The Marketplace Magazine January/February 2017

January February 2017

Where Christian faith gets down to business

Perils of climate change:

One more burden for village farmers

Deep in Texas — women and change MEDA in 2016: robust bottom line Urban-chic serves up coffee and great jobs

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The Marketplace January February 2017

Roadside stand

And a microchip will lead us You won’t go far wrong by reading Thomas L. Friedman (The Lexus and the Olive Tree, The World is Flat, etc.), who is kind of a zeitgeist thermometer of our times. His latest book, Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations, explains some of the seismic movements that are reshaping our world.

One has been summarized by “Moore’s law,” which describes “what happens when you keep doubling the power of microchips every two years for fifty years” and which Friedman believes has much to say to current society. He muses, as did the folks at Intel, what might have happened if, say, a 1971 Volkswagen Beetle had improved at the same rate as microchips did under Moore’s law.

According to Intel’s rough calculation, that Beetle today “would be able to go about three hundred thousand miles per hour. It would get two million miles per gallon of gas, and it would cost four cents! Intel engineers also estimated that if automobile fuel efficiency improved at the same rate as Moore’s law, you could, roughly speaking, drive a car your whole life on one tank of gasoline.”

Wow! Now try to imagine if we could ramp up moral behavior in the same way.

Faith pays? Organized religion gives a huge boost to the American economy, according to Georgetown University researcher Brian Grim. In what is touted as the first-of-its-kind effort to quantify the economic value of religion, Grim calculates that religious belief (not only Christian faith) bolsters U.S. coffers by $1.2 trillion a

Cover photo of Ethiopia flooding by Steve Sugrim

The Marketplace January February 2017

year. This is based on revenues from religious congregations, institutions and faith-inspired businesses, as well as religiously affiliated healthcare networks and schools. Grim says more than 150 million Americans attend one of the country’s 344,000 congregations (from Adventists to Zoroastrians). He told World magazine that he hopes his research will help policymakers understand the economic value of faith and ensure Americans remain free to worship.

Dave Warren, Chief Strategic Engagement Officer at MEDA, has moved on to a new position as Vice President of Everence Asset Management. During Warren his time at MEDA Warren provided direction and clarity to the Strategic Engagement team with systems, reporting and process improvements to bolster all areas of MEDA engagement: convention, fundraising, marketing and communications.

“He did this in a spirit of discussion and collaboration and with a sense of fun,” says Allan Sauder, MEDA’s president. “While we are very sorry to see him depart, we will continue to build on the groundwork he has laid, and we wish him all the best in his new role.”

Count proudly. We’re told, by those who claim to know, that the word “bookkeeper” is the only noun in the English language containing three consecutive sets of double letters.

Written when? “It is a gloomy mo2

ment in history. Not in the lifetime of any man who reads his paper has there been so much grave and deep apprehension.... The United States is beset with racial, industrial and commercial chaos, drifting we know not where ... and Russia hangs like a storm cloud on the horizon.... Of our troubles, no man can see the end.”

That appeared in Harper’s magazine.

In 1847.

Jargon inflation. You thought inflation had been tamed? It’s back, but not in fiscal terms. Its return has prompted word sheriffs to mount their syntax steeds and joust with a corporate urge to use bigger words when shorter ones will do (use/utilize; method/methodology; orient/ orientate). When (and why) did “price” become “price point,” and “revenue stream” displace “income”?

Why does “add” now have to be “add in”? Does this inflation achieve anything more than make one sound pompous? As in, “Wow, they must be smart to use all those extra syllables.”

Enter writer Josh Bernoff. Being delicate folk, we won’t fully quote the title of his new book, which we’ll call Writing Without B------t: Boost Your Career by Saying What You Mean. “Your email inbox is full of irrelevant, poorly written crap,” he writes. “Your boss talks in jargon and cliches. The web sites you read are impenetrable and incomprehensible.” This burden of bull hampers useful work. What to do? Remember the Golden Rule as you write: “Treat the reader’s time as more valuable than your own,” says Bernoff, and don’t use long words and phrases to impress. “Get to the point quickly, deliver your message, and let readers get on with the rest of their day.”

That’s good business. Good stewardship, too. — WK

In this issue

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Urban-chic: playing well in Lancaster. Page 18

Departments 22 24 20 21 22

Roadside stand Soul enterprise Soundbites Reviews News

Volume 47, Issue 1 January February 2017 The Marketplace (ISSN 321-330) is published bi-monthly by Mennonite Economic Development Associates at 532 North Oliver Road, Newton, KS 67114. Periodicals postage paid at Newton, KS 67114. Lithographed in U.S.A. Copyright 2017 by MEDA. Editor: Wally Kroeker Design: Ray Dirks

Change of address should be sent to Mennonite Economic Development Associates, 1891 Santa Barbara Dr., Ste. 201, Lancaster, PA 17601-4106.

Climate’s urgent grip

We’ll all suffer from it, but smallholder farmers around the world will be hit harder and faster.

The World Bank says climate change could push 100 million more people into poverty by 2030.

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The new world-changers

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Tales from the trenches

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Back to black

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Serving up jobs & coffee

Deep in Texas MEDA’s convention-goers enjoyed balmy weather, Tex-Mex eats, charming urban waterways — and eye-opening exposure to how women can transform the world.

Given proper tools, women may hold the key to eradicating poverty and resolving conflict, said opening keynoter Sally Armstrong, known as “war correspondent for the world’s women.”

President Allan Sauder told the AGM that generous supporters put MEDA firmly in the black in 2016 — and helped 46 million families in 62 countries achieve healthier livelihoods.

“How can my business reflect my values,” asks entrepreneur Crystal Weaver. By creating meaningful jobs with living wages — and contributing to her city’s hospitality/social landscape.

To e-mail an address change, subscription request or anything else relating to delivery of the magazine, please contact subscription@meda.org For editorial matters contact the editor at wkroeker@meda.org or call (204) 956-6436 Subscriptions: $25/year; $45/two years.

Postmaster: Send address changes to The Marketplace 1891 Santa Barbara Dr., Ste. 201 Lancaster, PA 17601-4106

Published by Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA), whose dual thrust is to encourage a Christian witness in business and to operate business-oriented programs of assistance to the poor. For more information about MEDA call 1-800-665-7026.

Web site www.meda.org

Visit our new online home at www.marketplacemagazine.org, where you can download past issues, read articles and discuss topics with others, all from your desktop or mobile device.

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The Marketplace January February 2017

Help your children give

Jam side up An entrepreneurial church in southern Ontario is using a social enterprise to make the world “a better and tastier place.”

Southridge Church, a Mennonite Brethren congregation in St. Catharines, produces strawberry, peach and grape preserves from the area’s lush fruit orchards. Proceeds from its Southridge Jam Company support its 40-bed homeless shelter and a program for migrant farm workers.

A partnership with local farms provides them with quality fruit that would go to waste due to cosmetic or size imperfections. This keeps overhead low while helping promote Niagara produce. Products are sold online and through local outlets, craft shows and farmers markets.

The jam enterprise also offers a sense of purpose and stability to the shelter’s clients as they transition out of homelessness. Clients participate in an eight-week program in the jam company, located in a commercial kitchen. They work alongside local volunteers and a professional chef, who teaches them how to turn fresh, local fruit into jars of jam for sale. They learn new skills in food preparation and marketing in a friendly, supportive environment.

