Over 500 people turned out for the ISAAC Banquet at the WMU Bernhard Center Saturday, to hear Dr. Rubén Martinez speak and to honor Lifetime Achievement Awardee Rev. Robert Rasmussen and awardees Northside Ministerial Alliance, Hispanic American Council, and Youth Violence Prevention leader Venessa Collins-Smith. “We are here to leave a better social order than […]
Do you still need Banquet Tickets for May 6? Call the ISAAC office, 269-341-4213, right away! (There are no online tickets available this late—only phone orders.) This Banquet is going to be fabulous! Be there if you possibly can! We have wonderful additional singers since the poster came out—Pastor Christopher Moore from Mt. Zion Baptist […]
Wonderful Silent Auction items are coming in from ISAAC donors and sponsors for our First Ever Silent Auction at the Banquet on May 6! Live Music for a Children’s Party! Sharpening for all your kitchen knives! Gift Certificates for Millennium Restaurants, an Ample Pantry meal for four, and Confections with Convictions handmade and fair trade […]
There will be Child Care, staffed by certified caregivers, at the Banquet on May 6! Would childcare at the banquet make it possible for you to come? Please pre-arrange it by calling the ISAAC office, 269-341-4213, right away. We need to know ahead the number and ages of children coming so we have enough childcare […]
We are deeply grateful to Fetzer Institute, the Kalamazoo Community Foundation and the YWCA for their Community Builder sponsorships of our banquet. At the banquet you will see their beautiful ads in the banquet book. Their generous Community Builder sponsorships will enhance and strengthen our interfaith work to create an equitable community in Kalamazoo County.
Don’t forget to vote on Tuesday, May 2. Our partners KPS and KRESA are counting on our support to renew this funding for our schools countywide. Renewal of this funding will bring us closer to achieving equity for all our children in Kalamazoo County. Click here for Facts on the May 2 Millage Renewal – […]
Winter is often characterized as a dry and barren season. It is a season where it appears that not much is growing because on the outside things look pretty barren. Even those who enjoy the winter, look forward to a season that brings warmth, sunshine and new growth. A season, where it seems like everything […]
Sign up for the same Gamaliel Leadership Training that Former President Barack Obama participated in when he was a Community Organizer! ISAAC, an affiliate of the Gamaliel Network, is offering Local National Leadership Training that presents the concepts and tools an effective leader needs. It affords a person the opportunity to reflect on participant’s present […]
Tickets for the May 6 Banquet are now available from ISAAC leaders or by calling 269-341-4213. Tables at the Banquet will be “Beloved Community” seating—shared with another congregation or organization—unless you request otherwise. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote, “Our goal is to create a beloved community and this will require a qualitative change in […]
On Tuesday, May 2, 2017, voters in Kalamazoo Public Schools and all other districts in Kalamazoo County will be asked to vote on the renewal of a 3-year, 1.5 mill property tax to help continue to fund operations of our schools. Q: Is this a new millage or a millage increase? A: No. This […]
* Cradle Kalamazoo is ready to assist pregnant and newborn families in Kalamazoo County to help reduce infant mortality and help all our babies and families thrive! In one phone call, you can help connect a loved one to crucial services to improve health and infant survival. Call 269-888-KIDS (5437) for programs and resources that […]
The Anti-Racism Task Force has been working hard to raise awareness about racism in Kalamazoo, with a particular focus on the business community. The Task Force is committed to generating interest among, and securing commitments from, employers, human resources representatives, leaders, and managers to begin their journeys toward furthering their understanding of issues that are […]
Ed Genesis is an artist, poet, musician, organizer, entrepreneur, and community leader. Born and raised in Gary, Indiana and moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan permanently in his early 20’s, his love of art/music, his passion for his people and community, and his gift of creativity are evident in all areas of his work. In October 2018 Ed Genesis released a song to accompany the campaign he was working on around school push out, entitled Junior High, which was distributed nationwide including on his own iHeart radio station, Spotify, and iTunes.
In 2017 Ed Genesis created Poetic Justice, a monthly open-mic that was hosted/led by 5 local poets. He has performed as well as hosted several events such as the Black Arts Festival, the Kalamazoo Poetry Festival, and the National Day of Racial Healing.
Ed Genesis is Lead Mentor and head of community relations at Speak It Forward where he teaches youth at Lakeside Academy, Starr-Commonwealth, and the Kalamazoo County Juvenile home healing through music and art. In 2017, he started WE ACTIVE! a community organization aimed at fighting against mass incarceration and the school to prison pipeline. The organization was recognized by the State of Michigan and presented with a Special Tribute by Representative Jon Hoadley for its work on Criminal Justice Reform and Mass Incarceration in the Kalamazoo Community. Ed Genesis has been a panelist and featured speaker in Washington D.C., Chicago, and Milwaukee. He has and continues to collaborate with artists local to Kalamazoo, youth included, to create music to address social justice issues. In 2018 Ed Genesis joined Truth Racial Healing and Transformation (TRHT). He leads the Racial Healing design team with a focus on healing justice and is also part of the Law Design Team.
ISAAC
