking about, 1189 01:06:14,600 --> 01:06:16,560 Speaker 2: if you have a church in a neighborhood and your 1190 01:06:16,680 --> 01:06:19,040 Speaker 2: church has moved out of the neighborhood, would they know 1191 01:06:19,440 --> 01:06:23,040 Speaker 2: that you were ever there? And that article and the 1192 01:06:23,080 --> 01:06:27,440 Speaker 2: fact that our church was there made me say, listen, 1193 01:06:27,600 --> 01:06:30,919 Speaker 2: we have got to transform this neighborhood. And we need 1194 01:06:30,920 --> 01:06:33,320 Speaker 2: to do it not just for the kids on this 1195 01:06:33,480 --> 01:06:37,760 Speaker 2: block who are suffering and struggling and the adults who've 1196 01:06:37,760 --> 01:06:40,240 Speaker 2: been living in this community, but we need to do 1197 01:06:40,320 --> 01:06:45,440 Speaker 2: it for American cities across the country who are dealing 1198 01:06:45,480 --> 01:06:48,280 Speaker 2: with the same issues that we're dealing with every single day. 1199 01:06:49,040 --> 01:06:53,120 Speaker 2: Because if we can prove that this model works, then 1200 01:06:53,680 --> 01:06:56,560 Speaker 2: we can go to other neighborhoods. And that's really the 1201 01:06:56,720 --> 01:07:00,160 Speaker 2: ultimate goal to show them that, look, we changed the 1202 01:07:00,240 --> 01:07:04,960 Speaker 2: toughest block in the country. We can take this and 1203 01:07:05,080 --> 01:07:09,160 Speaker 2: change any block, any city if we have the resources 1204 01:07:09,680 --> 01:07:12,400 Speaker 2: and the manpower and the passion to do it. 1205 01:07:12,520 --> 01:07:16,320 Speaker 1: I believe that with all my heart. A dude from 1206 01:07:16,480 --> 01:07:19,920 Speaker 1: Union City learned how to go to the bathroom in 1207 01:07:19,960 --> 01:07:24,920 Speaker 1: an outhouse. Real foot Lake, realt Lake really calls by 1208 01:07:24,960 --> 01:07:29,680 Speaker 1: the earthquake, yeah eighteen something, or the Mississippi River flowed 1209 01:07:29,680 --> 01:07:32,600 Speaker 1: backwards two days and created the lake you grew up on. 1210 01:07:32,720 --> 01:07:45,760 Speaker 1: That's right to Dallas to Chicago, left started and you've 1211 01:07:45,840 --> 01:07:52,280 Speaker 1: turned a roller skate rink and a drugged out gang 1212 01:07:52,480 --> 01:07:59,280 Speaker 1: bamed prostitution pimped trafficking house into a church in a 1213 01:07:59,320 --> 01:08:07,040 Speaker 1: community so all to turn the worst neighborhood, the most violent, 1214 01:08:07,120 --> 01:08:11,680 Speaker 1: dangerous neighborhood in our country, into an oasis of hope 1215 01:08:11,680 --> 01:08:12,960 Speaker 1: in the middle of a lot of despair. 1216 01:08:14,200 --> 01:08:17,760 Speaker 2: Only God, That's all I can say. You know, a 1217 01:08:17,920 --> 01:08:22,120 Speaker 2: kid from ken Tennessee, Union City, Tennessee, growing up in 1218 01:08:22,200 --> 01:08:26,800 Speaker 2: Monthsy Indiana, I would have never, in my wildest imagination 1219 01:08:26,920 --> 01:08:31,840 Speaker 2: and dreams, thought that God would allow me to serve 1220 01:08:32,840 --> 01:08:36,120 Speaker 2: His purpose and his people to do such an awesome thing, 1221 01:08:36,960 --> 01:08:42,040 Speaker 2: and I realized, Man, I don't have enough sense to 1222 01:08:42,080 --> 01:08:45,880 Speaker 2: do it. I don't have enough wherewith y'all, I don't 1223 01:08:45,880 --> 01:08:49,720 Speaker 2: know enough people. And it's only through the grace of 1224 01:08:49,840 --> 01:08:53,280 Speaker 2: God that we've been able to accomplish what we're accomplishing. 