The 40-bed Southridge Shelter has operated since 2005, providing temporary emergency housing to more than 800 homeless men and women facing crisis each year.

One participant who used to have a good job but whose poor decisions put him into debt and eventual homelessness, told CBC’s Tapestry broadcast that making jam helped restore his confidence. A production line teammate concurred: “You can sit there and feel sorry for yourself. Or you can stand up and say, ‘this isn’t going to happen, we’re all going to work together, we’re all going to do this right and we’re all going to be feeling good about it and each other’.” ◆ The Marketplace January February 2017

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Want to do your kids a favor? One way is hardwire them to be generous, according to philanthropy experts.

They use the term “hardwire” on purpose, since they believe that making philanthropy a habit while the brain is still developing can create neural pathways that last into adulthood.

Teaching kids that they can make a difference to others can boost their health and self-esteem and cultivate leadership skills for later on, says Carol Weisman, author of Raising Charitable Children.

Positive experiences of generosity can be internalized as lasting brain changes, adds psychologist Rick Hanson, author of Hardwiring Happiness.

Some tips: • Talk about giving. Studies show that kids whose parents talk with them about giving are 20 percent more likely to become givers themselves.

• Make sure kids get to see the family’s giving. Involve them in the process. If you use credit-card donations, let the kids click on the donation button themselves.

• Help kids give time. Personal volunteering helps cultivate the charitable impulse. (Globe & Mail)

“Don’t be sad be cause it’s over. Sm ile because it happen ed.” — Sportsca ster Vin Scully on Oct. 2, 2016, during his final inning as baseball announcer for th e Brooklyn Dodgers and then the Los Angeles Dodgers, a career calling that lasted 67 ye ars

A hymn of work:

God of offices and kitchens This Australian hymn was modified by Colin Wood and passed on by The High Calling. For best results, use the tune of “What a friend we have in Jesus.”

All hands on deck “Each generation faces some great work, some heroic challenge that summons its children to courage and creativity. The great work of this generation will be to respond to the quadruple threat inherited from previous generations: an ecological crisis that, left unchecked, will lead to catastrophic environmental collapse; an economic crisis of obscenely increasing inequality that exploits or excludes the world’s poor while dehumanizing the rich as well; a sociological crisis of racial, ethnic, class, religious, and political conflict that could lead to catastrophic war; and a spiritual and religious crisis in which the religious institutions that should be helping us deal with the first three crises either waste our time or make matters worse. To face one of these crises would be difficult enough; to face all four simultaneously will require all hands on deck — including the best potential contributions of each of the world’s religious communities. To save the world from this quadruple threat is the great work for which all people of faith and goodwill, including Christians, must be mobilized.” — Brian D. McLaren in The Great Spiritual Migration: How the World’s Largest Religion Is Seeking a Better Way to Be Christian

God of offices and kitchens Lecture halls and factory floor, God of internet, computers, T.V. screens and so much more.

You are always here around us Even when we do not know.

Help us realize your presence That our Spirit life may grow.

Ploughing, seeding, patient waiting For the harvest of the soil; Typing, phoning and collating You are with us in our toil.

In the workshop, store and office, Classroom, kitchen, garden, too, Help us see your gift and glory, Serve you well in all we do.

Scattered in our congregations Yet one body called to be; Reaching out to fellow Christians, Serving the community.

Thanks to you for love that binds us; For the strength to do your will.

Father keep us true and faithful; May we love and serve you still.

“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

— Architect/designer Buckminster Fuller

Overheard:

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The uneasy urgency of climate change For the poor, a very real and immediate threat Climate change is gaining new urgency in economic development. Some major government donors now demand a “shade of green” in any development projects they sponsor. MEDA’s environmental expert, Liliana Camacho, presented a seminar at the recent San Antonio convention on “The Boiling Frog: Why Climate Change Matters in International Development.” Here is an adaptation of her comments.

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don’t ride a bike everywhere or eat vegan to save the planet.

Although I “think green” a lot, I don’t always act as green as I could. So I don’t want to scold anyone about their choices or insist you live off the grid and eat only from your garden.

Why do we make — or not make — drastic changes in our carbon footprint? How often do we think, “this is just not worth the inconvenience.” For example, should I sell my car and use only public transit?

Taking the bus would add 30 minutes to my commute each way. I’m constantly making mental tradeoffs.

So it is with the clients MEDA helps: perceived value affects how they behave and respond to climate issues. We all are affected by climate change, but for the impoverished farmers of Africa the threat is more urgent. The solution for them isn’t as easy as saying, “you’re gonna lose all your crops if the drought hits again this year, so just make these five changes, okay?” Those changes, good as they are, may not seem very valuable to an African farmer right now. Maybe she puts a higher The Marketplace January February 2017

immediate value on spending time caring for her kids, or fetching water, or doing other things that her culture considers part of being a good wife.

At MEDA, we want to help our clients consciously create the most value possible and not lose the economic progress they’ve built up to now.

Climate change looms as a

huge factor in poverty alleviation, and thus for MEDA. It’s something that hits poorest people the hardest.

The World Bank estimates it will push 100 million additional people into poverty by 2030.

Poor people often live on the most vulnerable land because it tends to be the most affordable, such as along creeks that flood or on hillsides prone to landslides. Extreme weather can be the trigger that tips them into poverty.

The agriculture sector is especially vulnerable because food prices and food security are among the first to feel the impact of a warmer Earth. A great number of our clients are in agriculture, as are many MEDA supporters. And of course we all eat food.

For smallholder farmers, climate aberrations can harm productive assets (like land or natural resources) and can wash out roads and bridges they need to get to market.

The effects can extend for generations. When erratic weather disrupts livelihoods, people start selling productive assets to get by, leaving them with a smaller economic base to make a living and send kids to school.

The United Nations says climate change is also a potential driver of 6

conflict, a “threat multiplier.” Among its consequences: food riots and unrest triggered by spiraling prices; clashes between farmers over land and water; competing demands on water for irrigation or for cities.

On many fronts, climate change impedes the economic progress we are helping our clients achieve. They need to be able to prepare for and cope with the shocks to their families and livelihoods.

Not everyone feels the same urgency about climate change. Our poor clients may feel they have more immediate needs like taking care of their family. Or, they already work very long days and don’t feel a possible future problem is pressing enough to take action now.

Not everybody knows how to respond, or might not have neighbors who can demonstrate how to make successful changes or use a new technology. Maybe they think they don’t have the time to learn new skills. Or they fear a change in behavior or a purchase of new technology is too risky.

Many people, especially women, can’t afford the risk of trying something new, and getting access to credit to buy new technologies is not easy. Financial service providers, meanwhile, don’t understand the risk and return of financing new products, so green credit instruments are not yet widely available and those that are have very high interest rates.

Some people already see their crops languishing or their homes flooding more than before. Some

Photo by Steve Sugrim

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Early-warning alerts help micro-farmers brace for the worst price for their goods. The women have figured out how to participate in the market without having to leave their domestic duties. They contribute to family income and thus feel empowered. They have confidence to participate in family decisions and are saving money to help pay for school fees. This is typical of the work we do in economic empowerment.

Now imagine that the next dry season is so dry that the women can’t water their backyard herbs. They rely on traditional irrigation methods

Photo by Steve Sugrim

workers suffer from respiratory issues or water contamination because of poor air and water quality. They think a change could be helpful, but changing behaviors isn’t easy.

