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You know Stephen. You know Zach. But how much do you really know about our other hosts? This week, our featured host is Josh Meadows from Neighborhood Hope. Join us as Stephen and Josh discuss how he founded Neighborhood Hope, the role his wife played in it, and what he expects will be in the episodes that he hosts on the podcast. Hint: Relationships change lives.
Show Notes
You know Stephen. You know Zach. But how much do you really know about our other hosts? This week, our featured host is Josh Meadows from Neighborhood Hope. Join us as Stephen and Josh discuss how he founded Neighborhood Hope, the role his wife played in it, and what he expects will be in the episodes that he hosts on the podcast. Hint: Relationships change lives.
Purchase the You Can Mentor book:
You Can Mentor: How to Impact Your Community, Fulfill the Great Commission, and Break Generational Curses
youcanmentor.com
Purchase the You Can Mentor book:
You Can Mentor: How to Impact Your Community, Fulfill the Great Commission, and Break Generational Curses
youcanmentor.com
Creators and Guests
What is You Can Mentor: A Christian Youth Mentoring Podcast?
You Can Mentor is a network that equips and encourages mentors and mentoring leaders through resources and relationships to love God, love others, and make disciples in their own community. We want to see Christian mentors thrive.
We want to hear from you! Send any mentoring questions to hello@youcanmentor.com, and we'll answer them on our podcast. We want to help you become the best possible mentor you can be. Also, if you are a mentoring organization, church, or non-profit, connect with us to join our mentoring network or to be spotlighted on our show.
Please find out more at www.youcanmentor.com or find us on social media. You will find more resources on our website to help equip and encourage mentors. We have downloadable resources, cohort opportunities, and an opportunity to build relationships with other Christian mentoring leaders.
You can mentor is a podcast about the power of building relationships with kids from hard places in the name of Jesus. Every episode will help you overcome common mentoring obstacles and give you the confidence you need to invest in the lives of others. You can mentor.
Speaker 2:Welcome back to the You Can Mentor podcast. My name is Steven, and I'm here with Josh Meadows, one of the newest hosts of the You Can Mentor podcast. I wonder if I could get that sound effect like the right now. Josh, how are you doing, bud?
Speaker 3:Man, I'm doing great, Steven. It's good to be here.
Speaker 2:Glad you're here. Josh, he leads an organization called Neighborhood Hope. I wonder, Josh, if you could just take a second, let us let our listeners know what is Neighborhood Hope. I want I want all of our neighborhoods to have hope, but what is Neighborhood Hope?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So Neighborhood Hope is a, ministry that I had the opportunity to to start. We're going on 10 years now, and, basically, we're a neighborhood based ministry. And what that means is that we partner with neighborhoods in, on the east side of Charlotte. And we go into those neighborhoods, and essentially, we obviously, we want to be wanted where we are.
Speaker 3:You know? And so we go in and we build relationships with under resourced neighborhoods. We go in simply, number 1, just to build relationships and earn trust. And once we build relationships and earn trust, we try to do a good job of listening. And if if we don't listen, we show up and we assume that we know what these beautiful people are going through.
Speaker 3:And that's kind of, you know, that's a mistake everybody makes in the beginning. And so just try to do a good job of listening and saying, hey. What is it that we can do together? So not not I'm not doing all the work. You're not doing all the work.
Speaker 3:What can we do together to create, you know, some beauty in the neighborhoods or uncover beauty that already exists? And a real simple way to to to put it is a lot of these neighborhoods, a lot of our community is African American. There there's, you know, a few other races represented, but the majority is African American. And so we try to come in, a lot of single mothers, grandmothers, multiple kids, sometimes 3, 4, 5 living in 2 bedroom apartment complexes. And so what all that really means is how can we create the best support system possible through the love of Jesus, through good community, so that you can live a better story.