1225 01:08:53,400 --> 01:08:58,360 Speaker 2: And I'm probably you know I have I have big faith, 1226 01:08:58,520 --> 01:09:02,280 Speaker 2: crazy faith, but I am probably the most amazed person 1227 01:09:02,320 --> 01:09:05,160 Speaker 2: out of all of it because I know what God 1228 01:09:05,240 --> 01:09:05,840 Speaker 2: is working with. 1229 01:09:06,240 --> 01:09:10,280 Speaker 1: You know, I got one question for you. Sure do 1230 01:09:10,320 --> 01:09:12,120 Speaker 1: you think if your mama would have let you build 1231 01:09:12,120 --> 01:09:15,400 Speaker 1: a treehouse you'd ever got up on that road? I 1232 01:09:15,439 --> 01:09:17,439 Speaker 1: think you just didn't grow up with a treehouse. 1233 01:09:17,760 --> 01:09:19,920 Speaker 2: With a treehouse, he's going to get all the rute 1234 01:09:19,960 --> 01:09:22,200 Speaker 2: that might be that might be no treehouses. 1235 01:09:22,439 --> 01:09:27,679 Speaker 1: If somebody wants to support you, which I hope people 1236 01:09:27,720 --> 01:09:32,120 Speaker 1: hear this, I want to support you Project Hood, the church, 1237 01:09:32,680 --> 01:09:35,479 Speaker 1: the community center. How do they reach you? 1238 01:09:35,920 --> 01:09:39,960 Speaker 2: So they can go to Project Hoood dot org, Projectthood 1239 01:09:40,000 --> 01:09:42,200 Speaker 2: dot org and they can learn about all the programs 1240 01:09:42,200 --> 01:09:45,880 Speaker 2: and everything that we're doing. Specifically the community center that 1241 01:09:45,920 --> 01:09:50,120 Speaker 2: we're building, or New Beginning's Church of Chicago, which is 1242 01:09:50,200 --> 01:09:52,599 Speaker 2: right across the street from where we're building the center, 1243 01:09:53,200 --> 01:09:58,160 Speaker 2: and that addresses sixty six twenty South King Drive, Chicago, Illinois, 1244 01:09:58,160 --> 01:10:00,879 Speaker 2: six oh six three seven And and I tell everybody 1245 01:10:00,880 --> 01:10:03,080 Speaker 2: this that if you really want to get in touch 1246 01:10:03,120 --> 01:10:06,280 Speaker 2: with me, call me on my cell phone three one 1247 01:10:06,320 --> 01:10:10,160 Speaker 2: two eight one three five two one one. You know, 1248 01:10:10,360 --> 01:10:12,400 Speaker 2: I found out a long time ago when people are 1249 01:10:12,439 --> 01:10:14,200 Speaker 2: trying to get in touch with you to give something 1250 01:10:14,200 --> 01:10:16,000 Speaker 2: to help you build a visit, they don't need to 1251 01:10:16,000 --> 01:10:18,880 Speaker 2: be going through secretaries and red tape. So anybody can 1252 01:10:18,920 --> 01:10:21,559 Speaker 2: call me at any time, and I'll be glad to answer. 1253 01:10:21,600 --> 01:10:23,360 Speaker 2: If I don't answer this, leave a message, I'll call 1254 01:10:23,400 --> 01:10:23,760 Speaker 2: you back. 1255 01:10:24,160 --> 01:10:26,960 Speaker 1: As a matter of a fact, I have been reached 1256 01:10:27,000 --> 01:10:29,880 Speaker 1: out by a number of pastors who I know listen 1257 01:10:30,520 --> 01:10:33,400 Speaker 1: to the show. I've been emailed by three or four. 1258 01:10:33,560 --> 01:10:36,760 Speaker 1: I also give my personal contact information, and weekly I 1259 01:10:36,840 --> 01:10:39,639 Speaker 1: get a bunch of emails. So you understand how I do. 1260 01:10:39,840 --> 01:10:42,960 Speaker 1: And I'm the same. I'm glad you gave your phone 1261 01:10:43,000 --> 01:10:46,320 Speaker 1: number because my hope is some of these pastors hear you, 1262 01:10:47,439 --> 01:10:52,599 Speaker 1: and if their church is not on fire for the 1263 01:10:52,640 --> 01:10:57,160 Speaker 1: true calling of a Christian, maybe they might want to 1264 01:10:57,200 --> 01:10:58,720 Speaker 1: reach out to you and talk about how to get 1265 01:10:58,760 --> 01:11:01,240 Speaker 1: their church alne the way church is a line, because 1266 01:11:01,280 --> 01:11:06,280 Speaker 1: I think ultimately, just as in the past, the corporate 1267 01:11:06,360 --> 01:11:09,479 Speaker 1: church may have done its own worst enemy. If we 1268 01:11:09,600 --> 01:11:15,200 Speaker 1: follow your illustration of discipleship, I don't know how anybody 1269 01:11:15,240 --> 01:11:16,479 Speaker 1: wouldn't want to be involved in that. 1270 01:11:16,880 --> 01:11:19,599 Speaker 2: Yeah, I would love for any pastors or any churches 1271 01:11:19,600 --> 01:11:22,000 Speaker 2: to reach out to me. I love the church. I 1272 01:11:22,040 --> 01:11:24,160 Speaker 2: love the church, for the church has helped me to become. 