Leadership and Legacy: (The Stokes Family Impact)
00:00:00 hey what’s up everybody you tuned in to another episode of strategic moves I’m your host Ken da this is a place where we bring art culture politics and business all together we do it every week right here on this podcast but when I’m not shooting this podcast I am the owner of strategic resources where we specialize in political campaigns government and public relations I’ve been doing it around this whole city and this nation for over 20 years and I want to make your next move a strategic move and this program gives me an opportunity to do just that I bring on some
00:00:31 of the people I’ve met we talk about some of our experiences and maybe just something out of that you will get that can help you in your business or your personal life so if that sound like something that you’re interested in all I need you to do is hit that like button hit the Subscribe button and the notification Bell as well so that you will know the next time this program is coming up so without that we’re going to get started right into our program today before I get going though on that program I want to give a shout out to uh podcast producer who helps put this whole program
00:01:03 together DJ true what’s happening brother what’s going on with you everything’s good everything’s good you got my man in the studio today what’s going on oh yeah got your player partner in this you already got play a partner in the studio today you it’s just one of those ones that we needed to do this show like on a Friday night Friday night light yeah this was Friday night we call this should have been what they call Strategic mov after dark this Chico after dark over here oh yeah but we going to do a good show today because he’s here actually to take care of some business
00:01:43 so we gonna help him take care of some business and he gonna always come back to K he comes over the house everything so I see him all the time it ain’t no big deal but I would love to really have a serious conversation with that’s right it’s time to get serious it’s time to get serious so we going to try to have a serious to handle business so everybody we going to get started on this program we ain’t going to mess around we have a gentleman on our program I’m gonna read my little thing because I wrote something on Mr Cordell here what we got here all right let boom
00:02:15 boom boom boom we are honored to welcome Cordell Stokes son of Cleveland’s first African-American male car Stokes and a nephew of former Congressman Lewis Stokes Cordell carries forward his family extraordinary Legacy while carving his unique path and business and Community Development we’re going to explore his experience of growing up as part of Cleveland most iconic political family and how he worked to empower Community today through initiatives and Greater Cleveland works and his leadership in Workforce Development so not only he’s a friend he’s a really good friend of mine
00:02:49 he’s friend of the family he’s a good guy met him a long time ago and we done been through a couple of struggles together and a few fights out here trying to do things right and I really appreciate him coming on the show and appreciate him as a PE as a person so everybody let’s give a warm welcome to Cordell stoes to the show there he is it what’s happening Brother oh brother we love to have you on here man I’m glad you came on to the show today Cordell man we going to sit back and I got some
00:03:18 questions for you I’m gonna get into all of those but brother tell me how’s your Mentor today how’s my mentor how’s your mental I guess keeping it real though Ken first of all it’s lovely M when I’m in the environment like here MH with you and the family strategic resources and then every time we’re always together whether watching the football game like a couple of weeks ago eating together having some vations and always the one thing we always do is talk about the Dynamics of the city that’s correct but I am a little bit interested in what’s going to transpire after
00:03:57 January 20th and on a national or local level on a national National level I think you know where I’m going with the election of Donald Trump the other thing is I watched today what’s his name going up for defense secretary that was a bit to listen to him so I think that from a women’s standpoint from a minority standpoint from LGBT and all the other communities that you can align with that I think that there’s something to be a little bit concerned about going on after January 20th in order to observe and see who’s going to actually be in the leadership
00:04:37 positions of each of these cabinet capacities which really are going to have some serious impact long term and I think you very head right on with that I think that what’s going on in the nation right now and I did a show this morning where we talked about diversity equity and inclusion Dei and how of those programs are now being put to the side they’re closing them down people changing their minds about doing them organizations and Company are dumping their Dei policies and those Dei policies actually affect what we’re even talking about as it we’re to Workforce Development
00:05:16 small businesses and companies that are out here trying to do that to your point I think we all need to be aware of what’s going on and pay attention to what’s going on because it may get a lot worse before it gets better potentially that’s what I said we just keep an eye mhm in observance and hopefully the necessary guard rails will will be prominent enough that when it’s necessary they’ll be able to handle the job and be able to diffuse things that would be to a detriment to our country so Cordell your father and your uncle were two of Cleveland’s most revered figures what
