“Cast
down your bucket where you are…cast it down in agriculture, mechanics, in
commerce, in domestic service, and in the professions." -Booker T.
Washington - 1895
Next month, the North Area Community Development
Corporation (NACDC), When We Dream Together, Inc (WWDT), and a host of
community partners will officially launch a nine-week summer program for North
St. Louis “at-risk” youth called “The Sweet Potato Project. Our ambitious but
basic mission is to empower youth in disadvantaged communities by paying them a
minimum wage salary to grow sweet potatoes, turn the yield into a product
(cookies, pies, muffins, etc.) and then teach them how to create the brand,
market and distribute the product they’ve created.
At this point, our resources are limited but potential
for inner-city transformation is great. Our goal is to foster a do-for-self
mentality for a challenged generation of urban youth. We want to empower them with
the knowledge that they don’t have to become involved in the deadly illegal
drug trade to make money. We want them to understand there are viable opportunities
right outside their doors. Today, we start with youth but this seed could
easily grow to empower adults and generate economic activity in long-neglected,
poor communities throughout our region.
In a way, this effort is rooted in the
message Booker T. Washington shared in 1895 when he urged former slaves to
become self-sufficient through “productions of our hands.” The fact is, in this
still ailing economy, we cannot expect the police alone to stem disproportionate
crime and murder rates in our region or wait for the government to create
programs aimed at teaching at-risk youth how to become self-sufficient
entrepreneurs.
This is a community responsibility and we’re
issuing an all-hands-on-deck appeal to pull this endeavor off this summer. NACDC
has applied for several grants and the outlook is promising. However, if
awarded, nonprofit funding for the pilot program will most likely be granted in
the fall or later. The majority of those funds will probably be applied to packaging
and production of the student’s products and next year’s expanded programming.
Therefore, we’re turning to the community to raise
enough funds to launch this summer’s pilot program so we can pay 10-to-15 teen
participants over the slated nine-week period.
Consider this missive a community call-out. Of
course, we need donations but we’re also looking for volunteer teachers, counselors
and others willing to teach a related course for a few days. We need adults who
can help us plant and harvest sweet potatoes; transport youth to area businesses
and out-of-class activities and serve as role models and mentors. We want parishioners
of churches and members of civic organizations involved and committed to
purchasing bulk orders of the products the kids produce. In brief, we welcome anyone
who wants to play a role in this worthwhile endeavor.
We’re also looking for those who head banks
and lending institutions, grocery chains, food manufacturing and production
companies, culinary institutes and area universities. We need you as sponsors and
as partners. We’re hoping representatives will host money management or
manufacturing classes, meet with the kids and explain what they do and how they
do it.
In his Atlanta Compromise
Speech, Booker T. Washington also said “…cast down your bucket where you are.” He
advised people to make change with what they had at hand. This is the mantra of the Sweet Potato
Project – a grassroots effort by every definition.
We’ve “cast down our buckets” and have a
solid foundation of supporters. Program advisors include a horticulture specialist
with Lincoln University’s Cooperative Extension program, a renowned professor from
the George Warren Brown School of Social Work and a Washington University MA,
MBA business professional. Alderman Antonio French of the 21st ward has
offered NACDC a vacant lot in the 4500 block of Athlone Avenue where we’ll soon
plant the sweet potatoes. The president of the Educational Equity group is on
board to help coordinate classes and programming and we’re talking with the director
of the Julia Davis Library about holding classes there. New York Times best-selling
author and the Food Network’s celebrity chef, Jeff Henderson-who learned of the
project while visiting St. Louis last month-has also offered to serve as
keynote speaker at an upcoming fund-raising event.
We are seeking support from everybody but it’s
important to us that our kids also be surrounded by volunteers, mentors,
educators, professionals and neighbors who look like them and help them develop
and distribute a product that brings a sense of pride and ownership back to their
neighborhoods.
Margaret Mead,
the cultural anthropologist once said “Never doubt that a small group of
thoughtful committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing
that ever has.” We have that small group of dedicated citizens
but we need more. Please
join us. Share this commentary with anyone you think may be interested in playing
a role in this community effort. NACDC is a 501 (c3) tax exempt agency. You can
go to its website and make a
donation online. If possible, do it today, funds are needed and we welcome any
amount.
Each year, we ask at-risk teens to turn from
drugs, put down their guns and stay in school without providing the resources,
alternatives and loving mentorship that helps make these choices viable. This
year, we can offer youth opportunities to earn while they learn valuable
life-long lessons. If the pilot program is successful, we can reach many more
and even expand the concept so ex-offenders and unemployed adults in
disadvantaged communities can be empowered through this community-based
economic development model.
The challenge is great, but I wholeheartedly believe
we can do this. For now, let us cast down our buckets where we are. Together, a
small group of committed citizens can indeed do our part to “change the world.”
Sincerely, Sylvester Brown, Jr.
Project Manager; The Sweet Potato Project
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