November 2013

2013
trustmarks
red beans rice
Celebration a Benefit for Stewpot Community Services, Inc.
Stewpot would like to thank all of our SPONSORS who help us to put
on this fundraising event. Because of you, all monies raised will go to
Stewpot in support of its 17 ministries:
Jackson Free Press
Adams & Reese LLP
VIP Magazine
American Field Services, Inc.
Northside Sun
Atmos Energy
Mississippi Magazine
Chapel of the Cross
WLBT/ FOX 40
Community Bank
Nissan
Ergon
Clearchannel Radio
Forman Perry Watkins Krutz & Tardy
95.5 Hallelujah FM
Jones Walker LLP
MISS 103
Rick’s Pro Trucks & Tires
The Score 620 AM
St. Dominic Health Services, Inc.
Oldies 105.1
Southern Farm Bureau Casualty
Z106.7
Insurance Co.
Trustmark Park
Community Services
Properties - Lemuria Bookstore – Madison Planting & Design - McDade’s Market - Nix-Tann & Associates –Puckett Machinery RiverWalk Casino – Reed Food Technology - Ross & Yerger - Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Co. - The Can Man
DIRECTOR’S CORNER
By: Rev. Frank Spencer
continued from cover...
The Stewpot Holiday basket process begins 2 weeks before the
actual give away when applicants come to Stewpot and sign up
to get the ingredients for the meal. Applicants are screened by
Stewpot staff and volunteers to determine whether the applicant
is poverty level or below and thus truly in need of the assistance.
If the individual qualifies, then he or she is given a card that they
are to present the next week when the turkeys are actually given
away. In that way we know how many turkeys we have to ask
for. If there are not enough then Stewpot buys enough turkeys to
make up the difference.
The week before the holiday, the clients come at 1PM
(after Stewpot’s noon meal) to pick up the ingredients. That timing gives the turkeys time to properly thaw in a refrigerator at
Please help Stewpot make the holiday meals for those needing
the assistance a festive and abundant holidays.
Faith meeting needs in our community
A Newsletter of Stewpot Community Services
2013
Thanksgiving For Stewpot in 2013 By Rev. Frank Spencer
The Stewpot Family has so much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving season and I want to make sure everyone knows about the blessings that Stewpot has and is enjoying this year.
Your Stewpot family
now has a
Facebook page!!
When you are browsing the social
network scene look up the Stewpot
facebook page and become a fan!
the clients home before it is cooked. It takes about 15 staff and
volunteers to check the card, hand out various parts of the meal
and then carry the supplies to the client’s transportation whether
it be car or bus.
Would you consider being a donor to this ministry? We
need help to obtain the ingredients. If you are not able to purchase them yourself, a gift of $25 to Stewpot will buy a complete
meal. The ingredients include a 12-15 pound turkey, a box of
dressing, 2 cans of green peas, 2 cans of sweet potatoes, a can of
cranberry sauce, a 5 pound bag of sugar, 2cans of mixed fruit, a
5 pound bag of flour and a 5 pound bag of flour. Some parents
carry their children to the store to purchase the items to teach
them the importance of helping those less fortunate.
PAID
JACKSON, MS
PERMIT NO. 821
Faith meeting needs in our community
ASAP Printing – BKD, LLP – Brunini - Blair & Bondurant, PA – Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP - Brunini, Grantham, Grower,
Hewes, PLLC- Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. - Cooke Douglass Farr Lemons – Corlew Munford & Smith, PLLC –Ergon – EastGroup
NONPROFIT
ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE
1100 West Capitol Street
Jackson, MS 39203
601.353.2759
MEMORIALS
IN HONOR
Lee Lustig
by William Blair
Dr. Nell Adams
Jim & Judy Sclater
John Rogers
by Francesha Roland
Steve & Beth Orlansky’s Wedding Anniversary
Mr. & Mrs. David Orlansky
Linda Neely Powell
by Dot & John Gibson
C.R. White
Elizabeth Ogle
Lucille Moore
by Francesha Roland
Dr. Charles Sallis-Birthday
Charles Sallis
Anne Hinton
by Delle Baker
by Frank & Ann Jones
by Dora Knight & Hilda Wheat
by Donald Hinton & Family
by Calvary Baptist Church
Ava Giddens-Birthday
Robert & Danielle Ireland
Stewpot needs Turkeys 2013: The holidays are fast approaching,
we want to help as many families as possible have a wonderful dinner on their
table. Here is how you can help us help them: Turkey donations. We assist about
500 to 600 families for Thanksgiving with a Holiday Basket. Helping others is the
best gift you can give yourself. Try it; the smiles on these families’ faces will be
worth your Turkey donation!
