From AGRM to Citygate Network: The Process

As of August 1, 2018, the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions is doing business as Citygate Network, with an emphasis on gospel-powered life transformation. This refocusing and rebranding initiative took the better part of a year to unfold. There were numerous meetings with think-tank groups, focus groups, a Blue Ribbon Panel, the staff, and the board. In the end, the changes were widely embraced by members and other stakeholders, and the process has been declared by some nonprofit leaders as the model to follow for introducing an organizational makeover.

This timeline highlights some of the key communications with members over the course of the year. Click on the buttons and read the articles or watch the videos to be fully informed about the development, explanation, and vision of Citygate Network.

INFORMATION ABOUT OUR EXCITING FUTURE!

Greetings,

You’ve likely heard some recent chatter that AGRM is thinking about expanding its reach and doing a bit of rebranding. Actually, if you were in Dallas for AGRM’s Annual Convention this past June, you heard more than chatter. Attendees at that event listened to me give a 10-year progress report and share some exciting possibilities regarding a path to even greater effectiveness in the days ahead.

Admittedly, what I had to say introduced a certain “C” word: change. That particular word tends to evoke another “C” word for a lot of people: concern.

I have put together a lot of information to bring all members up to speed on what I talked about in Dallas and where things currently stand. And if by chance what I had to say triggered that second “C” word for you, I want to introduce you to a third “C” word: confidence.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT AGRM’S EXCITING FUTURE

I wasn’t in Dallas. What did I miss?

If you have the time, you can watch my full presentation from the Annual Convention by clicking this link. If you want a summary in 10 points, here it is:

AGRM has made great progress over the past 10 years in regard to addressing members’ past concerns (outlined in the 2007 Chorus Report) and in restructuring, relocating, re-staffing, and reorganizing our programs, products, and services.
Many of our member services have received (and continue to receive) awards from credentialing organizations and professional evaluators, confirming that members are receiving high value in exchange for their dues.
We are constantly introducing new education and training programs (e.g., micro-credentialing, Ripple Effect), far-reaching public and government awareness initiatives (e.g., Faith & Giving Coalition, Same Kind of Different as Me), and ministry opportunity consciousness and insights (e.g., medical respite care, human trafficking).
In 10 years, we have not wavered from keeping the gospel a core component in our association and in the philosophy of ministry we project upon (and expect from) our members.
Mission membership and business membership are at a 10-year high, event attendance remains healthy, and we are in a strong financial position.

BUT THIS CAN’T CONTINUE.
The work that rescue missions do is increasing in volume and complexity (thanks in large part to a changing culture and increased government intervention), plus new needs are emerging constantly.
AGRM does not have (and has never had) the membership volume—currently just under 300 missions—to be able to increase capacity to serve members’ expanding needs, dictating that the association either has to grow or cut back on what it provides.
A growth strategy will require AGRM to reinvent itself, including the undertaking of a rebranding (which, some argue, is already overdue).
Many gospel-focused organizations minister to people in what we consider the “mission district” who would never consider joining an entity called the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions because they don’t see themselves fitting the image of the historic rescue mission (even though they could sign our Statement of Faith and would greatly benefit from the services, resources, and network our association provides).
With full board support, AGRM will start a one-year process—involving significant member input—of moving toward a growth initiative and exploring ways to take full advantage of the opportunities for collaboration that God has placed in front of us.

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Is this what some might call an organizational life-cycle decision?

Indeed, that is part of it. AGRM has ridden up on the crest of an epic wave. Membership is strong. Products and services are plentiful and appreciated. Government agencies, other ministries, and the public at-large have a renewed awareness and respect for what our organization stands for and what it produces.

But very soon, we will have a choice to make: We can ride this wave all the way to the beach, or we can stay in the action and paddle out to the next wave.

To move this conversation onto a life-cycle chart (below), we are approaching what’s known in the world of organizational management as a key decision point. We either start getting ready to manage a gradual decline—or reinvent ourselves for the probable future.

The truth is, this is a choice that needs to be made multiple times throughout the history of any organization. Since its inception, AGRM has decided on several occasions to paddle out to that next wave, changing its name, its mission and vision, its operating principles, its perspectives, and more. After almost 30 years, it is time to do this again.

At the risk of overstating it, in the process of climbing on to a new wave, we will NOT be changing our emphasis on the gospel as the catalyst for life transformation. And we will not be relaxing our statement of faith, code of ethics, or other tenets to which we hold.