00:05:54 was it like growing up in a household so deeply enwind in history and as a public servant well and I’m going to break it down to our kind of question I would ask you how is it growing up in a family where everybody that’s the spotlight on you tell was your background you the youngest of the kids you were the oldest boy what’s the what was the makeup I was the youngest but the dynamic is extraordinary because you are talking about two black men who grew up in different capacities individually from the way that they were built as individuals now very much aligned from a family
00:06:33 standpoint but you had my grandmother raising them in the projects at a very detrimental time economically Etc that you even have Sarah Harper and many others that grew up at the same time down the project but the projects at the same time became almost a savior ship from a ability to have a home of decency compared to where a lot of them were deriving from from in particular for my father and my uncle they were coming out of 69 and Quincy and extraordinary conditions like many others around them and the projects or the public housing at the time first of their kind
00:07:15 provided some substance sustenance and ability for people to be able to have the ability to sleep independently a little bit more have heat except all the other types of resources you need to try and survive and be someone now it wasn’t perfect but it did provide for a greater neighborhood but getting into the core of your question sometimes when you’re so close to things you don’t really realize in my instance now loved my mother had a great mother she birthed me she was the first lady here in the city of Cleveland exacted herself with extraordinary behavior and attrib and Leadership
00:08:02 but in the end as a young man my father and my uncle had custody of each of their kids M and so for us in particular when he finished his second term in 71 we moved to New York and New York was a whole total different City from what it was what it is today and that is not on the positive side that’s very much on the negative side and so for my father having me as a young man I had to deal with the streets right off the top MH and so he had to spend the time to really what you mean by that cor we going to get into it I know you told we G we GNA get into it so tell me what you mean
00:08:45 you had to deal with the streets well you had to deal with the everyday living he had he was at that time he was the first black anchor of a major News Network him and Paul Udell okay on channel four in New York okay and so New York was a ma and still is a major city and he can’t he didn’t have the time to take care of me like hey you I’m going walk you to school I’m going do it no I had to get on a on the subway or a bus and travel 13 to 15 blocks to my elementary school and the whole night and then you had to deal with all the elements of the 70s so so you going to tell
00:09:30 because I know you and people don’t know like so I I can go through so you gonna tell me New York was the city that did it for you I thought it was Cleveland no I tell you what no actually Cleveland was a different segment okay but the Bas is if you ever watch Cleveland you was old if you ever watch the original movie The Warriors okay so we just keep it real that was the first time I was ever arrested in my life in the fourth grade in New York in New York and it was all built around when Cyrus was at the very front end of getting all the gang members together we cut school in order
00:10:06 to participate in the whole nine things went left that’s all wait so you saying it was the movie I Remember the movie This Is Why I’m trying so you cut because you went to go be a part of the movie is what you it was right there it listen when you had the very beginning okay of the Warriors where Cyrus had everyone come together that is exactly where we cut school to observe and ultimately here was the crazy part in the fourth grade okay they handcuffed all of us all three of us M me George
00:10:41 and Calvin never forget we had some shaer beer corner store that as a matter of I’m give you some I’m giving you some real love you remember Poncho chips Poncho used to go to the same store yeah Harry bellante used to be in community and the we had New York was a Melting Pot we had the projects right down the street it was in the very apartment complex where we used to really participate across the street on our Dead End Street this is when we were on West 72 that became Trump Towers later on
00:11:19 one of Trump’s properties so yeah there’s a lot of was there any pressure though did you feel a pressure that man I or do you feel like I just was doing who I am no here’s the one thing and that’s what I said to you my I was groomed totally different from my brother and my sister okay and I was totally different from all my first cousins who there no not it just what it was my father was an individual who was a part of the streets when he grew up he his campaigns was based off that when people talk about that’s what they said and so with me he took a particular
00:11:58 interest to make sure that I was was prepared for his perception of what I would have to deal with in the streets okay and then of course Athletics all that came with it he spent hours and hour he put a lot of time into me working as the first anchor listen if I got sick at work he would come get me in the street team from Channel 4 and I would ride with him if we had to go to jails for him to do interviews or even as much as Paul Ro when James Earl Jones was representing um was acting on in New York at representing James Earl Jones I was there and at the same time when we
00:12:44 went in the back room my father won an Emmy Award for that but in the back room all I could think about was Star Wars and Darth Vader and so I asked James earol Jones would you do Darth Vader’s voice and he did it for me no different from when we had piece of the action with Sydney porier and Bill Cosby I was there so I was very and then of course going into Harlem where I used to get my haircut that’s where boudini who represented Muhammad Ali we all got our haircuts up there in Harlem so what happened downstairs was a whole different element but I was brought into the environment at