If you are unable to bring a turkey, a $25.00 donation will cover the cost of a
complete Holiday Basket.
Stephanie Echols
Director, Food Services
Richard Marler
Painter Family
Matching Funds Acknowledgement for Community Bank
by J. H. Thames in honor of
Mr. & Mrs. Tommy Thames
Leslie Moffett
Gaye Davis
Marion Claiborne Barnwell
James & Cynthia Abbott
Donna& Jim Barksdale for their continuing service
to the community
Claire & Rees Barksdale
Stewpot Privacy Policy
Stewpot does not and will not divulge or sell the names, addresses, or any other information about our contributors, newsletter recipients, or people
who access our website. If you wish to have your name removed from Stewpot’s mailing list, please email us at
www.stewpot.org or call us at 601-353-2759. Stewpot values your friendship and your privacy.
We do not want to forget the problem that occurred last December when an individual filed a change of address form with the U.
S. Post Office. For a little over a week, much of Stewpot’s holiday
mail was diverted to the wrong address. Although, it is impossible
for Stewpot to know what mail and money was diverted from our
ministries, a comparison with the previous year showed a reduction
in contributions in excess of $110,000.
After the diversion, Stewpot continued all of its ministries serving
over 650 people a day as long as we could until our funds ran out in
July. It was a sad time when we announced that we would have to lay
off staff and close 2 of our ministries. These two ministries served 125
people a day. HOWEVER, as soon as the announcement was made,
supporters came to the rescue. By the end of the first week with the
donations and pledges coming in, Stewpot was made whole from the
theft and we were able to reopen the 2 closed programs. In fact, with
the made up funds and extra support, Stewpot ended up in August
2013 in better financial shape than in the previous year.
Secondly sometime in November or December, Stewpot will open
its new kitchen, dining room and men’s and women’s restrooms.
What a blessing this is. Everyone who has volunteered at Stewpot
at our noon lunch knows the ragged condition of our old facilities.
Although we did the best we could, the facilities were inadequate for
cooking, serving and feeding. Plus, we had woefully inadequate restroom facilities. When we open our new area, we will have a modern,
easy to clean kitchen, better volunteer parking and serving facilities
and a larger lunch room. The rest rooms will be quadruple our cur-
rent restrooms and will have adequate basins for clients to wash their
hands before lunch. Finally, we will no longer have to apologize to
our physically challenged clients for our inability to properly serve
them. The whole facility will be accessible by ramp for Stewpot’s
wheelchair clients.
A third blessing is Stewpot’s new vehicles for our After School Program children. For too long Stewpot has had to depend on old and
unreliable vehicles to pick up our afterschool children from school
and take them home. Breakdowns were frequent and the vehicles
were an embarrassment for the children to be in. But no longer, The
Afterschool Program is now the proud owner of a new bus and 2 vans
which were purchased with grants from His Way Foundation. These
new vehicles assure that our children are picked up in attractive transportation and transported safely to and from Stewpot.
Of course, there are numerous other blessings, but the next one
that I will discuss came from another disaster that has turned out
good amazingly well for Stewpot. Virtually, everyone in central Mississippi area is aware of the hail storm that occurred in the Jackson
area this spring. Stewpot suffered damage to 8 of its 10 buildings.
Because of the magnitude of the damage in Jackson, it was difficult
at first to get appraisals or the damage fi xed. However we finally are
more than half way through our repairs. Because of the hailstorm
many of the roofs of the buildings that were leaking are being replaced with brand new roofs. What a story of Redemption!
Thank you to our gracious donors and the thousands of volunteer
who choose to be a part of this great ministry. We wish you a very
Happy Thanksgiving!
DIRECTOR’S CORNER
By: Rev. Frank Spencer
When Stewpot talks about its 16 main ministries
that help 650 people a day, there are several ministries
not included because they are not in operation every
day of the year. One we do not count is the Holiday
Baskets we give out at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
On the week before each of these holidays, we will
hand out approximately 500 Holiday Meal packages
containing the ingredients for a festive meal to individuals that otherwise could not afford such a meal.
continued on next page...
