As the teens shared about the numbness they feel toward shootings and their hopes that they are really making a difference, the audience listened and was encouraged.  You see, there are many

people who are concerned about Wilmington, and to them these teens offer a bit of hope in a dark place.  The audience shared words of encouragement to our teens and told them to keep up their challenging, but life-changing work. Our teens compared themselves to “The Interrupters,” as interrupters in between the children and the streets. I hope they truly see themselves as interrupters between the children and drugs, violence, hopelessness, dropping out, the wrong crowd, and low expectations.

My name is Matsiko Ernest, I am from Uganda, and I work at Camp Hope.

     Last night was an awesome night for me.  I got to see all the kids from all camps (Harmony, Freedom, Truth, Hope, Victory, and, Promise) come together for the Math Dare.  What I witnessed is that ‘practice makes perfect.’  I enjoyed seeing the children do math with confidence, and above all, the love for the work they were doing.  Then came the ice cream treat!  The biggest and longest I have ever seen! We had the children digging into it generously.  I bet some were praying; “…if only these spoons would turn into shovels… and the plates, huge bowls!”  One could plainly see that they loved it, and of course, I loved it too!  Thank you to the Curran family for providing this for us.  The most interesting part in Math Dare was the way children related to their camp leaders.  I loved it because it showed me trust, and I believe through trust, a child will always love and be loved. Thank you every one reading this story, because you are the reason I am writing it. And thank you Urban Promise Members and supporters for making this happen. I am also most grateful to God for the love he shows children through projects like this. It happens once a year, but, builds a lot of skills in children. Be blessed as you bless the “little ones”.

It all began, one Friday night, where kids from all sides of Wilmington came together for the best sleepover of the year!  The kids in my car listed bowling, games, and sleeping as some of their favorite parts.  They also realized just how much Faith Presbyterian Church did for them.  They were fed a snack at night and breakfast in the morning, they were entertained by 2 hours of fun games, and were given a place to sleep surrounded by all their friends.  Do you know any one who would open their home to 24 1st and 2nd graders, plus their 12 crazy after school program staff?

Thanks to Pizza Hut for allowing us to take over your place,
First State Bowling for working with us so well the past several years, and Faith Presbyterian for loving us and always making this a weekend the kids remember!

     My name is Ashaba Moses, an intern from Uganda. As interns, we help out in the UrbanPromise School class rooms Thursday mornings and I assist Ms. Heath in 1st grade.  Ms. Heath is one of a kind.  She is presumably the most hands on teacher I have ever met. I enjoy assisting her with all these great projects she has prepared for her class, some of which I never got to do as a kid growing up in Africa (for example, i have learned about the great mornarch butterflies and their migration patterns and the rise and extinction of dinosaurs).

Today we painted different land forms from paper mache.  I enjoy the creativeness and the great times in her class.  My great experiences range from tying shoelaces, zipping up coats, to walking them down the hall way in a super straight line.  I guess you know what that takes for a first grader!

They tell me all these hilarious stories… they eat Chinese food for dinner everyday… they flew and came back from space with a green ranger. It’s all fun!  Thursday has turned out to be a source of inspiration for me during the course of my long week.  It’s a time for me to venture into what my childhood looked like at some point. I get to sit and learn on a first grade level with all these great kids.  I love working with the first grade class.

After two practices, one of UrbanPromise’s two teams had their first basketball game.  Our twelve and under team is coached by Joel Orr.  Coach Joel said after the game,

Who did you work with?  I got the chance to work with Betsy, Lynn and Ranie
What did you do?  Can you not see?!? We cleaned the entire building and it looks great.  The gutters, the walls, the floors, everything looks really good!
Anything you want to tell the group?  Keep coming back.  We don‘t have a cleaning crew and we really need you! 

The weather was great and the attitudes dealing with the cold was even better.  Thanks to Christ Church Christiana Hundred, Wilmington Friends School, and Sanford School for giving up your holiday day off to help us out.

for more information about getting your group involved in a WorkDay, contact Justin Barss

The UrbanPromise Silent Auction is coming mid-March!

Last year was the first time the silent auction was on its own night.  It was a huge success.  Lots of great deals, great food, and fun with friends in the wonderful setting of Christ Church Christiana Hundred.  We are thrilled to be back for a second year.

First, save the date and invite friends to join you for this lovely evening.

Second, think if you have items or experiences you would like to donate.  If there are businesses or individuals we can contact for donations, please let us know!

Date:    Thursday, March 15th
Location:  Christ Church Christiana Hundred, 501 E. Buck Rd., Wilmington DE 19807
Tickets:  $15 per person

Purchase Tickets Online HERE.  

