WWW.AGRM.ORG MAY/JUNE 2017 53 I ’ve been thinking about hiring a community coordinator. Not someone to look after internal clients or fundraising events, but someone to look outside our walls and network in the neighborhood. A shelter in a nearby town has chosen to do this; they call her a Navigator. What if we hired a Neighborhood Navigator? You could call them your Chief Community Officer, or perhaps the Love Your Neighbor Director. Fun job titles aside, think of the poten- tial for this person to benefit your mission and the community. The job description could include things like: • Serve as liaison between community groups and mission. • Coordinate joint networking functions. • Attend community networking events. • Invite service providers to client events. • Invite businesses to your fundraisers. • Give tours of your facility. • Staff a booth at trade shows. • Attend service club meetings. • Speak in churches with a brief presentation on upcoming fundraising events. This could position your ministry as a central hub for other charities but also keep it top-of-mind for businesses through visits and social media. This person isn’t asking for dollars, but they will seemingly be everywhere, increas- ing exposure for your mission and being in a position to bless others. Honestly, right now this is my job. But as we grow, I find myself unable to give proper attention to all of these areas. When we first started Souls Harbour Rescue Mission, before I even had a building, all I did was “navigate” the city of Hal- ifax through every free networking event I could: • Iranian Business Trade Show. • Chamber of Commerce 101 Lunch Meeting. • Mingle Networking. • Christian Mingle—not the dating site! • Circle of Chairs—Christian service provider networking. • Small Business Trade Show. • Monthly business luncheons. It was a matter of being everywhere and any- where, and I formed some amazing friendships that continue to affect our ministry. This morn- ing I got a call from a friend I met at the Iranian Business Trade Show, which is now the Interna- tional Business Trade Show. She asked me to help her sell the last 20 booths in their new location, offering us 30 percent of each booth sale. She also arranged for us to celebrate the Iranian New Year with a tasting menu for our mission guests to try all kinds of Persian foods. Not every idea is going to work everywhere. But I believe we all need to consider the best way to navigate our neighborhoods, making an impact to give and receive blessings. Ĩ ACROSS THE STREET Michelle Porter Neighborhood Expert How a community coordinator can benefit both your mission and city Michelle is founder of Souls Harbour Rescue Mission in Regina, Saskatchewan, and Halifax, Nova Scotia, where she currently resides. She serves as the president of AGRM’s North- ern Lights District. Contact her at mporter.rescue@gmail.com. DAY-TO-DAY