Today we’d like to introduce you to Alyssa Scott.
Hi Alyssa, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My organization Because of Jesus began with small acts of generosity. During my senior year of high school, I would bag up extra food we had around the house and take it to homeless people in my city (Lancaster, Tx). I wasn’t sure how to best help them, but I wanted to do something rather than nothing. As I continued to go on these trips, I met a woman who was in need of medical attention. She had a badly infected foot that was keeping her from walking so, after hearing more of her story, I made calls to local shelters, hospitals, and other organizations to see what her options were. I couldn’t turn a blind eye to her suffering. About a week later, she was transported to a place where she could receive the help she needed. This experience changed my mindset drastically. I realized that I didn’t have to be a certain age or within a certain income bracket to effectively help those around me. Now I firmly believe in doing what you can with what you have. All change starts with small actions.
As a Christian woman, my faith drives everything that I do. Through prayer, the idea to start an organization came to me and from that moment, I began to create Because of Jesus as a way to serve those around me. I wasn’t sure what that would look like, but I knew that I was called to bless others with the abilities and resources I had been given. If you’re familiar with Christianity, then you probably know that Jesus lived a life of service and helped many who came to him during his time on earth and I strive to do the same. That’s why my experience with the woman in my city was life-changing because it showed me that I didn’t have to wait to do my part. While settling into my first year at Southern Methodist University, I used my free time to plan for our first winter clothing drive. From May to November of 2021, I gathered statistics about homelessness, designed and printed flyers, marketed the event, and took inventory of incoming donations. Our first winter clothing drive was successful with over 237 clothing items being donated and distributed to Dallas’ homeless population. Because of Jesus is just getting started and I’m so excited to see what we’ll be able to accomplish in the future.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Establishing credibility was my most difficult challenge. With the clothing drive being our first event, Because of Jesus wasn’t a known organization. I’m sure people were skeptical of the drive, but I fought to familiarize myself with community members and I leveraged social media as a tool to get my message across. To combat this, I partnered with the organization OurCalling which is a resource center for the homeless in downtown Dallas that I’d volunteered with in the past. Partnering with OurCalling allowed the donations to be effectively distributed to the people they serve and helped me gain trust from the community.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Because of Jesus?
Because of Jesus/B.O.J is an organization dedicated to helping anyone in need in any way possible. B.O.J seeks to make change through donations, partnerships, fundraising, and physical service. We believe in giving selflessly as Jesus Christ did and loving others as ourselves through caring for their needs. We seek to serve anyone we have the resources to effectively help and our current focus is the Dallas homeless population. Because of Jesus was started in April of 2021 by Alyssa Scott and we’ve just completed our first winter clothing drive to help lessen the burden that the wintertime can place on people facing homelessness.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
I’d like to emphasize that you don’t have to wait to pursue your dreams. A few short months ago as I was graduating high school, I had no idea that I’d be starting my organization and hosting a winter clothing drive all while starting my first semester of college. I thought that I had to be well into a high-paying career and out of college before I could truly go after my dreams, but a plan doesn’t have to be perfect to be executed. What I realize is that, even though I can’t do all the things I plan to do at this moment, there’s still small ways that I can help. I believe that doing something small is better than doing nothing at all so if you want to make a difference, why not start now? Small actions add up to big impact and there’s always something to give.
Contact Info:
- Email: boj.alyssa@gmail.com
- Website: https://linktr.ee/because_ofjesus
- Instagram: because_ofjesus