Just like we in affluent countries don’t adopt all possible actions to reduce our carbon footprint, nor do all our poor clients, even those who have lost some of their livelihoods or who have suffered hunger because of climate change.

Case in point: I recently visited an African country where farmlands are lush but recent droughts were the worst in years. Rice farmers there had been taught that row planting could reduce crop losses and increase yields. But out of a group of 25 farmers, not a single one was using this method despite its obvious logic.

Why was that? A rice farmer in Ethiopia makes tons of choices during the planting season. One is whether she’ll plant her seeds in a row, which takes time and labor but produces more resilient plants, or if she’ll scatter her seeds which is much quicker but the chance of crop loss is high. Meanwhile she makes tradeoff choices to spend time caring for her kids or cooking a meal, and all the other domestic work she’s expected to do. Her choice is going to depend on the value her actions give her sooner rather than later. What’s in it for her to spend time planting rice in a nice neat row? Probably in comparison to her expected family role, not much.

MEDA projects work closely with women farmers to adopt new practices that reduce their vulnerability to climate change.

Imagine this scenario: A community of women have recently started their own businesses to grow, dry and process herbs. They’ve been linked with buyers who collect dried and packed herbs at the women’s houses to bring to the market, and these buyers pay the women a fair The Marketplace January February 2017

that aren’t efficient in storing and using water. They didn’t prepare for a drier year because they didn’t have advance weather information. They now have no herbs to sell in the market. They feel frustrated at not being able to bring in income or contribute to their kids’ education so they feel less confident at home.

Here lies our opportunity. Imagine if these women had been visited by a seed seller who alerted them that this year was going to be drier than most. The seed seller told them about a simple rainwater reservoir and a moisture sensor that would enable optimal water usage and actually save water for drier days. The women were able to work with a local bank to finance these small tech8

nologies. A local youth group was trained to provide maintenance to the sensors and provide some irrigation advice. In this scenario, the dry season still hit hard, but the women were prepared. They were able to grow herbs and get some income on the market. They felt confident about their abilities as business people, their ability to adapt to the changing conditions around them, and about their worth in contributing to the family’s future.

This scenario is what MEDA tries to create for its clients.

Over the years MEDA has perfected its “lead farmer” approach whereby we identify leaders who are running successful farms, have good business sense and some degree of influence among neighbors. We can pilot new approaches with lead farmers or put a new technology into their hands so they can demonstrate that new approach or technology for the rest of the community. Others can “see and believe” how the solution works.

In Uganda we deployed a new irrigation technology that used a flexible rainwater storage bag that holds 2.5 cubic metres of water.

A technology like this is simple to produce yet efficient in proactively building resilience around water scarcity. It also harvests existing natural resources to be applied in a more effective manner. Imagine all the natural rainfall that was going unused!

In Myanmar we train lead farmers on climate resiliency for their crops and scale up adoption amongst thousands of smallholder farmers. In the future, we might even see these farmers as leaders in disaster risk reduction or in post-disaster rebuilding, since they are natural communicators of knowledge and are strong leaders and coordinators. They could act as early warning beacons and coordinate community-wide responses

to climate risks.

By facilitating connections and possibilities while equipping our clients to come up with solutions that

suit their context and cultural reality, we believe we are creating lasting and resilient solutions to poverty that will endure the ravages of climate

change. Our clients know their needs best and are most empowered when they can play a role in generating solutions for the future. ◆

Worse crops, higher prices “Business as usual” could put millions more people at risk

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eary of hearing about climate change? It has hijacked political discourse and made us feel guilty about enjoying unseasonably warm weather.

It is not going away anytime soon. And for people who care about the poor, it is alarming how swiftly changes are triggering erratic weather, heat waves and droughts.

Smallholder farmers need urgent help adapting to this barrier to food security. They can expect less productive crops, which means higher and more volatile food prices.

To buffer them against devastating impacts, they will require better access to technologies, markets, information and credit for investment.

Global experts feel a sense of moral urgency since those poised to suffer most are often least to blame.

In mid-October a new report from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Rome (FAO) urged that eradicating hunger and poverty go hand in hand with transforming farming and food systems to cope with a warmer world.

“There is no doubt climate change affects food security,” says FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva in The State of Food and Agriculture 2016. “What climate change does is to bring back uncertainties from the time we were all hunter gatherers. We cannot assure any more that we will have the harvest we have planted.”

That uncertainty also translates into volatile food prices. “Everybody is paying for that, not only those suffering from droughts,” he

writes. Food supply shortfalls would make food prices soar; greater climate variability would worsen price volatility and lead to new pests and disease problems. In areas of already high hunger and poverty, increases would directly affect millions of low-income people. Most vulnerable will be those who depend on agriculture for their livelihood and income, particularly smallholder producers in developing countries.

“Business as usual” could put millions more people at risk of hunger, the report says, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and South and Southeast Asia.

Developing countries are home to half a billion smallholder farm families who produce food in greatly varying agro-ecological and socioeconomic conditions. Solutions have to be tailored to those conditions; there is no one-size-fits-all fix.

Smallholders face barriers such as limited access to markets, credit, extension advice, weather information and risk management tools. Women, who make up about 43 percent of the agricultural labor force in developing countries, are especially disadvantaged, with fewer entitlements than men, limited access to information and services, gender-determined household responsibilities, and increasingly heavy agricultural workloads owing to male out-migration.

The report says “climate-smart” practices, such as nitrogen-efficient and heat-tolerant crop varieties, zerotillage and integrated soil fertility management would boost productivity and farmers’ incomes and help lower

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food prices. Widespread adoption of nitrogen-efficient practices alone would reduce the number of people at risk of undernourishment by more than 100 million, the report estimates.

In the livestock sector, sustainable practices could cut livestock methane emissions by up to 41 percent while also increasing productivity through better animal feeding, animal health and herd structure management.

Negative global effects of climate change are already being felt in some cereal crop yields, the FAO says. Climate change will likely lead to a loss of nutritional content of some foods, such as declining zinc, iron and protein counts in staple cereals, and trigger new health issues.

The FAO also urges policy makers to identify and remove barriers such as input subsidies, which can induce inefficient use of agrochemicals. It adds that inadequate credit, extension services and access to markets often disproportionately harm women.

While climate change is but one driver of poverty and food insecurity, its impacts are expected to be substantial, says the FAO. Without climate change, and with continuing economic progress, most regions were projected to see a decline in the number of people at risk of hunger by 2050. But with it, the population living in poverty could increase by between 35 and 122 million by 2030, largely due to its negative impact on agricultural incomes. ◆

The Marketplace January February 2017

MEDA convention

Women celebrated as world changers CrackerClips iStock

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EDA doesn’t often venture into the deep south for its annual convention, this being only its second Texas venue. The city of San Antonio proved popular on the last weekend of October as visitors basked in a warm climate, local attractions like the historic Alamo and the largest Mexican market in the U.S., and a hotel situated on a charming urban waterway dotted with public art, murals and trendy eateries.

Theme was “Women Changing the World,” celebrating the power of women to transform families, communities and economies.

Keynote speakers probed the convention theme from the perspective of leading players in human rights.

Journalist/activist Sally Armstrong spoke on “The New Game Changers: Women and the Eradication of Poverty” (see page 12). Leymah Gbowee shared her experience mobilizing women in Liberia to build a nonviolent peace movement (see page 13).

