The Malone Center: Changing Lives
A Conversation Between John Goodwin and Jacque Genovese
John Goodwin, Executive Director at The Malone Center, is on a mission to ensure that Black, Indigenous, and Persons of color youth and families in Lincoln have the services, education, and tools they need to achieve success. John is passionate about changing experiences so that they have a positive impact on youth and families for generations.
Since 1955, The Malone Center’s vision has been to create unity and prosperity throughout Lincoln while honoring African American heritage. Its mission is to end multigenerational poverty in Lincoln. I talked with John about how their programs are reaching these goals.
How are you changing experiences?
John: Very intentionally. Success is different for every child and is based on their experiences growing up. We can’t change what they’ve already experienced but we can offer different experiences that will lead to their success. Through experience forms habits of thoughts, and habits of thoughts form behaviors, which leads to outcomes. We know that poverty is a mindset and what we’re seeing in the community is based on what the individual or family has experienced in the past. We are about changing their experiences to achieve successful outcomes.
What are some of the programs the Malone Center offers?
John: Our programs, encompass, education, wellness, youth, leadership, and teamwork through athletics. The foundation of our youth programs is STEM focused. From preschool through high school, we provide a variety of learning opportunities for our kids and their parents. We also have a full-time license therapist who is able to work with our kids every day individually with families, or in peer group settings.
What are some of the leadership programs you offer?
John: Through our Young Men & Women’s Business Leadership Academy, we teach our teens how to become entrepreneurs; own their own businesses. We take them on trips to engage with businesses and schedule visits to HBCU campuses to get them thinking about college. We had a high school senior that only had freshman credits. We took him on one of these trips where he met a woman who had started a cupcake business with her last $5 and today she is a multimillionaire. From that one interaction, he came back, got his GED, and enrolled at Southeast Community College.
Take Pause is another program that creates positive interactions between teens with the Lincoln Police Officers and allows them to build trust, respect, and mutual understanding. Together, they engage in activities, get together for meals, and participate in sports.
“To change the lives of the families we serve, we must change their mindset of what that looks like through different experiences.”
What services are provided through the Maternal Wellness program?
John: The Maternal Wellness program is one of our biggest programs and it focuses on decreasing Black infant and maternal mortality and morbidity rates and increasing breastfeeding rates by providing safe and culturally tailored care. Some of the services include birthing classes, labor/delivery and postpartum doula services, breastfeeding support, doula scholarships and mentorships, and our Milk Share program. We have served over 130 families through this program.
What is the Milk Share program?
John: Through our Milk Share Program, we facilitate milk sharing in Lincoln and Omaha for families who are unable to produce breast milk or don’t produce enough.
This program meets international standards and regulations, from donor screening, to storage and distribution of milk. We have a Milk Share mobile that delivers human milk to families within a two-hour radius of Lincoln and Omaha. We are the only agency in the country offering this program.
How can our readers get involved?
John: In order to change the mindset that our kids and families’ lives can be different, we must show them what it could look like. Our current 14,000 square foot facility is decades-old and we can’t sustain the growth we are experiencing.
We want our kids to see a nice facility that gives them hope.
This summer we will kick off the Breaking The Cycle Capital Campaign. Our new facility will be 53,000 square feet which will allow us to do everything here and have space to offer new programs and expand as we grow. We would love to have the 55+ readers support this important initiative that will benefit the Lincoln Community. Co-Chairs are Max Rodenburg and Jasmine Kingsley.
We also have a variety of volunteer opportunities listed on our website, malonecenter.org.
The building of a community center with dedicated and flexible space will better serve the growing community.
If you would like to learn about making a gift or naming opportunities with the Capital Campaign, contact John Goodwin at 402-318-5841 or send an email to CapitalCampaign@MaloneCenter.org.
To get involved or learn more about the campaign visit malonecenter.org/breaking-the-cycle.