00:13:24 the M degree of what the streets were in the city of New York New York City or where was you at New York just my all this time we’ve been dealing I never knew that see you gave me something out I always thought you were right here in Cleveland this whole time you grew up so how long did you stay in New York I was about 13 14 really so you went there to Middle School just about right since I was three years old so what was it like to transition back to Cleveland then we would always come back to Cleveland because you have to remember my uncle was serving in Congress right
00:13:58 so there was the definite Detachment M if you recall in 1971 my father’s concept of starting the Congressional level Congressional caucus first of all he actually started talking about establishing a district from which constituents well it was the 21st I’m sorry I said the 11th but initially and at the same time you remember his whole mindset was we need to be in a position to elect an individual of color to a district and that’s where he had my uncle who was at that time the NAACP um legal representative along with uh Jason Lucas’s grandfather Charles Lucas not his dad talking
00:14:51 about his grandfather wow who was Republican and they worked that case all the way to the Supreme Court that’s correct but by the time that they were able to get it through Supreme Court and approved my father had already been elected mayor mhm and so from his standpoint he didn’t need to run for Congress but that was his initial intent to run for Congress to run for Congress and create a district from which he could run from and he they had the support of the current Congressman I can’t think of his name right now but he was a good man I think he was a Jewish Jewish white man
00:15:29 was spoken very highly of from both my uncle and my father and so that’s how we are today where you have Shantel Brown now representing the district so let me ask you because you just told us how it was and the from your perspective how you viewed your father oh yeah let’s talk about how did you view your uncle how was y growing up and going through that because everybody uncle is different and you got different uncles too you got everybody got the uncle then you got the uncle then you got
00:15:58 the uncle right how did L fall in line in that that’s my second father number one mhm when my father died I was probably about 25 26 okay and I had just come through some Street stuff but I was in college on basketball scholarship and finishing up in San Diego at the time okay but my uncle took it from there so the the only real difference between the two is a sense that my uncle had to chance to grow with me through when I entered in into my career M and throughout my career and then until the time that in 2015 of August that he died um at 90 years of age W so from 25 of
00:16:50 course he had the numbers but prior to give you a little bit more texture with my father I really enjoyed the time of him him as a newscaster his political activities post M mayor the teaching of just traveling enjoying life the things that he was interested in from Studio 54 on down M to when we would have to come back to Cleveland whether it was for funerals whether it was John little um former councilman um what my guy and I should be shocked for this the council Charlie Carr that’s correct coming back for things of that sort but on top of that more importantly Ken was
00:17:45 with the establishment of the 21st Congressional Co um District caucus as good as it looked when Anna Chapman was running it there was a lot of underneath politic ticket going on amongst many of the leaders that we know whether it’s from Arnold PNE to George Forbes to my father to my uncle and many others as fantastic as it was you still had the underbellies of issues and as my father would often say come on we need to go back to Cleveland I got a check on Lou and so that meant in our household that we had come back here for him to do whatever politic and he need to do with my uncle
00:18:34 in order to deal with whatever the issues might have been but last Point goad but it was when I returned here to Cleveland that my arle being in power in Congress I would always travel with him I would go back to DC I’d be here in the city when he come in and travel with him him in Big Art Nooks if you remember Big Art and then we would do the caucus picnic and then all the other politican Church to church and the whole n listening and understanding and that’s when you had the jesses and everybody else very in tune very attached very involved in and if you remember I don’t
00:19:16 think you would remember but up on South Woodland in leer Road there was a good family and a matter of fact they’re buried within about 15t from my father current at Lakeville Johnny and Katie Walker that home right there was the home where all the politicking got used to take place the jesses and everybody would come in town or your local politicians when they needed to take care of some business and have conversations it was at the home on South Woodland and leer Road at Johnny and Katie Walker so let me ask you a question as it relates to the two in their Styles let’s talk
00:19:58 about just Styles your dad’s style and the way he approached people and the way he did things and and strategically from what I read and looked at and here strategically put things in place to get to set the table that even opened up opportuni for his brother to become Congress and other things of that what was the difference in their style you would say between they brothers and I know that you grow so what were the difference between the two that people would say from your perspective other people got their own perspective you talk to Lenny P She oh Carl was this way and Lou but from
