OUR CHILDREN'S VILLAGE, INC. 501(C)(3)
#MyCircleStrong
Encouraging communities to D.R.E.A.M! "Dare to Reach Out, Educate and Mentor"... A CHILD,
Our Children’s Village, Inc. is a progressive grassroots community organization dedicated to empowering the youth and citizens of our communities while decreasing the neighborhood tensions and juvenile crime. Our goal is to provide an atmosphere for youth to thrive, encourage positive thinking and actions and improving community relationships with our young adults. We aim to help youth overcome barriers to success, promote healthy living and foster community restoration.
(Not Pictured: Angie Roberts. Kiffany Avera and Coolie Myrick)
One Team - One Community
We are Proud to Announce our selection to receive a 2023 Community Grant from Walmart Stores # 7339, 5735 and 1653!! Thank you for always supporting our mission to serve the youth and our community! #WalmartGiving #BetterTogether #Walmart
Help us Thank Shaw Plant 22 for selecting us for a community grant. We are grateful for your support in helping us create a better future!!
2024 Charitable Giving Campaign Kick off!
At Our Children's Village, Inc. we’re raising funds, awareness and promoting initiatives to serve the people who need them most. We believe in taking action with urgency in order to raise public awareness about some of the most pressing issues facing today’s youth. Please join us by supporting our efforts to make a measurable difference in the lives of others.
Please select one of the links below or mail your donation to P.O. Box 1423, Thomson, Georgia 30824. You can also cashapp $OCVinc to contribute. All contributions are welcome and tax deductible! Thanks for your support
Request a Form W-9
Ms. ZyToria Parham
OCV's First $1500 Scholarship Winner (2021)
My name is Zytoria Parham and I am currently a senior at Washington County High School. My education is something that I value and would like to expand which is why I am planning to attend Augusta University where I will major in Biomedical Science. After acquiring my bachelor's degree in Biomedical Science, I plan to attend a medical college where I hope to obtain my Medical Degree. After that, I plan to attend a Neurosurgery Residency where I will complete an internship in Neurosurgery. My goal is to work in the medical field as a Neurosurgeon, where I can help and positively change the lives of many. Working in the medical field is something that I find very fascinating, having the knowledge and experience to perform procedures, diagnose and treat different diseases/ailments. That's something that I want to be a part of, helping/saving people's lives and being there for others. I've always liked helping people, giving them good advice and just trying to be there for them. Going to college and expanding my knowledge and education will get me there and I'm ready to do something great with my life!
- Printed with permission upon acceptance of our 2021-2022 Scholarship Award Acceptance
April 3rd, 2022
Update from ZyToria!
College, wow! There are still times when I can’t believe that I’m a college student. Time does go by fast. I walked into my freshman year of college with such high expectations. But I quickly realized that college doesn’t actually work out how you plan or expect it to at times. For me, college has been extremely challenging. There are times when I get frustrated and worried and I begin to question and doubt my capabilities. I start to wonder if I can actually make it through college and if this was the right decision for me. But I’m starting to learn to embrace the mistakes that I make and learn and grow from them. I may not have the grades that I want right now but I’m going to use that to motivate me to do better. I know that I can accomplish anything I set my mind to. Having such an amazing family has kept me afloat. This is only my first year of college and despite the challenges and obstacles I have and will continue to face, I’m truly excited about my future and the many opportunities that it holds. I will forever be grateful for the scholarship I acquired from Our Children’s Village! You guys are truly a blessing. And it makes me so excited to know that you guys will continue to help others like me. So I encourage you to keep doing what you’re doing, you don’t understand the amazing influence you’ve had over my life and others to come. I truly thank you all from the bottom of my heart!
Enjoy Our Gallery
ACTIVITIES AND PROGRAMS
SUPPORTING OUR YOUTH
THE DINNER TABLE EVENTS - Resuming 2023
COVID-19 ASSISTANCE
Encouraging Success
One goal is to promote great opportunities for youth so they can become empowered by their own abilities and gain the confidence to fulfill their potential. This young man, D'Ryan "Big" Howard was the recipient of a new laptop and popup tent to help him fulfill his dreams of becoming an entrepreneur. You can find him standing outside selling refreshing beverages through rain or heat near Bi-lo, Farmer's Furniture or Popeye's in McDuffie County
Reinforcing our COMMUNITY Commitment
Our annual Dinner Table events bring
community leaders, parents and youth together to discuss youth violence over a FREE Sunday-Dinner style buffet. In 2019, we introduced vendors and resources to the program. After the keynote speaker (Dr. Mac Bowman in 2018 and Marc Allen, Big Brothers/Big Sisters – Pittsburgh in 2019), youth are provided an opportunity to respond to questions regarding improving their quality of life. Today, we are working towards reducing delinquent behaviors that lead to negative relationships in our community. The success of our organization is dependent upon the financial and in-kind support of our businesses, corporations and private sponsors.