Speaker 3:Why we do that is I don't know if you know this, Steven, but in our city, Charlotte, North Carolina, you know, Bankintown, we are the worst city in the nation at a statistic called upward mobility, which means that if you start in poverty, there's a 94% chance that you stay there. And we we feel like that that's not God's heart. It has nothing to do with money. It has nothing to do with, like, you know, getting people rich or whatever. It just means that we want our our our communities and families to live a lifestyle of of dignity where they have purpose, and they don't feel like they have to be stuck in in poverty.
Speaker 3:And, you know, I wouldn't want my own son to live that way. I wouldn't want my friends to live that way, and I definitely don't want these communities to live that way. And so that's, in a nutshell, what we do.
Speaker 2:You said 94%.
Speaker 3:94%. Which means that yeah. Like, we like to phrase it like this. What if your story is being told before you have a chance to to, like, really tell it or really relive it? You know, it's like that's that's terrible.
Speaker 3:And so we we say, man, enough is enough. Like, we we gotta step in. Essentially, what that means is that there's a big gap between, you know, the people at the top and the people at the bottom, and that the city has not done a good job of bridging that gap. And so people at the top aren't really listening or, like I say, climbing into the mess with people with beautiful people that are stuck in this unimaginable cycle. And so what we wanna do is be no matter how big we we get, we always wanna be a grassroot organization that that goes into the neighborhoods that you know, I always say, if Jesus climbed into my mess and rescued me, then it should be an honor to climb into the mess of other people and and be a part of that rescue, you know, with God, with the community for them.
Speaker 2:Yeah. That's crazy, man. I yeah. Bringing Jesus into us, like, in our sin, we don't got no upward mobility unless Jesus comes and and sorts us out and pays for our sin or whatever. But but thinking about for us, if we live in a city that only 6% have an opportunity to better themselves, because I like what you said, it's not just money.
Speaker 2:Like these opportunities lead to a life well lived, like where you have, you have provision, you have community, you have electricity, you have relationships. Like that's huge that someone's taken responsibility and saying, Hey, we want, we want to see not just this statistic change, but we want to see communities reimagined. I like what you said. You're like, Not that we're bringing hope just necessarily. We're actually uncovering some beauty that's represented here that no one sees.
Speaker 3:Right. I really
Speaker 2:love that. So tell me, like, the uncovering of of kind of communities that you're seeing. What's something that you guys have recognized in a neighborhood that y'all served?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So one of the cool things I like to tell people about the neighborhoods is the community that the community that already exists in there. So, you know, growing up, I grew up in a small town outside of Asheville, North Carolina called Lester. Some people say Leese Esther, but if you're from there, you know, you say Lester. And imagine so surrounded by beautiful mountains, but it's like, you know, I'm living in a house, my grandparents live next to me.
Speaker 3:You know, a quarter mile down the road, I have, like, one neighbor that has a son that we play and ride bikes together. But, you know, it's very isolated, no red lights. But if you go into these neighborhoods, you know, as you begin to get close and just you know, they're they're different. Right? Obviously, our skin colors are different.
Speaker 3:But as you begin to get close to them, being loved by them is one of my life's greatest honors. You know, when they when they tell me they love me or, oh, this yeah. This is mister Josh. He's our family. You know, it's such an honor.
Speaker 3:But as you as you pull into the neighborhoods, man, it's so cool. So, Steven, imagine growing up with, like, 15 of your best friends, and all of you guys live in low income housing, you know, so you live next to each other. And, you know, you pull into the neighborhood and kids are playing tag, kids are riding their bike, kids are shooting basketball, you know, kids are running around, you know, coming up with different games, and other kids are at the, you know, the little park in the neighborhood hanging out. And then there might be, you know, a couple people having a cookout and smelling the smell of, you know, burgers. And there's a there's a beauty in these neighborhoods where, like, there really is a great sense of community that exists in there.