00:20:37 you knew these guys what was your perspective from there what was the difference in those two you would say the one thing I would tell you is you have to take it from youth my father was directly attached to wanting to enjoy whether it was pool dealing with my uncle um he was older than your uncle no my uncle was two years older he oh so your uncle was the older brother okay okay people sometimes they used always feel call look they us said call L first of all L he say I’m born first that’s cuz you would think that that’s why I was like he was the older brother no he wasn’t okay I
00:21:14 used know always just joke I say it’s the alphabet car we joke about it I got you but it was to it listen my father I don’t have to explain much more those that understood and you saw it when he was mayor harell Jones he was attached to the streets in the whole night and his whole concept was about black political power civil rights and all of that had its place he really he learned first from John o’all okay okay now do I have to explain John O H highly go down I got millions of people watch my
00:22:00 and they don’t know you like I know you that’s why I want you to give us this history go ahead joh Holly was a gentleman that down in the projects eventually started his organization in which they would do protesting Etc against the business owners in the community who were not hire people that look like us if we can’t work then there’s no need for us to buy but he also was a he was also attached to the political establishment of that day and my father was his driver and in driving he was mentored m and from there my father went on to be very concerned
00:22:59 about politics obviously we can go right back he dropped down to high school he went into went into the service when he came back from the service it was almost disrespectful to him to be 20s something years of age having dealt with women smoking cigarettes drinking liquor traveling around in the service and having to come back to finish high school with kids that haven’t even been outside the neighborhood mhm but he dealt with it and got done but he was also a boxer okay which took him into West Virginia State University College West Virginia college down in Institute
00:23:41 West Virginia and it was there that he was the middleweight champion with their team I think it was around 48 49 but it was a professor there who actually told him this is not the place for you this is the place where you need to be leaving and dealing with the real world of interacting with a Collegiate level of people that were white and black in what the real world will reflect and he did that that’s how he ended up in Minnesota but getting back to the genre of your question he had a mindset of wanting to be political making a change looking at civil rights and saying the
00:24:32 only way we’re going to be able to actually do something to really effectuate change where we can control some of that change was we either had to take city hall or the governor ship because when you get those positions what do you have the power to do appoint people and hopefully you appoint people that will be able to deal with the issues and push the agenda which is what he wanted which was allowing not white Bankers come to the table but black Bankers come to the table appointing people in certain cabinet positions to deal with issues that would be important to enhancing the
00:25:19 lifestyle of the community with my uncle a very serious man very jovial always had a ball with him but when it came down to his transition from his love of legal work and taking on the ability to run for Congress and eventually become the first Ohio black Congressman he was a Ser not that my father wasn’t Ser no I understand no uncle was a very serious man when it came down to doing business MH and he exacted that upon me about when it was time for me to do business he made it very clear you don’t play around with people money you don’t put yourself in the position of going
00:26:08 to jail in I’m talking about in the political game and you represent people’s interest for where they are and in his particular situation it was around Health Care veterans housing things of that sort poverty mhm and and obviously you saw the longevity of his career many of the things you see here in the city of Cleveland would not have been done especially when he was a cardinal which means he was the chair of multiple appropriation committees so explain to people about that he had HUD okay he had veterans and of course he was chair Appropriations so he was chairing three
00:26:55 cor committees which they called a cardinal wow yeah and that’s how we got a lot of money here and around the country I don’t know I don’t know anyone who’s black that more buildings named after no there’s nothing else we can name in the city I used to tell hey we used to be rolling I used to say hey man y’all might fly in talking about we going to have this I said listen I know we know somebody else it ain’t nothing you you got a long list of people you got forms you got you got a whole lot of people out here can I get some name everything is named after the Stokes
00:27:33 let’s talk a little bit about this and we going to get into some other discussion The Stokes brothers and the promise of black men there was an article put out um earlier this week that’s talking about that and going into Antoine cite actually wrote an article in regards to about the the situation as it relates to the Stokes brothers and black men and everything that’s going on so once you update the public is there anything that’s going on with the foundations or anything that we need to know that um you want to bring to light to anybody at this point in time well I do
00:28:05 humbly want to say this m we just talked about the naming of buildings okay and many other accolades that the city of Cleveland its officials and its people have supported and allowed to take place in recognition of the leadership of the two and we’re very grateful for that I think the finale alley now MH is what we’re going through now it’s called The Stokes project okay and this is really a Citywide effort that is the epitome outside of what Dr Alex Johnson from tricy led a few years ago about the 50th Anniversary which was extraordinary if you recall it was a Citywide
