Newsletter ~ First Quarter 2008 Serving Inner-City Youth and Families

Summerhill Community Ministries, Inc.

Little Girl K Little “K” is an eight year old girl

who has been encouraged to

regurgitate so that she won’t be as

big as her mother. Small, frail K

came to Summerhill new this school

year when her mom stopped me at

the bus stop one morning. She

asked if we had room for her

daughter. K was excited to be here

although she struggled to make

friends. She constantly desired to

be the center of attention among

her classmates.

I met with mom and step uncle and

a relationship began to develop.

They shared family circumstances

and we helped with food and

transportation. Mom and K had to

move in November. Mom wanted K

to continue to come to our ASP

because she said K was doing

much better in school. She

committed to riding Marta to take

her to school in the morning and

pick her up at the ASP each day.

A few weeks ago, K missed a full

week of school. Mom told Justina

she had pneumonia. We began to

pray for her. When she returned, K

looked even smaller, literally skin

and bones. I sensed that something

more was wrong. The step uncle

pulled me to the side and asked me

to please talk with K about a

problem she has been dealing

with. He went on to say that K eats a

Please Pray

lot of food, especially candy and

junk food, and regurgitates. She

belongs to a girls club at school

and apparently someone has told

her how to stay small and not be

“fat” like her mom. He says mom

has been in denial and needs help

as well.

Since then I have spoken with mom

and she admits to K’s problem and

says this is what brought on the

recent pneumonia. Mom and I

discussed help for K. Please pray

for K.

Remember mom in your prayers as

she recently had to be rushed to

the hospital for shortness of breath

and heart pain.

Phillip Phillip who is 16 years of age fits the stereotypical inner-city hard

core kid, raised without a father

and seemingly angry at the world.

At the beginning of the season, his

mother came to me and said she

really needed help with Phillip. She

knew that my son Justin, had

developed a bond with Phillip over

the years and Phillip stated that he

only respected Justin and his

mother.

Phillip has been kicked out of two

different boys and girls clubs in the

community and has been

suspended from school more times

than they can remember - mostly

for fighting and disrespecting

adults. Mom seems to have no

control.

Although Phillip questions if there

really is a God, Justin and I agreed

that we would try to give him a

chance to be a part of a Christian

organized league, with hopes of

ministering to his soul.

One challenge among many others

was to get him through the season

without him losing his cool on the

basketball court. We spoke to

Phillip often about self-control

during an emotional time, respect

of all players and staff of the

league, and being a team player.

We prayed for Phillip more than he

knew. We watched him carefully

during games to make sure we took

him out at the onset of temper

flares. Sometimes we thought he

was going to loose it and Justin

would shout a couple of words,

“Phillip are you good?” and Phillip

would take a deep breath and

shake his head yes, or give a

thumb’s up. We knew that he was

trying. I commended him on his

effort to stay cool. He would nod

and smile, which is something that

this young man rarely does.

Phillip made it through the season

but still needs to get to know his

personal Savior in a very real way.

Please pray for him and us as we

seek to reach him where he is.

Justina Dix

“When she returned, K looked even smaller, literally skin and bones. I sensed that something more was wrong.”

“Phillip...fits the stereotypical inner-city hard core kid, raised without a father and seemingly angry at the world .”

Justina and her family send out a

huge thank you to all those who

prayed for her mother. After

undergoing two three-hour

surgeries in one week, she made it

through the complications and is

recovering well in the Manor Care

Rehabilitation Facility in Decatur,

Georgia. She is expecting to return

home in 4 weeks.

Justina’s Mother

Summerhill Community Ministries, Inc. First Quarter 2008 ~ Page 2

Baby Winter Summerhill kids await Anna & Justin

Winter’s baby boy. The kids

include baby Winter in their

prayers each day as we end our

devotions. Although much

excitement about the new baby is

in the air, there is also a bit of

sadness. We know we will have to

say good-bye to Anna as a summer

camp and after school teacher.

This multi-talented young lady will

be truly missed in this fashion.

Anna will keep close to Justina and

family as a dear friend as she and

Justin head the project on Justina’s

house.

Summerhill

Snaps

Summer Camp is around the

corner. Some of our camp kids are

already talking about camp. One

popular question is, “Are we going

back to God’s Farm?” They look

forward to the summer at S.C.M.

Please help us provide a fun, safe

summer for these kids.