A panel of women business The Marketplace January February 2017

leaders (see page 14) spoke about their involvement in business and its challenges.

Seminars explored topics relating to women, development and faith-infused business practices.

Among them: climate change and the poor, sustainable business practices, generational transition in family businesses, succession for non-profit boards and building peace through economic development.

This year marked the return of

the popular MEDA auction, a funfilled way to raise funds for overseas programs. Auctioneer Paul Tiessen of Saskatoon kept things lively with staccato riffs and humor-laced banter as bidders vied for a variety of donated items. These included vacation packages, a safari tour, helicopter rides, quilts, original artwork and a pair of brass bookends fashioned

by Ontario foundryman Ervin Steinmann.

Top item this year was a Toronto

Outgoing and incoming

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he convention was the occasion to celebrate the service of members of the board of directors who had completed their terms, and to welcome their replacements.

Departing directors were: Sid Burkey, agribusiness executive (Nebraska); Laura Stephenson, wholesale importer/distributor (California); Kevin Dorsing, fruit processor (Washington); and Jamie Schlegel, retirement community developer/operator (Ontario).

New members joining the board: Marianne Unruh, fruit distributor (California); Rick Martin, feed mill owner (Ontario); Rod Brenneman, strategic advisor (Missouri) and Myrl Nofziger, real estate developer (Indiana). ◆

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Photo by Steve Sugrim

Maple Leafs hockey package including tickets, practice, post-game meeting with head coach Mike Babcock and an autographed jersey of 2016 top NHL draft pick Auston Matthews.

After spirited bidding the winner (at $21,000) was Abe Fehr, an avid fan who owns the Leamington Flyers junior hockey team.

Total funds raised by the live auction along with silent auction items was $110,000 toward MEDA’s Improving Market Opportunities for Women project in Myanmar.

The MEDAnext Talks feature, introduced at last year’s convention, was repeated. It featured an afternoon of short TED-style presentations focusing on how to live “in the next” as global citizens. Topics included protecting the environment, empowerment through entrepreneurship, organizational rebranding, food security and reducing waste, and a photographic feature on the urban homeless.

MEDA staffer Katherine Arblaster displays an autographed hockey jersey that was a hot auction item. As part of a package of tickets and special team visits it fetched $21,000.

For convention videos go to: http://www.medaconvention.org

Attendance reached a total of 427, full and pert-time. Of these, about 50 were students from Mennonite colleges and universities. Among the benefits they listed was gaining insight into how a business major could benefit society.

Said Emily Huxman, a Bluffton University student, “A lot of people feel that if you are a business major

you have to be a shark, but MEDA shows you that’s not necessarily true. There are ways to apply what you learn in your business classes to help people, especially in the underdeveloped world.”

The next convention will be held Nov. 2-5 in Vancouver, with the theme Building Bridges to Enduring Livelihoods. ◆

Like a hen, gathering the brood

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n her Sunday morning message, Sara Wenger Shenk, president of Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, tackled the complex leadership issue of how to use power without abandoning important virtues of humility and meekness.

Her Matthew 23 text showed Jesus denouncing neglectful leaders but then using the tender metaphor of a mother hen gathering her brood. The passage was poignant for those who wanted to blend meekness and power. “How can one be lowly and meek, and yet all powerful?” she asked.

“I think we’d all agree that one can’t change the world without power. But the trickiest thing to learn is how to lead with power, and to do so justly, wisely, truthfully, and yes, humbly.”

Referring to the convention theme, “Women Changing the World,” she said lowliness or humility is often seen as passive and weak — “exactly what women especially can’t afford to be, right?”

Mennonites were often conflicted about power: They wanted to be humble followers of Christ, yet they needed to use power.

“You can’t fulfill your mission without power; the power of influence and good data, the power of money, and the strategic alloca-

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tion of talent and resources,” said Shenk. “So how does one do that humbly, with hearts and feet firmly planted in the gospel of Jesus Christ?”

Jesus was the premier example of both humility and power, especially as a truth teller, Shenk said.

This was evident in Matthew 23, which showed him angry with religious hypocrites who tithed minuscule measures of dill and cumin but flouted justice.

Jesus demonstrated that true power is the power to tell the truth — “It’s not about posturing, and preening, and showing off in bully fashion. It’s the power to tell the truth about the suffering inflicted on children, on families, on whole communities.”

But Jesus was also like a mother hen “longing to gather her brood, her children, under her protective wings,” Shenk said.

That invitation, and the moral compass it entailed, was relevant to “business leaders, entrepreneurs, people who are self-starters, who are out front, who would rather write the rules than follow the rules.”

Holding humility and power together could change lives, whole communities, even the world, said Shenk. ◆

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Tales from the trenches Activist sees a tipping point and “tapestry of change”

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anadian journalist and activist Sally Armstrong set a brisk tone for the convention as she shared gripping stories from the front-lines as “war correspondent for the world’s women.”

The opening keynoter is a three-time winner of Amnesty International’s Media Award for her coverage of conflict from Bosnia and Somalia to Congo and Afghanistan.

In a speech titled “The New Game Changers,” Armstrong spoke powerfully about the role of women in eradicating poverty and resolving conflict.

Women may hold the key to feeding the hungry if they are given the right tools, she said. They make up a sizable portion of the world’s farmers, but they are forced to work with inferior inputs and equipment.

She said that according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), women could feed an additional 150 million people a year if they had the same access to equipment, quality seeds and fertilizer as men.

The status of women was directly related to the economy, she asserted.

“Where one is flourishing, so is the other. Where one is in the ditch, so is the other.”

Women were essential to prosperity, said Armstrong, “whether it is in Kenya, Congo or Chicago. The question is no longer how to end poverty; the question today is who is holding up the barrier to stop its

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eradication.”

She cited statistics indicating the cost of violence against women. In Canada the cost was $7.4 billion a year; in the United Kingdom 42 billion pounds, and in the United States $500 billion.

“Is there anyone who thinks this is affordable?...

The world can no longer afford to oppress half its population.”

Armstrong said corporate literature shows that companies with women in their board rooms perform better Sally Armstrong on assignment in Africa. than those run exclusively by men. required for human rights started “You want a better economy? to weave themselves together like a Put the women to work.... War is tapestry of change.” your problem? Bring women to the But more urgent action was still negotiating table. Poverty is stuck at demanded, she said. stubbornly unacceptable levels? Ask Citing political theorist Hannah your women to make the budget.”

Arendt, she said “Evil thrives on Armstrong shared stories from apathy and cannot exist without it. her world travels that showed “a new page in history.” These included Hence, apathy is evil.”

The term “innocent bystandexamples of young girls rising up er” could be an oxymoron. “In the to protest a culture of rape in their absence of protest, evil is nourished countries. Citizens the world over had demanded action, and as a result and can flourish.... It takes awesome moral courage to go against the more nurturing societies were being grain,” she said. built.

Armstrong applauded MEDA for The ground has shifted, said not just standing by.