Questions or Donations?  Contact Lori McClain, lori@urbanpromise.org or 302-425-5502 x115

“I first heard about UrbanPromise from Andy, the pastor of my church and a previous intern. He told me what UrbanPromise did and how they make a difference in the children’s lives. When I heard about the work they do, I instantly knew I wanted to become part of the team to help to improve the lives of these children. I then met up with the representatives who came over to England in Feburary so I could find out more information about the internship and what I would be doing.”

April Roberts
First year intern at Camp Promise
Originally from England

“I heard about UPW while I was student teaching in Chicago. Sterling College, where I attended was known for their overwhelming amount of emails and I usually trash them but as I was scanning the inbox I noticed an email from a professor announcing a past student (Joel Orr) coming to campus to talk about what he has been doing the last few years. My first thought was that I would not get to see him or hear him speak so I decided to read the email. As I read it I found that he would be talking about UPW so I went to the website and checked it out. I applied based on a few things. One, I was very interested in working with children. Two, I trusted Joel’s opinion. And now I’m here.”

Salima Watson
First year intern at Camp Truth
Originally from Kansas

“I heard about UPW through Joel Orr.  Joel and I attended the same college and had formed a friendship my junior year at Sterling College. My final year in college I was able to student teach in the inner city of Chicago Illinois. Through this I developed a passion for the inner city and really wanted to continue in this area as a career. After many interviews and closed doors, I remembered a conversation that I had with Joel about one of the summer camps he had worked with (UrbanPromise). All I could remember was that it was an inner city ministry, working with children, and that he had really enjoyed it. I decided to contact Joel via facebook to find out more about UrbanPromise. After I started looking into UrbanPromise, I found that not only was it in the inner city, but it was everything I was looking for. I filled out an application and within a couple weeks heard a response from the intern coordinator. Now here I am at UrbanPromise. Not only have I been able to work with the inner city, but I have been able to use the skills and qualifications God has given me in the afterschool programs and community living. I have also had the opportunity to meet wonderful people with the same passion, and have been challenged spirtitually in every aspect.”

Emily Kennedy
First year intern at Camp Hope
Originally from Oklahoma

For more information check out the internship page:  Internship Program

The atmosphere is buzzing at the Academy; buzzing with the feeling of a hope and a future. Something that God promised us in Jeremiah 29:11! A part of that plan that God has put in the heart of most of these Urban Promise Academy teens is the hope of post-secondary education. The hope of actually having various options upon graduating high school. The hope of being pioneers in their families, who go on to college or trade schools and create other open doors for themselves. This fall, our eleventh grade students got the experience of seeing a small part of what getting ready for college looks like through the practice SAT (PSAT). As they waited for weeks in anticipation of their performance scores, they willingly and excitedly explored different post-high school options. All of this excitement was brought on by the chance to take part in the PSAT test.

These students do not take this chance for granted, because what is free at any public school, sometimes costs money for them to take going to a private Christian school. Our hope is that all of our students would be able to have this exciting experience of getting ready for the future through one of these tests (SAT, ACT, PSAT, PSSS)

We also are creating an avenue where our college bound students would be able to get first-hand experience at college life while getting a credit through Delaware Technical Community College. We have at least one student who will be attending the college for a class this Spring semester.

Below are various ways in which you can help sponsor HOPE and different testing options which will be available during the school year but require financial sponsors for our students to take.

* PSSS Sponsor – $20 each for 5 students to take this standardized pre-PSAT test
* ACT Sponsor – $49.50 each for 4 students to take this college placement test
* SAT Sponsor – $49.00 each for 4 students to take this placement test
* DelTech course sponsor – $175.00 – for at least one student to take a credit class at DelTech this spring
* Reading assessment – $120.00 for all 6 six students to take a standardized reading assessment

On December 19th, Urban Promise Academy spent an exciting day at the Herr’s potato chip factory.

The students’ first stop was the Research and Design department, where they spoke with culinologists, or food scientists, about how they develop new snacks for the company. They even got to sample some new, unreleased flavors of chips!

After touring the Herr’s factory and eating lunch at Chipper’s Cafe, the Academy participated in a monthly consumer testing of Herr’s products alongside of company executives, including Ed and J.M. Herr! “What inspired me was how the bosses were very down to earth people. I really appreciated that… they just seemed like a big, happy family,” said Will, a 10th grader. With clipboards in hand, students evaluated various chips and pretzels as they snacked: “…it was interesting and educational. I’ve never had a opportunity like that before, and may not have one again for years,” commented 11th grader Na’Adirah.

The Academy is grateful to the Herr’s company for their warm hospitality and generosity. They would like to especially thank Richard White, Sr. VP of Human Resources at Herr’s, for organizing the trip. It was a truly unforgettable day!

by:  Barbara Duszak, Academy Teacher

Picture caption – Academy students and staff with Ed Herr, President of Herr’s Potato Chips (left) and Richard White, Sr. VP of Human Resources (right)