The M.O.S.E.S. records are divided into four series: History and Activities, Financial, Jeremiah Project Board, and M.O.S.E.S. Executive Board.
M.O.S.E.S., Metropolitan Organizing Strategy Enabling Strength, is an inter-racial, inter-faith community organization in Southeast Michigan. It was founded in 1997, by the leaders of three faith-based organizations in Detroit, Michigan: Jeremiah, West Detroit Inter-Faith Community Organization (WDIFCO-RUTH), and NOAH. Its main purpose is to strengthen the congregations and communities of metropolitan Detroit through social programs, leadership training, and participating in the public arena and democracy to cause beneficial change.
M.O.S.E.S. is concerned with any issues facing the residents of the metropolitan area. They work to fight urban sprawl and improve the area communities. Some of their most concentrated efforts have been supporting public transportation, crime and public safety issues, and sponsoring youth programs. M.O.S.E.S. has successfully petitioned the Michigan state government for money to support public transportation, obtaining state money in 2000 and helping pass the Regional Transit Authority bill in 2002. They have also started a campaign, “Fix it First,” to encourage the Michigan state legislature to allocate funds towards improving existing roads before funding new road projects.
A major achievement of M.O.S.E.S. was the establishment of “safe zones” around the area churches in 1996. They worked with local law officials to clean up the neighborhoods, combat drugs, and increase police presence. They have continued their efforts by obtaining additional funds for drug enforcement, building new houses, and maintaining their relationship with the police and civic officials.
M.O.S.E.S. is active in Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties, and is divided into three districts (JEREMIAH, RUTH, and NOAH). M.O.S.E.S. coordinates the districts and is responsible for obtaining funding, setting budgets, and providing training to district leaders. Each district is responsible for local recruitment, overseeing local staff, and developing projects for that area. By dividing M.O.S.E.S. into districts, they kept the number of congregations in each group small enough to be able to interact efficiently. M.O.S.E.S. is funded by dues from each member congregation and through an annual fund-raiser. The year’s activities are divided into trimesters: core team development, public action, and fund raising. Each trimester involves all members of M.O.S.E.S., begins with training, and ends with a major event.
More current information is available at the M.O.S.E.S. website, http://www.mosesmi.org/
