Why This Blog

Last month I had my first experience attending the annual retreat for Texas CWJC/CMJC site directors and coordinators. I was away for less than 48 hours, but the impact of the event will be felt for months. Before I left for the retreat, I was anticipating beginning this blog as a way to share with others the week to week aspects of our Christian Women's Job Corps ministry in Amarillo. Nothing drove home the uniqueness of each CWJC and CMJC program more than attending the retreat. Networking with others about program length, curricula, mentoring, physical facilities, support, and even participant differences reinforced it.

More than those measurable differences I had a beginning acquaintance with women, each of whom was unique, who committed herself to the same task of ministering to and with other women - each of them bringing her own creativity of mind and heart and her own discipline and experience to the task. And when they joined others in each place to form a team, a YOUnique site flourished.

At the same time there is that marvelous sense of family and family resemblance that comes from a common foundation, core program requirements, and the shared commitment of those involved in these ministries. The retreat was kind of a family reunion in which stories are told and experiences are shared, where people laugh together, sing together, pray together, and share concerns and dreams. Without making the time together a"training" event, it was a learning event.

If you visited any CWJC/CMJC site in Texas or in other states across the US, you would know that we are all part of the same family, yet we are YOUnique. So, we invite those who read this blog to learn about us and become a part of us in ways you want to do so. We invite you to comment and to share your experience and ideas.

I chose our template of books and more books for this blog because I am and want to be a lifelong learner. I saw a model of that in my father, who finished high school the year I completed by Ph.D. Although I am writing this blog, what I am looking for, in part, is a growth experience that will come to me from what you and others contribute.

Each week we plan to add to our postings and, with some pictures, try to give you a visual image of what is taking place too. On Friday, February 11th, we will meet an airplane that brings Jana Jurcova to us from Slovakia. She was our friend and colleague during the 12 years that Joe Ann Shelton and I spent there. Because we know the ministry of which she is a part, we believe it can be enhanced by the addition of a Christian Women's Job Corps and a Christian Men's Job Corps. Jana will be with us for a month. During that time she and Jozef Brenkus, who arrives on February 18th, will complete the National Certification Training in Dallas, to help prepare them to carry CWJC/CMJC to Slovakia.