00:28:52 effort of Celebration from elementary school to college to nonprofit to private sector in the whole nine but this is a little bit more personal and this goes back to people serving in government now normally when you talk about people serving in government you don’t think about people making money right even though we’ve had some skewing of that over the last decade or more or as congress senate many times you have millionaires right in this case my father who went on from being mayor judge ambassador of the sea Islands he didn’t make money he didn’t get a chance
00:29:46 to get out into the private sector to flip what we would do or what we have done in our you and I we we’ve made our little change right because of the way we’ve parlayed the system system and understanding how to maneuver system but we do our work at the end of the day we’re not going to get paid if we’re not producing he just didn’t get Chance the benefit no he just didn’t get the chance in ’96 Wow when he when he started to get him he was 96 yeah he was no this is 1996 oh you said this was in 96 okay yeah no he was 69 years old 69 okay so he came back from the
00:30:21 SE show Islands in order to have Cleveland Clinic deal with his ailment which was esophagal cancer and of course today they’re further ahead with the esophago but at that time um and I returned here from Phoenix Arizona at the time for 30 days to be with him until he died but the point is we got he had his insurance whatever it was and when he was buried in in the namesake of people of his quote unquote stature first black mayor of a major and if you look at mayor Jackson you look at Richard
00:31:03 Hatcher you look at Ken Gibson or anybody’s with my man out in La was it Jackson who was the mayor long Tom Bradley okay Tom Bradley you look at some of their tombstones is much more prent right just look at from that here at Lake View Cemetery and I want to thank the Western Historical Society I want to thank Lake View Cemetery for their effort they’re all on board Western Historical Society is the Fiscal Agent Lake View Cemetery is behind in putting in kind services and leading the effort on what we’re doing under the project management team of Bob render rlr and that is
00:31:53 Vicky Danby Ronda Crowder and Barbara Brown and their team who have been taking this leadership on for the last year or so in order to erect and support a more respectful type of burial site for my father so it’s more of a memorial that’s excellent an erection of a monument that would be indicative of others around the country were similar and then it’s a three-prong scenario there’s a Stokes Ro over at caramu Center where there’s a lot of his memorabilia and all of that’s available to the public we want to enhance that and then the digitization of his papers which
00:32:46 nowadays in 2024 2025 obviously that’s necessary to help the public as they’re doing research in college and every everything else to have greater access to it so it’s a three-prong approach and I’m going to I’m going to say this here council president bla Griffin my main man and I’m going tell you councilman Richard star those two right there are my heart okay they are in the they are in the Gap trying to help move this agenda forward through city council which is appropriate but then I’m going to tell you this here and as somebody I was in opposition to as well as you were for
00:33:32 the mayor’s race which was mayor BB uhhuh and it’s interesting sometimes when you don’t one thing I didn’t do when I was when I would be interviewed by the news and all of that I’d always make it very clear Kevin Kelly was a friend Kevin Kelly was someone I knew I could do business with the council president someone who has helped me and supported me on my objective with my clients who were directly impacting minorities and women in the whole night so I had no other fear support I know you were Basher good I know he went through his thing good brother
00:34:12 that’s for his own dealing to deal with but me and him we was good as individuals no long history but I know that was your boy yeah and he became a good friend of mine time but I’m going tell you I always made the statement I was really looking at experience someone I already knew that if there were agenda items that we needed to bring to the table like Norm Edwards or others even though Norm was with Glenn shate and others that were important to the community that Kevin Kelly was there he would be available that was my mindset to take on the challenge and I just
00:34:53 felt that mayor bib at the time who I did not have any history did was not aware that he would have the capacity to do what I have observed him to be doing because here’s one thing I want make sure mayor bib is doing something that no one else in this city is about to do and he is throwing his full support behind what he’s going to do for my father’s three-prong project and he is being apologetic about it and I respect that but here’s one thing I want people to appreciate when my father became mayor he didn’t understand damn thing what it was going to be like going
00:35:40 in he had an idea but when you get in that City Hall it ain’t no joke and time showed it history could reveal it same thing with May bill so let’s talk about the project is there any way way that the public can get involved if they want to try to donate or do something to help with the cause is there a a website or something they can go to for that yes of course a matter of fact I put $10,000 of my own money okay down on the project prior to to let people know that we’re coming for an ask that I’m all in from our family standpoint we did do a breakfast last year