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What has happened since the Dallas convention?

I’ve let some time go by before reintroducing the proposed plans I presented in Dallas so we could: (1) collect feedback and assess pushback, should there be any; (2) convene a think-tank of association experts to process a slew of possibilities; and (3) have an AGRM board meeting so our leaders could ponder and process future direction in light of our storied past.

Regarding the collection of feedback, one of the questions we put on the convention survey was this:

Q12: As an AGRM member, how are you feeling about President John Ashmen’s presentation on future rebranding/restructuring and collaboration with like-focused ministries?

As you can see above, of those who heard the presentation, 20 percent checked #1 and 66 percent marked #2. Only 10 percent selected #3 and 4 percent picked #4. Interestingly, not one respondent voted for #5. Combining #1 and #2, a surprising 86 percent of attendees seemed to be positive about what they heard. And by the way, participation in 2017 Annual Convention evaluation was higher than in past years, increasing the reliability of our sample. So in short, those attending the convention are pretty much ready to go!

Even now in October, I have to say that excitement remains high. And while we have had some members issue appropriate warnings, there has been no strong, unified dissention.

Regarding the think-tank, in mid-June in California, I met with a group that has a combined 170 years of experience in association leadership and organizational management. They provided significant input and enhanced some of the rough ideas. They also pointed out possible pitfalls and made a lot of encouraging suggestions. Their work produced several guiding principles, which the AGRM board heard and endorsed.

The meeting of the board that followed a few weeks later was highly reflective but future focused. The board affirmed the association’s Statement of Faith and Code of Ethics. The group also looked at our values, mission, and vision, in light of any rebranding or embracing of new opportunities. Our values will remain the same. Mission and vision will likely be “tightened up” slightly in the months ahead.

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What comes next?

Over the next few weeks, we will be appointing a “Blue Ribbon Panel” made of 15–20 individuals, representing a cross section of our member organizations. These individuals will help guide the rebranding and growth initiative until it is finished.

We will also be engaging a branding company to serve us along the way in a testing and consulting role. We have already started talking to two such companies.

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So, how does a ministry know when it’s time to rebrand?

The Internet is replete with articles on reasons for rebranding. Here are three specific reasons to rebrand, with real-life examples from the evangelical world:

When you have grown to become much more than your name implies
Example: HCJB > HCJB Global > Reach Beyond
HCJB, started in Ecuador, was the first Christian missionary radio station in the world. As the work expanded into medical services and crossed oceans, it became HCJB Global. In 2014, with workers in 100-plus countries, they rebranded as Reach Beyond, focusing on media, healthcare, and community development in areas where Christians are a small percentage of the population.

When your name is entwined with an outdated nomenclature from the past
Example: American Sunday School Union > American Missionary Fellowship > InFaith
Early on, this organization was all about establishing Sunday schools in urban and rural America. As the Sunday school movement began to lose steam and the organization’s “home missionaries” engaged in other endeavors, they became American Missionary Fellowship. By 2011, that name was seen as limiting and soft; they rebranded as InFaith. Today, they give their field staff freedom to develop unique ministries that best reach their local communities with the gospel.

When your name is seen to be culturally problematic
Example: Campus Crusade for Christ > Cru
This organization did not change its name to Cru because they thought identifying with Christ was hurting them (although it does keep some doors from opening quickly these days). They did so to avoid the negative connotation that “crusade” invokes in Muslim communities. Plus, much of the organization’s evangelism work is no longer limited to college campuses.

The changes outlined above were not easy, particularly for stakeholders who were longtime supporters. They saw history and organizational culture disappearing, and feared the worst in regard to the future. But they were changes that needed to be made. Today, the three ministries mentioned are doing quite well.

Interestingly, the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions, in some ways, can identify with all three reasons described above.

If we are going to grow and draw into our circle the ministries that fit well with what our missions will (should) be doing, we need to have an identity with “wide doors” that minimizes misconceptions and unfavorable mental images that might exist. The bottom line for our association, when it comes to rebranding, is sustainability and growth so that Kingdom work can be done more efficiently and more effectively. I know that is something we all want to see happen.

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How important is it for AGRM to identify with gospel, rescue, and mission?

Identifying with these words and having the words in our name are two different things. We will always identity with gospel, rescue, and mission. That is very important to us. But it’s also important to us to serve a new generation of ministries who respect these words but don’t readily use them in the same context we use them.

