A Successful Day of Caring
Friday September
11th,
the 10 year
anniversary of
the September 11th
attacks of the
World Trade
Center, was
remembered at
Metanoia and
throughout the
Tri-County Area
as the region’s
tenth annual Day
of Caring.
Sponsored by
Trident United
Way, employees
of MeadWestvaco
Corporation were
paired with host
site Metanoia to
help us serve
the community
through lots of
hard work.
Metanoia
Volunteer
Coordinator
Jamilla Harper
was very pleased
with the
dedication shown
by volunteers,
as they
rehabilitated a
duplex for
Metanoia
Interns, cleaned
out the Chicora
Children’s
Garden and
Painted space
for our
Children’s
programs. .
Says Jamilla,
“It would have
taken days or
even weeks for
the employees
here at Metanoia
to complete what
the MeadWestvaco
volunteer s
finished in just
a few hours.”
The day saw
wonderful
progress on the
duplex at 2014
Grason St.,
which will soon
become home to
two Metanoia
interns.
Volunteers
painted the
entire exterior
and much of the
interior of the
building. The
volunteers also
worked hard to
refurbish the
Chicora
Elementary
School student
garden by
weeding,
planting, and
mulching.
The youth programs at Metanoia also made a big impact on the Day of Caring. The Young Leaders Program, donned in their Harambee shirts, split up into competing groups and collected garbage strewn about the neighborhood streets surrounding St. Matthew’s Church. Says Liliana, a 5th Grader at Chicora Elementary School, “We knew we were helping in the community because people in the neighborhood would tell us ‘thank you’ when we walked by.” While collecting non-glass items with zeal, several Young Leaders also paraded with signs created by the group which commemorated the 9/11 attacks and the subsequent valiant efforts on part of the New York City Police and Fire Departments. Although many of the Young Leaders were too young to remember the events, they are well aware of the impact those days have had on their lives since.
The Civic Justice Leaders, Metanoia’s after school program for the middle and high school aged students, participated as well by working on the duplex after the MeadWestvaco volunteers had left for the day. Although the latter had taken care of the house’s exterior, the Civic Justice Leaders went to work on the trim, fastidiously painting the mailbox posts, staircase, and handrails leading up to the second-storey apartment. The students also went to work on some much needed yard work.
Whether our volunteers were from our neighborhood or outside our neighborhood we all became a part of a family of positive transformation on the Day of Caring. Metanoia wishes to thank Trident United Way, MWV Corporation, and our own student leaders for all the hard work they put in to honor this special day!
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Metanoia Earns Community Trust, Building
Aside from enjoying huge success in fulfilling its mission of community development, Metanoia has recently been the beneficiary of a more tangible reward for our work with Chicora. Recently in our community our police department had to address criminal activity happening in a vacant building in our neighborhood. The owner of the building at Reynolds Avenue told North Charleston Police Neighborhood Resource Officer Chris Terry that he would just as soon give away his property to someone who cared to manage it, than continue to deal with the illegal squatters constantly attracting the attention of North Charleston police officers. Without hesitation Officer Terry whipped out his cell phone and dialed Metanoia CEO Bill Stanfield, who received the call in his office not 100 yards away. Five minutes later the deal was in process and Metanoia is now the new owner of a two storey building right down the street from its offices.
We aren’t sure yet how we plan to utilize this newly acquired space, but there are several ideas currently in the works. One possibility is to use it to house our growing youth entrepreneurship programs. Middle and High School Students at Metanoia have already begun screen printing shirts and crafting jewelry to generate revenue. The new building now offers the potential to expand these businesses and perhaps add a café to the mix. The second floor of the building could also be used as housing for out-of-town volunteers at Metanoia. Currently these volunteers are housed at churches or hotels outside of the community. Not only would this give volunteers a chance to stay within the community they are working with, but it could also represent a boost in community income.
However the property is used, this story is a major testament to the trust and relationships that Metanoia has nurtured with the community. Reverend Bill states that such a transaction would not have happened five years ago simply because Metanoia was still a relatively unknown entity in the community. The donation of this property is proof that Metanoia is living by its mission statement of “Pushing forward into new relationships with God and one another to create strong communities.”
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Parents Flock to Young Leaders' Family Night
The new school year’s first Family Night was held for the families of Young Leaders on Wednesday, September 23rd. Parents had a chance to meet with the Young Leaders Program Counselors who mentor their children every day after school. Program Director Charmaine Townsend and Assistant Director Geraldine Henderson were also present and busy meeting and greeting the excited family members. After a brief introduction from Ms. Townsend, the Young Leaders showed off what it meant to them to be a part of the program, by emphatically reciting the Young Leaders Pledge, which is said everyday and has been memorized by each student. The children then broke into a song and dance Medley entitled “I Am Alive,” a testament to the hard work they put in, in working to become not only successful students of the classroom, but also productive citizens of their Chicora neighborhood.
Afterwards parental members of the Dream Team, parents who are very involved in the Young Leaders Program through their volunteer work and dedication to extra-curricular activities, served a slew of home-made dishes in a buffet for all the students and their families to enjoy.
At Metanoia we believe that parental involvement is essential to growing young leaders. Our parents put in hundreds of hours worth of parental involvement per year and we know that we could not be successful without their efforts. Thank you parents!!
Click here to see the Young Leaders' performance of 'I Am Alive!'