Armstrong, and “women are the “It’s not unusual to want to help tipping point.” someone in trouble, to right a wrong, The key cause was the rise of Facebook which has made it possible to stop an injustice,” she said. “What is exceedingly rare is that people like for women wearing hijabs to talk to you put action to words.” ◆ women wearing jeans. “The threads 12

“Get mad,” says Nobel laureate With the world a “total mess,” she looks for something every day to give her hope

L

eymah Gbowee, speaking on “Women Building Peace: The Liberian Experience,” shared how she mobilized women to build a nonviolent peace movement that is credited with helping end Liberia’s civil war in 2003 and for which she won the Nobel Prize in 2011. A graduate in conflict transformation from Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, Va., she currently serves on a task force for the International Conference on Population and Development, and as the president of the Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa.

She said when war broke out in her country in 1989 she experienced a “deep-seated sense of anger” which she was only able to harness through a group of women who “taught me that change was possible.”

It had been discouraging for her to realize that when she tried to think about people who could make a difference in her community “they were all men.” That inspired her to focus on building a peace movement among women in Liberia.

The path to peace had been long and arduous, she recounted. A vital step was to break down walls of separation among those who thought they were on the same side. Even among those who share a desire for transformation “we find it so difficult to work together.” In order for the journey toward peace to take its first steps, it was important to realize that they couldn’t give what they themselves didn’t have. “We had to

heal ourselves” she said.

“We realized we had to come together if we were going to build peace.”

Religious walls also needed to be brought down. “Does a bullet know a Christian from a Muslim?” she asked.

“When a Muslim mother loses a child is her pain any different than a Christian mother who loses a child?”

A critical ingredient was “to go through the process of humanizing one another.”

Gbowee held little back in painting a bleak picture of the world.

Globally, 67 countries were currently locked in conflict, with 742 armed EMU graduate Leymah Gbowee: “Does a bullet groups operating within know a Christian from a Muslim?” their borders. Oddly, conflict was heating up even while The “time for being pretty” peace activism was increasing. “How was past, she said. It was now time to “get mad” — about bullying, is it,” she asked, “that we have all this awareness, all these conventions, homelessness, hunger, sexual abuse and other injustices. “Anger for me is and yet peace is a mist?”

By her reckoning the world was the fuel we need to change the world.” “upside down” and “in a total mess.”

That anger could be turned Pointing to the U.S., she said “your to good, she said, noting that she country is in a shambles, regardless “looks for something every day to of where you stand politically.” give me hope.”

Was this “madness” something to She quoted former U.S. first lady bequeath to the next generation?

Eleanor Roosevelt, who urged people What was desperately needed to “Do one good thing that scares you.” was to “tear down invisible walls” Gbowee said her take on that quote and “think about our relationships as was “Do one good thing every day global citizens.” that everyone else is scared to do.” ◆ 13

The Marketplace January February 2017

A higher purpose Panel weighs in on business as a calling

I

n her youth Olivia Holden’s father told her, “You don’t have to sit in the back of the bus, you can drive the bus. More important, you can own the bus company.”

For Holden, an African-American, those words emboldened her to go where others might not have dared.

She was one of four panelists at MEDA’s San Antonio convention who spoke of their experiences as women in business. Since 2002 Holden has directed ASSETS Toledo, a job training and business preparation program started by MEDA. “More than 2,000 people have taken the training over the years and 849 have gone into business and stayed in business.”

The panelists described their own entries into business and the satisfactions of working in that field.

Laura Stephenson, who is cofounder of 4D Concepts Inc., an importer and wholesaler of furniture and other products for e-commerce firms, said her first exposure to business was because of “Mom’s day off.”

“Saturday was Dad’s day to take care of the kids, so we’d go to work with him,” she said. “If I wasn’t out driving a forklift I was inside designing furniture. That’s where it started; it got into my blood.”

Michelle Horning, professor of accounting at Goshen (Ind.) College, worked in her grandparents’ store as a child, and enjoyed experimenting with product placement, repositioning items from one shelf to another to see what happened. “I couldn’t find anything more exciting,” she recalled. “I liked the idea of creating things.” She found business to be a great way to provide more opportuniThe Marketplace January February 2017

Stephenson

Weaver

ties for people. She said that interest continues in her present role where she works with students and helps them discover their calling.

Crystal Weaver owns businesses in the hospitality sector, including a café, bakery and coffee roasting company in Lancaster, Pa. Getting into business “just sort of happened” and became immensely satisfying.

“After about five years I looked at the people I had employed,” she recalled. By then about 80 people in the 17 to 27 age group had worked for her for various periods and “I realized I had had a part in the direction they had gone. I realized that helping people unlock their potential was my sweet spot. I’m happiest when I’ve been able to create opportunities for people to thrive.”

The panelists also spoke of the challenges that remain for women in business.

“The glass ceiling is still there,” said Holden.

Weaver said when she and her male business partner attend meetings with others “the questions are usually directed at him.” She encouraged men in the audience to “check your habits.”

Horning recalled attending her first MEDA convention as a young person in 1990. At one meal her table companions included “a sweet 14

Holden

Horning

old man” and the young man who would become her husband. When it became clear that she and her future husband had plans to go into business, the elderly gentleman said to Michelle, “How nice, you can be his secretary.”

Horning said that although things have shifted since then, young business-bound women “need to go beyond [such ideas] and prove what you can do.”

A common theme was using business to help people, including those with personal problems.

One panelist described the human resource challenges of drug use.

A young employee had struggled with his addiction, and the employer wanted to help him “without being an enabler.” In the end, one response had been to “give him more and more work.”

Another spoke of hiring a homeless woman “who has ended up being a wonderful employee who loves her work. It’s been a joy to see her come alive.”

Holden related an experience with a man who had spent 15 years in jail for selling drugs. Through the patient persistence of the ASSETS program, he finally got traction and now operates a food truck.

“Stories like that make my heart sing,” said Holden. ◆

Back to black 2016 marks return to positive bottom line

M

EDA’s annual general meeting — a state-ofthe-union showcase of the past year — brought happy news that 2016 marked a return to a positive bottom line after last year’s shortfall.

President Allan Sauder called it a return to “the kind of strong growth that has been a hallmark for MEDA over the past decade.”

Pivotal was the generosity of supporters in reaching a record-breaking $6.3 million in private contributions, he said.

During 2016 MEDA worked through 246 partners in 62 countries to help 46 million families realize healthier, more economically sustainable lives, Sauder reported.

“This number is largely due to the more than 45½ million customers served by small and medium

enterprises where MEDA has an investment through one of the Sarona funds, plus some 150,000 clients where, through our partners, we provided access to markets, financial services and training,” he said.

“As always, these numbers do not count clients of the organizations that we worked with in the past who continue to provide thousands of entrepreneurs with financial, marketing and training services long after MEDA is no longer directly involved.”

MEDA currently had $200 million of signed contracts with the Canadian government, of which MEDA needed to raise $22 million in matching private contributions over the next five to six years. Efforts were being made to diversify institutional funding sources, including the United States Agency for Inter-

national Development (USAID) and other donors.

“We are confident that the future for MEDA is bright, and that we have our work cut out for us!”

Sauder singled out the support of the MEDA board of directors during last year’s financial downturn. “It is a blessing to work with a board that understand the ups and downs of business; that nothing goes up forever,” he said. The board had cautioned against knee-jerk reactions such as cutbacks and lay-offs. “They

“It is a blessing to work with a board that understand the ups and downs of business; that nothing goes up forever.”

President Allan Sauder reported that MEDA currently has $200 million of signed contracts with the Canadian government, of which MEDA needs to raise $22 million in matching private contributions over the next five to six years.

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wisely advised that when our business cycle rebounds again we will need all of our immensely competent staff members, and more.”