Speaker 3:And so what what I've learned, you know, going into the neighborhoods is that they really teach me about community, you know. Now think about Acts chapter 2 in the Bible and how the church was originally supposed to be. Right? It was this daily fellowship, right, when they say they prayed together, that they broke bread together, that they have meals together daily, and there was a sense of community and belonging and just being together. Well, a lot of that exists in the neighborhood as far as people being together.
Speaker 3:Now we have to bring Jesus into it. And when you do that, it's almost like one of my visions is to have, like, a neighborhood church where people are just together, you know. So so there exists a lot of community already. Now it's coming in, you know, and like you said, reimagining, hey, what does this neighborhood look like under the rule of of King Jesus and under the rule of, you know, the church coming in and and bringing vibrancy and light into it. So there's so many cool things that already exist, man, that the potential is, like, limitless.
Speaker 2:Well, I love the it's like the lines are blurred between family. Like, that's what I heard in that picture of you got these guys over here cooking out, these kids over here playing basketball. And so if you're from that community, when you walk in, you're like, That's that's Uncle John over there. That's, that's my friends over here. If, I guess in a white context, it would kind of feel like you would actually need your, your uncle, your literal uncle grilling out for you to feel a sense of connection to that person.
Speaker 2:You would need your cousin to be playing basketball over there for it to feel like you were connected. But maybe sometimes from the outside looking in, you're like, there's no connection here, like, and there's so much need. But on the inside, that that feeling may not actually exist. There may be, like, an appreciation for those things that maybe from people on the outside wouldn't appreciate as much.
Speaker 3:Exactly. Yeah.
Speaker 2:That's awesome.
Speaker 3:Yeah. It's really cool. You know, in the in the old days, right, they used to say it would take a village to raise a child. You know, growing up in I'm sure, like, I was a eighties baby, so I was born in 82. And, you know, I'm sure eighties prior, sometimes even nineties prior, you know, like, my my neighbor could discipline me, and my mom wouldn't have a problem with it.
Speaker 3:She would encourage it. A matter of fact, my coaches my mom would tell my coaches, like, you have my permission to spank my son, or if he gets out of line, you have my permission to discipline him. And I man, you know, I had it. Coaches would literally, you know, I this is funny. I'm, like, telling on myself, but I remember going to a basketball tournament growing up, and I had this coach.
Speaker 3:His name was, his name was Rick. I was always over at his house. So we thought it'd be funny, like, riding down the road to, like, flip people birds, and he caught me. And he pulled off and lit into me, man. And it was like, I deserved it.
Speaker 3:I needed that. And so, you know, that kinda leads me to the point that in these neighborhoods, there's so much beautiful community, but there's there's no fathers. You know, there's an absence of men in the communities. And I think that that's one of the the root causes of, you know, the brokenness is that there is this beautiful aspect of community. But there is still a lot of isolation, you know, from adults getting outside and just, you know, being with the kids.
Speaker 3:A lot of times, it's I always say, you know, we launched the launched the tutoring program due to COVID. And part of the reason why we have a tutoring program or a lot of Brown communities struggle with academics is because the kids are so busy being kids that that that they're not encouraged to be student first. They're not encouraged to do their homework first. And so, you know, that's kinda where where we come in sometimes is, listen. Your neighborhood's great.
Speaker 3:And I personally have played games of tag and manhunt and basketball and all that stuff. I mean, that's how I earn trust. But, you know, we want you to be a kid, but let's be a let's be a student first. And let's be a student when you get out of school, and then when you go outside, now you can be a kid. You know, you don't have to worry about anything.
Speaker 3:So there there is this avenue of of brokenness that exists in the neighborhoods even though there's a lot of beauty. Yeah. So
Speaker 2:We we've noticed that kids just need accountability. They need someone just to ask them about their homework because then maybe they don't have somebody that is asking them about it and making that a priority. So I love that, man. What what games I see the kids on on TikTok and Instagram. They're playing this game where they, like, spin a bottle and they grab an egg and everybody throws, like, throws an egg.