Just Kaking
By: Heather Ivery
Stewpot has had an afterschool program for the
last 22 years. The children who attended in the very
early years are now adults living their lives in our community. Every now and then one of them will come by
and check in with us. It is great to see how they have
grown and how many of them have become successful, independent young men and women.
Recently, one of our own, Ramon Harper,
opened a bakery in Pearl. He and his partner Jeromie Jones held the grand opening of “Just Kaking”
with over 200 people in attendance. Mini cupcakes
and other scrumptious sweets as well as samples of
Jeromie’s amazing cake decorating were on display
for everyone to enjoy.
Ramon had his fair share of obstacles to overcome to get where he is today. Growing up in
the inner city of Jackson isn’t all that easy and he
struggled in school. He actually dropped out of
High School and had trouble finding work. He
wanted better for himself and realized he had to
make some changed to get there. Several years ago
he decided to go back to school and get his GED
and start his own business
We are so proud to be able to call Ramon a Stewpot
kid. He is an inspiration to all of us and a role model to
those children currently in our afterschool programs.
Please stop by to check Ramon and Jeromie’s
bakery out at 418 Roberts Street Pearl, Ms or
browse their website at www.justkaking.com. You
will not be disappointed you did!
What we are thankful for at Stewpot 2013
There are so many things to be Thankful for during this holiday season and we, your friends from Stewpot, wanted
to share some of our reasons that we are Thankful…..
We are Thankful for all the faithful volunteers who contribute to Stewpot on a daily basis
We are Thankful for health and strength and activity of our limbs
We are Thankful for family, children, grand-children, and friends
We are Thankful for our voices to sing, our eyes to hear, and eyes to see
We are Thankful and blessed to be living to see another year.
We are Thankful to be able to provide a roof of shelter over the heads of the many clients we service in our shelters each day.
We are Thankful for God’s Grace and Mercy that keeps and sustains us because without Him nothing is possible.
We are Thankful to have employment during this weakened economy.
We are Thankful for God who provides all of our needs according to His riches and glory
We are Thankful that even when we may not act thankful, God loves us in spite of our flaws and sees that we have our needs.
We are Thankful for, You, our Donors who trust us every day to be your eyes, ears, and an extension of your hearts to
serve God’s people. Blessing to your family from ours this Thanksgiving Holiday!
After School
Homeless Overnight 2013
BACK
By: Heather Ivery
IN ACTION
I have often said a person doesn’t usually become homeless overnight. There is usually circumstances and issues that
a person is struggling to overcome before they find themselves
homeless. But there are those who do suddenly find themselves
without a place to call home. I met such person this week. A
young lady with five children, two of them twins less than a year
old, was put out of her apartment by her boyfriend at 2:00 in the
morning. The small disability check she receives each month had
already been spent on rent, and the food stamps she gets monthly
would not be available for five more days. She lived in a town
about an hour north of Jackson where there were no shelters available for her and her children, so the police gave her $15 for gas and
told her to go to Jackson. They gave her the name and address of
a shelter, but when she got there, the shelter was full. She and her
kids spent the night in the car. So, here she is, in a town she is not
familiar with, with five kids to care for and a car running out of
gas. She asked for assistance here and there but did not have any
luck finding a shelter.
For two nights she and her family lived in their car.
Thankfully, this was during a cool snap, but the situation was still
very uncomfortable. In desperation, she called 911 and explained
her situation to the operator. Shortly after that, a Jackson police
officer met her in the parking lot where she had been living the
last two days. After several rounds of calls to every possible shelter
and finding them all full, the officer and her husband (also an
officer with the Jackson Police Department) decided to pay for the
family to stay in a hotel. The next day, I got a message that this
family was in need and set about trying to assist them. I met this
young woman in a hotel room with her babies peacefully napping
and the older ones contentedly watching TV.
She, however, was worried and frazzled. Fear of what
was going to happen next and worry about how to hold her family
together during this very uncertain time were all over her face.
