Little has caught the attention of the Annapolis area more than the tragic death late in May of 14-year old Christopher Jones.
While riding his bicycle, Christopher was attacked by a small group, beaten, and left to die along Nantucket Drive in upscale suburban Crofton. The impact of the unprovoked violence was shock, anger, and a deep frustration in terms of the inability of a society to prevent such needless acts.
Occasionally an event like this becomes lost in the midst of the long list of tragic items that may appear regularly in newspapers and other media. But the events associated with Christopher’s death struck a nerve that went deeper as a community began the effort of trying to unwrap the causes that led to it.
What contributed to the events that unfolded on a Saturday afternoon in June were not the result of a single event as much as the result of a growing convergence of factors that made this horrific event an inevitability. Christopher Jones became a victim, one of many, who brought to light the great needs communities like Crofton must proactively address to preserve its youth and its future.
Dennis Gray, the pastor who led the memorial service, captured the heart-of-the matter later when commenting, “Everything within us wants to forget what happened here and be removed from the anguish of such an awful event. But the events associated with the death of this 14-year old scream out to us to wake up and respond in ways that might be effective in preventing it from ever happening again.”
But Gray didn’t stop with these challenging words. The pastor of Riva Trace Baptist church committed a portion of their sprawling campus in Davidsonville to build a LifeStation. He stated, “the face of Christopher Jones is the face of youth. He is your son or daughter, your grandchild. He is black, white, Hispanic, and Asian. He takes on the image of a generation who deserve more than what we have been able to provide”.
The LifeStation Vision
In collaboration and with the enthusiastic support of the parents of Christopher, Gray was the first to step up to direct a community initiative to establish a network of as many as 10 LifeStation facilities throughout the greater Annapolis area.
Each LifeStation is an independent non-profit organization owned and managed by a local Board of Directors operating under a license with LifeStation International with headquarters in Bristol, Indiana. LifeStation is a facility committed to youth that includes programs strategically designed to address critical areas of personal development. Local facilities will be part of an international network of similar facilities scattered throughout the United States and around the world.
The facility includes a Continental Bistro and Coffee Cafe. The design of the prototypical LifeStation includes a Performing Arts Center for concerts and other programs. LifeStation is a place for young adults to hang out while providing them unique opportunities to participate in a wide range of micro-businesses that can provide them income as well as scholarships to help defer cost of continuing education. A complete overview of the vision of LifeStation can be found at: www.life-station.org.
100% of the profits of a self-sustained LifeStation go to impacting the youth of a community. A development course is required of all young people participating in the Scholarship Trust Fund that focuses on character, entrepreneurialism, values, and what it means to live in a world today in relationship with others. The focus of LifeStation is built around the timeless Biblical admonition that we love God and others.
Each LifeStation in the greater Annapolis area will be dedicated to the memory of Christopher Jones. In the words of his parents, “...we want the death of our son to count for something. If LifeStations can provide young people the opportunity to discover themselves, their potential, teach values, build character, and equip the leaders of tomorrow on how to live in relationship with God and with others we will have the comfort of knowing that our loss can be turned to gain in the lives of others and the community of which we are a part.”
The Benefits of LifeStation
The LifeStation program is comprehensive. Among the benefits offered by a local LifeStation are:
- Micro-Business Experience--Young adults can participate in one of many micro-businesses where they can develop entrepreneurial skills, learn the value of work, how to manage money, and develop their personal skill sets. Adults can volunteer in a variety of capacities including being “consultants” to the youth management of one of several micro-business opportunities.
- Scholarship Trust Fund-- Students can earn money at a LifeStation but can also allocate all or a portion of their income to a Scholarship Trust Fund administrated independently by The Ambassador Foundation, a donor advised fund headquartered in Lancaster, PA.
- Character Course--All workers are required to participate in a three-year character course that provides added dimension on how traditional values integrate with life in the marketplace of our culture.
- Outreach--The Performing Arts Center hosts concerts, drama, and a wide range of community focused events and programs designed to serve, entertain, and to reach out to the young adults of the surrounding community.
- Self-Sustaining--One of the great benefits of LifeStation is that each facility is designed to be self-sustaining. Monies will be raised locally to cover construction costs and the multiple sources of revenue generated by each facility are sufficient to fund operational needs while generating income for scholarship aid.
- Serving--Student workers will become engaged in serving the community as well have opportunities to participate in global serving projects in under developed countries of the world.
The Strategic Plan
A LifeStation facility can be built as a stand-alone facility or could occupy existing space that can be adapted to accommodate facility needs. Local "anchor sponsors" are being sought in each locality where a Christopher Jones Life Station will be constructed. Additional funding for the balance of the project will be raised from the community through gifts, foundation grants, corporate gifts, and ongoing advertising by local businesses committed to the support of youth programs.
The Opportunity
In the words of one enthusiastic businessman, “If we continue to do things that way we've been doing them we can expect the same results we are currently achieving"! LifeStation is a fresh approach designed to impact the youth of this generation. It shatters old paradigms and acknowledges the fact that the young adults of today won't be running to church. The parents of Christopher Jones hope they'll be running to LifeStations throughout the world and will have their lives impacted for good and for God! They believe LifeStation is the most cutting edge new vision of our time.
To learn more how you can be a part of LifeStation|Annapolis Area, please proceed to the Contact section of this website.
