[Chat] Living legacy Mission Statement - a cleaning service with a social purpose

Schlegel, William B CW4 RES USAR USARC william.schlegel at us.army.mil
Fri Apr 4 11:57:54 EDT 2008


Here is information about a cleaning service with a social purpose.  I heard Erica speak at the Greater Homewood Interfaith Alliance meeting, held at St. Mark's  in December 2007, and her story is impressive.  I encourage any of you who need cleaning services to contact her.  I also encourage you to invite her to speak to your community groups.  Her message is inspirational.

Please reply to all of my e-mail addresses

Sincerely,

W. Brad Schlegel
Publicity Chair, BMOG
1552 Oakridge Road
Baltimore, MD 21218-2228

410-467-1933 - H
410-962-9506 - W and Voice Mail
william.schlegel at us.army.mil, brad.schlegel at irs.gov, Schlegelw at mi.army.mil






  ----- Forwarded Message ----
  From: Erica McCoullough <choctaws1976 at verizon.net>
  To: sabrina.sutton at baltimorecity.gov; smoss1 at jhmi.edu; mjohnson at oedworks.com; jgriffin at baltimorebsa.org; jchurchill at flbcinc.org; marketingyou at aol.com; jpatterson at nllc.org; crodriguez at baltimorecitycouncil.com; tom.stosur at baltimorecity.gov; mysisterscircle at aol.com; aboutchi at gmail.com
  Sent: Sunday, January 27, 2008 6:20:42 PM
  Subject: Living legacy Mission Statement


  Living Legacy Development LLC
  Mission Statement

  Living Legacy Development, LLC is a professional, versatile eco-friendly cleaning and interior services company with a difference.  Fully bonded and insured, and run by former Baltimore City Public School System teacher Erica McCullough, it is the only organization of its kind in the greater Baltimore area to be staffed almost entirely by Baltimore area high school and college students who learn skills and responsibility on the job, while earning money to help support themselves and their families.  Living Legacy Development takes as its urgent mandate the task of connecting a hand-picked and select group of hardworking BCPSS students from a wide range of circumstances with positive, successful, and inspiring residents and members of the Greater Baltimore business community.

  As a lifelong Baltimorean and former BCPSS teacher, including in after-school programs, McCullough understood the dangers faced by many of Baltimore’s children after school.  Following the murder of a former student, Antonio Hill, and the birth of her own son, Carter, she was inspired to form Living Legacy as a way to support her own growing family at the same time as she helped others to learn, grow, and thrive in a city where for many opportunity is far from a given.

  The suddenness of the events that impelled Living Legacy Development’s creation—a death and a birth—did not permit time for the creation of a non-profit organization, a process that can be notoriously slow.  Instead, Living Legacy funded its own inception the same way it does its cleaning: the old-fashioned way, with personal investment and hands-on management.  Thus, startup expenses came not from small business loans, but from a second mortgage and the sale of McCullough’s wedding and engagement rings.  Run from McCullough’s home, and heavily involving its 28 staffers in scheduling and strategy processes, Living Legacy Development is truly a community-based, grass-roots organization.  Although Living Legacy is researching a possible shift to nonprofit status, for now, Living Legacy depends entirely upon its clientele.

  Living Legacy Development provides cleaning services to its clients, but also much more.  Living Legacy’s services include: daily, weekly, monthly, emergency, and seasonal residential and commercial cleaning services, school and day care cleaning, window cleaning, post-construction clean-up, turn-key cleaning, painting, and organizational and relocation services.

  Living Legacy Development accepted its first job in May of 2007.  Since then, Living Legacy has employed over 50 BCPSS students with a current roster of around 30, with more hires planned.  Living Legacy Development’s list of clients includes: The Green Mount School, The Green School, The Bolton Hill Nursery, Greater Homewood, The Choice Program, Baltimore Green Construction/Landmark Homes, Herring Run Association, Belair-Edison Neighborhoods, The Brown Memorial Church, as well as local activists, authors, members of law enforcement, directors, actresses, professors, counselors, rental property owners, teachers, doctors, politicians, counselors, and others.

  Living Legacy Development also provides key services to its staff.  Living Legacy Development is much more than just an after-school job or a way for college students to supplement their student loans.  From our inception, we have striven to provide our employees with as much support as possible.  We supply meals, shelter, child care, uniforms, laundry, services, a living wage, school/college/university/GED training, including help with applications, resume writing, computer skills, confirmation calls, scheduling, ordering supplies, time management, contract writing, etc.  Because of the diversity of our services, our workers learn many valuable job skills.  As important, because of the diversity of our clientele, our staff members also learn to work with and enjoy the company of people from a variety of cultural, religious, professional, and educational backgrounds.

  A few of Living Legacy’s success stories deserve their own snapshots.  Corey Holmes is a 17-year-old college student who supervises one of Living Legacy’s largest contracts.  His sister, Jessica, is an 18-year-old college student who supervises Living Legacy’s non-profit contracts. Jeane Baker is a 16-year-old residential supervisor, but also oversees the Bolton Hill Nursery/Brown Memorial contract and recently landed a prestigious summer journalism internship thanks in part to connections made through her work for Living Legacy.  Our only middle school student is Napier Edwards. She is 14 years old and has been working with Living Legacy for 5 months.  She an her family had been living in a shelter for a year before Napier’s work with Living Legacy enabled her family to move in to their first home in two years.

  If Living Legacy Development is one of only a very few companies not just to offer good jobs to Baltimore’s young people, but to offer positions of such high responsibility to its young staffers, Living Legacy’s employees have proven that they are worthy of it: Living Legacy Development maintains one of the highest ratings on Angie’s List (www.angielist.com) and we recently received their Superior Service Award. Our company has been featured in The Baltimore Messenger, two issues of Baltimore’s Child Magazine, Urbanite, The Afro-American Newspaper, and WBAL-TV news. We are trying to organize a fundraiser so that our company can continue. In the last month our furnace and our washing machine stopped working, our internet connection is unreliable, and I am facing surgery on my right arm. Since I am the only adult (over 19) and the primary driver etc. this is a huge blow. We are more determined than ever to find solutions and continue our work. If you have questions, time to mentor, time to volunteer, encouraging words for the children, comments, advice, etc., please call us at 410-419-3554.



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