Chapters
Shownotes Transcript
First Person is produced in cooperation with the Far East Broadcasting Company, who rejoice in the stories of changed lives through the power of Jesus Christ. Learn more at febc.org. You're not going to rest your way out of some of the challenges that we have. There's not enough money to really solve the challenges that we have. And frankly, only God can really solve the challenges we have.
She left a career in business and advertising to pursue God's call on her life to help inner city children. Welcome to First Person, where you'll meet this week's guest, Donita Travis. I'm Wayne Shepherd. Thanks for joining us.
As you listen, you'll get to know Danita's story and learn about the after-school program called By the Hand that is having a tremendous impact in young lives. If you can't stay with us for the next 20 minutes, please make a note to listen online at FirstPersonInterview.com or subscribe to our podcast. Just search for First Person with Wayne Shepard on your preferred podcast app. That way, you'll never miss an episode. Also, look for us at Facebook.com slash FirstPersonInterview.
By the Hand is a Christ-centered after-school program that takes kids by the hand and walks with them from kindergarten through college, loving and nurturing them, mind, body, and soul. The founder, CEO, and president is Donita Travis, whose own story of God's calling is very exciting. We spoke online. It is very exciting.
You know, I have reflected a lot on how when God plans to do something good, he often does it through one person who's willing to say yes. And I had the opportunity of being a person to say yes to God on May 12th, 1997.
I was president of an advertising agency that my husband and I had started in Chicago. And I thought I had made the decision, I think, looking back, that God drew me to make the decision. But I had decided to get away for a couple of days just to pray and plan. And
And got in my car and drove a couple of hours up north to Lake Geneva, checked into a little roadside motel and planned on spending just a couple of days praying and planning. And I can tell you in the quietness of my morning prayer, first day I was there, morning prayer,
God whispered a verse from the book of John to my heart. And the verse is, "The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. I've come that you may have life and have it abundantly." And after that verse, and I don't even ever remember memorizing that verse. I've memorized other verses, but it was the verse that came to mind.
And then after the verse was just a very clear, quiet, clear question. Donita, will you help kids in Chicago have abundant life? And, you know, God has spoken to me like that a handful of times in my life, but I knew it was the Lord.
And I prayerfully and tearfully said yes. Yeah, what did your husband and others in your life think about that? Yeah, they were a little worried. I called my husband from the motel room and was crying and said, you know, Daryl, I really believe that God has given me a vision for my life. It's to help kids in Chicago have abundant life. And
I'm so excited about it. And he was, you know, he was kind, but he said, when are you coming home, honey? And again, we both were, you know, very accepting of this, but we had no idea what that meant. And so I came home and continued as president of the advertising agency and
from 1997 through 2000, so about three years, and would work in advertising during the day. And then I would volunteer at the Moody Church
with kids who lived in the nearby Cabrini Green housing complex. So the woman who was in charge of children's ministry and I, we would get the Moody Church van. We'd drive over every night of the week in the evening hours after work all day.
pick up kids and bring them back to the church. And with a group of volunteers on Monday night, we had homework help. Tuesday night, we had dance, which was led by a member of the Joffrey Ballet, who was a member there at the church. Wednesday night, we brought the kids over for a Juana. Thursday night, we had a cooking club. Friday night, a movie night. And Saturday, we would go on field trips in the city. And that's how it started in 1997.
And did that until early 2000. And in early 2000, I really felt like God was calling me to leave advertising and start by the hand club as an afterschool program. Shared that with my husband and he said, yeah,
okay, but I need some time. And he was, he was worried, you know, he needed a plan because I was running the advertising agency, which was really our bread and butter at that point. And he had started a new business, which is very successful today called brand trust, brand consulting company that, that works with clients all over the world. And so look at God, but
But he said, okay, you know, we need a plan. I need some time. And his concern was that I would just leave, you know, that I would be compulsive and I would leave. But I knew that God wouldn't call me to do that, that, you know, it would be done in an orderly way and that my husband would be supportive.
So in August of 2000, my husband came to me very humbly and very sincerely and said, I think you should leave. I will come back to the agency and run the agency and also run the new company, Brand Trust. And I will be fully supportive of you and what you're doing. And he was really sincere. He meant it. That's fabulous. That's just great. Yep. So I left.
the agency and we started by the hand club with 16 kids from Cabrini Green in a room at the Moody Church in March of 2001. Okay.
We're being heard around the country right now, and for those who don't know Chicago, Cabrini-Green is infamous, isn't it, as a place in Chicago that was a very needy place, a place where great ministry was happening through the years, but there was still a lot of need. Cabrini-Green was at one time the largest and at other times the most challenging housing project
in the country there were, I'm just guessing from memory, probably 16, 25
mostly high rise buildings and probably 25,000 people living there. And they were really experimenting with a concept of putting, you know, everyone who was in high need all in one place. And when the, when the buildings were first built, they were, they were very nice. And the idea was that people would come in. A lot of immigrants coming to the country would come in. That would be there's,
starting place but it would be a launching pad for them to go out and assimilate into the neighborhoods but the the actual uh buildings themselves declined over years and they became um sort of a dead end rather than a launching pad and that's where a lot of the problems originated and just uh horrific living um conditions and um
Just some terrible stories, memories. The high rises are no longer there. Yeah. Good stories, though, too. A lot of great families, a lot of famous people. And so, you know, a lot of great stories, too. But it was a failed experiment is really the point that I'm trying to make. Tell me about the children that you're looking to help here. What are the needs that you're meeting? Yeah.
