Columbia's War on Poverty: A little innovation

Here at The Salvation Army, we are getting ready for a first-time conference that we hope will become a big deal (maybe even national), so forgive me if it is very much on my mind right now. The theme is “Innovation in Winning the War on Poverty” and we are going to have folks talk about things we are doing right here in Columbia to try to innovate poverty away, along with a few academic speakers (we kind of have to do that in Columbia, don’t we?).

Innovation can be big or small, and the main thing is we just always need to be thinking about new ways to win this war on poverty. We absolutely have to think of innovations to serve people in need, as well as to attack the problems at the roots.

Here in Columbia, we can actually be pretty innovative, and there are plenty of folks setting good examples for everyone else. There is just no excuse to not try for innovation, or at least to lend a helping hand to someone else who is.

Perhaps one of the most innovative things to be happening in the Columbia homeless services world in a long while is Voluntary Action Center’s Opportunity Campus. Today, it is just starting to take shape, and hopefully it will be a reality within the next two years or so.

Drawing on many of us – The Salvation Army, Love Columbia, Turning Point, Loaves & Fishes and others – the Opportunity Campus will be a fairly huge homeless shelter and provider of a wide range of other services to people facing poverty and homelessness. It is innovative basically because of its immense scale, as well as the way it is marshaling the resources of so many of us.

Pretty cool, huh? Absolutely the only reason it is happening is because a few people thought it would be a good idea, and those people are taking action to make it a reality (I am looking at you Ed Stansberry!). Because of a few people with an innovative idea, so many others have a point to rally around, and eventually thousands of people are going to be served and even saved.

Here at The Salvation Army, our latest attempt at innovation is the launch of a baby pantry, providing diapers, formula and pretty much anything else that is donated to help young families desperately in need. It is a small thing, really, but it is making a huge difference for babies in need every single month. Stop by between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m. any fourth Thursday and you will see a little innovation in action.

There are so many other examples here in Columbia, and I am going to give you just one more, just because it is so cool and so truly innovative. Have you heard about SEED Success? It is a locally grown program that has been slowly becoming a reality over the past several years, given life by longtime community servant Judy Baker. There are plenty of complicated details, but the bottom line is that SEED Success provides money and bank accounts to young children to help them start saving for higher education and a better life. It is a program that helps kids get a strong start and gives them a shot at a better life, and it does it in a way most of us had never considered. Pretty cool, huh?

Yes, innovation is super cool. In the poverty services world, we see innovation, large and small, all the time. We see it inspire others to do more and we see it make a difference. You could easily be innovative. You could make a difference. Now is the time to try.

Major Kevin Cedervall is a leader of The Salvation Army in Columbia. The Salvation Army provides a wide range of community services to address poverty and other issues, seeking to rebuild lives and create lasting change.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Columbia's War on Poverty: A little innovation