Movement Day Greater Dallas Marketplace Practical Business Training

DALLAS - June 16, 2015 - PRLog -- The second annual Movement Day Greater Dallas (MDGD) event was held this past January and attracted over 2,000 leaders across religious, business, non-profit and government sectors in Greater Dallas and 22 states. The organization’s expressed purpose is to catalyze Christian leaders to collaborate, share best practices, and work together to bring transformative change to the cities of Greater Dallas.

Unique from many conferences, however, MDGD groups participants into various interactive design tracks that focus on many of the social problems specific to the area (and common to most metropolitan areas) such as hunger, education, prison re-entry, immigrant and orphan care, and human trafficking to name just a few. Making MDGD more than a one day event, these leaders join hands to collaborate throughout the year around areas of interest and develop measurable strategies to address the most pressing needs.

As part of the effort incubated during year one of MDGD, local business leader Bob Anderson, executive vice president with SND Energy Company, Inc. and leader of the marketplace track joined other marketplace leaders, to develop a training course designed to better equip individuals in securing employment. The group completed two successful training days in 2014 at Austin Street Center and Cornerstone Church.

Simultaneous to the efforts of the marketplace leaders, Mercury Bynum, area director for Prison Fellowship Ministries was heading up the prison re-entry track in an effort to address the needs of the formerly incarcerated upon their return to their families. With productive employment as one of their most pressing needs, leaders from each of these tracks came together, presenting the training curriculum to the Texas Board of Pardons & Paroles. Impressed with this unique opportunity, the parole board has thrown their support behind this effort encouraging those being released in the Greater Dallas area to go through the program.

The first class was held this past Saturday, May 30^th at Cornerstone Baptist Church with a group of 30 marketplace leaders and 60 recently released individuals. Coaching began at 9:00 a.m. and lasted until 3:00 p.m. Each participant received a certificate of successful completion with hopes that it will assist them in landing a job.

Anderson provided an overview of the day’s activities. “Our business leaders shared best practices and real world experiences in small working groups of 5-10 participants around four topics - gift and talent discovery, interview preparation and resume building, transitional budgeting, and business plan development. Participants not only heard topic presentations but also worked with marketplace leaders one-on-one to complete worksheets, templates and exercises for the respective topics.   At the end of the day, the graduates left with a folder of tangible results to use going forward in the marketplace.  More importantly, they were individually encouraged and confirmed with love and value from the Lord as they begin a new Gospel walk in life.”

Beyond the skills that were learned, the training provided an excellent opportunity for interaction with successful business leaders across north Texas and for these leaders to demonstrate the love of Christ.

According to Bynum, “this is an opportunity to bring the `they’ and `them’ together.” Many ex-offenders see business people as “they”, thinking “they don’t care about us”. Unfamiliar with this “other world”, many of the business people are isolated from “them” and the mission field in their own back yard.  Efforts like this, bring two worlds and two conversations together in a meaningful way.

Organizations partnering in the training effort include Prison Fellowship Ministries, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, The TORI Program, Harmony Community Development, First Baptist Dallas, Cornerstone Baptist Church, T3 Ministry, Doors and many others.

“These groups embody everything that Movement Day Greater Dallas is about,” states MDGD Executive Director Jon Edmonds. “We firmly believe that more can be accomplished and that the process of city transformation can be accelerated when leaders come together in unity. The seeds of gospel movement planted over two years ago are beginning to bear fruit in efforts like this.”

Please visit www.MovementDayGreaterDallas.com for more information.