These words have different levels of importance and prominence in AGRM’s current members. It might surprise you to know that:

Only 15 percent of our members have the word gospel in their name.
Only 44 percent of our members—less than half—have the word rescue in their name. And when we look at just those members that have come into AGRM in the last five years, that number falls to 20 percent. (More about this in a future email.)
About three-quarters—76 percent—have the word mission in their name.

I guarantee you that the 85 percent that don’t have gospel in their name remain convinced that it is core to their purpose. They simply don’t include it in their moniker for a variety of reasons.

At the risk of being redundant, I will say this again: Our association will always stand on the fact that the gospel is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes. And without that power, the organizations that we serve would be just an eclectic collection of social justice organizations.

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How would AGRM’s rebranding affect the brand of individual missions?

It wouldn’t. Rescue mission boards make the decision to rebrand when they believe there is a compelling reason to do so. I am not at all suggesting that individual members need to change their brand. If your mission is known as the Main Street Gospel Rescue Mission and that name is esteemed in your community and easily draws people of all ages to your cause—and you are sure it will be a strong brand going forward—it would be foolish to change it.

And keep in mind that it’s extremely unlikely our association’s rebranding would even be noticed by your constituents and outside stakeholders—unless you wanted them to know about it. We come in the back door of your mission and provide you with the resources you need to accelerate quality and effectiveness. You go out the front door of your mission to your community encouraged, equipped, and empowered by your association. But you go wrapped in your own brand, not ours.

A surprising number of member missions have done a rebranding in recent years, for various reasons. Looking back at some recent issues of Street Smart, I see where Lenawee County Mission (Michigan) changed its name to Neighbors of Hope, offering a more welcoming word picture. And Albuquerque Rescue Mission (New Mexico) rebranded as Steelbridge Ministries, offering a creative word picture that breaks away from the prototypal image. I spoke at the event where Bakersfield Rescue Mission (California) became The Mission at Kern County, showing that they serve a broader area than just one city. Even our board chair went through a rebranding a few years back. The Atlanta Union Mission (Georgia) dropped the word Union from its name because it was no longer relevant. They are now Atlanta Mission. Such changes are always an individual mission decision; AGRM has no say.

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What are some of the ministries we might attract if we rebrand?

We are talking about organizations that provide services to hungry, homeless, abused, and addicted people, but don’t identify as traditional rescue missions. It could include those running a community kitchen, those doing addiction counseling, those offering language classes to immigrants, those conducting vocational training, those running independent thrift stores, those housing and helping men recently released from prison, those nurturing and supporting unwed mothers, those providing safe houses for victims of human trafficking, and the like. Again, we are talking about organizations run by people of like faith who would greatly benefit from the services, resources, and network our association provides. In fact, some are already asking if there is a way to connect.

After hearing my words in Dallas, more than a few rescue mission leaders told me that they felt convicted to seek out and get better acquainted with other evangelical ministries in their cities—to see where there is alignment or overlap, and how they might collaborate for better results. This is how we see growth happening in our association.

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How will new members affect our internal culture?

My hope is that they will enrich it. Fresh ideas and new perspectives are healthy. When faced with new possibilities, most Christians (I’m sorry to say), imagine the problems and fear the worst. But looking back down the road of history, reluctant acceptance was eventually replaced by wonderful advancement.

One fear members might have about what we are undertaking is that our association is going to throw open the doors and we will be invaded by a horde of unfamiliar, ungrounded social justice junkies who will bring about a seismic shift in our organization. That’s not at all what our board—which is ultimately guiding this—is thinking. We are looking at opening our doors and having our members go out and bring in those whose ministries are on parallel paths. They will give us vanguard insights as we impart to them knowledge born from experience.

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Would AGRM open membership to those who can’t sign our statement of faith?

Absolutely not. The organizations that we would want to have in our association would have to agree with our beliefs on the essentials of the Christian faith. They would also have to abide by our code of ethics and be in line with other positions we hold. Likewise, they would have to be gospel-focused in their programs and operations. Additionally, we would like them to be members of ECFA.

To be clear, from time to time, AGRM does collaborate with other ministries and faith-based organizations on certain initiatives or commissions where having a broader network produces a stronger voice, such as our Faith & Giving Coalition or the Circle of Protection. I talked about this in Dallas. Some of the other ministries that participate in these groups would have problems with our theology. But we need to be together to accomplish what’s best for all of us. Arrangements like this—which we will continue to do—are totally different from what I am talking about in regard to AGRM’s own branding and growth.

