News and Updates

SGSC Students Visit Hope Center

Students from the Hope Center and SGSC enjoyed an afternoon of homework and playing games together. The Hope Center, a ministry of the Talkington family and God’s People Baptist Church, is a favorite hangout for both the kids in the local neighborhood and students from South Georgia State College.

South Georgia State College Douglas Campus Student Government Association President Quinton Cummings believes in philanthropy. Prior to move-in day for the residence halls, all SGSC Resident Assistants were taken to the Hope Center by Residence Life Coordinator Sandra Adams as a service learning project. The Hope Center left such an impression on Quinton that he recently made the decision to revisit the Hope Center, so he gathered about a dozen students and went back to volunteer. Sandra believes that if the students “find something [where] they can immediately see the fruits of their labor and get excited about it, [then they have] found the right thing to get them hooked on helping others so they can continue to do so.” And after a few visits back to the Hope Center since that initial visit, SGSC students are definitely hooked on helping the kids in this community.

The Hope Center, a ministry of the Talkington family and God’s People Baptist Church, is an after school and outreach center in the middle of the Oak Park area in Douglas. Its main focus is on ministering to the youth that live in the area: kids and teens who may not have access to regular meals, who need homework help, or who simply need a place to come feel safe and secure. Two of the regular after school program participants both agree that they love coming to the Hope Center mainly to play games, but also to receive help on their homework.

This visit to the center by a dozen residential students from SGSC proved a chance for them to be hands-on in the community. Although some had trepidation about working with kids they’d never met, the Hope Center kids quickly drew them in and welcomed them, and the SGSC students were soon right at home, laughing with the kids as they worked through math problems and spelling words, and the kids even had to teach the college students a thing or two about the Native Americans.

SGSC sophomore Keri Davis said that while reluctant to volunteer at first, she’s “definitely going to come back… The kids need to be loved.” The college students were able to show the kids participating in the after school program love by service. All were inspired by their visit with kids who have little, but love a lot, and many voiced interest in returning to the Hope Center on a more consistent basis.

South Georgia State College is proud to support its students as they foster community spirit and learn lifelong lessons that will follow the students in life and will equip them to succeed in a diverse global society.