“I did four and a half years in the Marines. When I first started in the service, a lieutenant told me: ‘Have faith in yourself.’ I've always remembered that because he's right; It will get rough. Sometimes you might be hurting inside and want to do something to yourself, but God has you covered. Don’t give up. God knows. Believe in him. Believe in yourself. Thank you.”
"I’m a disabled Vietnam veteran. I lost a lot of my friends in the war and because of that, one of the things I suffer from is survivor's guilt. When I lived in Chicago, I used to the roam the streets, two- and three-o’clock in the morning, with a K-bar [Marine survival knife] in my hand in case somebody tried to jump me. "Photography was my way out. I’d been taking pictures from the time I was six or seven years old; both my parents were shooters, so it was in my blood. I started shooting a camera again, but instead of taking aim with a gun and bang, bang, bang, I take aim and it’s click, click, click. Back in 2009 I started a camera club here at Caritas Village for neighborhood kids --- did it for a couple of years --- where I taught them the basics of photography, how to edit pictures, and how to make graphics. One of the kids I taught is in college now majoring in graphic design. It gave me peace of mind to help them and keep them out of trouble. Some of them didn’t have a father in the home or their parents were working all the time, so they needed somebody to spend time with them. I took them places, showed them things they hadn’t seen before, and taught them not only about photography but about life. Shooting was --- and still is --- a way out for me." A sampling of JB's work: If readers are interested in purchasing any of JB's photographs (and there are many more to choose from), he can be contacted through Caritas Village.
“If we want to make new friends, we have to act kind to them and have fun with them and play games with them, like tag and hide-and-seek.”
CM: “How do you make new friends?”
ANDERSON: “Be nice to people. Let them go first on the slide.” MAXWELL: "Ask them questions like 'Do you want to play together?'" "Sometimes I help people with their work, like in math, science, and social studies. I also try to help people with other things, and I ask them if they’re okay."
Arden (left): “As part of the Memphis Youth Union [MemYu], we’re working to promote youth voice in Memphis, specifically in the political process. Our campaign goal is to lower the voting age to 16 because at this point, youth in Memphis don’t have a voice in the decisions that affect them every day. All schools require their students to have a government class, so the youth are informed and they care, but they don’t have an avenue to express their views. For example, issues involving the use of community centers directly impact youth. Groups in other parts of the country are also working to lower the voting age, and some places have actually done it already. For example, Takoma Park, Maryland was the first city to allow 16- and 17-year olds to vote in municipal elections and referendums. Eventually it could become a national thing like the amendment that lowered the voting age to 18, but our focus right now is local.” Lucy (middle): “Youth and adult equity is the idea that if youth and adults make decisions together, both will value and respect each other’s experiences. Everyone brings their personal experience to the table, and everyone’s input counts.” Taylor (right): “We are the world’s future leaders, so early civic engagement is important. Human behavior is, to a large degree, based on habit. Being more informed and engaged now can become a habit that makes us even more prone to be involved in the political process as adults. Touching on what Lucy mentioned, the fact is, adults can learn from youth just like youth can learn from adults. Connection and collaboration between two different age groups can be powerful and have a very positive impact on the city, community, and overall, the nation. That’s something the cohort wants to promote.” Memphis Youth Union (Arden, Lucy, & Taylor are part of a cohort of 8 students)
Website: Memphis Youth Union FB: Memphis Youth Union Twitter: @thememyu Instagram: @thememyu Email: memphisyouthunion@bridgesusa.org Article: Bridges Memphis Youth Union: A Movement for Youth Voice by Elizabeth Lee (9/11/16) “I moved to the United States from Nigeria in 1989. The most important thing I brought with me was respect, which is very important in our culture. We have respect for the elderly, we care for them, and we help the disabled, no matter what. Respect goes both ways: young to old, old to young. When my mama talks to me, I shut my mouth and listen. That was the biggest shock when I moved here: the lack of respect. I picked my daughter up from school after her first day here, and she said, ‘Mama, you would not believe how the students talk to the teachers!’ She was shocked as well. Never, as my daughter went through school, did I ever have to go speak to teachers about her behavior.