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What will the new name be?

We have a lot of work to do before we get to names and logos. We first want to create several membership models based on collaboration possibilities and then develop funding strategies. Following that, we have to look at how to build and tier a member service proposition that makes sense for the future. There may end up being more than one category of mission membership.

We’ve seen other organizations go through a rebranding, and a couple of things are pretty much guaranteed: Not everyone will be immediately satisfied, and it will take a bit of time for people to get used to something different.

But the truth is, when it’s all done and any smoke blows away, most members will not notice a major difference. But they will benefit from being more connected to like-minded ministries in their communities and the increased reach and recognition of our association in the Christian community and to the public at-large. We just ask all of our members to be kind and patient with us.

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What can I do to engage?

I’m glad you asked.

You can let me know if you have a high degree of interest in this process and want to serve on any of the panels or task forces that are being brought together to respond to ideas and shape the conversations. You can be involved without having to travel.
You can respond in a timely manner when you receive survey questions related to rebranding and member needs/desires from AGRM or an outside party representing us. That will help us tabulate results quickly and keep the process moving.
You can also pray for the process and everyone involved. Pray for wisdom and clarity and that all of the goals behind the rebranding will be realized.

Even though we have not been talking about this constantly (nor do we plan to), there is still a lot of buzz about where our association is headed. I hear this, directly and indirectly, when I talk to CEOs on the phone and engage with other members at district conferences and other events. Even so, I occasionally run into someone who misinterpreted something I said or picked up on a rumor. If you encounter someone like that, something else you can do is assure them that they will not lose their association and that the association’s president has not lost his mind. The board is together on this, a myriad of members will be involved in the process, and the association will not depart from its position that the gospel is the catalyst for transformation and development of poor and powerless people everywhere.

When the world around us changes—which it does constantly—followers of Jesus need to adjust their appearance and habits and make accommodations in order to make a difference in their spheres of influence. That’s what the Apostle Paul talks about in 1 Corinthian 9:22. The same principles hold true for an organization. We need to position ourselves for right now, as well as for the future we see coming. And if we do that well, I believe our association’s best days are ahead.

John Ashmen
AGRM President
jashmen@agrm.org

The Theology of Rebranding

by John Ashmen

I’m constantly being asked these days about rebranding. Since we have been in the midst of it for the past several months, people want my insights. They want me to walk them through the entire process and tell them what to expect should they undertake such a journey.

Honestly, our rebranding experience has been quite good (probably because a lot of our members were ready for it). But rebranding experts say to expect a variety of reactions—some positive, some not so much—all along the route. That’s because, as humans, we like routines and a sense of stability in our lives. Change disrupts the sameness that we need for normalcy to exist.

In case you haven’t noticed, our culture is undergoing tremendous change right now. For evangelicals, the change is significant. Some Christians are moving right; some are moving left. A lot of others are standing where they always have, trying to make sense of it all.

A few weeks ago, I heard author Danielle Strickland say these words: “The Kingdom of God is in a season of holy disruption.” She went on to tell how He is using confusion to jolt His followers out of their comfort zones and invite them in to what He is doing.

That’s exactly what He did all through Scripture. In that regard, God was the original “rebrander.” He changed the names of people when He wanted to get their attention and use them to communicate a new purpose or tell a bigger story. He renamed Abram Abraham, Sarai Sarah. Jacob became Israel—the prevailer, overcomer—after a midnight wrestling match. Jesus created a new identity for Simon son of John when he changed his name to Peter, the Rock. Saul was rebranded from his Hebrew name to his Latin name, Paul, in order to spread the gospel more broadly. So when you think about it, rebranding is actually a way to reimagine and reengage on a higher level. That’s how we look at it.

You might ask, “What does AGRM’s rebranding mean for me?” Here’s the answer: as little or as much as you want it to. Our rebranding doesn’t change anything about your brand. You might put our new name and logo on the bottom of your homepage, but your donors and key stakeholders will not be affected. The guests you serve will not know or care that the entity providing education, training, resources, guidance, and representation for missions and kindred ministries has undergone a major makeover.

But hopefully, you will allow it to make a difference. Hopefully you will come to embrace our broader vision and new identity and consider how your own organization’s focus might need to be adjusted—maybe slightly, maybe a lot—to fit in more dynamically with what God is doing all around us these days.

