Indian Inspiration

We will share Indian Cooking tips, links, as well as nutritional and historical references! 

We will be hosting several guest bloggers that will share their insights as well!!

Announcing our Newest Alliance!

Beaver Street Enterprise Center
is Ready to Eat Healthy!

We're BRINGING a weekly lunch
to their Board Room,
that is open to our whole community.

Come share taste what we are all about!

Each week we will rotate through our five cuisines:

 Asian • Caribbean • Southwestern
Indian • Mediterranean

11:30 am - 1:30 pm

Small Tasting Plates $4.00
Full Plate Vegetarian $8.00
Full Plate with Meat $9.00

There are many new tastes to explore so
Lil Tastes are available too!!  

Wednesday, September 18th • Asian

Tuesday, September 24th • Caribbean

Tuesday, October 1st • Southwestern

Tuesday, October 8th • Indian

Tuesday, October 15th • Mediterranean

Tuesday, October 22nd • Asian

Tuesday, October 29th • Caribbean

1225 W Beaver St  Jacksonville, FL 32204
Ample Parking available! 

Learn more about Conscious Eats now!

Updates and Excitment!!

We Like to take time each month to let ya know what is shaking with the details. Results of the hard work Matter!!

CC! In Jax

    •    We continue to negotiate for donated event space for our upcoming Golden Rule Award and Chick-Fil-A Leadercast events in 2014. Sending proposals to several community partners. Jaxport is the most promising!

    •    We listed some new volunteer opportunities with Hands On Jacksonville so that we can find people to assist us with various tasks.  Already we have had three new ones contact us! Visit their site and see what you can do to participate!!

    •    We hosted a Parents Class at Teen Court to help parents and guardians deal with children who have had minor infractions of the law.
 
Conscious Eats•    Our employee Shawn is making great progress in school as he maintains his 4.0 average. He is now a member of his church leadership team and is making a difference there day to day. He continues to learn more about the non-profit world and is attending classes at the Nonprofit Center of NE Florida. His focus and energy are a great asset!!

 •    We held our second Launch Event at Paul Figura Studios!  Look for the next one coming in mid-August. Almost 80 people attended the four events.

    •    We continue to modify and perfect our snack mixes.  We want the healthiest and most delightful tastes to attack your taste buds!

    •    We are almost finished working with our fabulous team of interns to launch a completely revamped website by mid-August. A full photo shoot with pics by Laura Evans and Mike Lukus!

    •    We have started working with a software developer who will create an app for our customers to use of their smartphones.

    •    We launched a new Facebook campaign with free prizes, so go check us out!! you could win one too!!

The Realities of Running a Non-Profit

For two and a half years I have been working for a non-profit. I am new to this crazy world and often struggle with staying in it. I used to make six figures, now I struggle week to week. I used to have  huge teams to help me accomplish goals, now I have 1, plus a growing crew of volunteers. I used to have huge amounts of money to invest in smart projects, now I invest mostly sweat. I used to know what my days were going to be like, now I am routinely surprised with how my days unfold. I used to show up at an office to work, now I go to a office, a kitchen, a jail, a rescue mission, a halfway house, a court house, a hospital and when I am lucky a coffee shop.

I used to have to sneak in a lil prayer with a colleague, now I get to openly say grace before every shared meal. I used to have to ask permission to give someone a second chance, now I meditate before I do and let it unfold. I used to question why I was doing what I do, today I am crystal clear about my place in this world. I used to think I was in control of it all, now I am darn glad, I know who is! I used to work with people who only cared about the bottom line, now I work with people who walk the high road. I used to have to hide my emotions, now I celebrate and harness the power of them.

Yes, most days I am ecstatically working and seeing massive strides happen. Other days, not so much. The blend of the kinds of days that I have now is what keeps me on my toes, spiritually, intellectually, emotionally and physically...

Basically there a few kinds of days here in the non-profit world. Pretty similar to the rest of the world, yet, for me, the spiritual and emotional elements make it waaay more intense.

Basically Four kinds of days:
1.  The work we do matters and we are making a difference in the world. Yee haa!! I love my life.
2.  Nobody cares about the work we do, if they did, I would have more money to do it. Gotta work harder to grow this bad boy...
3.  Why the heck am I doing this, I must be crazy, stupid, a dreamer...I gotta find a new job.
4.  Ohh right...this is why I sacrifice, a life has been touched.