Sauder gave an update on an extensive strategic planning exercise that MEDA had engaged in, using a plan put forward by management expert Roger Martin in his book, Playing to Win. “We received board approval for a set of strategic directions that will guide us for the next several years — how we can best continue to provide business solutions to poverty in a changing world — and contribute meaningfully to achieving the Sustainable DevelopThe Marketplace January February 2017

ment Goals adopted by the United Nations last year.”

He said MEDA’s focus since its start in Paraguay in 1953 has been to create sustainable livelihoods.

The key to doing that was to give the poor access to markets, financial

services and investment capital, in order to unleash their entrepreneurial potential. While that focus on sustainable livelihoods endures, the world has changed and will continue to change rapidly, and strategies must adjust accordingly, said Sauder.

He noted several key trends, including: • Despite important progress in the last 15 years, extreme poverty will continue to afflict fragile states in places where MEDA chooses to work (especially in rural sub-Saharan

Field notes of change How clients improve their worlds

I

n her AGM devotional, outgoing board member Laura Stephenson pointed to specific clients who were changing their worlds with MEDA’s help.

One was Vera, a strawberry grower she met in Ukraine. A startup loan and farm courses helped improve her output. She gained access to cold storage to extend the shelf life of her berries, assistance in finding new and more lucrative markets, and greenhouses to extend the growing and selling cycle to optimize prices.

“Vera now has four families working together, has bought more land and they are growing more varieties of fruits and vegetables,”

said Stephenson. “Vera is now training and teaching other farmers.

All this in the midst of the turmoil in Crimea and the uncertainties of Ukraine.

“Vera is a woman changing her world.”

In Ethiopia Stephenson met with rice farmers who benefitted from small loans to get started and were introduced to a new rice variety that is more nutritious, easier to grow and takes less water. They were “abuzz” with news of a new husker that would improve the quality of their rice, said Stephenson.

Higher financial returns allowed them to give their children three meals a day and afford the required

uniforms and supplies so they can go to school.

The farmers had also been introduced to a “three-basket” mutual aid network to which everyone contributes. “If one farmer has a death, the group works together to have a funeral. If someone is sick they help pay the bills. If someone is getting married this money helps to pay the weddings.

This system has brought this community together by making their own small loans, and helping one another.”

The women farmers in the group, whose roles are often invisible, “are changing their world,” Stephenson said. ◆

Strawberry grower Vera, left, shown with her daughter, changed her world with the help of a MEDA project in Ukraine. In the adjacent photo, California visitor Laura Stephenson helps out picking strawberries.

The Marketplace January February 2017

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Africa).

• Global connections are needed to build on MEDA’s pioneering work in impact investment and blended finance (leveraging official development assistance with private sector capital and philanthropic sources to achieve the new Sustainable Development Goals).

• Climate change threatens many clients, and projects must help them adapt to or mitigate its impact.

• Political violence and corrup-

tion contribute to poverty. With its close links to local partners MEDA can share values of integrity and conflict resolution.

• With nearly a billion people hungry, global food production needs to double by 2050.

Sauder listed several immediate strategic opportunities for MEDA: • Strengthen entrepreneurial systems and create sustainable businesses at various levels — not only train farmers but also enable access

to processors and markets; • Utilize/leverage the private sector at all levels — deepen engagement of private supporters and forge business partnerships with companies; • Bring all of our tools to each project to create sustainability — investment, climate mitigation and adaptation, financial services, gender equity, market value chains and understanding of vulnerable populations. ◆

Step-by-step in Libya Plowing ahead amid uncertainty

“I

want to see the es on top of the security long lines at the issues, namely, liquidity banks disappear,” shortage in the banks, MEDA’s Libya country power outages that range manager Intissar Rajafrom three to 20 hours per bany told the annual day, telecom failure, travel general meeting. That difficulties and challenges would mean people were from religious dogma,” graduating from regular she said. “Widespread jobs to owning their own inflation, rocketing prices businesses. and currency devaluation She provided a snapis causing immense hardshot of how empowering ship.” women can liberate them Amid these confor entrepreneurship and straints, Rajabany noted create fresh job options visible signs of empowaway from the oil and gas erment among MEDA’s sector which is the main clients: “Their leap of joy Incremental steps are making a difference in Libya, says source of income. when winning a grant, The project, four years Intissar Rajabany, left, shown with opening night keytheir fist in the air in the noter Sally Armstrong. old, has made strides to sign of victory when getdevelop small and mediting their start-up off the country.” um-sized enterprises to stimulate ground, their sigh of relief when Small incremental steps — like recovery and long-term stability, meeting others who have overcome workshops, support and networking said Rajabany. It had already shown opportunities — were “making a real similar obstacles to ones they are the international community that experiencing ... their exclamation difference in the lives of so many.” “we don’t need to wait for postof happiness when they have masThese steps were sorely needed conflict to work on the ground” — tered the knowledge of successful in Libya, where the resumption of some things could be implemented violence in 2014 had disrupted the business planning....” amid current uncertainty.

She said she got a particular political system, caused the internaRajabany left a successful cational community to flee and harmed thrill observing the gradual transreer in energy and banking to work social cohesion and economic activity formation of someone who was with MEDA’s new project because following the halting of oil production. cynical and bored to “a colorful, “I wanted to be part of something laughing, talking, selfie-taking “Millions of Libyans, myself inthat would make an impact in my cluded, are facing increased challeng- confident woman.” ◆

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The Marketplace January February 2017

Serving up jobs and coffee Urban-chic plays well on city’s social landscape

N

ot much in business beats creating a good job for someone, says Crystal Weaver, especially if that person is on the margins.

She lights up as she describes a homeless woman she hired and encouraged. Before long the new employee owned — and loved — her job. It doesn’t get much better than that, says Weaver, who though still a few years shy of 40 has already started several companies.

She got into business 10 years ago, selling candy in Lancaster’s Central Market. Her next business was the Prince Street Café, which she opened in an old building she bought.

It was a bold step for a young woman who grew up on the farm amid a rural sense that “the city” wasn’t all that safe. She would discover that “it’s not as scary as people thought.” In fact, some would say her café changed perceptions of the city.

Her aim was to serve premium coffee from around the world in an atmosphere that some call “urbanchic.” It was an instant hit, especially among the young professional and hipster crowd.

“It was about creating a social space,” Weaver says. “We needed a place for people to come together, a place where they pay $2.25 for a cup of coffee and spend the next several hours with their laptops.

“I thought it would be a tiny coffee shop that would serve a little bit of food. We were busy from day one.”

Customers soon wanted more The Marketplace January February 2017

A trip to Kenya in November gave Crystal Weaver (right) and retail shop manager Cameo Lengeman (center) a chance to meet one of their local suppliers.

Juliette (left) is manager of Miiri coffee factory in the city of Nyeri. The Pennsylvania visitors presented her with a package of coffee processed from beans she had supplied.

than coffee and pastry. And they got it. Now you can get specialties (made in-house) like a grilled apple, fig and cheddar sandwich, a fall harvest quinoa salad, and more.

Instead of just a coffee shop it has become a “small restaurant that serves great coffee,” says Weaver, adding that food is now its top 18

revenue-producer.

Two years ago she started Pas-

senger Coffee where she roasts and processes beans from around the world.