The AGRM board and staff are looking at our rebranding as a minor shake-up in the bigger holy disruption that God is overseeing. We’re convinced He has a bigger and more exciting plan, and He wants us to be part of it. I pray that your soul will be stirred as you continue to contemplate the theology of rebranding.

Reasons For Changing Our Name

You’ve now seen the five animated videos about AGRM’s refocusing and rebranding. (If for some reason you’ve missed those, this link will take you to them.) Toward the end of this week, you will be getting a very different video from AGRM, specifically announcing and expounding on our new name and showing some of our new identity elements.

But before you watch this soon-to-come video, we want you to hear a few things from us. First and foremost, we want you to hear that we are convinced God has clearly led this refocusing and rebranding initiative. It didn’t come about because of boredom or curiosity. It wasn’t born from an impulse to deviate and send our organization in another direction, theologically or otherwise. It isn’t rooted in a desire for monetary gain or vain recognition. It is the result of: (1) our conviction that missions collectively need to fully embrace the work of life transformation that is so central to the gospel; (2) our belief that the need for a broad network to resource, serve, and inspire those doing this kind of work with desperate and destitute people is greater than ever; (3) our confidence that if we are properly focused and aligned, our most fruitful days are ahead of us; and (4) our longing to see His Kingdom come, on earth as it is in heaven.

We also want to assure you that the AGRM board and other committees and teams have been part of this every step of the way. This is an organization-wide initiative that has been painted with creativity, framed with our strong tenets, backed with prayer, and will be displayed with pride.

Finally, we want you to hear again, the primary reasons why the name-change part of our rebranding needs to be done. This is always the hardest part of rebranding for a broadly owned organization because familiarity disappears for a little while, and the new name takes some getting used to. But we were told by multiple experts, plenty of outside observers, and even many of our members that AGRM was long overdue for such changes.

Here are some of the things we considered regarding our name change:

It’s Been a Real Mouthful
The Association of Gospel Rescue Missions is a 13-syllable handle. People hearing it for the first time need a mental pause to connect all of those words into a logic stream. And even then, an explanation is usually required.

Once people get to know us, they invariably shorten our name to the letters AGRM—which sounds so familiar to everyone on the inside. But we’re not as famous as IBM or CNN; to everyone on the outside—church leaders, college students, company presidents, agency heads, councilmen, congresswomen, reporters, and others—the letters AGRM mean absolutely nothing.

And then, to go one step further (in the wrong direction), some folks make AGRM a word: agg´rum—which sounds like it has more to do with farming than life-transformation. Unfortunately, our name and its derivatives are not doing anything to help us stake out a widely recognized identity. Consequently, we have to work harder and spend more time and money to position our name for recognition.

We need a name that’s more communication-friendly and cost effective.

Guilt by Association
More than 60 percent of associations out there today are experiencing flat or declining membership. Studies show that this disengagement is happening because younger generations, while they are eager to participate, are reluctant to join. The word association conveys hierarchy, bureaucracy, processes, in-crowd, and life-long careers. In stark contrast to that, they are looking for flexibility, adhocracy, collaboration, inclusion, and meaningful opportunities.

Additionally, it’s hard to raise money for associations. Trying to convince funders that dues don’t and can’t cover our full operating costs is always a major first hurdle.

We need a name that says involvement is a comfortable proposition and worth the investment.

Sorry, We Don’t Do Cats
We still get calls from people thinking the words rescue mission in our name—even though they are preceded by the word gospel—indicate that we have something to do with saving and protecting distressed or unwanted pets. That’s a wonderful cause, just not ours.

And then there are those who think our name signals an involvement in heroic military operations. We pray for those people, but we certainly don’t do what they do.

We need a name that’s not routinely misleading.

We Need Each Other
Rescue missions have had a long, illustrious history in North America. There is much to celebrate because much has been accomplished. But that same history has created an identity—be it perceived or actual—that to the typical outsider is more about what we (and our missions) were as opposed to what we offer today. We need to update that identity.

Our current identity is also a barrier, preventing other aligned ministries that do life-transformation work with hungry, homeless, abused, and addicted people from collaborating with us—because they never have and never will consider themselves a traditional rescue mission. But the truth is, these ministries desperately need what we provide and the connections that we have within our network. And frankly, we need them if we are going to see healthy growth. Local ordinances, political opposition, lack of sufficient funding, NIMBY, and the like are limiting the number of new full-service missions coming online these days.

