
                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 22, 1994                    TAG: 9406220502 
SECTION: LOCAL                     PAGE: B3    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: BY JIMMY GNASS, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: 940622                                 LENGTH: HAMPTON

HAMPTON PROFESSOR'S EFFORT NETS 6,000 BOOKS FOR S. AFRICAN YOUTH

{LEAD} Michael Battle is on a mission.

``I wish everything I did mushroomed into this size,'' he says, standing in a room stacked full of books. Thousands of books.

Battle, who is the chaplain and a professor at Hampton University, is giving the gift of education to the children of South Africa. Or at least he is trying to.

{REST} It started two months ago during the South African elections. Battle served as an observer for the election commission.

``It was good because our position as observers for the elections was an absolute critical role,'' he says. ``We were the ones that verified the count as accurate.''

While Battle was in South Africa he asked what he could do to help instigate change. ``Send books for the children,'' people told him. ``So that the churches and community centers can start training programs.''

So Battle is doing it.

Only he didn't realize at first how much of a challenge it would turn out to be.

``I figured we would get two, three hundred books, maximum. We could take them over, do our job, pat ourselves on the back,'' Battle said. ``Then, I started requesting books through the Hampton school system. They decided to respond. So instead of three hundred books, we have well over 6,000.''

Now that Battle has acquired the books, he has to figure out how to get them there. The Hampton University Ministers Conference has made an initial donation to pay for shipping.

But that was before there were so many books. Now, the conference is accepting donations.

Battle also plans to work with the South African council of churches once the books are delivered. Together, they will get the books distributed.

But for Battle, the mission is just beginning.

This is one of those follow-ups of having to go and observe,'' he says. ``I wanted to make sure that we did something more substantial than just be there to rejoice with people when they voted.'' by CNB