Speaker 2:I don't know if you've played that game before. I wanna be cool enough to where the kids would let me come play that where they So if I'm not mistaken,
Speaker 3:if the bottle goes on you, like, then you gotta pick the egg and everybody else runs and they get to throw it at you?
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 3:Yeah. I've seen that game. I have not played it yet, but you best believe that's gonna be in our next Next game. I'll make sure I record it and tag you in it. You know,
Speaker 2:that's good, man.
Speaker 3:I got an arm, man. I got a feeling I'm just going to like leave a well on one of the kids, man. And I'll literally be, I'll do it.
Speaker 2:Speaking of eggs and kids, I have a 17 month old at the house. I feel like you have a baby at the house as well.
Speaker 3:Yep. 2a half.
Speaker 2:Every time he wakes up, we go to the kitchen, and I'm making him eggs, and he always wants me to hand him an egg. And he has not dropped one until this last week. Like, he just protected it with his life. And so I I don't know if that has been your experience, like, handing your child an egg and seeing what they're gonna do with it.
Speaker 3:But You're brave, man. You're brave. I, so Israel at first didn't like eggs, but now he loves them. But he loves to help cook with it. So, like, I'll pull the stool up, which is, you know, I have to be careful because it's, like, right in front of a gas stove.
Speaker 3:But he so I'll break the eggs, and he loves to take the spatula and just kinda, like, play with them. But I I haven't been brave enough to just give my son an egg because I know what'll happen. Like, he'll throw it at me. Yeah. He will.
Speaker 2:Well, tell tell us more about your family other than your distrust of handing handing your son an egg. What else should we need to know about your family?
Speaker 3:For sure. So I my wife, Jenny, have a son, Israel, that's 2a half. Jenny and I have been married 6 years this past May, so 6 years of marriage. And then so we we met at a at, like, a Christian camp in Georgia. I was a speaker.
Speaker 3:She was a counselor. And so we we met there.
Speaker 2:So she was taking notes.
Speaker 3:She was she was, man.
Speaker 2:She was. She was like, you're
Speaker 3:the best speaker ever. No. She didn't really say that, but it's it's so funny. I was doing a breakout on Pride. I'll just be vulnerable about our story here.
Speaker 3:I was doing a breakout on Pride, and we're from Asheville, which is kinda like a hippie granola, like, eclectic town, and it is not uncommon, you know, to see women with leg hair or armpit hair, you know. I'm being honest, like, it's like a it's like a Portland of the of the southeast, you know. And so I was doing this breakout, and I guess Jenny, you know, she says that she was assigned to my breakout, I think otherwise. But,
Speaker 2:she
Speaker 3:yeah. So she I made this comment, and I was like, you know, pride is like the hair on a girl's leg. It's gonna come back, and you gotta keep shaving it. Like, we're always gonna deal with pride. Like, but you gotta always deal with it.
Speaker 3:You know? And I said, unless you're from Asheville, you just let it grow. Just let it grow. So she comes up afterwards, like, walking in the field to lunch, and she's like, hi. I'm Jenny.
Speaker 3:I I live in Asheville too. And, like, I shaved my legs, and she kicked her leg up and like, true story. And I'm like, wow. Like, center trying to show me leg at a church camp. But that's that was kinda how we kicked it off and, you know, we had caught eyes a couple times and, yeah, just realized that we're kinda from the same area, never really knew each other and started hanging out and, you know, eventually got got got engaged.
Speaker 3:And I think we we dated for around 2, two and a half years and got engaged. It was a really pivotal, you know, time in my life. We're we're actually, like, 9 years apart, which was kinda weird at the time, but I was at the age where I was, you know, working in in inner city areas, and it was my calling. And I noticed that it was messy for a lot of people, you know. They're like, oh, that's cool, Josh, man.
Speaker 3:That's great. You do that, but, it's not really my thing. And as I began to date Jenny, like, her heart was just to to jump in, and I and it just really it really stuck out. I'm like, man, like, this girl's a servant, you know, like, she loves Jesus. And so that was a big part of our, you know, dating was, you know, we met the year I launched Neighborhood Hope.
