While exiting the parking lot of the Denver Rescue Mission recently, a car pulls alongside mine. The friendly-looking man rolls down the window and shares something with this knucklehead from Missouri that just warms my marrow: “Mark, when those guys come back from working out at the gym, they’re different.”
The beta test of Victory Production’s “A Stronger Cord” (ASC) program, in partnership with the Mission and Phoenix Multi Sport, is off to a promising start. At least according to a guy who works in a leadership role within the shelter that sits on the corner of Park Avenue West and Lawrence Street in downtown Denver.
“What do you mean? They’re different?” It didn’t take him long to respond. “They have a better attitude about things.” We have a long way to go for sure, but it seems we’ve struck a cord with our emphasis on fitness. It starts with the workout. A group workout. A team. No headphones. No “just doing my own thing” mentality. One Heart Beat.
Men in recovery, surrounded by fitness-minded, dependable and hard-working men, and we’re working out together. We’re strengthening minds, bodies and spirits. Our mission is to deliver this type of men to America - at home, work and elsewhere.
The focus of Victory's ASC and its work with the homeless men is to get them to the point where they’re ready to be re-engaged with family, jobs and communities. It starts with the workout and the rebuilding of their social network through engaging with a platoon of other like-minded men involved as volunteers.
The power of coming together with folks of similar intention in the pursuit of a noble goal. Rarely a bad thing, right?
It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about trying to bring an emphasis on fitness into the “How do we fix homelessness”” issue, the achievement gap issue in education, the fraying infrastructure issue or other social challenges that affect our turbulent and crazy world.
We need some new ideas. We need folks to unite. A Stronger Cord is a direct call to the men of America. Time to rally and grow stronger. Mind. Body. Spirit. Home. Work. Elsewhere. Fit. Dependable. Hard-working. There are nine of them there. Pick any three and embrace the concept, as Solomon suggests in Ecclesiastes, “a cord of three strands is not easily broken.”
For those involved with A Stronger Cord, it starts with the workout. Men in the gym, sweating, grunting, and uniting.
A young woman recently moved to town in pursuit of a master’s degree in public health. The Ohio native is also a fitness-minded person. I was recently introducing her to the leaders of two wonderful gyms: Kinetics Fitness Studio and Green Door. After wrapping up the tours, we were discussing what she had discovered about her chances of landing an internship, or even a job at one of the two places.
The young woman said to me, “Mark, I really enjoy being around folks at the gym. Most have such a positive attitude. It’s contagious.”
Amen, sister.
It all starts with connecting with others. In this case, through a workout. But the key is connecting with others who share a passion for what floats our boats. For Victory and me, it’s delivering transformed men to society. For you, it might be education, the environment, social justice, health care or whatever stirs your soul.
What are you passionate about? In all likelihood, you’re not alone. Go find some like-minded folks and connect with them. That’s where the magic happens! Rarely does it work solo. We all need a team.
Be like the Redwood tree. You’re heard that story before, right? The California Redwood is North America’s tallest tree. Grows to 400 feet along the Golden State’s northern coastline. A real key to its survival? Redwood roots grow horizontally, not vertically. The roots intertwine with nearby similar trees. When powerful storms blow in off the coast of California, folks, the Redwoods stand tall because they’re connected.
I’ve been called a lot of things in life through 56 years, smart rarely one of them but, in my personal opinion, I don’t give a hoot what we’re talking about. Yep. Wherever we’re trying like heck to achieve goals and overcome challenges, if we’re out there like the Lone Ranger, we’re screwed. The chances for success drop dramatically.
We gotta rally around one another. We have to check individual egos and agendas at the door and, as Billy Mac from Hackensack would say, “Charge from the fox hole together.”
For ASC, our focus is getting guys off the street and back into homes, jobs and communities. For you, it may be something different. What we definitely have in common is the process. It’s the same. We unite determined to change the status quo. To no longer accept, “that’s just the way it is.”
It will not be easy. There will be bumps along the way. We must be relentless in pursuit of our goal. This week, dare to be different!
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