It seems like yesterday when I sat down and wrote out goals for PC Group 365. I would like to share those goals in this reflection letter to show how God has truly moved this year in our organization. We can’t believe this year is coming to an end but we are so very thankful for what we have been able to accomplish.

2016 Goals

• Complete March Volunteer Challenge (#MVC2016)
• Successful HFWAP Charity Kickball Tournament (raised $1000K for Miracle League at University City YMCA)
• Executed four (4) My Finances Are Beautiful (MFAB) financial literacy event for The Finance Bar
• Worked with 4 clients throughout the year
• Give back 25% to the community (gave back 44% to the community)
• Highlight 12 philanthropist in the community (#PHI2016)
• Executed over 10 fundraisers initiatives
• Published our 1st workbook, The Non Profit Workbook: Guide to a sustainable community

None of this would have been possible without YOU! Your support, your encouragement and your excitement about giving in the community has been contagious. In 2017, we have so much in store from our #givingisDOPE podcast series, to more educational opportunities for non-profit organizations, to more volunteer outreach initiatives. Our purpose has always been to help the community and we cannot wait for the New Year/ new season to start. HUGE THANK YOU to our board of directors, our donors, our supporters, our encouragers, volunteers, friends and family.
 
Make sure you join our private FB group page, #GivingisDope for philanthropy quotes, non-profit tips, advice and much more. And please consider PC Group 365 when you make your list for charity contributions. We are a 501c3 organization and we help the community with consulting services, event management, promotional marketing, volunteer outreach and non-profit management. We serve the community with passion, love and unity!

With Love,
Jania

 Our Executive Director, Jania Massey, had the honor to talk with The Charlotte Observer about what she has been doing in the Grier Heights community over the last three months! Thank you to Celeste Smith and David Foster III of The Charlotte Observer for giving me the platform to share what I am so passionate about in the community! Check out complete article, Seven to Watch in 2017
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We have come to our final philanthropist of the year and boy do we have a good one! I met Rebekah early this year through our mutual friend, Hannah (also February philanthropist highlight). We connected instantly and she has been my philanthropy partner in crime. Rebekah is so compassionate, inspiring and beautiful and I am so glad God allowed our paths to cross.  So grab a seat and enjoy this story about purpose, obedience and community.

The Beginning 
Little did I know, when I began life in a little brick house off Randolph Road in Charlotte, NC that 23 years later I would come full circle and live and work in Grier Heights, not less than 3 miles from that brick house my parents brought me home to. Throughout my childhood and young adulthood, I always knew that the one thing I wanted to do with my life was to help change the lives of others. I had a heart and passion (birthed out of my faith in the One who first loved me) to be the person who introduced others to true love and to the truth that every person is created with value and purpose.  
In 2011 I was introduced to the community of Grier Heights. A friend of mine, who knew I loved children and loved the environment of inner city, invited me to come and check out a soccer game that took place in a local inner city neighborhood. I thought of every reason not to go. After all, I was a complete stranger, showing up in some random neighborhood, with kids I didn’t know. I remember sitting in my car, having an internal dialogue, but then feeling in a very powerful way this sense that I was called to go. So I went. Five years later, I am still there...living and working in the community.  
 
Joyful Noise 
One of the things we quickly realized was that there weren’t any programs or outlets for the girls in the neighborhood. A couple friends and I decided to start a small group that met once a week at a local neighborhood church. Our purpose was to build relationships and help show the girls their value and God-given purpose. Man, did we make a lot of mistakes in the beginning...but God was faithful and our group grew over the years. The girls decided the name “Joyful Noise” for our group, because we desired to “make a Joyful Noise unto the Lord.” That’s what we have been doing for 5 years. All 35 of us. We meet together. We paint, write, discuss issues, participate in small groups. We laugh, we cry, we learn from our mistakes. We learn what forgiveness means and how to show it to others. We learn that we each have value, no matter our zip code or our past. We learn to be kind and respectful, learning to see the beauty in others. The girls know that the moment they cross the threshold, they have entered a safe place, a sisterhood where we encourage each other to accomplish the impossible. We now have a student leadership group, youth entrepreneurship program, and writing club all birthed out of Joyful Noise. Our girls know that we see them. They matter. And we aren’t going anywhere. One of the greatest blessings was when Crossroads Corporation (a nonprofit that works with residents to help revitalize Grier Heights) offered me a position where I would be able to work with Grier Heights youth full-time. I left my job at a local preschool and was able to bring Joyful Noise with me under the umbrella of Crossroads Corporation. 
 
What I have learned: 
The most important thing I have learned over the years is to hold fast even when there is no visible fruit of labor. In the beginning, it took a long time to build trust in the community. I decided to move in to the neighborhood to help with this and, though it did help, it still was slow going. There were so many times where I thought about giving up because I couldn’t see that my efforts were making any progress. I was steadfast because I knew I was called. That was all that mattered. I held fast to the reality that there would be a harvest...whether I see it with my own eyes or not. So I stayed. I toiled and loved and I can say with humility and gratitude that I have now seen with my own eyes, so much growth and transformation. The girls come each week, love each other, learn from one another. They are identifying their individual gifts and stepping into them and it is a sight to behold. I thank God many times for His abundant faithfulness and for allowing me to be in these girls’ lives. I have a unique job-I get to love, encourage, and live alongside the most incredible girls.  
 
 
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