Breaking the Cycle of Poverty

Jay Height explores why a personal faith in God is a critical asset for people to rise out of poverty.

Executive Director Jay Height discusses the personal assets that the Shepherd Community Center team has identified as essential for people to possess to break out of poverty and gain a sustainable level of independence.

Jay Height explores misconceptions and myths about poverty in the United States.

Shepherd Community Center Executive Director Jay Height discusses how doing ministry with neighbors can break down barriers and foster life-changing relationships.

Shepherd Community Center Executive Director Jay Height explains why churches and Christians have essential roles in a healthy society despite the trend toward secularism.

Jay Height discusses how we can approach life with gratitude and thankfulness even in difficult times.

Shepherd Community Center Executive Director Jay Height discusses how ministries and nonprofits can do a better job of finding and keeping volunteers.

Jay Height discusses how we can learn to connect with our neighbors and why it’s so vitally important.

Shepherd Community Center Executive Director Jay Height discusses why the path to employment needs to begin in middle school for students who face enormous obstacles in life.

Jay Height explains how the Shalom Project, which pairs a city police and a paramedic to help meet neighbors’ needs, became a groundbreaking initiative on Indianapolis’ near Eastside.

Shepherd Community Center Executive Director Jay Height shares key lessons he’s learned after more than 25 years in ministry.

Jay Height discusses how the surge in the cost of food, gas, rent and other necessities has affected our neighbors.

As crime increases across the United States, Jay Height discusses the factors driving the spike in violence and how ministries can help prevent tragedies and promote hope.

Too often, nonprofits, government agencies and even ministries are set up to foster dependency among the people they assist. In this episode, Jay Height, executive director of Shepherd Community Center in Indianapolis, discusses why building our neighbors’ independence and sustainability is so  important.

This episode focuses on how Christians and churches should work to restore hope and strengthen communities in response to the deadly school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, which took the lives of at least 19 children and 2 adults.

Jay Height explains the challenges and complexities of poverty in the United States and explores how upper-income Americans can truly help neighbors living in poverty.

Jay Height offers encouragement and advice for pastors and ministry leaders struggling with the emotional, physical and spiritual toll of the past two years.

What happens when things go wrong in ministry. How do we grow as people and as organizations when our hopes and dreams didn’t work out as planned? Jay Height explores how good leaders and good organizations can handle mistakes with honesty and grace, and learn how to not repeat the cycle of error.

Inflation is at the highest level in nearly 40 years, with the Consumer Price Index increasing 7 percent in 2021. Jay Height explains why lower-income Americans are suffering the most from the rise in the cost of necessities and how Shepherd is responding to rising needs.

This episode explains how we can engage constructively with our neighbors – next door and across the city – as we navigate the consequences of the pandemic, social unrest, and political and economic upheaval.

This episode examines why soaring home prices and gentrification are heavy burdens for people in poverty.

This episode centers on hunger in the United States and why millions of Americans lack access to affordable and nutritious food even in a land of plenty.

This episode explores innovative efforts to provide people living in poverty with high quality and affordable health care.

This episode focuses on why Christmas is a joyous season but also one that often holds special challenges for people living in poverty.

This episode focuses on a critical set of issues: Jobs – and what employment means and doesn’t mean for families trying to rise out of poverty.