But more importantly, if more like-minded and like-focused ministries from the same cities were working in partnership, it would cut back on the duplication of services and help everyone to be better stewards of the resources that are often hard to come by. Such solidarity on the faith front would send government leaders some important signals. And we would all likely see greater success in achieving our goals.

We need a name that’s a welcome mat for like-minded, like-focused ministries.

An Unsettling Word
We’re finding that the word rescue is getting more and more pushback these days from younger Christ-followers. They say it produces an uneven power dynamic between the “rescuer” and “rescuee”; they believe that such terminology is problematic because it inhibits the path to healing and survival for the person being helped—whether it be victims of human trafficking, survivors of a hurricane, or homeless addicts strung out on meth.

For certain, a lot of the people now starting to come up through the ranks in missions do not want to identify with the image of a hero in a cape swooping down to pluck desperate and destitute people out of their misery and “fix” them. (Nor do they want to deal with the questions that brings up about motives.) Instead, they prefer to be seen as journeying alongside them, in their own brokenness, making their way together toward wholeness.

We’ve had to ask ourselves if this is just semantics, if it simply stems from naivety, or if it’s an astute observation that we aren’t quick to comprehend because we are too close to the word. Regardless, it’s looking more and more like this will become the prevailing opinion of younger evangelicals in the days ahead. And for us as an organization, if we are going to successfully hand things over to “those coming behind,” we have to prepare for the changes in etymology that permanently work their way into our language and culture from time to time. We’ll still use the word rescue in all the appropriate places, it’s just that it won’t be in our name.

NOTE: This is an AGRM (corporate) issue that we need to fix if we are going to have greater receptivity in the public arena on a national (actually, continental) scale in the future. We are not saying that the approximately 40 percent of missions in our membership that have the word rescue in their name need to address it or even be concerned about it. It’s a local decision. If you have the word rescue in your name and are convinced that your brand has wide community acceptance and it works for what you are doing and where you are heading in the future, there is likely no need to address it.

We need a name that doesn’t give potential stakeholders cause to pause.

Paint Me a Picture
The brand-name category into which the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions fits is called “Descriptive.” Other descriptive names would be like Fellowship of Christian Cowboys, the Association of Christian Schools International (another long one), and Montana Log Homes. They explain who fits into the group or what the business produces, but they lack imagery or an aspirational element.

Names that creatively portray how an organization or company sees itself or what it can offer are in the “Connotative” brand-name category. They would include the campus ministry The Navigators, the Christian camp and conference center Forest Home, and the golf club company Titleist. This is the route we’ve chosen for our new name; it will be more imagery and less explanation.

Great brands also have a graphic element and a thematic tagline that accompany the name. Examples would be Compassion International’s brush-stroke image of the leaping child and the words, “Releasing Children from Poverty in Jesus’ Name”; the youth ministry organization Young Life’s set-apart artsy YL letters and the slogan, “You Were Made for This”; and Nike’s famous swoosh and the words, “Just do it.” Our new brand will have these elements, as well. We will also have what we are calling a “heritage keystone” that will go on our website and all publications and printed pieces. It talks about the “what” and “with whom” and for “how long.”

We need a name that plays with the imagination and inspires.

Be sure to watch for the video later this week. In the meantime, as we’ve said all along, if you have any questions about any of this, please don’t hesitate to contact either of us.

Thank you for what you do every day to make an eternal difference in the lives of people in need. Thanks for letting us make a difference in your ministry.

Cordially in Christ,

John Ashmen, AGRM President
on behalf of the AGRM staff

Bill Mollard, AGRM Board Chair
on behalf of the AGRM board

ASSOCIATION OF GOSPEL RESCUE MISSIONS CHANGES NAME TO CITYGATE NETWORK

Organization Represents North America's Oldest and Largest Group of Independent, Faith-Based Homeless Services Providers

Colorado Springs, CO --- August 1, 2018 --- The Association of Gospel Rescue Missions (AGRM) is now operating as Citygate Network. Members of the 112-year-old organization were first presented with the idea of rebranding in June 2017. Over the past twelve months, the importance of a makeover was explained through internal publications and other media. The new name was introduced just prior to the organization's June 2018 annual convention.

Citygate Network references the gathering places that were created between inner and outer gates of walled cities in biblical times. For strangers and settlers alike, welcome, protection, aid, advice, supplies, legal resolution, and more could always be found there.