Speaker 3:And so, she was a part of that. And one of the things that stuck out to me was I got a job offer from, a nonprofit in San Francisco called San Francisco City Impact. Francis Chan was involved with it, and I had I had another friend that worked there. And I remember talking to Jenny. I'm like, man, I got this, you know, kinda this job offer in San Francisco.
Speaker 3:And she looked at me, and she was like, oh, so you're you're gonna leave these kids? She was like, well, you go on. I'm staying. And I and I was like, wow. Like, she's committed, man.
Speaker 3:You know? And, yeah, just just there was there was a couple moments. You know? My mom and dad are both on their 3rd marriage. Great people, but just, you know, had some struggles in marriage, and so I was kinda scared of, like, commitment in marriage.
Speaker 3:I'm like, this is scary. I can just stay single and not have to deal with all this stuff. But there was a few moments, you know, with Jenny that really stood out, and and one of them was, like, we literally got in, like, this big fight one time. And I come over to my condo, and she knocks on the door, and she has a a bucket, and she washed my feet after a fight. And then I just remember crying.
Speaker 3:I was like, who are you? Like, I've never first of all, like, I bet these things stink right now. Like, it was just this humbling thing. So, yeah, that's that's her, man. She's she's got a big heart.
Speaker 3:So we've been married 6 years and through kind of like, she has autoimmune stuff going on, like, health wise and, you know, kind of that journey to to get pregnant, and we haven't been able to get pregnant yet. And so, like, we prayed for a birth mom. And so our son, Israel, we adopted him when he was 2 months old, and he came from a family in one of the neighborhoods. There was a lady named Kim that lived in the neighborhood, and she was friends with my wife and knew that we were open to adopt. And her cousin was about to have her 8th 8th child, and none of the dads were really involved with the kids, and she was very overwhelmed.
Speaker 3:And so we didn't find out about her until she was 8 months pregnant. So we basically had, like, a month and a half to get ready, do our home study, go to the doctor, get physicals, like, get an attorney, you know, all this stuff. And, we get to so he was born February 1, 19th. We get to the delivery room and, comes out, beautiful baby. Like, I cut the cord.
Speaker 3:We do skin to skin with them, and all of a sudden, mom changes her mind, and we go home without Israel. It was just like this heavy moment. We're like, okay, God, like now this is crazy. Let me preface it with this. So God had given the mom dreams that we were with her when she had the baby.
Speaker 3:God had given my wife dreams that our first son would be an African American boy. Like, this is stuff I'm, like, not making up. So all this stuff is like and so then we get there and it's like, okay. Wait. So we're we're going home and, like, I know God.
Speaker 3:I know he's not like, oh, let me dangle this baby in front of your face. And so, you know, we were kinda heartbroken, confused, angry. I just didn't really know what to think. And so I'm like, let's let's get away. So me and Jenny went to Mexico for like a week, and we were there and I found out that the mom kept his name.
Speaker 3:We had named him Israel James, and she kept his name Israel, which means the meaning is God fights, God prevails. You know, it's this whole thing of Jacob got his name changed to Israel. He's like wrestling with God, God prevails, and so I kinda had this glimmer of hope. I'm like, okay, God, like, I know you. I know your character.
Speaker 3:I know you didn't just lead us to this to destroy us, so I think you're up to something. And I didn't say anything to Jenny. I didn't wanna get her hopes up. And so that was February. And then April April 3rd 19, we get a call.
Speaker 3:Jenny gets a call, and the mom goes, hey. Come get your son. I know he's supposed to be with you. And so Jenny goes and gets him, and she and I'm about to play golf. She calls me, and she's like, I'm going she's, like, crying hysterically.
Speaker 3:And I'm like, last time she cried hysterically and called me, she backed her car down the hill with our dogs in it and almost hit a house. So I'm like, who did you kill? What's going on? Do I need to get you out of jail?
