Narrative Changer
Nathan Pops Thomas
Vice President
Village Keepers
Nathan_Pop_Thomas
Bio of a Narrative Changer: Nathan Thomas grew up in the “trenches” of Southwest Baltimore. He had a stable family environment, with a mom, dad, and three siblings. However, at age 19 he had his first child. He then made the decision to drop out of college and sell drugs to provide for her, which lead to a stream of drug charges and some violent crimes. During this life of crime, he was shot five times in one incident. He arrived at Shock Trauma; D.O.A. yet recalls seeing his loved ones in the hospital room, as he laid there lifeless. Nathan declined interviews from MSNBC of this experience, due to what he calls, “A heart of vengeance.” He spent a few more years using drug sales to provide for his now growing family, and gained a slew of criminal charges, until that fateful day his brother David Thomas was murdered. This caused Nathan to have additional vengeance in his heart, and was not enough for him to find a more positive way to provide for him family, so he (reluctantly) continued this way of living.
Eventually, Nathan grew weary of selling drugs and the violence that came with it, so he decided to give it all up and search for a job. Unfortunately, the jobs he landed did not pay enough for him to provide for himself, and his four children. However, he stayed the course.
Meanwhile, his sister, Erricka Bridgeford, and mother, Jerri Thomas, were involved with a non-profit called Community Mediation, founded by Dr. Lorig Charkoudian. His mother consistently asked him to get involved as Re-Entry Specialist. After he declined a few times, he gave in to his mother’s requests. He became an AmeriCorps Member in October of 2010, and worked as a Re-Entry specialist for Community Mediation’s, Re-entry Mediation program. It was there that he realized his purpose -- to let go of the vendetta he had against the individuals who harmed him and murdered his brother. Instead, he chose to have a “Vendetta on Violence” itself. Nathan and his reentry partner, Liza Krohn, grew the Re-entry Mediation program from approximately 30 meditations the year before they arrived, to an average of 20 per month. During this time period he simultaneously cofounded Engage Baltimore, a mentoring program for young men. With the help of Brandon Booth, Darien Eaton, Curtis Johnson, and Quentin Askew, Engage Baltimore grew into a mentoring and sports program in less than one year. Nathan decided to volunteer as an AmeriCorps member for another year until his work ethic reached the ears of Mary Slicher, Executive Director at Project PLASE, Inc. (a homeless transitional shelter.) He was then hired as an Advocacy Counselor, breaking every record for housing in that organization’s 30 year history.
Nathan says, “I always had an appetite for forward progress no matter what I did. I see opportunities as an opportunity for more opportunity.” This appetite, along with some encouragement from his sister Erricka, leads him to volunteer for the 300 Men March Movement, for peace. He excelled there as well, becoming a Co-captain of their Street Engagement Team (S.E.U.) within the first few months. He earned awards from the Mayor and Councilman Brandon Scott, for his dedication and commitment to Baltimore City. During one of 300 Men March’s Annual Peace Walks on North Ave, Nathan gave a speech on stage with the likes of the Police Chief Kevin Davis, Councilman Nick Mosby, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, and several other prominent members of the Baltimore. Councilman Scott affectionately introduced Nathan as “The heart of the 300 Men March movement.”
His motto is: "Create an environment that is a product of you"
How is your work changing the narrative? While working at Project PLASE, and volunteering for 300 Men March, Nathan started the Facebook page, The Job Advocate, where he and Mia Dudley has helped over 100 Baltimore citizens find jobs since 2012. Nathan continued his work at Project PLASE until he felt it was time to do more. He lived up to his personal mission statement, “I’m here to give back all that I’ve taken.” That’s where he began working at both Project PLASE and Health Care for the Homeless, where he’s responsible for a new program called S.O.A.R. (Social Security Outreach Access and Recovery) that not only expedites the SSI benefits process, but also houses qualified members. While handling this program, Nathan has housed over 25 of his clients since May of 2015, and took up the offer from his director to testify to a budget committee in Annapolis, where over $100 million was on the line. His testimony was impactful enough to be chosen to be placed on the Health Care for the Homeless website.
