Wes Williams Talks Operation Shoestring

We talk with Wes William, Chief Creative Director at The Ramey Agency, about his experiences working with Operation Shoestring (OS) and how Operation Shoestring will impact the future of local communities.

I work for the Ramey Agency, and a few years ago we worked on a campaign for OS. We spent some time in the building, interviewed a few people, and talked to kids. That was when I really first felt the importance of OS and got to see how that presence in the community was so dynamic. It wasn’t just an afterschool program. It’s so much more dynamic than that. It’s a holistic and community-based effort. 

Operation Shoestring’s show of commitment to be part of the fabric of the community is meaningful. 

I think that OS is an anchor and a ladder for the community. OS is in that community, knows that community and its families. So, they are able to respond to the community in a meaningful way. There’s working with the immediate needs, but there’s always that vision of “how do we lift these people up?” It’s in teaching financial literacy courses to families. It’s not just about fixing something now it’s about creating a better possibility for the future. 

Operation Shoestring’s show of commitment to be part of the fabric of the community is meaningful. 

I want people to know that OS has been working in Jackson for over fifty years to serve families and children, and to create and implement a better vision for what Jackson can be. Like CAC! It’s a great example of that. OS meets immediate needs but is constantly looking towards the future. 

I think Operation Shoestring, in a very compassionate and insightful way, can help bring more people to the cause of helping Jackson.

My hope for OS for the future is that more people will realize the importance of OS as a conduit between communities in Jackson. I hope that the mission of OS will continue to grow and actualize. I hope OS will bridge those gaps in our community like economic divides and cultural divides. I think OS, in a very compassionate and insightful way, can help bring more people to the cause of helping Jackson. We can all rise together! I hope that people will support OS and that the OS programming will continue to serve the community in bigger and better ways.