In the course of the next day, we were able to find suitable shelter
for her family for the next few weeks. Now begins the process of
getting the children in school and finding permanent housing, all
while becoming acclimated to a new city. When you come across
people like these, there is no way you can assume that those who
are homeless choose to be. You never know a person’s situation,
really. What if this woman had not been given gas money to get to
Jackson? What if she had been harassed by security at the parking
lot where she stayed those two nights? What if the officers had not
taken it upon themselves to pay for a hotel room until some help
was found? These things do not always happen, and often the situation plays out much differently. Thankfully, this particular family
is on the way to stability after only a short time of homelessness.
Unfortunately, this in not always how it works out. For those
who experience homelessness and get stuck there, it is up to us to
help them as best we can. -- H. I.
Stewpot’s Spirit of Giving
If you have a client, a friend, or a relative (or numerous clients, friends, and relatives) that you wish to remember for the
Holidays but have difficulty with the right gift; please consider giving a gift to Stewpot in their name. To accomplish this,
please send an appropriate contribution to the below address and give Stewpot their name and address. Your donation will
be tax deductible and they will receive a card from Stewpot that a donation was made in their name. You also will receive a
card from Stewpot thanking you for your donation for income tax purposes. Please send info including the name, address,
and whether it is in honor or a memorial to:
Stewpot Spirit of Giving 2013
Attn: Michelle’ Bingham
1100 West Capital Street
Jackson MS 39203
On the memo line of your check please fill in SOG 2013.
Stewpot Community Services, Inc.
1100 West Capitol Street,
Jackson, MS 39203
Phone: 601-353-2759
Fax: 601-353-7071
E-mail: www.stewpot.org
Board of Directors
Special Tutoring Sessions Pays Off !
By: Shamberi Horton
Tutoring Mode:
On September 17, 2013 the students received their progress reports. During
the time the kids received their reports they were not looking the best. After examining all of the grades on the progress reports, we learned that 10 students that made A’s
and B’s and 4 students that had some C’s along with their A’s and B’s, the rest of our
students were failing. As I looked over the grades I became very saddened and knew that
we had to make a change. I thought to myself, out of 50 students only 14 were passing?
I immediately made a plan that would help our students because we strive for the best.
I decided that until October 24, report card day that the students would go into special
tutoring sessions. They would go into tutoring working on the
area that they were failing or received C’s in on
their progress reports. The C students tutored
with me, the failing students were tutored by
our volunteer, retired teacher, Mrs. Thompson
along with other tutors, and my assistant Lesley Collins. Special tutoring took place each
day after homework from 4:15 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Charles Parrott, President
Holmes Adams, President Emeritus
Jane-Anna Barksdale, Vice-President
Amy Brooks, Treasurer
Barbara Brunini, Secretary
Sheldon Alston
Glen Breedlove
Bennie Butts
Donna Orkin
Beth Orlansky
Ton Rietvelt
Sister Trinita Eddington
Rev. Steve Burton
Rev. Tommie Brown
Rev. James Donald
Rev. Ricky James
Rev. Edward O’Conner
Rev. Linda Smith
Rev. Mark Williamson
Stewpot Staff Members
Rev. Frank Spencer: Executive Director
fspencer@stewpot.org
Mary Thompson: Women’s Services
mthompson@stewpot.org
Wilbert Logan: Billy Brumfield Shelter
wlogan@stewpot.org
Yolanda Kirkland: Teen’s Services
ykirkland@stewpot.org
Stephanie Echols: Food Services
sechols@stewpot.org
Monique Ealey Director: Children Services,
mealey@stewpot.org
Praise Report- Results:
On October 24, 2013, my assistant Lesley Collins and I, attended Parent Teacher Conference which was also report card day. We gathered all of the report
cards and we were very impressed with our kids progress. 19 students had honors on
their report card and 23 students made B’s and C’s including some of the failing students during progress reports. Although there is still some work we have to do, we are
so happy that we are making a difference. We know that our work is not in vain. We
are going to continue working with the struggling students in special tutoring session
and continue to encourage them. What we do is for a purpose, this isn’t just a job....
IT’S VERY REWARDING!
Tara Lindsey: Volunteer Services,
tlindsey@stewpot.org
Michelle Bingham: Director, Special
Events, mbingham@stewpot.org
Sherry Spiller: Director, Accounting
sspille@stewpot.org
Heather Ivery: Director, Business
Administrations, hivery@stewpot.org
Shamberi Horton: Executive Assistant,
shorton@stewpot.org
Christie Burnett: Director, Opportunity
Center, cburnett@stewpot.org