Last Thursday evening Charlie Mae Ransom, Central Dallas Ministries Board Member, passed away.
Ms. Ransom lived in the Roseland Homes Community for well over 60 years. She championed the rights and the cause of her community like no one else. She ushered us into Roseland Homes, along with the voice and vote of her good friend, Walter Travis, in 1996. She has been my dear friend since those early days.
Janet Morrison, Director of Education Outreach at CDM and leader of our After School Academy at Roseland Homes, put together the photo collections below. Enjoy them and remember her.
To read Janet's moving tribute to Ms. Ransom click here. We will celebrate Ms. Ransom's life today in her memorial, homegoing.
Showing posts with label Roseland Homes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Roseland Homes. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
Children lead the way on Census 2010 in Dallas!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, 3/18/2010Central Dallas Ministries
511 N. Akard St., Suite 302
Dallas, Texas 75201
Contact: Stacy Olds (214) 823–8710
Next Generation Urges Census Participation
DALLAS – A crew of elementary and middle school kids will knock on doors in their East Dallas housing community during spring break on Friday, March 19, encouraging neighbors to participate in the 2010 U.S. Census.
The youngsters will tell families in the Roseland community to “take 10 minutes to fill out 10 questions that will influence the next 10 years of your lives.”
The students will be knocking on doors between 10 and 11 a.m. on Friday March 19.
Their effort is an educational community-building step by Central Dallas Ministries to join the city of Dallas in making the latest census count as accurate as possible.
“Kids tend to get our attention,” said Gerald Britt, vice president of public policy for Central Dallas Ministries. “We hope the message they bring will convince the community that participating in the census count is good for everyone. It can bring health care services, schools, college grants, roads and other critically needed services to people.”
Enlightening young people on the census is another goal, Britt said. “This whole week, we taught the kids at Roseland about the Census – what it is, when and how it will be completed, and why it matters so much. We hope that, when they become adults, they will tell their kids about the Census, too.”
Monday, September 28, 2009
Parent Academies at CDM
An exciting new initiative is now underway inside the Roseland Homes community. Operation Family Fresh Start "bundles" various Central Dallas Ministries resources and, in partnership with the community and its families, focuses everyone on improving and advancing the lives of all.
Health, employment, education, parenting, nutrition, recreation, leadership development, community connections, crime prevention--all of these concerns come together on the platform we're referring to as Operation Family Fresh Start.
An important component of our new effort is the Roseland Parent Academy. Participants meet on the third Thursday of every month from 6-8 p.m. Our first session (very well attended) rolled out on September 17.
Topics for the academy provide a hint at the quality and character of this aspect of the new effort:
Health, employment, education, parenting, nutrition, recreation, leadership development, community connections, crime prevention--all of these concerns come together on the platform we're referring to as Operation Family Fresh Start.
An important component of our new effort is the Roseland Parent Academy. Participants meet on the third Thursday of every month from 6-8 p.m. Our first session (very well attended) rolled out on September 17.
Topics for the academy provide a hint at the quality and character of this aspect of the new effort:
Navigating the DISD System: Rights and Responsibilities of Parents
Homework has changed! Figuring out the "New Math" and
Other Strategies to Help Your Child with School Work
Nutrition for a Healthy Future
Understanding and Preventing Diabetes
Asthma and Other Breathing Problems
A Fresh Start: Informational Services to Individuals Re-entering the Workforce
The Job Talk: Steps to Take to Get Back into the Workforce
"At-ten-Hut!" Trade Offs: Building Success Even if You Didn't Go to College
Financial Literacy: Getting Your House in Order
Positive Steps Toward Home Ownership
Change: The Sky is the Limit
No doubt in my mind, we'll have some exciting outcomes to report this time next year.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
A story
Toni Lambert. . ."How it was, What happen and How it is now
I was born and raised in North Dallas Housing (Roseland Homes) with my grandmother Rosie Lambert, my brother Lloyd and oldest sister Lisa. I had a pretty good life. I was the youngest in the family, granny’s pride and joy, so I got what I wanted most of the time. I was raised in church, an “A” student in school and happy at home. Growing up in the projects (as we called it) was not bad for me. My granny had a nice and comfortable home for us. We always ate very well, many gifts for Christmas, new clothes for Easter and a host of friends, but something was missing.
