Q & A with Jessica Bell, Venture alumnus and Venture Local participant in Dallas.
Explain some of the ways that your community has engaged in God’s story of justice through Venture:
The Dallas community has really embraced Venture and has been able to use the organization as a way to act.
Some of the ways our community gets involved is by hosting the Southern Ride:Well team each year. We love making them feel appreciated each summer when they role through our church, The Oaks, by doing things like cooking for them, getting to know them, taking them to the doctor, and setting up a day of pampering with relaxing yoga and massages.
My favorite thing about Ride:Well being in town is having the Art Benefit. Members from the church and surrounding community have donated hundreds of pieces of art to be auctioned and sold on behalf of Ride:Well. It’s a fun night of art, music, and community. Last year we were able to raise $5,000 to put towards clean water projects in Africa. It is always a beautiful week.
We also have a coffee shop, The Cup, whose motto is ‘Benefit the World, Discover The Cup.’ Its main purpose is to raise money and awareness for Venture’s projects. The Cup is run by volunteers within our church, several of whom are Venture alumni, but all of whom want to see the injustices of this world radically overcome.
And last year our community started Run Free Dallas– an initiative to encourage people to live out the Venture motto in their local areas. On our first run we had some 60+ people all wearing Run Free shirts running through Dallas and making a difference.
What are some of the results of that engagement?
It has been so neat to watch people realize that God can and will use anybody to make a difference in the world. Families have pledged to make activities like the Water Walk a family affair, people are volunteering their weekdays and weekends to run the coffee shop, and so many individuals have signed up with Venture to climb mountains, ride their bikes around the country, and run in local races. It’s been really exciting to see this movement go from “something the young adults do” to something that the church does. When you see a 60-year-old couple carrying a couple gallons of water and a mom walking in the heat with her kids so that they can try to understand what people in other parts of the world are experiencing, you know that God is doing something in your community.
How has engaging in Venture locally been different than engaging through a cycling or hiking tour?
For our very first Run Free Dallas event we had around 60 individuals run anywhere from a 5k to a full marathon while wearing matching Run Free shirts. This Venture local activity was so inspiring because we were doing it with people that we see every week. While cycling or hiking with a team of people that you’ve just met and going through the bonding experience is priceless, there is something so fulfilling about partnering with your pastors, your friends, and the people you see on the other side of the church every Sunday to free slaves. You get the true feeling that you’re walking hand in hand with your community and together you’re fighting for people you’ll never know.
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