Come and See Our Community Pride!
By Joe Tucker

From the beginning of South Street Ministries through this present pandemic, we have walked the streets of the community. Summit Lake and South Akron are the neighborhoods where many of the South Street staff, volunteers, and partners live, and there is a great sense of community pride in these streets!

In the gospels, when Philip is invited to meet Jesus of Nazareth, he sharply responds, “What good can come from Nazareth?” That’s some first-century shade toward someone’s hometown! Yet even today there is often an implied stereotype of certain communities. What good can come from South Akron? What good can come from Summit Lake?

“Come and see” is the response within the gospel texts (Philip does indeed go to visit Jesus and is quickly corrected in his thinking!).

But from those scriptures a sense and value for place and neighborhood can be learned. The good of God can come from the places least expected — you simply need to come and see.

This year is a monumental year for the Summit Lake neighborhood. The City of Akron is conducting a plan for land use within the neighborhood (a majority of land in Summit Lake is owned by the City through blight, demolition, and vacancy). The Akron Metropolitan Housing Association is beginning a two-year planning process through federal Housing and Urban Development funds. And the Akron Civic Commons is raising funds for a $10 million renovation around the lakefront and north shore of Summit Lake itself.

South Street Ministries continues to walk the streets — distributing COVID kits, informing residents about upcoming meetings, listening to neighborhood voices, and striving to connect the community to the city. And let it be known that there are many partners in this work — block leaders and community elders who have led and organized and prayed for a generation!

This network of residents and leaders work together for the good of the community. And there is a deep pride and good in that work — a God-inspired good that comes from the neighborhood. The neighborhood many would have least expected it from!

So like the biblical invitation from Nathaniel to Philip, “come and see.” Come and see what the people of God are doing within Summit Lake!

One such opportunity to visit will be this year’s Trails N Rails. With continued pandemic uncertainty, we will set dates for the event as sites and partners allow, but we are excited to host this year’s festivities at and around Summit Lake. Make sure to follow the South Street Ministries Facebook page for information to come: www.facebook.com/SouthStreetCDC. 

Come and see what good can come from Summit Lake!

South Street Ministries is no stranger to Dr. Brenda Marina … but it wasn’t until a few years ago that a tried-and-true bond was formed.

She had read an article in The Beacon Journal about the progress of South Street Ministries and tucked it away in her mind and heart. “I knew of SSM long before this reading. My late husband worked with Pastor Duane Crabbs at the Akron Fire Department and witnessed the transition from a firefighter to the inception of South Street Ministries. I heard stories of the struggles and successes for the Crabbs family as they stepped out and moved in the direction of the voice of God.”

“After listening to Pastor Crabbs speak and pray at a police and fire department event,” Brenda told us, “SSM tugged on my heart. Subsequently, I contacted SSM to determine how my God-given purposes might align with this ministry.”

Brenda began to donate both time and money through the Lord’s leading. She has served as an after-school tutor and as a mentor with our #AdjustTheCrown outreach to local teen and pre-teen girls … and has seen what her support has done for the community.

“1 Peter 4:10-11 tells us to use our gifts to serve one another with the strength and energy God has given us. Both South Street and I have moved beyond the walls of the church building to give the gift of service to glorify God.”

She appreciates how her financial giving supports people and programs specifically in South Akron and throughout Greater Akron as well. Even small amounts of money, she says, “can make such a great impact on a community — our community. The cost of a lunch or snack may seem trivial to some but life-saving to others.” Brenda knows there is value in giving food to the hungry, clothing the poor, and blessing the needy. Every donation nourishes bodies, minds, hearts, and souls.

“Participating in the #AdjustTheCrown program has been a joy. I grew up in Akron, not very far from South Street Ministries. I was blessed to be able to graduate from high school as one of the top 10 scholars in my class. I was blessed to be able to obtain an associate degree, a bachelor’s degree, a masters degree, and a doctoral degree. Along the way, I had very few mentors to help me navigate my journey. So I am passionate about mentoring young girls and young women. It is my desire to continue to bless others with the blessings I have received and will receive.” Brenda feels it’s an honor to share her gifts, wisdom, and experience to help young girls live their lives as representations of God’s love for our community.

And Brenda believes each of us should seize the opportunity to give and serve too! South Street “has blessed me by providing the opportunity to be a blessing to others in my own unique way. I encourage you to turn your ‘I was blessed’ into ‘I will bless…’ I am amazed and grateful for all the loving and talented staff and volunteers at SSM — they demonstrate God’s love by caring about the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual needs of individuals and the community.”

We are truly grateful for friends like Brenda who take pride in their involvement with South Street Ministries and in their own communities. We couldn’t do this without you!

One of the founding values of South Street Ministries has always been racial reconciliation. The legacy mission of “Unlikely Partners Taking Shared Risks to Renew Our Community for Christ’s Sake” embodies that value, and always will.

Today, South Street Ministries is facilitating two critical community conversations:

• Embodied Cause has launched a bi-weekly book club meeting via Zoom to read through Howard Thurman’s Jesus & The Disinherited. Thurman asks the challenging question, “Is Jesus really good news for those who have their backs against the wall?”

Coming in late summer will be our second book club cohort, covering Too Heavy a Yoke by Dr. Chanequa Walker-Barnes. Dr. Barnes examines Black women and the burden of strength, especially in the Christian church!

Our hope in these book clubs is to develop a working theology of ministry in the real world — and in the communities of Summit Lake and South Akron. For more information or to sign up for the next cohort (it is open to all!), please visit https://southstreetministries.org/embodiedcause/.

• Across The Lake is another local project South Street Ministries has undertaken. We are working with residents from the Summit Lake and Kenmore communities to make the two neighborhoods more connected than ever as a result of school mergers and development both along Kenmore Boulevard and the lakefront of Summit Lake.

Part of envisioning the future, however, requires understanding our history. So we have interviewed residents to hear the stories and hardships of historic race and class issues, to debunk negative perceptions, and to invite residents into further conversation and community. In short, we are working to be the bridge across the lake!

One of the joys of this challenging project has been working with local church leaders to set the example of love, listening, and humility. This project is moving toward in-person circles with Project Ujima over the summer months, and the videos will be edited and made available after resident screenings and feedback. 

We are grateful for support from The GAR Foundation, The City of Akron, the Akron Community Foundation, and The Akron Civic Commons who have made this endeavor possible.