We had the good fortune of connecting with Joe Friszolowski and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Joe, what do you attribute your success to?
At Mercy Drops Dream Center, the most important factor behind our success is that we find the forgotten in our community. Just who is The Forgotten? For MDDC, we include individuals and families experiencing homelessness, veterans, under-resourced neighborhoods & foster care intervention in that category. We all at MDDC understand and have experienced “being forgotten,” It is not a great place to be. Therefore we are driven every day to seek out and make sure those in our community are not forgotten.

One example of this happened just this past week. A mother I have known for the past six years called me telling me her son was murdered. I listened to her describe how she found out what had happened, and listened to her cry. I told her I was on my way to her home to see her. She was taken aback but ultimately said see you soon. I went over to her house, hugged her children, and simply sat and listened to her. When it came time to leave, she said, “Thank you. You are the only person to come over and listen.”

Making time for the forgotten in our community, listening to them, caring for them, and showing them empathy is how we successfully drive connection in a time of disconnection.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally? What sets you apart professionally?                                                                                        Mercy Drops Dream Center is about finding the forgotten, helping them build a foundation, so they can flourish in life. We do this by building lasting relationships within the community that bring hope alive. Ultimately, we find those that need resources in our community and connect them to those that have the resources. When this happens, hope is brought alive in an individual or a family’s life. Ultimately, what sets MDDC apart from others is our culture through our core values.

Our core values are loving people regardless, respecting everyone, dream big, believe in the impossible, keep it simple, be persistent and be consistent. At MDDC, we choose to love people regardless if they love us back or not. We know how it feels to be forgotten and we want everyone to experience love, regardless. We choose to respect everyone first versus the idea of when you respect me, I will then respect you. When we choose to respect everyone first, it is very hard to disrespect that approach. We choose to dream big, whether your dream is a bottle of water, a pair of shoes, a new career, or a place to call home, we want to dream big and help turn those dreams into reality.

At this crossroad, of turning dreams into reality, the impossible begins to grow larger and larger. This is why at MDDC, we choose to believe in the impossible! Just when it looks like all hope is gone, that is the time to believe in the impossible and know there is a way out! The way out is by keeping it simple, one step at a time, one day at a time, we will help you through this!

MDDC helps individuals and families through the impossible two ways: by being persistent and consistent. MDDC will show up whether it is raining, snowing, hot, or cold because you will be there. MDDC will also work hard at bringing you the same type of resources and love when it is needed most.

Our core values help keep us balanced as an organization in the chaos of life as we are completing our mission every day in our community. As we live out our core values, people that are forgotten in the community will be able to identify as a human, with another human again and begin to possibly see hope that hasn’t been seen in a long while. Our core values are our most important and valuable assets as an organization, and how we frame everything that we do.                                                             

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
In Hampton Roads aka Coastal Virginia, we would be able to have an amazing time, whether it is dining out, enjoying the beach, learning new things historically or taking new adventures. This area has great breakfast spots everywhere, so, wherever you pick, most likely will be delicious. If you enjoy your coffee, there is a place in Portsmouth called JoJack’s café. Great place for every meal of the day and amazing coffee. If you are looking for the best protein in the area, I would suggest Redwood in downtown Norfolk, they have the best brisket and burnt ends around! There are plenty of places to enjoy the beach in Virginia, but if you can find your way there, Sandbridge is a great place to enjoy the beach away from all the tourist spots of Virginia Beach. To finish the week off, I would take a short trip to Williamsburg, VA. Here one will find a waterpark at Water Country USA, roller coasters at Busch Gardens theme park & historic Jamestown in Williamsburg, VA. Plenty to enjoy, see and taste while visiting Coastal Virginia.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I want to give my shoutout to my wife, Sandy. She has been my partner in crime, my ride or die, the one who has helped in the process of molding me into the husband, father, son & leader I have become today. She has also been an inspiration to me watching her be an amazing mother to our son Elon Joseph. The way she teaches him, loves him, encourages him and helps him be the best he can be! My son and I are blessed to have her in our lives!

Website: www.mercydrops.life

Instagram: mercydropsdreamcenter

Facebook: mercydropsdreamcenter

Image Credits
Brittany Cantada Photography

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