Altogether she owns four companies, including a wholesale arm of Passenger Coffee and retail shop, a

showroom for her coffee and specialty teas. The various companies employ more than 40 staff.

All this operates under the Commons Company of Lancaster, a mother company devoted to owning and operating businesses that will contribute to the hospitality/social landscape of Lancaster.

“We want to create meaningful jobs and pay a living wage, a fair wage,” says Weaver. “We will sell the

“How can my business reflect who I am?

How can it reflect my values?” best products we can find and source them ethically. This means paying more. We also work with producers and help them know that quality is just as important as quantity.”

In early November she traveled to Kenya to meet with producers and see coffee production firsthand. She traveled with her company’s coffee director and restaurant owners from several countries. She visited coffee farms and mills and got an insider’s view of the product she sells back home. She also got to meet a woman supplier and brought her a package of her own coffee in processed form.

Weaver’s business partner in some of these ventures is Kyle Sollenberger, who works with technol-

ogy start-ups. Weaver describes herself as the “operations person” on the team, but they share common ground as visionaries. Sollenberger renovated a former city warehouse into the commercial space that now houses Passenger Coffee Roasters.

A recent product of that collaborative vision is a planned 60room hotel for downtown Lancaster.

“We started talking about how it would be fun to create a youth hostel,” says Weaver. “The next thing we knew we were talking about a hotel.”

Plans call for a boutique hotel that will include a first-floor restaurant a little more than a block from Lancaster Central Market. It will be housed in an existing three-story building to which they hope to add a fourth floor. Weaver describes it as an “independent urban lifestyle hotel and restaurant” which she hopes will create another 40 jobs.

“We’re small business owners who see this as a real opportunity and want to continue to contribute to our city’s momentum,” she said when announcing the project.

City officials have welcomed the prospect of more convention-quality hotel rooms for downtown, which they say needs more lodging capacity to attract big-scale conventions.

The project is now moving glacially through the financing stage, says Weaver.

“If it doesn’t work, we’ll create something else, maybe an apartment building.”

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As someone for whom business “just sort of happened,” the entrepreneurial journey had its own set of surprises.

“Business has so many layers,” she says, noting the challenges of being an employer. “How, for example, do you let someone go?

“Business is hard. Maybe I was surprised at how hard everything is.

Also how hard it is to make money.

There’s not much margin. You’re lucky if you make five to 10%. I don’t think I make much considering how much work I put in.”

A friend has described

Weaver as a serial entrepreneur “who is good at empowering people and who has a passion for hiring people who wouldn’t otherwise have opportunities.”

Weaver asks, “How can my business reflect who I am? How can it be a reflection of my values, such as deciding how to spend my money? Is my money staying with someone who can empower their small business?”

More than anything else, she wants to create sustainable employment. “I’m always asking, ‘Will it create good jobs?’ I want to be able to create opportunities for at-risk youth and homeless women.”

Many of the jobs in her enterprises are entry-level positions, typically filled by young people ages 17 to 27.

“They may be wondering, ‘What can I do with my life?’ If I can create meaningful jobs for those kids, they can become world changers.” ◆ The Marketplace January February 2017

Soundbites

Discovering honest work In the 20th century most Americans spent their time pushing paper in offices or bashing widgets in factories. In the 21st century most of us are going to work with people, providing services that enhance each other’s lives....

We are going to have to discover the inherent dignity of work that is people to people rather than people to things. We are going to have to realize that engaging with other people, understanding their hopes and their needs, and using our own skills, knowledge and talent to give them what they want at a price they can afford is honest work. — Historian Walter Russell Mead in The American Interest

Brakes & toilets The demand for middle-skill jobs

— jobs that require a high-school diploma but not a university degree — is swelling. A USA Today analysis estimated that between 2014 and 2017, about 2.5 million new middleskill jobs — almost 40 percent of all job growth — will need to be filled.

Baby boomers are retiring or dying faster than young people can replace our plumbers, electricians, and welders, prompting a serious labor shortage. These are manual services that will not be outsourced, since a worker in India can’t unclog a toilet or fix the car brakes of a New Jersey schoolteacher. — Sophia Lee, “Jobs of the Future” in World magazine

Loving it The twentieth century was all about getting you to love the things we

JMX Brands ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT TO CEO: JMX Brands is looking for a highly organized individual who is willing to assist in a variety of clerical and administrative tasks. We’re seeking an individual who enjoys and excels in administrative support and has 3-5 years of relevant experience. It is essential that the candidate is comfortable in a fast-paced environment and good at managing many details. This position will require someone who is highly organized, efficient, detail-oriented, comfortable with ambiguity, technologically savvy, personable and highly trustworthy. Must have a positive attitude and strong work ethic. Must enjoy working with people and the challenges that come in working for a small company. Good communication skills and average quantitative abilities are required. Must have strong skills in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and moderate skills in QuickBooks and general technical troubleshooting. Must have equivalent of associate degree.

BUSINESS MANAGER: JMX Brands is looking for a business manager who will be broadly responsible for business processes, accounting, financial management, budgeting, property management and human resource management at JMX Brands.

The business manager will be a part of our management team and will proactively lead in financial performance, human resource development and business decisions, supervising a small team and reporting directly to the CEO. Qualifications include direct experience in managerial accounting and business management, strong analytical skills, and demonstration of leadership abilities. Demonstrated ability to think strategically and proven track record of savvy financial management is needed. We’re looking for someone with demonstrated ability to think outside the box, to carefully manage priorities for self and others in the context of a heavy workload and continuous change, and a desire to grow and drive change. Baccalaureate degree is required, graduate degree preferred.

Contact: ceo@jmxbrands.com

The Marketplace January February 2017

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make. And the twenty-first is all about how to make the things you love. — Business visualization pioneer Tom Wujec

Third time a charm I have tried to teach people that there are three kicks in every dollar: one, when you make it; two, when you have it. The third kick is when you give it away — and it is the biggest kick of all. — Legendary Kansas editor William Allen White

Clean addiction?

Work addiction is one of the most difficult addictions to face, because it masquerades as a positive trait and often receives the active support of our institutions. Workaholism is the pain others applaud. It is the cleanest of all the addictions. Yet I have encountered so many people who are literally dying of their workaholism that I cannot take this disease lightly.

We have here a killer. — Diane Fassel, author of Working Ourselves to Death: The High Cost of Workaholism & the Rewards of Recovery

No 2nd chance We could rebuild Europe after World War II, rebuild on the site of the World Trade Center, and even rebuild the economy after the 1929 and 2008 crashes. But if we cross Mother Nature’s planetary boundaries, there are things that can never be rebuilt.

We cannot rebuild the Greenland ice sheet, the Amazon rain forest, or the Great Barrier Reef. The same is true of the rhinos, macaws, and orangutans. No 3-D printer will bring them back to life. — Thomas L. Friedman in Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations

Reviews

Aging with purpose Aging Matters: finding your calling for the rest of your life. By R. Paul Stevens (Eerdmans, 2016, 193 pp. $16 U.S.)

W

e know by looking around (and by enduring our own creeping senescence) that a lot of people are getting older. By Paul Stevens’ count, “A thousand Canadians and ten thousand Americans turn sixty-five every day.” Many of them approach the end of their careers by lapping up everything they can read about retirement.

This book deserves a special place on their list, as it explores terrain beyond what one usually expects of a retirement guide (such as finances, insurance, household logistics and health). It is one of the rare ones to take seriously the seeming end of one’s “calling.”