00:36:26 and right now mayor bib is doing a private event coming up later on this month and then councilman Richard star is doing his business through city council we’ve already had great support Council former County council president Pernell Jones and councilwoman Meredith Turner have already committed over $10,000 themselves to the project [Music] don’t quote me if I had those numbers wrong but they did put the money in there right off the top no question asked and so if you do want to get involved the west Western Historical Society if you go to their website
00:37:12 which I don’t have Ty of we we’ll leave that in the description when you go to our description of this video we’ll have in there where you can do but Cordell is saying the Western Historical Society is you should be able to go to their website and get some information about it there right okay and one last thing let me tell you who was right at the Forefront of this right off the top and what we’re doing today actually started prior to and that is Tim tramble you know my man Tim I know Tim Yeah Tim been on the show Tim is the president or executive director of the St
00:37:48 Luke’s Foundation man Tim as Huff native MH came through Economic Development Burton Bell car and the whole n one of the most prolific and smartest young businessmen in this city man they’re the ones that have put up the original monies in order to ensure that Monument is being built that’s huge Tim and I love Tim so shouts out to Tim TR Tim tramble my main man tble and his family and his family for doing all that they do to help keep the dream alive and that’s that’s huge for us so Cy I want you to we because we’re rounding third that was our note to let We R the third I want you to
00:38:37 I want to go through what you’re doing now I know that you had left here and you went to Vegas you was doing all kinds of work there and all around the country doing everything else give us in a nutshell what is Cordell Stokes up to these days what do you do in the name of your business and give us some idea what’s going on with you sure I appreciate that that originally my business um was built on helping companies expand into Las Vegas Phoenix Arizona areas that at that time as you already know we become a great big Sports Town in Las Vegas and I don’t want to get into
00:39:15 the Weeds about how we got there but the point is that was the goal helping people come into the city help cut a lot of red tape in order for them to be able to do business in the city and bring minority content to the table that’s all it was now being back here in clev last couple of years I had to take care of my mother okay and she subsequently I buried her last year put that to bed I had the pleasure of meeting your mom remember I remember you bought her up here was it here or one of other at the other office the yeah your mom came by you spent the afternoon
00:39:50 over prospect prospect yeah you you bought your mom we spent the afternoon sure did I remember that you sure did you brought her over cuz you said we were doing a meeting I told my mother I said listen you got a roll with me got and she said there the whole meeting while we been you met the whole Mee I met your mom I sure did I got an opportunity to meet her before she passed that’s great that’s right outside of that been very fortunate because I knew I had I’ve always done business here in the city of whether working in representing with the Urban League working with
00:40:21 construction employers Association Tim lville Glen shoemate helping with the recruitment of individuals into the Union construction industry Etc but right now I was introduced even though we had an acquaintance in between us Dave megart who you know from United labor agency who is the executive director and you know their work in the community that’s correct and they have been the primary provider of Workforce Development Services of job and Training Services um they were doing the business to business but now they’re primarily involved in the direct involvement of individuals
00:41:04 looking to establish a career and that’s through their job and Training Services if you recall just give some history back in 2000 when I returned here Jane Campbell Jimmy deore and Tim MCC cormet with the three County Commission you remember we always have whatever agendas we had to do we had to go before the Commissioners and you were over there as a director for padle Mali the kyoga County recorder and that’s how we got connected the county was totally different now we had job training Partnership Act and all of that but in 2000 that was the very first time
00:41:44 that the county established the County Workforce Development Department in which they had tapped Don singer now deceased and Jerry Slade as his assistant director MH to develop to man what was called the kyogo County Department of Workforce Development so it was a small team of us maybe about 12 or 12 or so individuals some who are still around here and then the city of Cleveland had theirs this was under the workforce investment act 1998 even though it was 2000 but that was the legislation in 2002 I returned to Las Vegas to head up their Workforce agency and excuse me one
00:42:31 that battery keep going down like the third time you changed it is you getting a good battery they shouldn’t be going dead after five six minutes what you putting in there is still a dead battery then reason why I’m saying that man I think we gonna end up I’m GNA end up getting some new cameras because you shouldn’t have to keep getting refocusing and changing batteries in the middle of the program should be able to make it through we ain’t even been on an hour yet and you did it three times we’ll do okay we’ll deal with it all right we was talking about Megan Hart and that yeah
00:43:19 initially this was under Army Bush’s leadership as and you were doing some Contracting with the county and we were complimenting I think one another and supporting as necessary but at that time it was called the central neighborhood initiative in which there was an attempt to really delve into the ward five area the central neighborhood trying to enhance them with job training services in the multitude even just read a hell of an article about digital seat today I don’t know the gentleman that’s the CEO um Justin Justin okay I don’t know him he’s been on the show