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh.
Speaker 3:So she called to tell me that she was going to get Israel, and she and I'm like, well, what does that mean? And she's like, well, I don't know. And she's like, I'll call you back. So, like, I'm playing golf with these guys. I'm like, so are you a dad or are you not?
Speaker 3:And I'm like,
Speaker 2:I don't
Speaker 3:know. She had to go get him, go get him formula, like, you know, all the stuff. And so I get home that night, and there he is, you know. And and so that's been amazing. Like, you wanna talk about just, like, really knowing, like, father God in a better way?
Speaker 3:Just being a dad, and that's my buddy, man. We are, so close, man. Just, like, unbelievable. So it's been a blessing.
Speaker 2:That is a crazy story.
Speaker 3:It's insane.
Speaker 2:Man. So he's 2 now?
Speaker 3:He's 2 yeah. 2a half. Cool. Just got in his got in his big boy bed, and, man, he's wide open. He's he's great.
Speaker 2:I love it, man. Yeah. So good. Yeah. I appreciate you sharing that story.
Speaker 2:I think you give some insight into kind of the your own story when people hear from you. I think you're leading this organization, building relationships with neighborhoods to uncover their beauty and be a fatherly presence. And then as a result of that, you end up becoming a father of a child that's connected to the neighborhood.
Speaker 3:It's crazy.
Speaker 2:And so you're you're a father figure and a literal father of the neighborhood. Right. It's just really beautiful. How does how does Jenny fit in with you or balance kind of your what you provide? Because I know your your heart is to be a father for the neighborhood and raise up others to to do that as well, but how does she kinda fit in?
Speaker 2:How do y'all serve together?
Speaker 3:Absolutely. So, yeah, Jenny Jenny has such a big heart for, people. Like, her kind of motto in life is to stop for the 1. You know, like, everybody matters. I mean, she spent some time in Africa.
Speaker 3:She spent some time in Mozambique at a ministry school, and just like like some of the stories she would tell me, I'd be like, no way. That's not true. Like, just God just did some crazy stuff in Africa. And,
Speaker 2:like, Iris Ministries or something? Okay. Wow. Okay.
Speaker 3:Yeah. She went there, which it was it was really I remember getting
Speaker 2:Gosh. What is that lady's name?
Speaker 3:Heidi Baker.
Speaker 2:Heidi Baker. Yeah. There you go.
Speaker 3:Which, you know, like, for intents and purposes, like, you know, on one hand, she's probably one of the weirdest people I've ever seen. Like and I think I think she would tell you, and people that know her would tell you. But on the other hand, she's she's gosh, man. Some of the things that that she's done, I've heard stories, man, of, like, she would just go up to people with leprosy, almost like Jesus, and hug them and not catch it. You know?
Speaker 3:And there were just different stories of of, you know, her whole motto is, like, being a a laid down lover. And so God taught me, like, my part of me, when Jenny came home and started telling me all this, I'm like, you're crazy. Like, what? Like, this happened? God did this?
Speaker 3:Or whatever. And so it was like, literally, some of it was uncomfortable. I remember getting in fights about it because I'm like, man, I don't really know God like that. You know? I know he's capable.
Speaker 3:I know the Jesus of the Bible, but and so it took me a while to wrap my mind and just kinda see through just being honest, just to see through kinda the awkwardness of Heidi just to see Jesus and all the work that she's doing. And at the end of the day, I was like, it's undeniable that God is working through this lady in, like, an insane way. You know? And so it just really stretched my my faith and and yeah. So that was that was really cool.
Speaker 3:And so, Jenny, man, first of all, you know, she's a great, amazing mother. So her you know, one of her primary objectives is to raise our son, and so he's he's in day care 2 days a week, and so, you know, she's with him. And then the other thing that she does a really good job of is, you know, I always say, if you wanna find your purpose, look to your pain. And so her pain, kinda growing up with autoimmune disorders and, you know, struggles with food and eating and and image and all that stuff. And so, you know, she she started a health initiative with Neighborhood Hope.
