Chief Meeks Plans to Strengthen Community Through Inter-Faith Advisory Board

Chief of Poice Reuben Meeks has a great desire to reach out to the Rancho Cordova community. It may take small steps and perhaps a long time to pull resources together to help families from the area that have a need, but Meeks believes that starting somewhere is better than not starting at all.

“I see a great need, a strong desire. Although we don’t know- we’re not sure how we’re going to put this together other than let’s start here and get them (the faith leaders) again to cross communicate to give me ideas and information and vice versa,” Chief Reuben Meeks said.

Meeks was referring to the Chief’s Inter-Faith Advisory Board, a new group aiming to help the different communities in Rancho Cordova.

The Inter-Faith Advisory Board is designed to purposely reach out to people through faith. Meeks said faith leaders from the area need to come together and create a bigger impact to those they are reaching out to. Inter-Faith Advisory Board has 13 members. They consist of bishops, pastors and delegates from local churches in the Rancho Cordova area. The groups meet quarterly to discuss the needs and the services they could offer the community.

Meeks decided to reach out to churches because he knows they have great services to offer. He said that churches have a daily impact in the lives of people. “If we have a conglomeration of faiths in one room, there’s a whole lot we can get done. I’m a son of a preacher so I know what purpose they have and the value they are to the various communities,” Meeks said.

Churches may be providing services that outsiders from that specific faith need a hand with, Meeks said. The Inter-Faith Advisory Board will be a way to provide services to people outside of a particular religious group.

“This is a way, if nothing else, we all get to cross communicate and exchange information on what we’re doing; what we have going on in our neighborhood, in our community. We want to make sure that if they’re feeding the homeless, what day are you feeding them?” Meeks said.

Meeks said places of faith should coordinate themselves so that all the places aren’t providing the same service, like feeding the hungry, on the same day. He’d like to see the services spread out.

Both Meeks and Debbie Cannon, Coordinator for the Inter-Faith Advisory Board, are working hard to see what direction the group should take. They are trying to figure out the needs and services different communities would benefit from the most. “What happens if we had a massive power outage and people needed a place to go or needed to evacuate? We need to use the resources that they have and know what those are and when they’re available,” Meeks said

Cannon is the person knocking on church doors to inform leaders about the Inter-Faith Advisory Board. She is responsible connecting faith leaders and overseeing participation. Meeks said she gets them in the door to the office and then he does the rest. In a phone interview, Cannon said “I’m happy. I think it’s going in the right direction.”

Meeks’ main priority right now is to have the faith leaders that have already joined to come back to the next meeting. “Meetings are held quarterly, so it’s hard to remember and keep it on their calendar,” Meeks said

Cannon will continue to visit local churches in and effort to recruit more faith leaders. Meeks said he wants all denominations taking part in his effort to coordinate the services churches have to offer and benefit more in the community. If churches wish to participate in Chief’s Inter-Faith Advisory Board, they can contact Debbie Cannon at (916)875-9655.

Meeks is hoping Inter-Faith Advisory Board will become a group where religious groups from all cultures in Rancho Cordova will collaborate for the same cause- to help the community.

“It’ll allow us to educate and in touch the various communities in all areas. I think this is vitally important too, not just to the police department, but to stakeholders, to all visitors, businesses, residents; last but not least,” Meeks said.

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Posted by Michelle Ventress on Oct 29 2009. Filed under Lifestyle, Public Safety. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.