"Villager" in the Village

Dr. Vernon Johns, (MLK Jr. Predecessor) was known to have said on many occasions, "If you see a good fight...get in it". He was not an advocate of violence, or fighting to simply fight. He believed in standing up for what you believe in and not standing idly by while others suffer. These are wise words to live by and often needed today in communities where complacency is vast. We often see issues of poverty, neglect, violence, and overall dissatisfaction with the way things are, yet do nothing to be part of the change. Community transformation is that fight for GUM!

As the seasons change and the weather turns a bit warmer (understatement in Texas) we begin the dreaming and excitement stage of summer. Summer is that time of year where there is a sense of freedom, whether perceived or real, there is a sense of completing a task and finishing strong. For the GUM students, there is an excitement of all that is to come for this is graduation season!

GUM greatly values education, a fight worth getting in, as education under-girds everything we do. From tutoring, mentoring, job education training, and future planning, education is the key to transformation. There are students this year that are graduating from high school!!! This is a huge milestone for our community. When GUM started out almost seven years ago, we were looking forward to the day when students will have been raised up through our community involvement and prepared for their next steps. GUM recognizes that no one individual or entity is solely responsible for a student graduating, it literally takes a village to raise a child. Family, educators, friends, leaders, etc. We are proud to be a "villager" working beside our incredibly resilient, hard working, teachable, humble and willing students. 

Join with us, the "villagers" that are standing with the next generation!

Click here to become a "Villager"

We love this city!

Josh Dorrell

Executive Director

Marquis Denton heading to his job interview