Speaker 3:And so pre pandemic, she was doing a lot of cooking classes with the girls, and they they they grow vegetables, like organic vegetables, and they learn how to cook with the vegetables and teaches them about I mean, they know more stuff about health than I do, like macronutrients, micronutrients. Like, they know all the stuff, and they they, you know, they would play these fun games around health. And so her goal is to teach, you know, the the community that they're worthy, God loves them, that they're worthy to take care of themselves. You know? We're in a food desert, which means that there's not good access to fruits and vegetables and, you know, there's more corner stores.
Speaker 3:You know? So you're more likely to go buy a 40 in a candy bar versus, you know, having good food. And so Jenny's whole thing is she wants people to feel loved and and know that God loves you and you're worthy of taking care of yourself. And so yeah, man. Behind I mean, you've heard behind every great man, there's a there's there's a an even better, you know, woman.
Speaker 3:And so, yeah, her her support of me, just to kind of walk into my calling, but also, you know, finding the space for her to walk into her calling is something that that I've also been, you know, learning to do as well. It's like, okay. Well, you know, I grew up without a dad, and so kind of my pain is raised by a single mother, and so I wanna go create the support system. And so, you know, it's been fun to watch her find her pain and find her purpose through that, And also let it fit in, you know, the same ministry as well. And just so it's been it's been cool, man.
Speaker 2:It's awesome, dude. It sounds like she should be on the podcast.
Speaker 3:Yeah. She should be the one talking
Speaker 2:for sure. You should you should interview her. Is she still shaving her legs?
Speaker 3:She does shave her legs. Yeah. I made sure I was like, listen, we, you know, I'll marry you, but you gotta keep them things clean.
Speaker 2:That's great, man. Well, man, living in a food desert and providing resources like just training on, nutrition. Like you said macronutrients. I'm like, I don't even know what that is. I know mac and cheese, but I just can't imagine how challenging it would be to live in a food desert and try to make healthy choices for your family.
Speaker 2:And I'm sitting here, I'm like, I'm frustrated about how expensive organic food is. And I'm not complaining about I don't even have access to some healthy food. Like so that's that's like a first world problem kind of deal.
Speaker 3:Yeah. It is. I'm I'm the same way. There's there's times where I'm like, if I have to buy another kombucha, I'm gonna I'm gonna blow up the grocery store. You know?
Speaker 3:Not not literally, guys. Calm down. But, you know, it is. It's it's expensive. You know?
Speaker 3:Or there's times where, you know, Jenny's like, hey. Go get organic broccoli. I'm like, what what's wrong with the nonorganic broccoli? Like, you know? But but I do you know, she's an expert when it comes to that stuff, so I do trust her.
Speaker 3:And as a result, I eat better, you know, because of her, so I can't complain, you know, too much. So but you're right. It is, it's about perspective and empathy. Right? And, you know, if you are on, you know, food stamps, they limit certain foods that you can or can't get.
Speaker 3:And so, you know, we we just wanna create access to I've never liked the idea of, you know, doing a food drive and, like, oh, well, you know, we love you. Here's canned goods. You know, which which I I get sometimes, you know, you people don't mind eating canned goods, but I I wanna I wanna give people what I wanna eat. You know, I wanna give them the the good stuff. I think that's the the heart of God.
Speaker 3:Right? So
Speaker 2:Yeah. Yeah. It's good, man. So, Josh, what what are you most interested in or why are you interested in being a part of the podcast? You're becoming a host, which means that people are gonna hear your voice more.
Speaker 2:So would love would love for you to just to share why you're why you're passionate about jumping on as a podcast host and, yeah, what what they should expect from you.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So, you know, like, what what were you saying the young lady's name was that talks about the brain?
