The goal of TOPS is to create, build, promote and maintain a better humanity by addressing needs of people in our society. We do this by caring for those in need and building a movement for justice.
Founded in 1994 by a former drug addict, TOPS is a faith-based organization that offers hope and creates comprehensive community programs that provide a continuum of unconditional acceptance and care to individuals and their families who suffer the effects of drug addiction, mass-incarceration, homelessness, poverty, unemployment, hunger and illness--—-without regard to race, sex, creed, color, religion, or social status. TOPS seeks to restore people wholly--spiritually, physically, emotionally, mentally.
TOPS is also engages in grassroots organizing to address the needs of the community. We organize to develop productive community members (leaders) and build community power through increased community participation--through voting, education, service, and decision-making about life in our communities. TOPS organizes to help spark a social and political movement in Alabama and across the South for justice, fairness, and human rights. We develop advocacy strategies that create space for community members to address issues at the local and state level.
TOPS organizes everyone willing to work for a better community, including young people, elders, formerly incarcerated people, people who are addicted to drugs, the homeless, and more. We have a particular focus on working with formerly incarcerated people, through helping them to restore their rights and meet their responsibilities as citizens in order to form a movement; and with young people, by working to end the schools-to-prison pipeline and develop leadership amongst ALL our youth.
Service Approach and Practice of TOPS
The Ordinary Peoples Society (TOPS), headquartered in Dothan, Alabama, with Chapters in 15 Alabama cities. TOPS is dedicated to uplifting the lives of people who have otherwise been overlooked by society—ordinary people, many of whom are living in broken, inner city neighborhoods. We are an educational and charitable ministry recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) organization. TOPS seeks to address every facet of human needs, including physical needs, emotional needs, mental needs, and spiritual needs.
We take a progressive approach in our organization, starting with food, clothing and shelter—primary physical needs. Then, we address the emotional needs of our participants by helping them restore self-confidence, love, hope, patience, honor, respect and kindness. We do this by continually modeling these attributes throughout TOPS and building our platform on these principles. Next, we seek to mentally build a bridge between our participants and the rest of society by providing education and educational resources and by challenging our participants to surpass any boundaries they have set for themselves in regards to any knowledge base or learning process. And, finally, we meet the spiritual needs of our participants by holistically addressing that part of humankind that is invisible, but very present. We take this mission very seriously by seeking to connect every aspect of the human being. These spiritual needs we address are on an individual basis and help each person to discover, develop and express his or her own path.
We take a progressive approach in our organization, starting with food, clothing and shelter—primary physical needs. Then, we address the emotional needs of our participants by helping them restore self-confidence, love, hope, patience, honor, respect and kindness. We do this by continually modeling these attributes throughout TOPS and building our platform on these principles. Next, we seek to mentally build a bridge between our participants and the rest of society by providing education and educational resources and by challenging our participants to surpass any boundaries they have set for themselves in regards to any knowledge base or learning process. And, finally, we meet the spiritual needs of our participants by holistically addressing that part of humankind that is invisible, but very present. We take this mission very seriously by seeking to connect every aspect of the human being. These spiritual needs we address are on an individual basis and help each person to discover, develop and express his or her own path.
TOPS Ministry-- Our Service and Development Programs
Our service and development programs are separated into three (3) distinct areas serving the youth, pre-adults, and adults.
The youth development programs are focused on serving youth from infants to fifteen and helping them become successful in their endeavors from school to extracurricular activities. We seek to develop our youth to become ambassadors for the community and to instill in them loyalty, hope, faith and successful demeanors. We recognize and understand that these are our leaders of tomorrow and that there is nothing more important than furnishing them the tools and qualities that will last a lifetime.
Our second development program is geared towards pre-adults ages sixteen to twenty. We understand that this is a very important time period in the transition from youth to adulthood. Therefore, our program is focused on guidance and mentoring services. We pair these youth with individuals who can become shining examples and help them navigate through the problem areas of life such as drugs, alcohol, teen pregnancy, career planning, and self-image before they become problems in our youth’s lives.
Our adult programs are designed to help correct any challenges that adults may find themselves facing and to restore them to their natural, beautiful and loving selves. We desire that each of our adult participants embark on a journey of discovery that will allow them to make the crucial decisions freeing them from a life of suffering and misery. We are very patient and understanding with our participants because there are many in our organization who have been exactly where they are. We only ask that our new participants be willing participants in our programs and seek change for themselves.
The youth development programs are focused on serving youth from infants to fifteen and helping them become successful in their endeavors from school to extracurricular activities. We seek to develop our youth to become ambassadors for the community and to instill in them loyalty, hope, faith and successful demeanors. We recognize and understand that these are our leaders of tomorrow and that there is nothing more important than furnishing them the tools and qualities that will last a lifetime.
Our second development program is geared towards pre-adults ages sixteen to twenty. We understand that this is a very important time period in the transition from youth to adulthood. Therefore, our program is focused on guidance and mentoring services. We pair these youth with individuals who can become shining examples and help them navigate through the problem areas of life such as drugs, alcohol, teen pregnancy, career planning, and self-image before they become problems in our youth’s lives.
Our adult programs are designed to help correct any challenges that adults may find themselves facing and to restore them to their natural, beautiful and loving selves. We desire that each of our adult participants embark on a journey of discovery that will allow them to make the crucial decisions freeing them from a life of suffering and misery. We are very patient and understanding with our participants because there are many in our organization who have been exactly where they are. We only ask that our new participants be willing participants in our programs and seek change for themselves.
About Volunteering with TOPS--Service and Organizing
TOPS volunteers are the backbone of the organization. Volunteers will be identified through outreach, programmatic and advocacy efforts. Specifically, volunteers will be asked to help with assisting TOPS staff and board members in providing programmatic services and advocacy tasks in ways that will allow the volunteer to contribute to the work and mission of TOPS while gaining the skills and experiences to be future leaders. Some volunteer tasks will include: dishing food to guests of the food pantry, running errands to get food and condiments when needed for food pantry, typing names in database, write up brochures and materials, conduct outreach activities to the homeless and during organizing activities, become TOPS leaders in organizing groups across the state. Volunteers will be asked to participate in advocacy meetings, write minutes of those meetings, make phone calls, hand out flyers, and organize meetings.
We are a community--and together we can change our lives, our community, and the world.
We are a community--and together we can change our lives, our community, and the world.
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