When I went to the third grade it was brought to my attention that my granny was not my mother. My mother was not around until I turned 7 or 8 years old. I didn’t have a relationship with her (my mother) growing up and didn’t know my father. My granny was my everything and she gave me all the love I needed so I didn’t question my parents whereabouts.
When I got in my early teens the community started to change with drugs and violence becoming more prevalent and accessible. I started to visit my mother periodically and her lifestyle was totally different from what my grandmother had taught me.
At the age of eleven my mother introduced me to marijuana. Since she smoked it I figured it was alright. Marijuana made me feel mellow and laid back. I even started to steal it from my mother when I got the chance. I smoked more and more until one day I was introduced to crack. It took me fast and I had to have it daily.
My grandmother saw the change in my attitude and behavior but there was nothing she could do. I dropped out of high school and my life started spiraling downward. I found myself stuck in the dope game.
I began to spend more time with my mother because this was the type of lifestyle she lived. For fifteen years, I wondered the streets aimless with no direction. I began to participate in activities that were against everything taught to me as a child, activities that were against the law.
I made a lot of bad decisions that follow me to this very day. Through everything that was going on in my life I got pregnant and had a son, Jeremiah. I took him to my grandmother to raise, the same way my mother did me and I kept moving.
There were a few helpful organizations that came through the community from time to time but they faded fast.
Central Dallas Ministries came into the community at my lowest point. I had hit a bottom emotionally, physically and spiritually. There was a lady by the name of Marva that reached out to me. She saw something in me that I didn’t. She made me feel that there was hope and that change in my life was still possible. Central Dallas Ministries Cyber Spot had a program that helped people get jobs and Marva referred me to them. She told me that when I was ready to do something different with my life to let her know and she would help me.
I knew deep inside that I could do better but the shame and guilt kept me roaming. My family loved me and my grandmother prayed for me all the time. I was so tried of using drugs but I had lived this way for so long until I didn’t know any way else to live. I had no skills and no education because I dropped out of school in the 9th grade. I was so sick & tired of being sick & tired that I went and signed up for the Job Readiness program through the Cyber Spot. I also signed up for the computer course they had available at the time. I volunteered at the Roseland Food Pantry and started on the road to change. The seed had been planted!
I had a few set backs or relapses but I kept striving to be a better person. I was pregnant with my second child and I didn’t want to follow my mother’s footsteps by not raising my own children. I needed to find a stable place to live. I could have stayed with my grandmother but that was the area I used drugs in and I needed a fresh start. I remembered a place I had gone to for refuge before, so I went back to them and they took me in.
Due to the information learned in the computer class taken at Central Dallas Ministries Cyber Spot I went and enrolled in community college to get more skills. When I needed help in any area, the services available through Central Dallas Ministries was there. I was able to do my home work in the computer lab and take my sons with me. Food was available for me and my sons through Roseland Food Pantry.
I moved from Roseland into an apartment first and now I am a home owner with a 3 bedroom with 2 full baths. I have been clean and sober for 8 years and the mother of 3 sons, ages 10, 8 and 22mo. and we have 2 puppies. Currently working on my Bachelors Degree at UNT, I have continued to do volunteer work with Central Dallas Ministries in Roseland Town Homes. Through my association with Central Dallas and Marva Epperson-Brown I am now working with them through the AmeriCorps Program.
AmeriCorps has allowed me to give back to a community that I love so dearly. Now seeing the community from another angle, I have the privilege of knowing and sharing first hand the needs of this community. Marva and Central Dallas Ministries has been one of the inspirations for me working to obtain my degree and reaching for the stars. My major is in Human Service and Non Profit Management.
The mission statement & the philosophy of Central Dallas Ministries are truly exhibited through their employee (Marva Epperson-Brown) and through the actions and attitude of the organization as a whole.
I am forever grateful to CDM for being a part of my life.