Speaker 2:Beth. Beth. Beth. Okay. So about the brain.
Speaker 3:We got we got Bethy the brain over here. Man, I'm I'm all about, like, relationships, Steven. Like, you can expect from me. I'm gonna have fun. So you're you're hopefully, you'll laugh some when I do podcast.
Speaker 3:I wanna be vulnerable. You know, I wanna have, like, honest, real talks. And I think when you think Josh, think relational. Like, I I love relationships. Relationships is at the heart of everything that we do at Neighborhood Hope.
Speaker 3:I always tell our tutors, like, hey. You're you're a mentor first. You're a tutor second. Or if you're in our basketball program, you're a mentor first, and you're a you're a basketball player second. Like, yeah.
Speaker 3:Just just relational. And why I wanna be a part of it is I mean, first of all, I love what you guys are doing. I mean, having a movement in in our country of mentors is the most needed thing. Obviously, ushered in by Jesus, it it's needed. I think my life was shaped by mentors.
Speaker 3:You know, met a guy at church one time as my mom was single named Aaron. Still close to him this day. We even I don't know how vulnerable you want me to be, but I'm so close to him that we have lost sports bets and have tattoos in places that we shouldn't just because we're so close. And that's the type of relationship I have with him. You know?
Speaker 3:He's amazing guy. He would take me to the beach with him. He would spend time with me. We would play golf, and he didn't have to. And that's the thing.
Speaker 3:He did not have to. Then I met Derwin Gray, who's a former NFL player and a pastor here in Charlotte at, a football camp when I was going into a senior in high school. And out of all the kids at the camp, he gave me his number and started sending me books on theology and Jesus and writing me letters, and was just really powerful for me just to have these men who wanted to invest in me, which was amazing. And so such a blessing to me. I I wanna be that for other people and I wanna raise people up to be mentors.
Speaker 3:Because if you think about it, man, at the end of the day, we're all where we are because somebody helped open up a door for us. And there are kids out there right now, communities that have no one to open up doors for them, and that's not okay. So I'm I'm just excited, honored to be a part of this for for that reason. I believe mentors are gonna change the world.
Speaker 2:Oh, man. So good. Well, Josh Meadows, he is the founder of Neighborhood Hope. He's gonna be on the podcast. He's gonna interview guests, share from his experiences.
Speaker 2:He's been doing this for 10 years right around the same time that Zach, the founder of 4 and Mentoring, he started. Josh was doing this stuff in his context. And so just encourage you listeners to listen to any podcast that Josh is on or if he's interviewing somebody, jump on for the exact reason. He said, Come learn. Come learn relationships and and grow.
Speaker 2:So Josh, really excited for you to be a host on the podcast. This is weird. Like the podcast is growing. The family of hosts is happening. We got Beth the brain and Josh the relational guru.
Speaker 2:But it's exciting. So, any closing thoughts, Josh, before you go just interview a ton of people and blow this podcast up?
Speaker 3:Man, I I'm excited. Obviously, I think just encourage people to listen and share this. You know? Share it. I mean, the the multiplication effect.
Speaker 3:Right? Like, I really do believe that, you know, between Beth and and yourself and and Zach, and obviously, I'm, you know, honored and humbled to be a part of this. Like, we've we've lived some stuff. You know? I always say you can learn from our failures, and you can learn from our successes.
Speaker 3:And, hopefully, we'll be we'll share both. Right? But I'm I'm excited just to see the the movement that has already been started to continue and expound, and it's exciting, man.
Speaker 2:It's awesome. Come on. Well, that's the podcast. Thank you so much for listening, guys, and we have a couple more interviews with new hosts coming. There's Kia from Behind Every Door.
Speaker 2:There's Lieutenant Whalen from FACT Mentoring. Yeah. So we're we're growing we're growing the the catalog of hosts and excited to see where this thing goes. So thanks for listening. If you didn't hear anything in this podcast, let it be this.
Speaker 2:You can mentor.