THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, October 24, 1996 TAG: 9610230139
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SHIRLEY BRINKLEY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: 93 lines
AFTER ADMINISTRATOR Ethel Hart started a program at the East Suffolk Community Center to help young boys strive and excel in school, the girls made their wishes known.
A girl in the After School Program said she watched her brother put on a tie every Friday night to come to the center, Hart said, and she asked if Hart would start a program for the girls.
Before long, ``Sisters In Action I'' was available for girls ages 8 through 12, and ``Sisters In Action II'' opened for teens.
``Now the girls have more members than the boys,'' Hart said, smiling: 15 in the younger group, 12 in the teen group.
The goals are similar to those of ``Gentlemen In Action,'' which challenges boys to involve themselves in positive and wholesome activities. A male role model from the community shares an evening with boys between the ages of 7 and 15, and each boy is matched with a male mentor. Dinner is served at the end of each program.
Special events are planned for the girls by Lillie Mae Plenty, program coordinator, to teach health and nutrition, self-control and self-discipline.
``We have lots of hands-on activities,'' Hart said, including a pumpkin-decorating contest and Halloween party, dessert-making and beauty consultation.
``We're trying to provide a total program where they learn how to care for their hair and nails and eat the proper foods. Some haven't been used to eating vegetables, so a technician from my office did a vegetable party.''
Hart, senior secretary of the Suffolk Extension office, also asked an extension agent to conduct a sewing class for the group, and a nurse from the Suffolk Health Department visited to talk about sexually transmitted diseases. Last May, Hart and the girls planned a Mother-Daughter Banquet and Fashion Show in honor of Mother's Day. The girls made a corsage for their mothers, modeled fashions they had created and prepared refreshments.
Both the boys and girls elected officers, Hart said. While the boys ``kept it simple,'' she said, ``The girls made banners and campaigned for election. They gave campaign speeches, passed out brochures, made ballot boxes and had an installation service.''
Hart believes the program is making a difference in the lives of the girls.
When someone is rough, she said, ``I try to get to that girl and do some one-on-one talking.''
She said the boys also are given an opportunity to do things other than ``I want to be a Michael Jordan.''
``I tell them it's time to get an education and learn how to treat people, develop a personality to get along with people and then get ahead.''
Stanley Pittman, athletic supervisor at the Western Tidewater Regional Jail, participated every week for several months, shared his life story, played basketball with the boys, and talked about the need to excel in academics as well as athletics.
Hart's husband, Ronald Hart, is involved, as well as Roland Wyatt Jr. of Wyatt Funeral Home, who sponsored a cookout and provided a gas grill, food and beverages.
Hart said some of the boys in the program were ordered to attend by Suffolk Juvenile and Domestic Court Service.
``One boy has a community service sheet and actually logs in the number of hours he works with the program,'' she said. ``They come from all over the city.''
Now they are learning about respect for their mothers, teachers and principals.
Money from drink and snack machines at the Center are used for both the boys' and girls' projects, Hart said.
``We keep a running account and try to equalize the money in the treasury,'' she said. ``We used it for Easter baskets and took them to Glendale Nursing Home. Some of the girls noticed that the seniors didn't want us to leave, so we're going to make gifts and have a Thanksgiving and Christmas celebration for them.''
Last spring, with the help of an instructor, the girls made apple and grape jellies, while the boys made strawberry jam. Allowed to take one jar home, club members sold the other jars for profit.
``The Center operates on grants and donations,'' Hart said. ``I tell the children they have to do their part because they are all benefiting. The kids are willing to do anything you ask them to do.''
Plans are in the making for a Youth Entrepreneurship at the Center that calls for research, setting up a business plan, marketing and advertising. In the future, both groups will raise and sell vegetables at a roadside stand. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
Lillie Mae Plenty, program coordinator at the East Suffolk Community
Center, helps Shamia Majette, left, and Tiffany Gay decorate
pumpkins as part of a ``Sisters in Action II'' program.
Graphic
ACTION MEETINGS
Sisters In Action I and Sisters In Action II, from 6:45 to 7:45
p.m. Thursdays.
``Gentlemen In Action,'' 6 p.m. Fridays. Boys required to wear in
shirts and ties. East Suffolk Community Center, 134 S. Sixth St.
For information, call 934-8561. by CNB