May 21, 2012
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) -- A youth program, that gives East Knoxville kids a place to grow, is fighting to keep going.
For more information on TribeOne, click here.
Without more funding, TribeOne on Magnolia Avenue could shut down by the end of the year. Students tell Local 8 News why you can't let that happen.
"I like we like to write, read, and play jeopardy," said nine-year-old Jalen Hurston.
Hurston spends his afternoons on the couch, or in the garden at TribeOne's headquarters.
And since the school year started, this kind of afterschool mentoring is already making a difference.
"It's good to help me with confidence in reading, not like fast move smooth," said Hurston.
"I could tell a big difference in Jalen especially because he needed help in his reading and he's done a lot better since he's been coming here," said his mom, Crystal Cutwright.
Cutwright says her kids come home excited about what they're learning, and she's relieved to know they are on the right track.
"And you know that they are in a safe environment also," she said.
The afterschool program is one of the many things TribeOne has started to help serve inner-city kids and their families -- by creating next generation leaders.
"We want to start young to deter them from that path of negative behavior when they are a little bit older and harder to reach," said Executive Director Stephanie Davis.
But all their programs could be at risk. The 'social purpose enterprise' aims to be self-sustaining through a screen printing business.
Currently they are trying to raise enough to on top of their debts. It's all free for families, and the kids say its vital to them.
"I would bored at home reading books," Raginna Muckelvene, 9.
"It makes me happy, every time we come," said Anthony McGhee, 6.
Local 8 News This Morning's Michele Silva is hosting an event Saturday that benefits TribeOne. The Bridesmaid's Bash starts at 5 p.m. at Latitude 35 on Market Square. For more information, click on the link above.
