Week 4: Building Relationships

As I sit down to write this entry, I am still having trouble believing the month of July has arrived! It seems like I have been in Richmond for four days rather than four weeks. Even as the time has flown by, I seem to be “settling in,” so to speak, in my new home. The past week was not highlighted by any spectacular events or revolutionary realizations, but rather by subtle daily lessons, an increased familiarity with the city, and most importantly the development of personal relationships with friends and co-workers.

At Boaz & Ruth, I experienced a nice change in pace of work by getting out on the “front lines,” if you will. I spent Tuesday – Friday filling in as a driver for one of the moving trucks for the Mountain Movers business. It was quite relieving to step outside the commotion and unpredictability of the Boaz & Ruth headquarters and have a routine schedule with some good physical labor. It’s not every day you get to cruise around town, windows down, wind in the face, AC on low, and the hip-hop of “Power 92 Jams” blaring.

The best part of the job, though, was getting to spend some quality time with some of the guys in the program- Jasper, Jerome, and CT (Charles Thomas). Even though we didn’t engage in much conversation, I still feel closer with these guys simply because we shared a good day’s work together. As I’m learning, respect, patience, and the willingness to listen are the keys to laying a good foundation in these types of relationships. After these things have been established, there is more of a willingness on their part to open up. For example, on Thursday, Jasper spoke openly about the death of one of his good friends of which happened earlier that morning. While he didn’t show a lot of emotion, I don’t think this exchange would have happened if we hadn’t spent the previous two days working together.

As much fun as I had out on the moving truck, I am hoping to get back in the office next week. While I will willingly help out when there is a shortage of manpower, I didn’t come to B&R to be a Teamster driver. The lessons I’ve learned from Boaz & Ruth are not clear yet, and I feel as though a lot more interaction with co-workers and trainees is needed before I am satisfied with my internship experience.

Since I did spend a good part of my week exploring the city of Richmond, I feel now would be a good time to describe in detail the different neighborhoods of the city. One of the differences I’ve found between the South and Midwest, and specifically from Richmond to Minneapolis, is the distinct flavor of each neighborhood. As surprising as it may sound, one can really tell a lot about a person just based on what part of town they are from.

The part of the city where I live is dubbed “The Fan” because of the way the streets fan out from Monroe Park. This is a purely residential part of town filled mostly with young professionals and college students. It also includes most of the campus of VCU. I have enjoyed living in this part of town because of its close proximity to downtown and other city attractions.

Further west of The Fan is the West End, an affluent and predominately white part of the city. Here, churches appear more like historical landmarks or important government buildings. Beautiful brick houses with enormous front lawns appear fit for celebrities or plantation owners rather than everyday citizens. Shops and malls spring up like tulips in the spring.

Then there is the North side and the Highland Park neighborhood where Boaz & Ruth is located. In the old business district, commercial businesses in operation equal the number boarded up and shut down. Houses are more modest, often needing repair. Outside of the walls of Boaz & Ruth, you would be hard-pressed to find a white person roaming the streets of this neighborhood.

On the east end of Richmond is the Churchill area, fittingly named because of the large hill one must ascend to get there. This neighborhood is covered in churches, with one on almost every street corner. None are as famous as St. John’s Church, where Patrick Henry gave his “Give me liberty or give me death” speech. Churchill is a neighborhood in transition, with the city recently embarking on a revitalization project that is forcing businesses and homes to be fixed up or taken over. While improvements are being made, the area is still notoriously known for crime and poverty once you get a couple blocks off the main road.

Finally, there is the south side, which constitutes everything south of the James River. I have only explored the south side once, but from what I hear it is as diverse a neighborhood as Richmond has. Many Asians and Latinos mix with whites and blacks in this area to create an eclectic part of town.

The point of this was not to say that other cities do not have their distinct neighborhoods of which they can take pride in; it’s just that in Richmond I have experienced a difference not only in demographics or appearance in these communities, but a difference in the way people think and act. This is something I never noticed while living in Minneapolis.


To finish this week’s entry, I want to highlight another major difference I have noticed between the South and the Midwest. Ever since I have been here, it has been apparent that Richmond is in what many would call the “Bible Belt.” From my experiences, people down here speak more openly about their faith and feel it is their calling to help other people “see the light of Christ.” As I think I already touched on in another post, religion does play a more prominent role in people’s everyday actions. I would say prayer is more commonly used by most people for guidance on making decisions, and people tend to explain their path in life primarily as a ‘calling from God’ or because it was ‘where God led them.’ Of course, I am not condoning this mentality or even saying that people don’t do this in the Midwest, I’m just pointing out that it is something I’ve noticed a lot more since being in Richmond.

As I’ve become integrated into more social groups, I’ve also noticed that these social networks are based primarily around a church or church-related activity of some sort. From what I can tell, churches are the foundations of communities and people’s primary way of making friends. In fact, the first few weeks I was out here I noticed that after introducing myself as new to the area, people would often ask if I had found a church. Churches do a wonderful job of keeping people connected throughout the week by holding Bible studies, small groups, meal gatherings, etc. Now more than ever, as I have relied on my social skills to make friends, I continue to be fascinated by the ways people interact socially. I will be keeping a close observation on this as my relationships continue to strengthen.


In the end, it may be my social skills and knowledge, not my organization and nonprofit experience, that will benefit most from this journey to Richmond.