June 30, 2006- KGO - One of San Francisco's most troubled neighborhoods -- an area known mostly for what is wrong, but in this ABC7 Salute we focus on what's going right.
The Rainbow Seventh-Day Adventist Church is in the middle of San Francisco's Bayview Hunters Point. It's a neighborhood plagued by violence, drugs and gangs. It also has more children per square block than any other part of the city. And every Wednesday evening, many of them find refuge at the church's afterschool program.
Temoni: "You get to meet new friends and they help you a lot."
This is the Reachout for the Rainbow program, free to any neighborhood child. There's always a hot nutritious meal, but the cornerstone of the program is one-on-one tutoring, provided by volunteers.
Jennifer Sealy is a chemist who comes every week to help students with math.
Jasmine Cooksey, 12 years old: "When I took a test the other day I was so happy because I got all of them correct because I had help from Jennifer."
Diahann Webb has volunteered here for seven years.
Diahann Webb, volunteer tutor: "I want to do my part to make sure they succeed in life, and you have to start at an early age."
The glue that holds the operation together is Virgie Newman. Virgie founded Reachout for the Rainbow 15 years ago. It was shaped by her experiences as a child.
Virgie Newman, Reachout for the Rainbow: "I was born down in the segregated south and during that era I really experienced a lot of community and family and church and school, all working together to make the world a better place for us."
Virgie's goal is to recreate that community partnership here. She has a regular core of volunteers and encourages parents and grandparents to help out too.
Rachelle Brooks, mother: "It is good and essential for minorities to see that there are productive, progressive things happening right in their own backyard."
There's a heavy focus on respect, good manners and giving to others.
Nigele McCoy is just 13, and he's already tutoring other children.
Nigele McCoy, 13 years old: "So I could help other kids in the community and so they would have somebody to look up to."
In addition to tutoring, Reachout for the Rainbow sponsors lots of special events. There's an annual science festival and a two-week summer program.
Virgie Newman: "My husband teaches the woodshop class. I have a way of involving family, friends, and enemies."
Every winter, there's a trip to the snow.
Renee Strong, mother: "Just getting away from the city and going to the snow. It's just really a special thing that inner-city kids don't get to do."
Maya, 7 years old: "We have a great time."
Virgie does it all on a shoestring budget of church and private donations. The volunteer staff says she's a miracle worker.
Virgie Newman: "It brings great joy to you to see a child move from a low place academically or some troubled place in their heart to being a more stable individual and achieving academic confidence."
So we salute Virgie Newman for 15 years of providing hope and help to the children of Bayview Hunters Point.
To donate, or to sign up for Reachout for the Rainbow Afterschool at the Seventh Day Adventist Church, call (415) 822-3200 or e-mail reachoutrainbow@aol.com.
