Mike Emmert, the campus pastor at Eagle Brook's Blaine campus, sat down with Lori Kordell, Operation No Limits' founder and executive director, to talk about her work with at-risk youth in Anoka County. Operation No Limits is a non-profit located at the Lino Lakes Juvenile Corrections Facility. It exists primarily to enhance the lives of at-risk youth through education, support, encouragement, positive experience, life and social skill development, and advocacy.
For several years, Eagle Brook has been in relationship with the Lino Lakes Juvenile Corrections Facility, located just north of the Blaine campus. Over the years, we've supported and instilled the hope of Christ to the youth, teachers, and staff in a variety of ways, such as home cooked holiday meals, practical life skills, and even bringing youth out to the Blaine campus to learn how to we handle technology and production.We've partnered specifically with Operation No Limits this past year, as they begin developing a transitional program for youth as they exit the corrections environment and step back into our communities.
Lori Kordell is the founder and executive director of Operation No Limits, which has been in existence since 2013. She is passionate about empowering at-risk youth to take an active role in their futures and change the path that they're on.
What is operation no limits doing in the community?
We work with the juveniles at the Lino Lakes Juvenile Corrections Facility and the non-secure shelter. We work with children who are incarcerated and children who are placed here for social service reasons, for their safety. These children typically range from fifth to twelfth grade, and the average age is about 16.
What was the catalyst for starting Operation No Limits?
In 2009, I was in a car accident with my kids. We were hit by a suicidal driver, and we were all hospitalized. The guy that hit us was under the influence of drugs and alcohol and didn't have insurance. We were considered victims of a violent crime and it was an emotionally and mentally draining process. It caused me to wonder: what about those victims who can't process this on their own, physically or mentally? How do they get help? This inspired me to help victims of violent crimes. Then I started to teach at Pines School and I kept seeing all these kids getting into trouble. [Pines School is located on the grounds of the Lino Lakes Juvenile Corrections Facility.] The guy who hit me was a criminal and had a record since he was 18he had been one of these kids. I decided that I was going to work on earlier intervention with these kids to help get them help before they end up like this guy who tried to kill himself and my family. I'm not sayingI'm going to change everybody's lives, but I am going to put a drop in the bucket. I want to help people before they get to the breaking point.
What it comes down to is, the kids [we're working with] need love and support. We can't give up on them. As a community, we need to realize that they are kids, and they're just kids who need help.
What does your work with these kids encompass?
We do a lot! Joe and I, the founders of Operation No Limits, were teachers at Pines School. When I came to the school, I didn't know that this population even existed. You hear about juvie, but it wasn't my reality at all. We decided that something more needed to be done for these kids. The county deals with these kids on the corrections side and teachers are the encouragers and the motivators, wanting them to do well academically. At Operation No Limits, we're that extra entity supporting the school and the corrections. We're working with the school, working with the county, working with the kids to give them skills to leave here with.
We work with them on campus, and we teach them life skills. We do things like contract painting, so we teach them how to bid a job, how to paint a room, how to buy the paint they'll need. We've built sheds on campus, and we've taken them to a therapy farm where we built a horse shelter for the farm as a volunteer project. So they learn some construction skills. We teach them job skills. We do mock interviews and help them gather the information they need to fill out applications. We help them apply for college. We're helping them find resources and ways to further themselves outside of their reality. They're going to leave here with a skill that they didn't have before.
What keeps you going when things are tough?
During Thanksgiving a few years ago, we came the day after and we did a huge dinner for the kids. I am sure you have heard of prison food. It's not very good and that's what they eat. So we came in and made homemade everything—homemade pies, homemade stuffing, homemade mashed potatoes. And they said, will you sit down and have dinner with us? And of course we did. And they said, let's go around and talk about what we are thankful for. And a couple of them said they have never had a Thanksgiving dinner before. I've never not had a Thanksgiving dinner, and to think that someone has never had a Thanksgiving meal before is just terrible. When they don't have that, it just speaks volumes.
What roles are you looking to fill through volunteers?
Currently, all we are is volunteers no one is paid staff at Operation No Limits. Because of that, we have a wide variety of opportunities available for people to bring their talents and interests to the organization. We're looking for people who love planning events, doing administrative work, teaching kids skills, cooking holiday meals, gardening, and even people who like investing in small non-profits looking to grow.
We've also started working directly with kids in a transitional fashion, which means helping them as they leave this facility, leave a structured environment, and move out. Volunteers can help them find jobs and line up interviews and schooling, make sure all their ducks are in a row so when they walk out they're a little more successful, instead of just leaving this structure and going home.
How can people get involved?
You have to look into your heart, be open-minded, and look beyond these kids and what they've done wrong. Think about what your skills are and what you could bring to a kid's life. We are open to long-term and short-term commitments. We encourage you to assess what you want to do and how much time you can give, and go from there.
If you're looking to just being exposed to what's going on at Operation No Limits, consider jumping in and helping us with the Christmas dinner. If you're looking to support a youth who is transitioning back into the community and you want to build a relationship, we have mentoring opportunities. If you're interested in sharing a skill with youth in a classroom environment, get ahold of us. There are a lot of ways you could engage!
We had an Eagle Brook volunteer come in and build rockets with the kids. It was a great experience and something they would never have otherwise done. So, people are welcome who can bring in a skill to teach the kids and have them participate. We want to start an automotive side of things to help teach kids about mechanics. All this gives them some skills to walk away with.
What makes you most excited about what the next year could hold?
The need is high, more kids keep coming. There is such a need and these kids are right here in your own community, your own back yard. Why not reach out and help these kids who are struggling? And we have great partners. Anoka County embraces us whole-heartedly. Eagle Brook embraces us whole-heartedly. There are people who care. We see it. It's growing, the passion is there, and more people are jumping in. Nothing but good can come from this.
For more information or to get involved with Operation No Limits, email Lori at
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