P. O. Box 160294 • Atlanta, Georgia 30316 • 404-964-4604 • justinascm@juno.com • http:\\www.summerhillcm.com

First Quarter 2008 ~ Page 3

Teen Job Training

Program The teens are calling and showing

up at the house, hoping for and

anticipating a summer job with

Summerhill Community Ministries.

We will hold interviews during the

last week of April.

We are glad to see how many of

our past Teen Workers that started

out at Summerhill have been able

to get and keep a job with a good

work ethic. To name a few:

Joel Dix- Full time College student

and Manager at J.R. Crickets in

Union City.

Khamirah Miller - Full time college

student and holds job with Hands

on Atlanta.

Justin Dix - LPS Security Company

Antwain Royster - Chick Fil A

Mwalimu Clark - Full time college

student

Latoya Wade - UPS

Tieon Miles - Full time college

student and part time at Atlanta

Housing Authority

Darryl Hickson - Full time college

student and part time at Hardens

Construction Company

As always - we need your prayers!

Sponsor a Child/Job Trainer/Camp Teacher for Summerhill Community Ministries, Inc. - Camp 2008

With summer quickly approaching,

children in Summerhill, Peoplestown,

Mechanicsville, and Grant Park will be

in need of constructive activities. With

your help these children can

participate in SCM’s Inc. Summer

Camp.

Our camp is a quality, God centered

camp where the young people can

learn the Bible, receive love and

encouragement from staff and caring

volunteers, and participate in

enrichment activities and trips. In the

past years, many children have prayed

to receive Christ into their lives.

Please consider giving a special gift to

one of our urban youth this summer by

sponsoring them for camp.

While we ask the parents to contribute

$25.00 to send their child to camp, the

actual cost is $390.00 per child for the

seven weeks. You can sponsor a child

for one week for $65.00, for the whole

summer for $390.00, or with any

amount you wish to give.

Volunteers are also needed to provide

meals, snacks, chaperone trips, and

teach enrichment activities.

Camp dates are tentatively set for June 10th – July 18th.

We may add another week if funds are sufficient.

____ YES, I want to volunteer this summer ____________________________________

(area of interest)

Name ___________________________________________________________________

Address: ________________________________________________________________

City: ________________________ State: __________ Zip: _________________

Phone: ____________________________ _____ YES, please mail me the newsletter

_____ YES, save postage and EMAIL the newsletter to me at:

Email: ____________________________________________________________

_____ Yes, I want to sponsor a Child/Job Trainer/Camp Teacher for Camp!

____ $ 65.00 One Week ____ $1,850.00 Job Trainer

____ $ 390.00 All Summer ____ $2,250.00 Camp Teacher

____ $ ___________________ Other

Checks should be made out to “Summerhill Community Ministries” with

“Summer Camp” specified in the memo line. All donations are tax deductible

Summer Camp 2008

First Quarter 2008 ~ Page 4 Summerhill Community Ministries, Inc.

P. O. Box 160294 • Atlanta, Georgia 30316 • 404-964-4604 • justinascm@juno.com • http:\\www.summerhillcm.com

Basketball - Our teams fight to the end!

SCM’s 15 and under team coached by Emmanuel Jr., better known as

Coach D.D. to the boys, had a great season! These boys are learning about

what it means to be dedicated and committed. They came to practice, cold

rain or shine, even though they knew they would practice outside. They

came early to practice and games. They played each game with heart and

made it to the play offs. They placed 4th in the league.

The 18 and under was coached by Justin Dix. This energized team also

made it to the playoffs and then to the championship game. They won the

2nd place trophy. This team also holds dedicated players, but there was

one player that needed extra focus and attention. (See special prayer

requests)

Our ASP kids have been working hard to prepare for the

CRCT testing. Please pray as they

take this test beginning April 14th.

CRCT Tests

• Snacks for 30 ASP kids (4 days a

week)

• Paper Goods (paper towels,

napkins, toilet paper, plates,

silverware, cups)

• Various grade/skill level

worksheet books

• Cleaning supplies (big garbage

bags, table, bathroom, & floor

cleaning “stuff”)

• Copier paper (white and colored)

• Stamps, envelopes

• Kroger/Publix gift cards (lately

many families have food needs)

• Gift cards to Office Depot/Staples

or Wal-Mart for office supplies

• Boxed cards for birthdays,

encouragement, illness,

condolences

• Basketballs, footballs, and soccer

balls

• Gatorade, bottle water

• BP gas cards for vans

• Van maintenance (clean, change

oil, rotate tires …)

• Ongoing monthly contributions

and one-time gifts.

Ongoing SCM Needs