"Urban centers today don't have literal city gates-those courtyards of acceptance and assistance," says Citygate Network President John Ashmen, "but metaphorically speaking, we need them more than ever. In fact, we need a network of always-open city gates from coast to coast where the most marginalized members of society can enter and find what they need to complete the journey from human suffering to human flourishing."

Rescue missions have been part of the North American landscape since the 1870s, providing help and hope to hungry, homeless, abused, and addicted people. In many U.S. and Canadian cities, a member of this network is often the largest homeless services provider. In some cities, it is the only homeless services provider.

One of the reasons for the rebranding is that more and more missions these days are expanding beyond the food, clothing, shelter, and addiction recovery programs for which they have been known. They are also offering recuperative care, mental health assessments, medical and dental treatment, general and specialized education, job training and placement, housing acquisition services, and community engagement opportunities.

"Our member organizations meet people at their lowest point and offer radical hospitality," Ashmen says. "But immediate help needs to be married to long-term hope. More specifically, the act of rescue needs to be joined to the process of gospel-powered life transformation. And that's why a growing number of our members are offering these services, or they are collaborating with other agencies that do. Rescue still occurs," Ashmen continued, "but these days, we are equally about restoration and re-assimilation."

With this broadened perspective, a lot of independent ministries and even churches that work with poor and powerless people, but don't see themselves as traditional rescue missions, can now fit comfortably within the Citygate Network.

Even with a new name and wider focus, the Christian gospel is still front and center with every missions and ministry that is part of Citygate Network. The gospel is seen as the supernatural catalyst for change in the life of a person that sets this large group of autonomous organizations apart within our culture.

"The Bible tells us that life comes with a reset button," Ashmen points out. "It says that if someone repents and turns to Jesus, they can become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun. Our tagline underscores this prospect. It says 'Enter here. Start anew.' And that's what hundreds of thousands of people do every year."

Citygate Network is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Colorado Springs, CO, with approximately 300 members in the US, Canada, and the Caribbean. For more information go to www.agrm.org or www.citygatenet.org.

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Contact: Brad Lewis, Director of Communications, Citygate Network, at blewis@agrm.org or blewis@citygatenet.org, or call (719) 266-8300, ext. 103.

Beyond Rebranding

How we got to this point-and where we're now going

by John Ashmen

Throughout my first three months on the job, I kept getting the same two questions. They came from both members and nonmembers.

Are you going to move the office out of North Kansas City?

Are you going to change the name of the association?

I answered both with the same two sentences: "I don't know. We'll have to see how things go."

The Physical Move

Past board minutes showed that the issue of relocation for the headquarters was an ongoing agenda item long before I came on the scene in July 2007. Within six months, I was up to speed on all of the office issues and options. Over the next year, reasons to move were starting to outweigh reasons to stay.

Not long after that, toxicology reports from two independent inspectors confirmed our suspicions and finalized the decision: The building we owned in North Kansas City was rife with latent stage-four black mold. Estimates showed that remediation could cost as much as the building was worth in a down market. So, in 2009 we moved to Colorado Springs for dryer air and to garner the synergy of being in proximity to more than 125 other Christian organizations. Question #1 was answered.

Pondering Rebranding

After about four years, people stopped asking the second question-at least out loud. But to themselves, a lot of folks still wondered if the name Association of Gospel Rescue Missions had the necessary magnetism and message to advance our cause in a culture of confusion and massive change. I was one of them.

At the February 2014 board meeting, I presented a report on membership models, our internal culture and external trends, where I saw rescue mission ministry going in the future, and how our organization was positioned to handle what was ahead. In the context of that report, I suggested that we might want to start thinking about rebranding. To my surprise, the suggestion had a soft landing. There were more co-wonderers than I had thought.

Knowing that such base-level changes-specifically a name change-always have significant ramifications and usually engender intense emotional debate, the board had a thoughtful, lengthy discussion. The following section is taken from the official minutes of that meeting:

Ashmen asked to hear from the board whether or not they would like him to [start to explore rebranding]. Some of the individual responses are shown below, but they are not meant to convey the sentiments of the whole.

"Because of our new venture into cause marketing, a name change should be pursued sooner rather than later to avoid having to rebrand at a later time."

"It would be a good idea to start looking at (but not announcing yet) the idea of changing the name."

"A potential name change should be done purposefully, and not be rushed."

"AGRM could consider a DBA (doing business as) name instead of actually doing a name change."

"There is a group of member missions for whom a name change/branding change would be extremely difficult."