“Parents are the first teachers. We should work hard at teaching our children values and respect. When you respect yourself, you respect others, you respect the law, you respect everyone. Now you see the African come out in me: As a people we are very outspoken. We will tell you exactly what we think. We don’t invade another’s privacy, but we do call a person out if they are doing wrong.” “My mom used to always tell me, ‘You need to stop doing them drugs.’ She used to say she was gonna call the cops on me, so I bribed her. I'd buy her cigarettes because I knew she liked to smoke. Then she wouldn’t call the cops. I was 15 years old then, and I had money because I sold a lot of drugs. My dad was a dealer; I’d get drugs from him sometimes too. I was 14 when I started. Friends I was hanging with, we started smoking cigarettes first, then small drugs. Smaller drugs led to bigger ones, and it escalated from there. Drugs led to money. You know, the love of money is the root of all evil. It was a successful life financially though; it gave me experience on how to handle money."
“Then some things happened. I was on the run from the police, and my dad got me to come stay with him in Missouri where he was living at the time. It wasn’t a very good neighborhood. Bad things were going on there, and it showed me what I didn’t really want in life. Being with my dad taught me what could happen if you chose to live that way, you know? It was one of the smartest things I ever learned. "Things are different now. Better. For the past two years, I've been going in the right direction. I'm still working on getting off drugs though; I'm still recovering. It's a work in progress. The way it happened was, I was walking down the interstate here in Memphis. I'd been hitchhiking for hundreds of miles, on and off, and this van pulled over. It was a Christian group. They whipped out a flyer and explained what they did and how they did it; they said they helped save souls. So I got in the van with them." “For the last five years I worked at Theater Memphis as the Director of Outreach and Education. One project I did there --- called SPEAK --- was a collaboration between RedZone Ministries, Melrose High School, and Theater Memphis. It’s a group of kids in Orange Mound --- rappers, poets, dancers --- who create work about social issues and perform the pieces. We did a big poetry slam last year, which was great. Then last semester I worked with students from Melrose, Central, and Rhodes to do a big benefit performance for the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center. A couple of the kids actually just performed at the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center’s 35th Anniversary Gala --- where Angela Davis spoke --- in front of hundreds of people, which was amazing. These kids are brilliant artists; they create like most people breathe. “They’re all seniors now, so I didn’t have much longer with them anyway, but it was still hard to walk away when I got the Executive Director position at Caritas Village in January. They’re my kids; we’ve lived a lot of life together. We’ve made art together, which is certainly a bonding experience. And we’ve eaten a lot of pizza together; that’s no small thing. When you eat with people, you connect with them. We’ve dealt with family issues, had conversations about where they’re going to college, and have shared a lot of experiences, both difficult and beautiful. I always had a car or van full of kids to take home after our events, and that’s when we had some of our best discussions. It’s where we learned each other’s stories and really got to know each other. Realizing I wouldn’t be seeing them regularly anymore was hard because not only would I miss them personally but I didn’t want to be another person who left them. [*Pause*] I get a little choked up when I talk about it. But I’m just down the road, and a few of them I’ve been with for a really long time come to Caritas once a week and eat dinner with me. They know I’m still around, so I think that has made it easier. “I love being at the Village. There’s just nowhere like it. It gives so much, whether it’s space for a group to meet or feeding people who are hungry, no questions asked. Onie Johns has created a magical place where people connect, and I want to carry on that vision. I bought a house across the street from the Village a couple of years ago; Onie was a major influence in my moving to Binghampton. I just knew I loved it and wanted to be involved in what was happening here. It’s been a journey, and it continues to be. “There are so many organizations in Memphis that are doing good work, and Caritas is a place that could connect them all. I think we’re far stronger and can accomplish far more when we’re together. Whether it’s monthly or quarterly, I would love to have dinners where people can come and share their thoughts, ideas, and needs, and find ways to collaborate and support each other. The work that’s being done in this city is not easy, by any means, and I think we need that support from each other. Just to hear somebody say, ‘Yeah, I deal with that too, I struggle with that too.’ I would love to see a lot of art happen here that tackles all the things that our world needs to talk about. Granted, that’s huge, but I just believe in giving people a voice. If people have a place to do that and we work together as artists, then there’s no way that can’t be powerful.” "We are about to undergo some major renovations. We are unsure of the exact dates we will be closed for construction, but stay tuned! We promise to keep you posted!" Leslie Barker, Executive Director, Caritas Village, 2509 Harvard
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March 2021
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