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midst the current social tension dividing the United States, BLAKE THOMAS ’15 strives to create a culture of unity by promoting racial equality and reconciliation within his position as director of intercultural programs at Westmont College. Located in Santa Barbara, Calif., Westmont is a Christian liberal arts college where Blake oversees and advises six intercultural organizations and contributes to numerous committees that address race and unity on campus. Leading a number of educational efforts, Blake does it all with the intent of driving the Westmont community toward charitable and equitable change. “My goal is to build bridges, foster trust and provide the necessary support for students of color while they’re here,” said Blake. Prior to starting this position in June of 2020, Blake had been working with The Forge for Families, a nonprofit organization that focuses on Christian community development in the Third Ward of Houston, Texas. Blake originally took a part-time position with The Forge after his graduation from Southeastern. He had moved to Houston while discovering where God was calling him and exploring his options. Although at first perceived as a temporary job, Blake was offered a full-time opportunity that put him in charge of creating an entirely new ministry within The Forge’s organization, focusing specifically on poverty, culture, and race and reconciliation.
BLAKE THOMAS
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Blake built and directed the program, and it became known as Bridge-Builders. “It sort of looked like an inner-city missions trip, but paired with intentional education components,” said Blake. As time went on, Blake’s role as director transitioned, giving greater focus to consultation with churches and organizations on the issues of race and reconciliation. At the same time, he was also serving as a youth pastor at a Presbyterian church in downtown Houston.
While actively involved with both of these commitments, Blake began pursuing a Master of Divinity degree from the Houston campus of Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif., in January of 2019. He first learned of a job opportunity at Westmont through one of his hybrid classes. One of his classmates was married to a Westmont professor, and after the class, she reached out to him to see if he knew anyone who might be interested in the open position. “She said she was praying about it and my name came to mind,” said Blake. “Right away I thought I might be interested in it myself, and soon enough God made it apparent that’s where he was trying to move me.” Shortly after sending in his resume and cover letter, Blake received confirmation he was chosen for the job and moved out to Santa Barbara with his wife, Janelle. As the director of intercultural programs, Blake reports to the vice president of student life. He is responsible for properly conveying student concerns as well as providing feedback on the school’s support system for students, specifically students of color. Blake also teaches a course called “The Racial Justice Series.”The class covers the history of racial injustice and racist ideas, social and ethnic identity development and post-colonial theology. Outside of the classroom, the majority of Blake’s time is spent meeting one-on-one with students. “My heart is for ministry, so I really appreciate the fact that my role is more relational than I expected,” said Blake. “I really feel like I’m getting to minister to people.” Similar to the rest of the nation at this time, Westmont faces its own challenges of frustration, distrust and disharmony when dealing with the topics of race and
about what is just is because they have the stamp of the divine on their heart and the Holy Spirit within them.” Through all these conversations, Blake has been able to help both students and colleagues make the connection between why and how their faith is related to social justice. “My biggest goal is to see students walk away from Westmont with their faith strengthened and affirmed, knowing that they serve a God who loves justice,” said Blake. Blake and Janelle
unity. Blake emphasizes how critical it is to first develop relational equity before trying to go about mending that broken trust. Before he could attempt to open dialogue on these topics, he first had to lay the foundation and build genuine relationships and connections.
“My biggest goal is to see students walk away from Westmont with their faith strengthened and affirmed, knowing that they serve a God who loves justice,.” “It is rarely fruitful to try and have conversations about such difficult issues without the presence of a relationship,” said Blake. “I had to show students that I cared about them, and that I was for them.” Blake soon began to notice that one of the most common issues students seemed to wrestle with was the feeling that there was no room to talk about issues of injustice within the church. “Many felt as if they had to go outside of the church in order to care about racial justice,” he said. Blake continued, “My response was to reassure students that the reason they care
Blake facilitates similar conversations about racial justice with pastors and key church members around the country as he continues to consult and conduct training for various churches. Typically, church leaders reach out to Blake after hearing about his race and reconciliation curriculum. His most recent connections found him through his involvement on the board of Restoring Justice, a faith-based organization that works to combat disparities within the court system. As a board member, Blake takes part in fundraising, casting vision, preparing for future growth and ensuring the organization is effectively accomplishing its mission. He’ll often sit on individual committees to aid with internal decisions relating to salaries and position changes and additions. The purpose of Blake’s consultation work is not to spread knowledge but to aid the church in its movement towards reconciliation and restoration. “I love to see bridges being built internally and people’s hearts changing,” said Blake. “It’s always impactful for me to see the fruit of the work we did together.” In his free time, Blake enjoys spending time with his brother, DANA THOMAS ’14, who lives nearby in Los Angeles, working in the entertainment industry. They both share an affinity for music, leading Blake and Dana to often work on various projects together.
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