I was born and raised in North Dallas Housing (Roseland Homes) with my grandmother Rosie Lambert, my brother Lloyd and oldest sister Lisa. I had a pretty good life. I was the youngest in the family, granny’s pride and joy, so I got what I wanted most of the time. I was raised in church, an “A” student in school and happy at home. Growing up in the projects (as we called it) was not bad for me. My granny had a nice and comfortable home for us. We always ate very well, many gifts for Christmas, new clothes for Easter and a host of friends, but something was missing.
When I went to the third grade it was brought to my attention that my granny was not my mother. My mother was not around until I turned 7 or 8 years old. I didn’t have a relationship with her (my mother) growing up and didn’t know my father. My granny was my everything and she gave me all the love I needed so I didn’t question my parents whereabouts.
When I got in my early teens the community started to change with drugs and violence becoming more prevalent and accessible. I started to visit my mother periodically and her lifestyle was totally different from what my grandmother had taught me.
At the age of eleven my mother introduced me to marijuana. Since she smoked it I figured it was alright. Marijuana made me feel mellow and laid back. I even started to steal it from my mother when I got the chance. I smoked more and more until one day I was introduced to crack. It took me fast and I had to have it daily.
My grandmother saw the change in my attitude and behavior but there was nothing she could do. I dropped out of high school and my life started spiraling downward. I found myself stuck in the dope game.
I began to spend more time with my mother because this was the type of lifestyle she lived. For fifteen years, I wondered the streets aimless with no direction. I began to participate in activities that were against everything taught to me as a child, activities that were against the law.
I made a lot of bad decisions that follow me to this very day. Through everything that was going on in my life I got pregnant and had a son, Jeremiah. I took him to my grandmother to raise, the same way my mother did me and I kept moving.
There were a few helpful organizations that came through the community from time to time but they faded fast.
Central Dallas Ministries came into the community at my lowest point. I had hit a bottom emotionally, physically and spiritually. There was a lady by the name of Marva that reached out to me. She saw something in me that I didn’t. She made me feel that there was hope and that change in my life was still possible. Central Dallas Ministries Cyber Spot had a program that helped people get jobs and Marva referred me to them. She told me that when I was ready to do something different with my life to let her know and she would help me.
I knew deep inside that I could do better but the shame and guilt kept me roaming. My family loved me and my grandmother prayed for me all the time. I was so tried of using drugs but I had lived this way for so long until I didn’t know any way else to live. I had no skills and no education because I dropped out of school in the 9th grade. I was so sick & tired of being sick & tired that I went and signed up for the Job Readiness program through the Cyber Spot. I also signed up for the computer course they had available at the time. I volunteered at the Roseland Food Pantry and started on the road to change. The seed had been planted!
I had a few set backs or relapses but I kept striving to be a better person. I was pregnant with my second child and I didn’t want to follow my mother’s footsteps by not raising my own children. I needed to find a stable place to live. I could have stayed with my grandmother but that was the area I used drugs in and I needed a fresh start. I remembered a place I had gone to for refuge before, so I went back to them and they took me in.
Due to the information learned in the computer class taken at Central Dallas Ministries Cyber Spot I went and enrolled in community college to get more skills. When I needed help in any area, the services available through Central Dallas Ministries was there. I was able to do my home work in the computer lab and take my sons with me. Food was available for me and my sons through Roseland Food Pantry.
I moved from Roseland into an apartment first and now I am a home owner with a 3 bedroom with 2 full baths. I have been clean and sober for 8 years and the mother of 3 sons, ages 10, 8 and 22mo. and we have 2 puppies. Currently working on my Bachelors Degree at UNT, I have continued to do volunteer work with Central Dallas Ministries in Roseland Town Homes. Through my association with Central Dallas and Marva Epperson-Brown I am now working with them through the AmeriCorps Program.
AmeriCorps has allowed me to give back to a community that I love so dearly. Now seeing the community from another angle, I have the privilege of knowing and sharing first hand the needs of this community. Marva and Central Dallas Ministries has been one of the inspirations for me working to obtain my degree and reaching for the stars. My major is in Human Service and Non Profit Management.
The mission statement & the philosophy of Central Dallas Ministries are truly exhibited through their employee (Marva Epperson-Brown) and through the actions and attitude of the organization as a whole.
I am forever grateful to CDM for being a part of my life.
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