The Walbridge Caring Communities, based at Walbridge Elementary School and a nearby church in inner-city St. Louis, is one example of the Communities That Care concept. The philosophy centers around the African proverb "It takes a village to raise a child." The mission is to build a village in a neighborhood where many connections within and among families have been severed by drugs, poverty, alienation, and a host of other ills. Median income in the area is $10,000.
In addition to beginning to address the community's enormous need for services, Walbridge is also about strengthening values. Its core values of working with children are expressed in an African credo called the Nguzo Saba, or Seven Principles. These principles are unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith. The Nguzo Saba give Walbridge Caring Communities its distinctive character. Some fundamental assumptions add to the initiative's distinctiveness: Children live in families; families live in communities; therefore, to help children, one must help families and communities.
The director of Walbridge Caring Communities is Khatib Waheed, a young African American male with a strong commitment of purpose. He relates with equal ease to teenagers and older adults, consistently showing patience, opened-mindedness, and friendliness. On alternate Friday nights, Waheed leads a march of 50 to 100 persons of all ages through a high-density drug-trafficking section of the neighborhood, creating adverse pressure on the predators. During the days, he is busy with administrative functions, but he frequently remains until late at night responding to crisis calls from parents and young people alike.
Walbridge Caring Communities has gradually developed a broad funding base that includes support from four of the state's human service departments, including the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The St. Louis Public Schools System and private sector institutions also have provided financial support. Among the services offered are case management for families, substance abuse counseling, student assistance, latchkey programs, youth center activities, and the Parents As Teachers program.
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