So to fast forward, you know, we started with 16 kids in 2001 in a room at the Moody Church. Today, we're serving 1,800 kids. Wow. And 7,000 through the doors. But we are serving 1,800 kids, kindergarten through college, early career. We take them by the hand and we walk with them holistically. Our vision is Abundant Life, John 10, 10, Mission, Abundant.
Holistically, mind, body, and soul. And we work with Chicago Public Schools. We're in six clubs, four under-resourced neighborhoods, primarily on the south and west side, although we're still in Cabrini Green, 2,000 kids living on welfare in that neighborhood still today.
So four neighborhoods, six clubs, 1800 kids. We work with Chicago public schools. The principals of the schools refer to us kids who are not meeting reading standards, meaning they're the most likely to drop out of school.
And we, um, our goal is that they would, um, be able to read. They would make good grades in school. They would graduate high school and matriculate on to higher education or military into a, a living wage or better job. And that they would know Jesus as Lord and savior and be equipped to share, um, the good news really with, um,
with not only people all over the world as they go from here, but really into the next generation. And the compounded and multiplied impact of what we're seeing happening at By the Hand, you can't even imagine it. We won't even know until we get to heaven. But I can tell you, you know, the kids come in
recommended as most likely to fail in this last year, 100% of our high school students graduated high school. Oh, fabulous. 76% went on to higher education or the military.
60% were on the honor roll. Over 80% grew more than a year in reading. And 87% say they have a personal and saving relationship with Jesus Christ. Yeah, that's incredible. We're just so happy to be a part of what God is doing through a place called By the Hand Club. And of course, we'll learn more about By the Hand with Donita Travis as we continue this conversation in a moment.
Here's Ed Cannon on the vision for FEBC's weekly podcast. The primary purpose of Until All Have Heard, of course, is to share the experience that FEBC has because we have staff on the ground in so many oppressive places. But in addition to that, we're trying to speak to you in a way that only the kind of testimonies you'll hear from around the globe can do. Discover how the gospel is making a difference around the world.
Search for Until All Have Heard on your favorite podcast platform or hear it online at febc.org.
My guest is Donita Travis, who is founder, CEO, president of By the Hand, a club ministry with a spiritual goal in Chicago, an after-school program. And Donita, it just has to be, I know you have received awards personally from the city of Chicago, and it just has to be looked at by the city as just a great help to what the Chicago public schools and the city are trying to do here. You know, we do it all for the glory of God. I understand, yeah. So,
I really believe that more than anything, we're just an incredible witness to not only the city of Chicago, and I'll mention that in a minute. I'll answer your question. But also, I've even had people at my church, the Moody Church, which is...
One of the greatest churches in the world. Right in the middle of Chicago, isn't it? In the middle of Chicago. Say, wow, what an example of what God can and will do. So, you know, all for God's glory.
Great witness. I hope that when the city and others look at us, they say, you know, look at God, look at God. But we do have really great supportive relationships because, frankly, you're not going to arrest your way out of some of the challenges that we have. There's not enough money to really solve the challenges that we have.
And frankly, only God can really solve the challenges we have. So even folks who maybe are not faith friendly, and there are a lot of people, you know, in every walk of life, including city government, other places,
that are very faith friendly, but even those who aren't faith friendly, they realize that this is a good thing for the city and everyone. So all that you're doing, you mentioned money earlier. It does take money and it takes volunteers and staff. How do you operate and how, how does God keep it going? Well, it is, it is,
It is a lot. I'll say that. And it's all those things. It's a lot of money. Our budget this year is $17 million. And you might say $17 million, but if you look at 1,800 kids and caring for them holistically, our bus budget, just to pick them up from school and bring them to the club and then take them home at nighttime, it's a million dollars just for busing. And we do...
Again, we have staff, we have reading specialists, college specialists, we have spiritual development specialists, social workers, and you need all of that if you're really going to care for kids holistically.
So our budget is $17 million. And if you divide that by 1,800, you can start doing some math. And then if you divide it, we operate year-round by numbers of days and weeks in the days. You'll see why it's that if you look at what it really takes to care for 1,800 kids holistically. So $17 million. And I will say God always stretches us so we never have enough.
We never have a budget that, you know, budget for 2024 that, you know, if we just had the same revenue as 2023, we'd be able to meet the budget. The budget's always a little bit more because we continue to grow and costs continue to go up. So there is a faith component in this, but for us,
23 years, we've finished every year, 23 years fully funded and charity navigator has given us four stars, uh, the highest rating they can give. So, you know, God, God provides, um, but he does it. I say that, that really all of our achievements. So whether it's funding or whether it's the students achievements or whether it's having the right staff or whether it's having, um,
you know, the right number of volunteers. It's the achievements are based on two things. God's amazing power to do what he promises to do. You just need to make sure that he, you know, it's his promise and not yours. His amazing power, number one, and then also the amazing faithfulness and obedience of his people. Yeah.