His involvement with the 300 Men Movement was met with his desire to do even more. He is now Vice President at Village Keepers of Baltimore, along with his sister Erricka Bridgeford, and friends Ike Carter, Shantay Jackson, and Travis Reynolds. Village Keepers mission is to decrease physical and emotional violence in Baltimore.
Eventually, Nathan grew weary of selling drugs and the violence that came with it, so he decided to give it all up and search for a job. Unfortunately, the jobs he landed did not pay enough for him to provide for himself, and his four children. However, he stayed the course.
Meanwhile, his sister, Erricka Bridgeford, and mother, Jerri Thomas, were involved with a non-profit called Community Mediation, founded by Dr. Lorig Charkoudian. His mother consistently asked him to get involved as Re-Entry Specialist. After he declined a few times, he gave in to his mother’s requests. He became an AmeriCorps Member in October of 2010, and worked as a Re-Entry specialist for Community Mediation’s, Re-entry Mediation program. It was there that he realized his purpose -- to let go of the vendetta he had against the individuals who harmed him and murdered his brother. Instead, he chose to have a “Vendetta on Violence” itself. Nathan and his reentry partner, Liza Krohn, grew the Re-entry Mediation program from approximately 30 meditations the year before they arrived, to an average of 20 per month. During this time period he simultaneously cofounded Engage Baltimore, a mentoring program for young men. With the help of Brandon Booth, Darien Eaton, Curtis Johnson, and Quentin Askew, Engage Baltimore grew into a mentoring and sports program in less than one year. Nathan decided to volunteer as an AmeriCorps member for another year until his work ethic reached the ears of Mary Slicher, Executive Director at Project PLASE, Inc. (a homeless transitional shelter.) He was then hired as an Advocacy Counselor, breaking every record for housing in that organization’s 30 year history.
Nathan says, “I always had an appetite for forward progress no matter what I did. I see opportunities as an opportunity for more opportunity.” This appetite, along with some encouragement from his sister Erricka, leads him to volunteer for the 300 Men March Movement, for peace. He excelled there as well, becoming a Co-captain of their Street Engagement Team (S.E.U.) within the first few months. He earned awards from the Mayor and Councilman Brandon Scott, for his dedication and commitment to Baltimore City. During one of 300 Men March’s Annual Peace Walks on North Ave, Nathan gave a speech on stage with the likes of the Police Chief Kevin Davis, Councilman Nick Mosby, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, and several other prominent members of the Baltimore. Councilman Scott affectionately introduced Nathan as “The heart of the 300 Men March movement.”
His motto is: "Create an environment that is a product of you"
How is your work changing the narrative? While working at Project PLASE, and volunteering for 300 Men March, Nathan started the Facebook page, The Job Advocate, where he and Mia Dudley has helped over 100 Baltimore citizens find jobs since 2012. Nathan continued his work at Project PLASE until he felt it was time to do more. He lived up to his personal mission statement, “I’m here to give back all that I’ve taken.” That’s where he began working at both Project PLASE and Health Care for the Homeless, where he’s responsible for a new program called S.O.A.R. (Social Security Outreach Access and Recovery) that not only expedites the SSI benefits process, but also houses qualified members. While handling this program, Nathan has housed over 25 of his clients since May of 2015, and took up the offer from his director to testify to a budget committee in Annapolis, where over $100 million was on the line. His testimony was impactful enough to be chosen to be placed on the Health Care for the Homeless website.
His involvement with the 300 Men Movement was met with his desire to do even more. He is now Vice President at Village Keepers of Baltimore, along with his sister Erricka Bridgeford, and friends Ike Carter, Shantay Jackson, and Travis Reynolds. Village Keepers mission is to decrease physical and emotional violence in Baltimore.