Hey, y'all!
The summer has already started here in the Delta and our LAX program is well under way. Eight students from the LA Leadership Academy arrived in Sunflower a week ago, and they've paired up with SCFP kids for a two-week exploration of Delta history and culture, from cotton to the blues to civil rights. It's been a bit of an adjustment — Mississippi is a fair bit different than Los Angeles — but the kids are learning a great deal about themselves and this area. After another week of Mississippi, our kids will head west to spend two weeks in California with their new friends. I'm attaching a picture of the full SCFP-LA group on the banks of the Mississippi River.
Before the summer began, two of our students achieved a major milestone: they became the SCFP's first black belts. After three years of practice three to five times a week, Chris Perkins and Lukendric Washington took a grueling, six-hour test that challenged them physically and mentally. They survived and earned their recognition from Unified Taekwondo International. Perkins will serve as an assistant martial arts instructor with the SCFP this summer. Attached is a picture of Chris and Luke, along with their instructor (me!) and the southern regional representative of UTI, Master D.J. Sias.
Next week, a different set of students will become pioneers of another sort as our Media Production team travels to Cleveland, Ohio, to present their "Sankofa" project to a national conference sponsored by Community Technology Centers. For the past several months, our Program Coordinator Greg McCoy has worked with these students to conduct interviews and shoot footage for an interactive web site that tells the rich history of the civil rights movement in Sunflower County. Soon, you will be able to see the site for yourself — it's fantastic!
Lastly, I have a rather unusual request to make. We need tennis balls — old, used-up tennis balls that you may be planning to throw away. We would like to use them for the legs of our chairs so that we can use them in our theater without destroying our martial arts mats. If you have any old tennis balls, please send them to us. Thanks!
Thanks so much for all your support!
Chris
Chris Myers
Sunflower County Freedom Project
120 Delta Avenue
P.O. Box 701
Sunflower, MS 38778
662-207-4744
www.sunflowerfreedom.org
"Knowing is not enough — we must apply.
Willing is not enough — we must do."
Li Jun Fan
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Last Modified: January 8, 2005.
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