From October 4th-7th, 10 people from the ENP team went to Cincinnati for the Christian Community Development Association National Conference. This year’s theme was “Embrace,” as we explored embracing love, truth, righteousness, and peace alongside other Christian community development practitioners. We heard from dynamic speakers, bonded as a team, networked with others from Fresno and around the country, and learned practical tips from others serving in similar contexts.
CCDA is an amazing investment into the professional and personal lives of ENP staff. Professionally, I was challenged by fundraisers across the country as they lead out from a strict place of clear mission and vision. Personally, I was moved by the deep desire of people who work in the church and outside of it to participate in God’s justice and His mercy on this side of Heaven. It was a blessing to bear witness to.
Grace Berg
CCDA for the community builder or urban worker is a reset or centering because, for me, it centralized my connection with God and myself, my connection to the national movement of community builders, and a more authentic connection with my team.
Ivan Paz
This year, ENP had the honor of presenting 4 workshops during the breakout sessions. We were delighted to be able to expand our equipping abilities through sharing some of our knowledge and experience with the Association at large. We grew through the process of developing and proposing workshops. Prior to the conference, we did a practice run of our workshop presentations at staff meetings and gave each other feedback. This was meaningful for our team, as we were able to share our work with each other, as well as give and receive feedback to improve our presentations.
Unpacking the Workshops
Beyond Tutoring a Path to Empowerment: Jenessa Cheema and Christian Gonzalez
Tutoring is a great way to engage our schools and neighborhoods, but how do we move into deeper work beyond literacy intervention? As we think about cultivating young leaders, we exposed both those who are mentoring and being mentored to paradigms that lead to individuals’ wholistic wellbeing. This workshop examined different frameworks to create transformative experiences with students, college interns, and parents.
Power of Capacity Building and Learning Conversations: Playing the Long Game: Daniel Dominguez and Jason Spencer
This was a workshop designed for those seeking to engage in place based development. The Shalom of their neighborhood. Whether a community member or part of a church or organization, this workshop provided practical next steps to inform methodologies, if not transform them, to be a bridge builder when it comes to authentic and integral neighborhood work that leads to long term positive change. For those leading Community Based Organizations and seeking to take community members from awareness to insight and to activation, this workshop was for them.
Whose Land? Our Land! The Power of Land Use As a Tool for Civic Engagement: Ivan Paz and Christian Gonzalez
Based on an exilic, post-colonial theological imagination, this workshop painted a biblical vision for community engagement work in the local context, with land use development as a practical, focal target for power-building with the powerless and reclaiming place and space with the displaced.
Mapping Your Neighborhood: Andrew Feil, Gabrielle Piceno, and Jason Spencer
To embrace your neighborhood, you need to know your neighborhood. This workshop shared how to use tools and maps to discover what is going on in participants’ neighborhoods and how to make place-based decisions based on real world data.
Staff shared about the conference and their experience presenting:
My first CCDA was 15 years ago. Having now been involved for so many years it is fun to hang out with friends from across the country. I was also super proud! ENP staff offered 4 different breakouts! This many years later we are moving from just a listener to a facilitator. This also includes considering what is our role in Fresno to continue to foster a Christian Community Development table.
Andrew Feil
CCDA is such a unique space – people who love Jesus and want real flourishing for ALL people here and now (not just in eternity). It’s challenging, heartbreaking, and empowering. I came back even more grateful for ENP, Fresno, and the work we get to do together. Also as a first-time presenter, I realized we do have lots to share and teach others! Getting over that #impostersyndrome.
Jenessa Cheema
Throughout the conference, several of the speakers referenced and built upon metaphors that spoke of being involved in the community over time: We were encouraged to “stay at the table”, to remain involved in community work and hard conversations even when there are challenges. We were also reminded of a tree “bearing fruit” in the right season, with there being times where the tree appears fruitful and times when the tree has no fruit but is still working and developing. Both of these images are reminders to ENP to continue to stay true to our mission and vision and commitment to the long-term development of Fresno as we celebrated our 15 Year Anniversary in the same month.
CCDA is a time to breathe and learn from others. Attending the conference this year felt more like being poured into than being challenged. It was also special to have a big group of us go together.
Christian Gonzalez
Hebrews 10:25 reminds us to not forsake the gathering of believers. CCDA is not only a convening of believers, but a space of which one can be embraced, reunited, reignited, and relaunched into their neighborhood.
Daniel Dominguez
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