00:43:57 he’s a good dude yeah no I just it was hell of an article because he has to go before Council to make sure about his performance measurements and them being able to get as much money as possible back into the coffers to pay people and continue on the process so that was what was going on but then as Michelle Rose was hired as a part of the cabinet to Mayor BB to Mayor BB over Ohio mean’s jobs and at that time compared to back in 2000 where we were separate entities by the time I left in 2002 to return West they had combined to for to form Ohio Means Jobs but they were in
00:44:39 the conversations at the time I was there but now you had that come together correct okay MH but now moving forward as of July of last year in which it was a very smart move because of their Alliance strictly with the city and the county M now they are a nonprofit which gives them the ability to raise money in a whole different perspective compared to when they were City County so they’re not a quas governmental agency no more let me say this because I want to be very careful it’s now called Greater Cleveland Works which means Ohio Means Jobs Ohio Means Jobs is still inner
00:45:25 plate but the point is as an but Greater Cleveland works is the nonprofit the Workforce Development board for Cleveland and kyoga County which means they are the entity that receives whether it’s Federal money or any other monies that they will raise in order to exact that money out or allocate that money out onto the street to theere one of those organizations that they give the money to it comes into Greater Cleveland works at this point and does Works going be the greater those that entity itself give the money into the United labor agencies and other entities who are who are
00:46:14 eligible understand I totally get it I I I just wanted to these are federal dollars no I only reason why I’m asking the question the way I’m asking is that Ohio mean’s jobs still exist it does okay and and this this other entity is just a nonprofit entity that’s going to be doing funding that can help support some of those other are that is the main conduit that’s of receiving the federal dollars in order to because they need to be a nonprofit organization to get that done you don’t have to in order to funds they looking for they had to be that’s why they did it this is a
00:46:46 well you’re talking about you have the ability to raise more money now yeah that’s what I’m saying yeah you have a lot more freedom more still assoc with the with the city and and the county okay so they got the city opened up his own nonprofit but more importantly the thing that I’m more concentrated on is the built environment program and the built environment program is if you remember the fanny Lewis law former councilwoman now deceased if you remember during that time that enforced developers and other contractors doing business in the city of
00:47:23 Cleveland that they had to hire a certain amount of residents in the city of Cleveland correct political forces eliminated that eliminated correct okay not too long ago mhm with council president bla Griffin the mayor city council they approved the community benefits agreement that’s correct now under that initiative the Ben uh the built environment program which is only one of two programs in the country one other being in Oregon I don’t know what city but this gives us an opportunity that uh allows us to build the capacity of talent that would fit into the Union
00:48:08 construction industry and other like industries that would be able to utilize that Talent where we now have a million dollars of Supportive Services where when you come through the initial Ohio Means Jobs or what we knew it to be back in our day you were talking about bus tickets sometimes rental assistance here or mortgage sometimes this or that they are now really delving into hitting the core issues you might need help with your car maybe a purchase of a new car home they are really drilling down to eliminate the barriers and of course the organizations such as the urban try
00:48:58 towards employment Cleveland neighborhood progress and their entities that come up under them and other hardheaded women or hHw Ohio now as their name these entities received some of the arpa money the $10 million that the mayor and the city council approved in order to utilize their services to help individuals get into these sustaining Industries which is very important now now this is totally separate from what I’m talking about your job and Training Services you can go into Greater cev Works Ohio Means Jobs cak’s worker will work through the process
00:49:41 get support to go into the health industry IT industry transportation industry but this program here specifically is targeting industry is that complimentary of the trades and when we’re talking about it is for ex offenders in particular no I’m not talking about that’s not the totality of no understand but if what I’m saying if you’re and as I always say I don’t care if you’re a two-time sex offender two time murderer two time burglar whatever you want to consider it as long as you’re out on the street and you have the prerequisites and you’re willing to do the work you never have
00:50:23 to look back because you’re making 19 plus an hour to start benefits retirement and the whole n interesting yeah very good so qu let’s get we get ready to round out of here and get you out of here sir let’s talk about we was talking about the built environment this like an event you got coming up on the 28th of January let’s talk a little bit about you want to tell everybody what this is and what you guys got going on with this and whatnot sure through the build environment as we stated it was initially you had the fanny Lewis law now you have the community benefits
