Listen to Rebecca Wagner
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Rebecca Wagner
Executive Director
Community Ministry of Montgomery County
Audio Transcripts
On Community Ministry of Montgomery County
We're an interfaith coalition of 135 congregations and our mission is to work together to meet the needs of the poor. We do that through service, education, and advocacy. We have 7,000 volunteers working with us and each of those 7,000 volunteers are part of our congregations, the business community, service organizations. We really believe that the word "community" in our name involves everyone and we make a community when we're all out there putting our hands on a problem.
On Working with Neighbors
We like to think of those we're serving as neighbors. Some things are better done by neighbors, not by government, not by an organization, or an institution, but neighbor-to-neighbor. And that's how we like to feel—when we're extending our hand, we're extending it to a neighbor.
On the Origins of CMMC
Twenty-five, 28 years ago, I was part of a women's bible study group. After I had been part of this bible study group for about five years, I looked at these wonderful women and I said "So what? What do all these good words and careful philosophical thoughts mean if we aren't putting them to work?" And that was when we started the first shelter for homeless women in Montgomery County, the Rainbow Shelter.
On Motivation
I'm privileged to get up and do this and, given that it's my privilege, I have to take that very seriously. If there are 100 problems, if I can fix one, then we'll start there. And that's—that may sound a little bit Pollyanna, but it's the only way you can do this stuff. Some of the needs and dysfunctions that occur in the families we serve—they break your heart, they make you sick. But if you would see a little child trundling up the stairs here with his mom to get a loan to prevent an eviction, you think "it only takes $250 to keep that child in his home? How could you not want to be here, and do that, and make that happen?"