1273 01:11:24,760 --> 01:11:27,120 Speaker 2: I know I wouldn't be anywhere near the person I 1274 01:11:27,160 --> 01:11:28,840 Speaker 2: am if we're not for the church. So I love 1275 01:11:28,880 --> 01:11:32,880 Speaker 2: the church, and my hatred for pastors has grown to 1276 01:11:32,920 --> 01:11:36,000 Speaker 2: a deep love and passion for pastors. I love pastors, 1277 01:11:36,320 --> 01:11:38,479 Speaker 2: and I want to help as much as I possibly can. 1278 01:11:38,560 --> 01:11:42,240 Speaker 2: So anything I can do to help anybody anywhere, man, 1279 01:11:42,280 --> 01:11:45,640 Speaker 2: I want to do that. So they can call me anytime. 1280 01:11:46,400 --> 01:11:50,280 Speaker 1: That'ster Corey Brooks, the founder of New Beginning's Church, the 1281 01:11:50,320 --> 01:11:55,519 Speaker 1: founder of Project Hood, who turns dilapidated skating rinks into 1282 01:11:55,560 --> 01:12:01,840 Speaker 1: sanctuaries and whorehouses into beacons of hope in the most 1283 01:12:01,840 --> 01:12:06,840 Speaker 1: dilapidated neighborhoods, and wants to export this idea to areas 1284 01:12:06,840 --> 01:12:09,600 Speaker 1: across our country. And all you have to do is 1285 01:12:09,640 --> 01:12:12,280 Speaker 1: email and we'll call him and I'll help you. And 1286 01:12:12,360 --> 01:12:15,639 Speaker 1: if you feel called to help him raise the last 1287 01:12:15,640 --> 01:12:17,920 Speaker 1: seven million dollars he needs to do the work he's doing, 1288 01:12:18,880 --> 01:12:23,680 Speaker 1: he will take your money. Corey, thanks for coming to him, 1289 01:12:23,720 --> 01:12:25,960 Speaker 1: for sharing your story. It has been my honor to 1290 01:12:26,000 --> 01:12:28,160 Speaker 1: meet you. It's been a blessing to meet you. Thank 1291 01:12:28,200 --> 01:12:34,639 Speaker 1: you so very much. I appreciate it, and thank you 1292 01:12:35,040 --> 01:12:40,000 Speaker 1: for joining us this week. Guys, if pastor Corey Brooks 1293 01:12:40,120 --> 01:12:43,519 Speaker 1: or any of our other guests has inspired you in general, 1294 01:12:43,720 --> 01:12:48,240 Speaker 1: or better yet, inspired you to take action by volunteering 1295 01:12:48,240 --> 01:12:52,439 Speaker 1: with Projecthood, by donating to them, by starting something like 1296 01:12:52,479 --> 01:12:57,120 Speaker 1: it in your own community, or something else entirely, please 1297 01:12:57,320 --> 01:12:59,920 Speaker 1: let me know. I'd love to hear about it. You 1298 01:13:00,120 --> 01:13:04,960 Speaker 1: can write me anytime at Bill at normalfolks dot us, 1299 01:13:05,000 --> 01:13:08,519 Speaker 1: and I promise you I will respond. You can just 1300 01:13:08,600 --> 01:13:12,120 Speaker 1: ask Badger. And if you enjoyed this episode, share our 1301 01:13:12,200 --> 01:13:15,600 Speaker 1: friends and on social subscribe to the podcast, rate and 1302 01:13:15,680 --> 01:13:20,040 Speaker 1: review it, become a premium member at normalfolks dot us. 1303 01:13:20,240 --> 01:13:23,799 Speaker 1: All these things that will help us grow an army 1304 01:13:24,000 --> 01:13:29,320 Speaker 1: of normal folks. Don't forget, the more people, the more impact. 1305 01:13:30,000 --> 01:13:32,240 Speaker 1: I'm Bill Courtney. I'll see you next week.