The Berks Unity Solution web-site is based on the principles of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. Working from the bottom up, these needs have to be met before growth can occur. In doing so, stress levels decrease; so too does the propensity for violence and a sense of community can evolve.

The Berks Unity Solution is designed to serve all of Berks County with its mainstay here in Reading. Inner city communities are often stigmatized as places of crime & violence. Beyond the stigma, the Reading community is making great strides to become a destination of choice for residents. The City and many not-for-profit agencies are working diligently to rebuild the housing stock and improve Reading’s reputation. The police department and many other fine programs have made a significant measurable impact on the decrease of crime and violence in our community. Yet there is a vacancy left unfilled. This is where the Berks Unity Solution is needed. Every working organization needs a communication hub. The Berks Unity Solution is the hub. It is a conduit for all social service agencies, spiritual and ethnic organizations, as well as grassroots efforts to communicate and collaborate with one another. There is an organizational mastery to having a central arena for people to meet and mingle.  This campaign is what makes the difference between a fully functional community and one in which the parts are all good but will not run; much like the spokes of a wheel, each valuable and necessary for balance and harmony but indifferent to motion without the hub. The Berks Unity Solution web-site serves as an organizational tool for our community while the annual Berks Unity Festival physically and visually elicits unity in promoting non-violence. Hence the wheels are in motion.

The Berks Unity Solution Campaign is an organizational strategy of unifying our community through a positive approach to promoting non-violence. The Berks Unity Solution campaign is a multi-task initiative, with each task serving a specific function to meet our objectives. The two main components of the Berks Unity Solution are our web-site and our annual festival. These two components act in unison to meet our goal of addressing the causes and high risk factors of violence: unemployment, lack of communication, drug and alcohol use, domestic and personal dispute, prejudice, boredom, and environmental impact.
Organizational Objectives:

* Unify the community
* Open communication between all organizations serving our community
* Educate the public to assistive organizations
* Promote a sense of belonging and purpose for the community
* Assist in eliminating the causes of violence through positive approaches
* Encourage tolerance and respect for one another
* Build strong ties with surrounding communities

Unifying the community is a multi-step process. First and foremost is identifying the concept of community. In the literal sense, community is defined as communication and unity. A community cannot exist without all members filling the needs of the community and the allowing for individual purpose. The Berks Unity Solution is the cooperation of assistive organizations, businesses, and individuals to build a strong safe community in which to live, work, and play. Our festival provides a cooperative arena in which these community members may physically come together and open lines of communication. The web-site works in coordination with the festival by providing an easy access to twenty-two categories for community involvement. It also plays a part in identifying common social services with the intent that these organizations seek to find their mutual commonality and work together. In addition the web-site has a photo array of community leaders. This is another way of familiarizing community members with one another. Furthermore, the web-site includes a Calendar of Events. This was designed as a tool to assist organizations in the planning of individual events, while at the same time providing a common site for community members to find free healthy activities throughout the County in which to engage.

The Berks Unity Solution festival is unique in that it is all inclusive of those groups and organizations who address the risk factors of poverty, crime, and violence. All social service agencies are invited to attend and disseminate information and educate the public about their individual assistive organization. Ethnic and spiritual groups are also invited to do the same. Again, our web-site works in conjunction with this effort by listing a more inclusive of catalog of groups and organizations. The directory includes local, state, federal and grassroots associations who benefit the needs of our community. Each listing includes contact information, a mission statement, and a direct link to that association’s web-site.

The Berks Unity Solution realizes that in order for a community to function at peak performance individuals must feel a sense of purpose. There are many elderly, disabled, and lonely individuals in our community. These persons are a vital part in any community and have much to offer given the chance to shine. The Berks Unity Solution festival and web-site offer the opportunity for these individuals to become active participants to the best of their abilities. Volunteer opportunities are abundant. The festival gives these people an occasion to familiarize themselves with a variety of prospects for involvement whether it is volunteer or work related. A more in depth listing of openings are listed in our web directory. We also affirm this sense of purpose with our “In the News” section of the web-site.

“In the News” is a strictly positive media resource designed to promote positive feedback to the community. This is another attempt to eliminate the causes of violence through positive approach. However, the most effective approach is the opening of doors. Gangs flourish because they meet the basic need to belong. The Berks Unity Solution festival is designed to promote opportunities for non-violent involvement in the community, hence the reason for the inclusion of spiritual, ethnic, and community groups. It is not the concern of the Berks Unity Solution as to which groups a person chooses to affiliate, but rather that the prospects are presented to the community members.

An integral part of the Berks Unity Solution festival is the diverse incorporation of ethnic and spiritual groups. Much violence stems from the aversion of dissimilar cultures. In an effort to encourage tolerance and respect for one another, we are integrating teaching tables for these groups to share a history and understanding of their individual cultures. In addition, much of the entertainment provided will be in the form of ethnic music, dance, and art. Food for the festival will also be of ethnic origins. The combination of these elements is sure to tender an appreciation for other cultures. Communication tends to ensue with every meal.

The Berks Unity Solution campaign also entails building strong ties with surrounding communities. This has been accomplished by inviting our sister counties to participate in our annual event. Philadelphia and Lancaster have both shown a high level of interest in cooperating with our efforts to promote non-violence and have distinctive elements to offer in the form of entertainment. In fact, we have individuals joining our efforts from as far north as New York state and as far south as North Carolina. Our web-site: berksunitysolution.org  is now up and running with a rather large following, and is now being used as a suggested prototype for a similar initiative in Japan.