History: How it all started
THE WHEELS STARTED TURNING...
In the fall of 2006. Members of the Brookings Ministerial Association wanted to address major gaps in assistance that is left for private resources to assist people with. Many times the public assistance programs only begin to address part of the needs of the poor, working poor or simply, people in need of help (crisis help, short-term help or otherwise).
What they noticed was that people would come to the church desperately needing help because they had no other place to go and many times it would be hard for church staff to assess when needs are legitimate and when they are not, or just where to send people to go so they can access needed resources.
The goal of the Ministerial was not to further "band-aid" the problem that presented itself in individuals or families, but to EMPOWER PEOPLE by deeply evaluating the issues in order to create a self-reliant member of the community by helping to improve their quality of life and at the same time promoting Christianity through works and by example .
The goals were:
¨ To be better stewards of their funds.
¨ Avoid only band-aiding the surface problem that presents itself, but also to
evaluate deeper, root problems that can be assisted with to prevent this same
issue from re-surfacing.
¨ Create a self-reliant member of the Brookings community and help to improve
their quality of life.
My Neighbor then became a working project with joint efforts from members of the Brookings Ministerial Association, Law Enforcement, Community Assistance Organizations and Social Services.
In order to fulfill these goals the MY NEIGHBOR program was created and opened its doors in the
Fall of 2007.
Meet the Board Members:
- Pastor - First Lutheran Church 692-6251
- - Community Group
- Sheriff Marty Stanwick- Law Enforcement
- Jamie Brutty- Business
- Jack Otta- Sinai Lutheran Church
- - St. Thomas More Catholic Church
- Sandy Mc Clemans- Ret. Dept. of Labor
- Church rep
- If you are interested in learning more about MY NEIGHBOR, please contact us: email info@myneighborbrookings.net OR call 605-691-3225 or speak with a Board member
Contact Us
*For People that LIVE & WORK in Brookings
Remote Office
Mailing Address:
PO BOX 91
Brookings, SD 57006
Phone: +1 605 6913225 +1 605 6913225
* It is HIGHLY recommended that you complete the ONLINE request form, as this will contain a Release Authorization that needs to be in place to proceed. Otherwise a paper copy can be mailed to you... it will just take longer.
It is important to leave a message and if you have breaks during your work day please state when those are and every attempt will be made to connect with you when you are available.
E-mail: info@myneighborbrookings.net
The Process...
Our Missions is to help our commuity members who are hard working and other wise self sufficient, but are in crisis and budget difficulty when their paycheck is not enough.
Each person or family who requests help from MY NEIGHBOR starts with an INITIAL PRE-ASSESSMENT to determine the most efficient and effective way to help you in your crisis.
If it is determined that the My Neighbor program is a able to financially assist, the Requester goes through an in-depth assessment process to determine a plan of action with LONG-TERM SOLUTIONS.
My Neighbor info poster.pdf
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