Programs
Oct 08, 2021
An African-American, Black-American, Latino, and White-American walk onto a Marine training base… On September 24th, Chris Nocks, STRIVE Class of 2021, graduated from Marine Corps Boot Camp on Parris Island. The journey just to get to Parris Island required sacrifice, strength, and determination. Throughout high school, Chris had served his community: as a 5/8 Club summer […]
Sep 19, 2021
Abundant Life is excited to announce the hiring of McKenzie Markham as our new Middle School Tutoring Coordinator! McKenzie will oversee weekly academic tutoring for Prospect neighborhood participants at Walker Upper Elementary and Buford Middle Schools. Her responsibilities will include supporting student-tutor relationships, implementing curriculum, interfacing with parents and teachers, and more. McKenzie is a Central Virginia […]
Jul 24, 2021
Abundant Life is excited to announce the hiring of Charlottesville native Tessa M. Thompson as our new Elementary Program Coordinator! Tessa will oversee academic and faith-based programs for Prospect neighborhood youth who attend Johnson and Jackson-Via Elementary Schools, as well as the volunteers who serve them. She will also consult on the development of early childhood and preschool programming. […]
Jul 09, 2021
As the 2020-2021 Fellows year came to an end, so did an integral part of the experience. For the last nine months we were privileged to attend weekly bible study with Rev. DJ Carter. There is something very distinct about bible study with DJ. Actually, a bunch of distinct things: his charisma, dynamism, and spontaneity, […]
Jun 15, 2021
At Abundant Life, we are always working to embody the 8 principles of Christian Community Development: Reconciliation, Redistribution, Relocation, Empowerment, Church-based, Leadership Development, Listening to the Community, and Holistic Approach. Reconciliation seems to be one of the most popular topics these days with the current events that have revealed much of the brokenness remaining in our nation. We often shrink […]
Mar 08, 2021
As I reflect upon my time thus far in the Fellows Program, I think not only of the time spent engaging with kids or helping with ministry, but the opportunities I’ve had to introspect as well. This year the Fellows have had an abundance (pun intended) of meetings, readings, and conversations with community leaders, experts, […]