Stevens, professor emeritus of marketplace theology at Regent College, Vancouver, comes to this topic with plenty of cred. His many writings on the ministry of daily life include The Other Six Days and Doing God’s Business. He has written numerous work/faith articles for this magazine and has spoken at a number of MEDA conventions.

In promoting this book, Stevens’ publisher quips that he “built a career around the biblical notion that work and calling are for all of life.

Then he retired.” In this book he applies his lifetime of practical theology to the world “after work.” Readers who thought it was “all done now” will be pleasantly surprised by what he finds.

Stevens reviews the social and spiritual benefits of daily work and observes that “Most good work in this world is a way to extend the kingdom of God and to bring shalom to people and creation.”

That assignment does not end

with retirement, which Stevens reframes as a time of continued calling and productivity, an extraordinarily fruitful season of life, and a kind of “second chance” to explore life’s mysteries and increase spiritual depth.

Our callings persist into every stage of life, he says, though our work may not be the same as what we did before. It

“Aging may be like a magnifying glass pointing out what has been unchecked in earlier years.” can be even better.

The Bible, he notes, depicts many old people and mentions retirement only once (Numbers 8:23-25 where Levites were urged to retire at age 50). Biblical characters may have concluded their remunerated work but not their callings. Many remained active in their ministries and in fact “received fresh revelation of God in their senior years.”

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His chapter on The Vices of Aging notes that some habits and attitudes harden with age. “Indeed, aging may be like a magnifying glass pointing out what has been unchecked in earlier years.”

The seven deadly sins do not vanish in a burst of superannuated magic. Pride, envy, anger — even lust! — can still afflict the elderly. Some retirees may become more controlling; others more greedy as they worry about making ends meet.

Perhaps their deadliest sin is laziness, when fading initiative morphs into a kind of “institutionalized sloth” as people “cruise themselves to death.”

Aging folk may think of themselves as overripe bananas, but why not instead as a fine wine on the cusp of perfection? Aging is not only biological but also spiritual, says Stevens. There’s plenty of opportunity for more growth. In fact, aging can enrich spirituality because it “slows us down and teaches us to accept things we cannot change.”

Contrary to the murmur of aches and pains, aging is not the relentless erosion of humanity, Stevens says. “Rather it is the reverse. Aging should make us more human and not less, and certainly more deeply human.” At a time of life “when we are no longer striving to succeed in a career, or when drivenness is reduced, we may deepen our resting in God as our portion, our bounty, and our delight.” — Wally Kroeker The Marketplace January February 2017

News

Kansas chapter tours family enterprises

by Susan I. Miller Building relationships — with each other, with customers and with employees — is key to growing and sustaining their businesses, directors of two closely-held family firms told some 50 Kansas MEDA members who visited BMG (Brenneman Manufacturing Group) in Hesston, and Kansas Electric in rural Newton recently.

BMG cuts, shapes and welds steel parts to meet specialized customer needs. Kansas Electric designs, installs and maintains custom electrical systems for clients.

BMG contracts with AGCO and Excel Industries, the two largest manufacturers in Hesston, and delivers parts to them three times per day.

By being local and dependable BMG competes successfully with larger manufacturers who could undercut their prices for the parts it sells to AGCO and Excel. These parts account for two thirds of BMG’s production.

Nurturing relationships with these and other long-term customers keeps demand for their products steady and their five laser-cutting machines running 24/5, or in some cases, 24/7, Doug Brenneman told visitors. The laser cutting is “the bread and butter of the company,” he added.

Products made at BMG are as diverse as basketball rims and goals, and metal shipping containers that have fixed cradles inside them. BMG

patented their design for the shipping containers in the 1990s.

Scanners measure parts that lasers cut to clients’ exact specifications. And they do the measurements in two minutes versus the 15 minutes it would take to do the job manually.

Technology enables BMG to be more efficient, and “keep wages up,” Doug Brenneman said.

BMG strives to reduce plant noise and dust for employees. Heat produced by nitrogen generators for laser cutters warms the building in winter and the heated air is pulled out of the factory in the summer.

BMG employs 43 plant workers in the first shift and four or five in each of the second and third shifts.

Eight or nine people, including Joe Brenneman and his sons Doug and Jim, work in the office.

Joe Brenneman had worked at AGCO and its predecessor company for 25 years before purchasing the plant and renaming it BMG. Doug and Jim became partners as young adults with financial backgrounds.

Tim Sweigart started working for Harms Electric in 1989 without prior training as an electrician. Alvin Harms had started the company in 1948 and wired most of the rural homes in Newton.

Sweigart bought the company in 2006 and renamed it Kansas Electric, thinking Kansas would be its scope. But now it also has clients in Oklahoma, and agriculture giant ADM is asking for its services in New York.

It now focuses completely on industrial and commercial jobs.

Sweigart’s son Brent Moderator Michael Miller and panel, from left: Tim started helping at the and Brent Sweigart, Joe, Jim and Doug Brenneman.

The Marketplace January February 2017

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business at age 12 and went full-time in 1999. He now is director of operations.

The Sweigarts and their 40 employees work in a new building that is partially solar-powered. The break room with its 10-inch thick concrete walls doubles as a tornado shelter.

Employees and the owners can work out on exercise machines or a punching bag, or play ping pong during breaks or after hours.

Tim Sweigart said the company’s vision is to support its customers with integrity and quality service.

“We want to build relationships; to get in the door and stay in the door.”

Its engineers design solutions for customers “who need quick results.... We earn their trust.” Meeting customers “face to face” and being on call 24 hours a day helps keep customers loyal.

MEDA resource development director Michael Miller moderated a panel discussion about working in family businesses.

Following the Golden Rule and deriving the core values from their Christian faith defines Brennemans’ working relationships with each other and with clients and employees, Jim Brenneman said.

“I get to work with people I really like,” Doug Brenneman said.

Brent Sweigart noted the challenge of finding his own identity within the family business since he “felt responsible to get into the business right away.”

Doug Brenneman concurred, expressing the need to create his own identification at BMG. Can family business partners separate family life from business life?

Both the Brennemans and Sweigarts are intentional about how

much of the business they take home at the end of the day.

A common theme was that good communication is always needed.

“Outside consultants can help facilitate discussions,” Tim Sweigart said.

Kansas Electric involves and empowers employees in strategic planning for the future of the business.

The two businesses are at different stages in succession planning and

in providing for family members who are not in the business. The three Brennemans own equal shares in the business and can sell their shares if they choose to. Tim Sweigart said transparency is important and a succession plan involves more than just financial planning. “The greatest lesson is to learn when to let go.”

Joe Brenneman said he enjoys his work so much that he’s not planning to retire soon, though he does feel free to travel, knowing the business is in good hands.

Miller invited advice for young people who want to start their own business.

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Tim Sweigart would want them to consider “the personal, psychological and physical elements” involved. If taking his own advice, he would be “a kinder, gentler boss.”

“It’s exciting to build a business,” Brent Sweigart said, but “a toll goes with it. We have a sense of responsibility that doesn’t go away.”

Jim Brenneman said it’s a rewarding and consuming life. He is “passionate about providing a value to someone that’s worth more to them than we are charging them.” ◆ Susan I. Miller is a freelance writer living in Hesston, Kansas.

The Marketplace January February 2017

The Marketplace January February 2017

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