00:51:01 agreement it is really a city initiative however everyone is allowed to come to the events but we typically go Ward to W certain Wards that’s right get on in throughout the city of Cleveland West Side East Side in order to attract Cleveland talent but of course County Talent is welcome and this year we’re very fortunate I talked with the congresswoman uh last year at her fundraiser I think that was you and I were together there what was that in November November oober October October we had a good time there and the congresswoman said you already know because
00:51:42 she’s worked with me before tells the home girl good people and so we finally got it together and so we’re going to kick off 2025 on Tuesday January 28th 5 to 7 and of course who’s us our home girl Lane gon up at Harvard Community Services Center up in Joe Jones’s Ward and shout out to Joe we always work with Joe and we’ll be back to him but this will be good good for the district and we want them to come on out Tuesday January 28th from 5: to 7: at Harvard Community Center build environment job training Fair Cordell Stokes will be there and many other people from the community
00:52:27 Community to be there to talk about Louis MO Lou Mo know Lou Lou is my a boot he will be there in this place to be everybody there if you’re looking for a job you’re looking for some employment if you got some employment and you’re looking for just other opportunities you want to think if you can do better there’s employers who will be there and these are not just jobs that you can walk in and say they low ranking jobs you may go in there and doing something and find out there may be some other opportunity within that employment that they just didn’t have listed there that you can
00:52:58 get in so it’s worth going in if you’re looking for employment please do January 28th from 5: to 7: at the Harvard Community Center and if I may I want everyone to understand while this may be a specific initiative each of the entities that are involved in this program they still have their own services that they offer and deliver while we may have a heavy concentration on trying to get you into the trades or complimentary type of Industry you still have if you’re a business owner the Urban League and other organizations have services to support you there that’s correct if you need
00:53:42 expungement Services if you need this or that these organizations are available to utilize the services that they already have existing that are in addition to what is available through the build environment funding model people who will be there it looks like we have tours employment Ohio Cleveland Works Cleveland built Urban Le who is HH try y that was formerly hard-headed women hard-headed women okay and will be Louis and I will be on I’ll be at the radio show Thursday okay Burton Bell car excellent for that Urban League Cleveland neighborhood progress and
00:54:22 there’s several entities up under them and tours employment as you said and of course Ohio Means Jobs Greater Cleveland works there to help do the business of servicing the public job and Training Services no financial obligation on their par this is money through the Department of Labor and other resources that need to be spent in the community we do not want to give any of that money back okay if we do that’s a problem that’s a problem that’s a problem many people need jobs out here and it’s
00:55:01 no sense for you not to go that’s right so hey we want everybody to make sure you be there Tuesday the 28 5 to7 Harvard Community Center build employment job fair Cordell we want to thank you for coming on the program brother you did an excellent job in educating us we’re going to have you back as always to have our conversation we GNA do a a strategic move after dark so we really have a good time and that’s where you going to really want to watch that one that’s right and we going to get thaten so Cordell like we do on every show before we get ready to go we give you an
00:55:32 opportunity to look right into this camera here and you get to say whatever you want to say man whatever on your heart you want to give to the people we already reminded them about that all the information that you’re looking for of how you can get in touch with Cleveland works and any of the other programs we talked about we will leave those links in the description so that you’ll be able to get that information there Cordell take your time whatever you want to say it don’t have to be can be short but this is camera for you whatever’s on your heart you want to give to the millions
00:56:02 of people who watch my show every week is this in Africa too it’s all over the world I was watching a special in Tanzania but only thing I just wanted look right into this C this is you only thing I just want to do is on behalf of the Carlin Lewis Stokes family and all of the extended family members we just want to thank you for the support that you all have provided even those that did not support the Stokes family but liveed through whatever the leadership took us through and those that are in support of the Stokes project moving forward we want to thank you very much
00:56:45 we encourage you to be a part of the process and and Kenny I want to say thank you to you I’m very proud of you and your family and all of our extended brothers and sisters that we can go through it from Blaine to Zack Reed Angela Woodson we can go through the whole night and I think this is just a humbling moment to be able to sit down have a conversation in public because we typically do this privately that’s correct and so thank you very much and I’m here to be of service to the best of my ability and my capacity so thank you very much hey I appreciate you coming on the show
00:57:28 that is Cordell Stokes all right Stokes has always been for folks that was the original no right there y’all hey I want to thank you watching the program we will see y’all later thanks job cell