Greetings from the SCFP!

As usual, we’ve got a lot going on at the Freedom Project!

We’re wrapping up another successful summer at the SCFP.  Our enrollment was nearly double that of last year and we brought in dynamic interns from across the country to teach a wide variety of classes, including media, public speaking, and drama in addition to our core curriculum.  You can read about some of their experiences on our student blog.

Another graduating class of Freedom Fellows are off to the colleges of their choice (including Mississippi State and Bellhaven) and we’re sending Kenyon King off to the Mississippi School of Math and Science for his junior and senior year.  He is the second Freedom Fellow to attend that institution.  But before he left, Kenyon donated a week’s worth of tips from his after-school job at Sonic to the Freedom Project to help sustain it while he’s away at school.  He is just sixteen-years-old but gave away eighty dollars to a program that he believes in.  We’ll be working hard to make sure that he is proud of what comes from that donation.

Now, we’re gearing up for the fall program.  Chris Perkins, a member of our first class of Freedom Fellows, has graduated from Berea College in Kentucky.  Thanks to your donations, Chris is now back in Sunflower working as our new Program Director.  He is bringing renewed energy to the program and is already hard at work on recruitment for the fall semester.  Having earned his black belt as a Freedom Fellow, Chris will be heading up our Tae Kwon Do class.

Our fall calendar is filling up fast with unique and challenging programs for the young people of Sunflower County.  As always, thank you for your generous support of the Freedom Project – it is entirely thanks to you that we are able to make these opportunities available.
Let’s make it happen!
Sarah Hoftiezer & the SCFP Staff

Greetings Freedom Project Family!

The summer is winding down and intensity is picking up. Monday, we head to Ole Miss for a week of amazing elective classes including AsiaFest, How to Be Classy, and Great Moments in American History.  The students can’t wait!

Tomorrow, we have our Fifth Annual Math Rap Wars at 11:30am in the LEAD center. The students have been practicing their raps and arranging their performances over the past few days, so if you are in town, stop by. It’s a show you don’t want to miss.

Speaking of shows you don’t want to miss…
FREEDOM DAY IS JULY 17th at 6:00pm AT THE LEAD CENTER!!!
This year’s Freedom Day looks to be one of the best ever as our Freedom Fellows show off all their hard work in all their classes, with special presentations from Public Speaking, Drama, and Media . This is a show you simply can’t miss.

Lastly, we wrap up the summer with Awards Night on July 24th at 6:00pm at the LEAD Center. Join us as we reflect on this summer and reward students who have truly personified the essence of the Freedom Project.

The summer is coming to end, but the journey for our Freedom Fellows is just beginning. We truly hope you can find time to join us for one or all of our special events. Thank you so much for supporting and believing in us.  You can and do make a difference.

Together we can,

SCFP Staff and Summer Interns

May Newsletter

Greetings from the Freedom Project!

“Ain’t gonna let no mountain turn me around!”

Mykia Clayton’s new twist on a favorite freedom song proved that the Civil Rights Movement can be applicable even in camping!  This year’s Hard Core Trip took us to Fall Creek Falls, Tennessee for nearly 30 miles of hiking – including an especially steep climb up from the bottom of the gorge.  Ms. Clayton’s question at the outset of the trip, “Hey Ms. Hoftiezer, what exactly is a gorge?” was fully illustrated to her (and all of us) the following day, but her song carried us all through to the top of the climb and to our well-deserved campsite.

Freedom Project camping trips help teach valuable lessons to our Fellows, such as the value of determination, self-discipline, and self-reliance.  Fellows learn to work together to cook meals, pitch tents, build a fire, and motivate one another.  They also pick up a few tips from prank-master McCoy.

Every year, the Hard Core Trip costs the Freedom Project about $1,000.  We are seeking a donor to underwrite that cost for this important learning experience. But, camping out takes more than just money – we are also in need tents and back-packs so that we can offer this opportunity to more students next year.  If you can donate new or used gear or would like to help fund this project, please contact Sarah Hoftiezer at sarah@sunflowerfreedom.org

Let’s make it happen!

Until next time,

SCFP Staff

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