Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Robinson.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Growing up in northern Illinois, I learned early on that the easiest way to connect with others who looked different from me was through my love for sports. One of the most impactful examples happened my freshman year when a white upperclassman from a small farm town invited this 17-year-old black college freshman from the middle of the suburbs to play some basketball with him. Our bond over basketball, music and faith led to a relationship where he helped me to discover my purpose in life. What was most impressive about him is that he looked beyond the skin color and was genuinely and intentionally interested in my story.
It was that relationship that started me on a path towards investing in others, helping them to discover the purpose they were created to do regardless of who they are and where they came from. Just two weeks after graduating from college, I met a collegiate missionary who had a heart for mentoring and racial reconciliation and was making a difference at the University of Alabama, a school steeped in a dark history of racial discrimination and tension. His story was so intriguing that I had to meet him and after a lengthy conversation he offered me an opportunity to work and study with him. He showed me how to use what we had in common to build relationships that would transcend race, culture and any other barriers that keep people divided.
27 years and three states later, I find myself still paying it forward. Whether it was working on college campuses in three different states or leading a faith-based sports outreach ministry serving thousands of people in a major metropolitan area, the mission of investing in people regardless of who they are and helping them to discover their purpose in this world has remained the primary cause. That is what has brought me to MSP in my current role at the University of Minnesota with The Navigators Collegiate Ministry.
College is a time in a person’s life when they need someone to come alongside them and help them to discover the path they want to take in life. The questions range from who am I to why is the world the way that it is. I don’t have all the answers, but what I can offer is what was offered to me, the opportunity to embark on a journey of discovery. If I can help someone down the path of life and equip them with the tools to make good decisions then I have done my job.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road to where I am now. Along the way, I have encountered many obstacles but I would say the toughest ones were centered around overcoming the perceptions of others. Being a large black man in majority white spaces has always come with the pressure of overcoming people’s perceptions of who I am. The easy solution would be to just surround myself with people who look like me, but that is not the reality that we live in. This is a multicultural world we live in and because of that, we have to learn how to relate to people different from us. The challenge is that when confronted with the differences, many find it easier to make assumptions than to take the time to find out an individual’s story. I have made it my life’s mission to help others learn how to take the time. Sometimes I have been successful and other times I have been met with stiff opposition but the one thing that has kept me going is leaning on my faith which comes with the knowledge that I was created to be who my creator intended me to be and nobody else has the power to change that.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I work with The Navigators which is a Christian organization that specializes in faith based mentoring. I specialize in the areas of Leadership Development, Multi-Cultural/Diversity Education and Outreach. I have a platform known as “The SportMentor” which uses sports as a platform for developing mentoring relationships that help others to discover their identity and purpose.
I am most proud of seeing those that I have worked with become successful in their chosen careers and life callings and using their platforms to help others. What sets me apart for other mentors is my commitment to the long term. Although some may come with a specific goal in mind, I am always interested in who they are as a person, beyond what they do.
How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
For those that are interested in working with or collaborating with me, I can be reached through my various social media outlets or through my websites www.jasonrobinson.online or www.thesportmentor.com. Those that wish to support the work that I do can give through The Navigators at www.navigators.org, just go to the find staff section, type in my name Jason Robinson and you will be linked to my organizational giving portal.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.jasonrobinson.online or www.thesportmentor.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesportmentor/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jason.robinson.39566