"We would benefit from an outside consultant (branding) for this process."

"It is essential that we recognize the history of who we are as an association, and approach this with much thought and prayer."

"Changing the AGRM name may also help some of the member missions to be able to change their names too and be more understood in their communities."

After discussion, a straw poll vote was taken as to whether behind the scenes work should be done exploring a name change. The result was two no votes and 13 yes votes. The board asked Ashmen to proceed in the preliminary exploration...

At that point, rebranding was put on a back burner under low heat. In the seasons that followed, as strategies for the future began to emerge, the heat under the idea of rebranding was gradually turned up. And, indeed, much thought and prayer did go into the process.

At the May 2017 Annual Convention in Dallas, I presented a 10-year progress report and shared some exciting possibilities regarding a path to even greater effectiveness in the days ahead. By October, rebranding was moved to a front burner, and by March of this year, the heat was on high.

The rebranding is now history. Most of what was said, done, and presented in the process is available for perusal. You can find it at citygatenet.org/rebranding. Click on the round buttons and view the videos or read the documents. This will remain online for the foreseeable future.

Member Responses

In the June 2018 Annual Convention survey, we asked attendees how they felt about the way the rebranding process was handled. We had 58 percent say "Very well done/A model for other organizations." The response "Pretty good/You covered most of the bases" was selected by 30 percent. Only 11 percent said "It was okay, but it left me with a lot of questions." Less than one percent said "I was not impressed/I didn't feel well informed." According to Tom Webb, principal at Bearings Branding, "For 88 percent to give a response of good or great is a home run."

The survey also asked attendees how they were feeling about the vision presented for Citygate Network. More than a third (35 percent) said they were "Energized/Excited," and just under half (48 percent) chose "Intrigued/Optimistic." Not quite 13 percent claimed to be "Ambivalent/Unsure," 3 percent stated they were "Nervous/Cautious," and just 1 percent chose "Frustrated/Doubtful." Again, per Tom Webb, "To have 83 percent be positive or generally positive at the outset about where an organization is going is something to celebrate."

New Perspectives and New Behavior

I heard often during the refocusing and rebranding process that it would not succeed because longtime members would push back strongly against such a significant change. Longtime members seemed to be defined as those who were in the organization when the name was changed the last time (1990). We ran the numbers in our office to find out how many that might be. It turns out that only six percent of our current members were around when that took place.

That caused us to run more numbers. We learned that the year 2011 is the median in our membership, meaning half of all of our members started in missions work two years into Barack Obama's first term. Switching from median to mean, we ran the numbers again and learned that the average member started in mission work in 2008. The truth is, our membership is young-and getting younger. That means new perspectives are emerging, and new perspectives are yielding new behaviors.

To go full circle, the new perspective that was driving the refocusing part of our refocusing and rebranding initiative is very much supported by those who have come on the scene in recent years. It's a perspective that mission leaders from every generation have always affirmed, but the urgency and magnitude of our work has never allowed us to fully develop and perfect it, and thus it was not really part of our AGRM brand (how we were known). What I'm talking about is the perspective that believes missions and kindred ministries must make every effort to move from a service-relief model to a service-development model.

The difference is that in the service-relief model, the material focus is on food, clothing, and shelter-which is imperative during times of disaster. But what happens when relief is offered to a community of people not experiencing an actual disaster? You simply have to look at all of our cities from coast to coast to find the answer: The affected communities (i.e., homeless people everywhere), over time, begin to behave like they are a disaster-and we respond with more disaster relief. Disaster relief is not the answer. Life-transformation is.

Proponents of the service-development model believe that relief of the human condition is important, but not our highest achievement. Rather, they believe the gospel is able to bear up and uphold people within their families, jobs, homes, and communities of faith. Service-development proponents believe that life sustainability within community is always greater than the placement of a life into a community.

To put this another way, we can put people in a job or in a house (which we should do), but in the process, we must develop these same people to sustain their own employment and housing choices, and teach them how to teach their children to do the same. This is our higher calling. This is what God's Kingdom "on earth as it is in heaven" looks like. This is how we refocus. And hear this: I am absolutely convinced that the powerful gospel of Jesus Christ that gives hope to the hopeless remains our #1 tool in the effort.

We're inviting generations of desperate and destitute people to have a city gate experience-to enter in and start anew...and ultimately finish well. Thank you for being part of our exciting relaunch called Citygate Network. I think you'll like where this is leading.

John is president of Citygate Network.