These days ebb and flow, ya just never know what will come at ya on any given day in this world full of emotions, full of passion, full of risk and most importantly full of love.

I was having a number three kind of day...Today I asked for some prayer to help me ask for more help. Just as I posted a prayer request I had a conversation with with a man I help and he told me he has a job interview that looks hopeful. As the day rolled on I have been blessed to receive prayers, loving calls, hugz and even some tangible expressions of support. Veggies, money and a few hours of volunteers time. Suddenly I was having a four kinda day, that quickly found itself being a ONE...

So if ya out there having a three kinda day...reach out for help and I guarantee it will shift itself soon!!

The Birth of a Social Enterprise.

As we work to fully launch Conscious Eats, we are in awe of all the support that is coming our way. We have been very generously supported by so many gracious members of our community. 

Time, talent and treasure have all been flowing our way in support of creating a social enterprise that will employ those who need a second chance and are diligently proving themselves worthy of a second chance. 

We are learning so much about creativity, compassion and diligence to name a few. We are working on a very tight budget to get Conscious Eats up and running. We are creating a catering company that will bring healthy delicious food to your office or home. We bring tasting experiences that not only are healthy, they educate and inspire exploration. 

Seeing our team use every ounce of their creativity to create a brand and a product that stands for the six pillars of character, trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, caring fairness and citizenship has shown me a whole new perspective on brand and mission development. 

As we continue to grow and evolve, I will work to give you a peek behind the scenes. 

We invite you to join in the conversation and as you do we hope you will join us around the table!

With the whirlwind of activity that is happening at Character Counts! in Jacksonville, it is increasingly necessary to provide timely updates to our supporters so that you can all be aware of our progress, decisions, successes and setbacks.  We are learning in leaps and bounds and hope that you are inspired to chip in as you see the progress being made.

First Quarter Report

For Character Counts:

• Almost 300 supporters celebrated our Golden Rule award winner Jim Baily!
• Joined the NonProfit Center of Northeast Florida
• Joined the Jax Chamber
• Joined Hands On Jax
• Worked with Perdue Office Systems to design and layout the interior plans for our warehouse/event space
• Cleaned out and organized our downtown warehouse space with the support of a great MEETUP volunteer team led by Bill Bade.
• Met with the District Superintendent of the United Methodist Church about potential initiative in the local schools
• Invited to the Interfaith Council at the school board (remember the goal to be invited back into the school systems!!)
• Hired two interns for the summer months
• Prepared for the Chick-Fil-A Leadercast event (May 10th, 2013).  Promoting and Advertising the event.  Preparing for volunteers, contract with the library, coordinating drinks & refreshments.
• Visited Baker CI to work with soon-to-be-released men.
• Continued Teen Court Parenting classes - received a touching letter from a parent who graduated from the class, that express deep gratitude for the class.
• Continued City Rescue Mission classes - deepening relationship with the team to create an employee funnel for Conscious Eats. 
• Establishing long term organizational chart and writing job descriptions for it.

For Conscious Eats:

• Hired our first full time employee, Shawn Bryson!
• Filed Fictitious Name with the state of Florida for our Conscious Eats catering company
• Obtained Tax ID # for the items to be sold
• Filed Application for Catering License with State of Florida
• Continued research and preparation for Conscious Eats - suppliers such as US Foods, Blue Buddha; requirements to meet state laws; identified potential Executive Chef
• Catered events for AIGA and JAMA for promotional purposes
• Catered our first event and deposited a check from it!!
• Identified potential Executive Chef, retired Navy vet, who is looking to volunteer his time. 
• Establishing long term organizational chart and writing job descriptions for it.

Are You Conscious? Of WHAT?

Our ability to choose to be conscious is what separates us from our animal friends. They act upon pure instinct. We have the capacity to understand and seek knowledge.

Our brains are designed to make choices. We do it constantly. Literally millions of times per day. 

I find myself making choices out of habit because I am sometimes lazy. I am tired, do not want to think, expel energy to make a choice. 

Other times when I make habitual choices it is about routine, leveraging the power of not thinking and using my time more wisely or many times making the same choice to create a predictable result.

So what are you thinking about consciousness???