Yeah, and there's one more thing at work here, too, and that is – and I don't want to put you on the spot, but you are well-trained in business. And it takes a good sense of business, business principles, sound principles to operate a $17 million a year budget.
and do that largely with donations and grants I'm sure you get as well. But it's an amazing accomplishment, so I really take my hat off to you, Donita. But I want to hear some stories. I want to hear how God is working with this ministry and what the results are. I would like to say our website is bythehand.org, and on the homepage you'll find some stories about
And on the homepage, there's a story. It was just added. Love this story. It's of Shakola. And Shakola came to us in the first grade. And I first heard about her. She came to us at our By the Hand Club Moving Everest location, which is on the west side of Chicago. And I first heard about her because I heard there was a little girl in first grade who spent most of her time just
crying and isolated. And the staff was concerned about her and caring for her. So she was on my radar. And I met her shortly after that. I met her Aunt Alma and started just kind of getting a little bit more of the story. And with Shakola, first grade, she was removed from her home. She and her six siblings were removed from school.
their home with their mother and they were in the care of DCFS and Miss Amma, her aunt had got a phone call at one o'clock in the morning from her Miss Amma's brother and said, I need you to go get my grandkids. And so Miss Amma, it took her about two weeks to be able to put the pieces in place and
And get approval to go and get her nieces and nephews, six of them. Two weeks later, she was able to go borrow a van and go. And, you know, again, you have to have six beds. You've got to have the proper amount of, you know, there was a boy, so he had to have his own bedroom. Yeah, I used to imagine.
do all of that. So she went to pick them up. And for some reason, she could only bring three of the kids home and it took her another week or so to get the other three. So they were just distraught during that whole period, you know, three left behind. And finally she was able to get all six kids and bring them home with her. And all this happened right before Shikola joined us in the first grade. So it happened just weeks before Shikola,
She came to us and we had Shakola and we had her little sister who was in kindergarten, Dominique. So we have, we have Shakola and Dominique, and then there are several younger and there are a few older, but we had those two.
It was so wonderful to watch Shakola start to come out of that shell. And I applaud Miss Ama because the kids had a safe and loving home. And now to hear Shakola, Shakola just says, you know, we were so happy.
they were almost, they couldn't believe it. It was unbelievable that Ms. Alma would make oatmeal for them, a warm oatmeal. And I think about how simple oatmeal is and I take that for granted and that they had clothes and that it was a safe home and there was an adult always present in the home. And so the kids are getting adjusted to that and they're thinking, is this going to last? Is Ms. Alma going to send us back? But over time,
as Miss Ama really made a home for them and as they became safe and secure. And Miss Ama says that having them at By the Hand Club was important because she knew that she could work and the kids would be cared for.
And she also liked the spiritual aspect that they would hear about God. But when she would pick them up at the end of the day, they would have their homework done. They would have been fed dinner and cared for safe and loving environment and learn about God. Fast forward. That was first grade 2015. Today, Shakola is in ninth grade today, a freshman.
She's reading at a 12th grade level. She knows Jesus is Lord and Savior. She's leading friends to Christ. And she says, these are friends who didn't know God, and now they know Jesus. And she's on a full scholarship program.
at a boarding school in Indiana called Culver Academy, which is a girls boarding school. She was accepted into an Oxford, Oxford England summer branch program this summer. So in other words, these diamonds are living in places like Austin,
And given the right nurturing, and that's at home, which Ms. Ama did. Ms. Ama is really the hero of this story. Oh, and Ms. Ama is on staff with us today. Yeah, I was going to ask. Okay. Yeah, yeah. But that's just one story. And then now Dominique has been accepted to Culver and has a full-ride scholarship. So you look at how the cycle is broken in terms of
but also her younger brothers and sisters following in Shikola's footsteps. And then Shikola sharing that with others, that multiplication. I mean, you just, you can't, you can't make this stuff up. I love it. And it's all done in the name of Christ. All done through Christ and in the name of Christ. Yeah. It's such a great story of a person faithfully following God's call to leave some things behind in order to pursue something greater.
Once again, our guest has been Donita Travis, and the after-school program is called By the Hand. We'll have links to it at FirstPersonInterview.com, where you can also share this interview with others. That's FirstPersonInterview.com.
These stories of faith and calling are supported on First Person by the Far East Broadcasting Company, who celebrates how the Lord uses people to reach other people with the gospel. FEBC's ministry through broadcasts, social media, and apps reaches millions of people each day around the world, communicating God's truth in the heart language of the listener. You can learn more and hear the podcast until all have heard at febc.org.
Now, with thanks to my friend and producer, Joe Carlson, I'm Wayne Shepherd, inviting you to join us next time for First Person.
