"James and the Giant Reach"

Youth.

Adversity.

Discipline.

Struggle.

Hope.

James and the Giant Reach.

...Coming Soon...




















--Greg McCoy
O.K.A.Y. C.M.

Inch by Inch- Math, Music, and Motivation Pt. 2

This is part two of this math, music, and motivation series.

So I volunteered at Kid's University this afternoon with Mykia Clayton as we explored possibilities for the OKAY Community to develop sustainable service projects. Among other things, I was able to work with a sixth grader and taught him a magic math trick with the 11 times tables. He was pretty quick with it, but still struggled and his mom showed up while we were still working. She said "I can wait," noticing his excitement and focus as he approached mastery of the trick. He finally got it right as she was saying "I'll wait in the car..." He lit up. I can't wait to see him challenge me next time.

Isn't it amazing how little things can make a difference. Well, I'm working on doing more personal and reflective writing, which I'll provide a link to on a different blog (The Beautiful Struggle, I think) . I want to keep this blog focused on projects, results, and connections, rather than anecdotes ( which I have a ton of by the way!)

This is a song I forgot about and oh, before I forget, if you want to learn the math trick, please do email us as okaycommunity@gmail.com and we'll teach you.

Inch by Inch yall. Be the change you want to see in the world.

Tupac: Changes. Reflect and enjoy. Enjoy and reflect.

Let's make it happen,

--Greg McCoy
Founding Community Member

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Math, Music, and Motivation. Part 1

This is a four part series through which I'll be posting something that is either math, music, or motivation, or maybe a combination of both.

This week at the SCFP we have MATH RAP WARS!! How can I explain it? The culmination of a summer's worth of intense math classes channeled into a musical performance by our students. It is however, a competition and in a competition at the SCFP, there are no quitters!

Are you a quitter? Or are you a Go Getter?

"I'm going for the gold, my heart is in control. My mind is on succeed and I am in the LEAD." ....

A Change Is Gonna Come

I prefer the Otis Redding version, to me, he just gets so into it. No knock on Sam Cooke, but Otis really gets it on this one:
The Sunflower County Freedom Project is definitely in the building!

Teach For America Delta is definitely in the building!

The BB King Museum is definitely in the building!

The Delta Health Alliance is definitely in the building!

Greenville Renaissance Scholars is definitely in the building!

And the list goes on, the opportunities are growing, and the saga continues.... ( Wu-tang, Wu-tang... :) Sorry, I had to through that in there."

"Never doubt that a small group of dedicated individuals can change the world, indeed it is the only thing that ever has." --Margaret Mead

Let's make it happen,

--Greg McCoy

Founding Community Member

Next Up?

We have some solid projects that will be putting out over the next two months. With the help of the Freedom Project, BB King Museum, and other local supporters, we'll host

1) Tied to the Community For Success: Teaching young men how to tie a tie and much more.

2) Open Mic Night in Indianola

Civil Rights Tours is coming...

2010? Hoverboards?

I was having a conversation with a great friend, Dr. Bill Hooke at Sutton's Drug store in Chapel Hill, NC over his grilled cheese and my cheeseburger (sorry poultry friends)about a levitating mechanism and process he heard about. Hoverboards in 2010? Now, that's back to the future.

So 2009 in review. Here are some thoughts:

• OKAY Consulting is starting to take off. The Delta is growing and new non-profits are emerging. They need help and we can help them.
• The Thanksgiving Day Giveway was a huge success! We gave away 52 plates!! The lessons learned: 1) You can start small, but still have a big impact. 2) Almost everybody can get a meal on Thanksgiving, so let's do it another day instead.
  
• There are a lot of potential partnerships, so it will be important to be even more organized and more strategic when moving forward in 2010.
• Read, Read, Read. And then Read some more.
• Check out Mykia Clayton's (SCFP Class of 2013) first video from MediaFest 2009!: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jV9mIX4O0C8

2010 Here we come!

--Greg McCoy
Founding OKAY Community Member,