Jeffrey C. King
And Then God
By Jeffrey C. King
In The Meantime, celebrated 25 years of community service at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel’s Gold Room on Saturday, December 10, 2022. Jeffrey King, In The Meantime’s founder and executive director delivered this compelling narrative highlighting the intentional birth, development and implementation of In The Meantime Men’s Group, inc. as we know it today.
Twenty-Nine years ago, I told God that I wanted to live and that I would do whatever it took to stand up and be the better version of myself. It was my intention to heal the broken, the wounded, the scared, and the vulnerable.
AND THEN GOD!
I set out on a journey of self-discovery, sobriety, spiritual exploration, and retooling myself for the marketplace. I worked a full-time job, attended to my academic studies, attended recovery meetings, managed my internships, and funded In The Meantime out of my very shallow pockets. It was my intention to create a better life for myself, to help others, and in some little way make up for the time that I had lost in the wilderness.
AND THEN GOD!
I interned at a number of organizations working with various populations struggling with a number of critical life issues. My friends were continuing to get sick, and many had already disappeared into the silence feeling ashamed and unworthy of God’s love. I began to work behind the scenes helping to raise money for the AIDS Walk and making donations to organizations like Minority AIDS Project LA. Struggling with my own internalized homophobia and traumas, I wanted to remain invisible working in the background. And then, the time came when I had to answer the question, What are you doing In The Meantime? As I struggled to manage my own survivor’s remorse and to give meaning to the Why me? and the, How did I get to still be here? and, In The Meantime, what’s next?
AND THEN GOD!
Through the introduction of my spiritual gurus, including Arch Bishop Carl Bean, Jenenen McKline, and Michael Bernard Beckwith, I began a daily practice that opened up the windows of my faith and a belief in the infinite possibilities that exist and to the idea that I, too, could be a changemaker in a world where few hearts survive. In a culture plagued by sarcasm and cynicism, fear and self-hatred, I saw beautiful Black gay men struggling just like me to find their way through this long and winding pathway called life. And so, In The Meantime, we began the work, stepping into the unknown with a sense and confidence that God is either everything or nothing all.
For the past 25 years, I have been awakened at 5 a.m. by an urging and flow of prayer and ideas. It was on one of those early mornings that I wrote a mission, a vision, and a challenge.
OUR MISSION: (Written 25 years ago)
We seek to create a safe and supportive environment for men of African descent. We focus on issues that directly affect our community: relationship, health, spirituality and economics. We encourage a relaxed social environment respectful of sexual orientation, Our goal is to enrich and empower lives
VISION: (Written 25 years ago)
We envision the creation of a physical space specifically for In The Meantime. This space will become a cornerstone for learning, networking, socializing and personal growth, while providing service related programs for our community.
CHALLENGE: (Written 25 years ago)
We challenge ourselves to achieve a greater sense of responsibility to our ancestry, ourselves and to this e who will follow. We strive to become better brothers, better sons, better fathers, better lovers, better friends, better role models and better people in the meantime and until the end of time.
When a path has been set, God will provide the wind beneath your wings that will allow you to fly even higher than you could ever imagine. Incredible people will appear, like Carl Highshaw, Earl Wooten, Joel Byrd, Stewart Jones, Gary Gregory, Roger Quinney. Great mentors and teachers like Michael Weinstein, Cynthia Davis, Jewel Thais Williams, and Claudia Spears who continue to extend a hand and provide incredible resources to lift me up, to lift us up. The list goes on and on.
We are thriving today beyond the recession, epidemics, and pandemics because you continue to support and feed into this intention that goes far beyond myself. It included Greg, Javontae, Mikey, Bobby, and Stewart, and thousands of Black gay men who have entered into the love and care of In The Meantime. So here we are tonight celebrating 25 glorious years as a standalone 501c3 non-profit community service organization.
AND THEN GOD
Thank you all for coming out tonight and know that I love and respect each and every one of you. We could not imagine celebrating this milestone without you being here beside us. In closing, take a look around the room. Now, repeat after me.
LOOK AT GOD!
Our reimaged MISSION Statement
In The Meantime Men’s Group, Inc. is purposed to enrich, empower, and extend the lives of intergenerational black men, respectful of sexual orientation, through social, educational, health and wellness programs and services.
Jeffrey C. King,
Founder and Executive Director of In The Meantime Men’s Group, Inc.