‘Technology that creates relationships’

Connecting individuals and organizations to services, volunteer opportunities and needs present in the Opelika-Auburn area is the main objective of Village Creed, a new community engagement platform that launched earlier this week.
Kermit Farmer, Village Creed founder, said the idea for the online/mobile resource was inspired by seeing the lack of a central place where Opelika-Auburn residents could come together.
“It’s hard for philanthropists, individuals who want to volunteer, and most importantly, those who have needs in their life, to find what they’re looking for. Where do you look and how do you know what questions to ask?” Farmer said. “I think we need something holistic in approach that brings the community together so organizations can list services, philanthropists can find places to make an impact, but most importantly, individuals know where the services are for themselves and their own personal lives.”
Through user accounts, Farmer explained that individuals can search keywords and tags to find postings made by organizations including churches, non-profits or ministries and other individuals to discover how they can plug in to their community.
“I like to say we have social networks, but what we really need is a shovel network … a way that when we’re tired of talking, what do we do then? It’s the now what,” Farmer said. “And if we have all of our resources in one place, and we take a layered approach from the sectors of non-profits, churches, government agencies and schools, then we can see who’s doing what. I think it’s a whole new conversation.”
Individuals will be able to document their service and volunteerism through the platform’s ‘Ethos Transcript’, which Farmer said will act like a digital service resume.
Farmer, who has an extensive background in education, said that feature will also be geared for high-schoolers, giving them the chance to be involved and make an impact.
“I think with so much technology around us, we’ve kind of lost relationships, in the sense of human touch. And this is a way to recalibrate by leveraging technology to create relationships that are healthy, improving on social and soft skills and dabbling in areas they might want to learn and play in,” Farmer said.
Membership on Village Creed is free for individuals and a nominal rate for organizations, which is predicated upon their size, according to Farmer.
Following is a list of local organizations who are Village Creed members:
Lee County Humane Society, East Alabama Mental Health, James A. Henry Community YMCA, Greater Friendship Baptist Church, The Children and Family Connection of Russell County, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority at Auburn University, One Bike Coffee Shop, The Curtis House, Alabama Rural Ministry, Cornerstone Church and Dad’s League.
Farmer said he would be happy to discuss further details on the program by appointment, which can be made by emailing kermit@villagecreed.com.