Emergency Assistance
The Covid-19 Pandemic has had a significant impact on families in a variety of ways. We were blessed to be able to help 18 families with assistance in purchasing food for their children and elderly family members. We also provided rent/utility assistance for some of the most vulnerable members of our community.
Working Together for Success
Our Children's Village, Inc and the Coolie Myrick Foundation has worked together on many projects over the past few years. Some of these include the Annual Back to School Drives, Christmas Toy Drive, The Martin Luther King Jr. Youth Tour and the Georgia State University College Tour. We enjoy working together with other organizations and understand that together we can magnify the foundation of success for the youth of our community.
It Takes a Village
(Where it all Began)
Our Children's Village, Inc was originally founded under the name of "It Takes a Village" in 2011. It was created after a young girl lost her life from domestic violence. Our community came together over a two-day weekend at Thomson High School and hosted an array of classes and breakout sessions with area educators, professionals, counselors, clergy and law enforcement speakers. FREE Lunch was provided through community restaurants, churches and citizens. Reverend Paul Little completed the weekend by speaking to youth about their decisions and futures.
PARTNERSHIPS FOR COMMUNITY YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
We are grateful for all the support we have received since our inception. I want to thank our current and past partners for their contributions to our programs. Walmart has been one of our greatest financial supporters and we sincerely appreciate their support. We also recognize Advanced Auto Distribution Center, SRP Bank, Family Care Group, Thomson First Baptist Church, Jordan Tours, Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church, Walgreens and (not pictured on banners - Springfield Baptist Church) for their Dinner Table Sponsorship's. In 2020, Shaw Industries awarded us with a sizable grant which we plan to utilize for programming needs and plans for the youth community center goal. We are also very thankful for continuous financial donations and partnerships with our local churches, businesses and citizens.
We also thank Our Dinner Table Speakers and Leadership panels, ARCHWAY for their assistance with our Resource Fair, vendors, raffle gift donors, food contributions from local restaurants, team members and VOLUNTEERS. We could not make a difference without you all!!
THE FUTURE GOAL
(In honor of Linda Green, Roy Johnson III and Merlinda Hill)
Since our inception, we have been honored to have the support of our community. Sadly, we lost some of our most loyal advocates before our vision could come into fruition. Ms. Linda Green, with the McDuffie Progress served as a voice for OCV throughout the years covering our programs and events faithfully. Mr. Roy Johnson III was a key partner and collaborator and truly believed in our Mission. He dedicated his final years to making his community one of the best! Ms. Merlinda Hill filmed every aspect of OCV's events from start to finish and proudly exhibited her work on our event T-shirts. Our organization is deeply saddened by each of these losses. We will continue to strive to ensure that their dedication to our mission and vision was not in vain.
We are continuing to work towards our goal of building a Comprehensive Youth Community Center that not only serves an an avenue for youth entertainment and activities but also one that assist youth with educational, career and military development. We by no means aim to take away from the existing entities in our community but to add to their effectiveness. Our youth have VOICED their concerns about the lack of things to do in our community and our goal is to utilize the Youth center to address these concerns.
Our plans are to offer a variety of recreational activities including; creative dance, boxing & Mixed Martial Arts (which has been shown to divert aggressive behavior to a more positive outlet), arts & crafts and a technology and game room. Other plans include providing classes such as culinary arts and cosmetology classes while offering GED courses and job skills training.
We are looking forward to working with our local industries, businesses, government leaders, workforce development agencies and citizens to bring this D.R.E.A.M. to life. As the founder and CEO of Our Children's Village, Inc, I am hopeful that even during these critical times, we can still rely on UNITY IN OUR COMMUNITY!
SUPPORT THE D.R.E.A.M
We believe that with boldness, creativity and heart, there is nothing we can’t accomplish. But above all, our strength lies in teamwork. Our organization was born out of a commitment to stop passing over the real issues of society,
and deal with them head on.
PARTNER WITH US
Make a positive impact on the youth AND our great community! Join our team or volunteer. The value of YOUR TIME will be greatly appreciated.
Donate or Sponsor
We are always appreciative of the financial support we receive. Please continue to contribute to our programs and events. Contact us using the information below or click the debit/paypal buttons to make a TAX DEDUCTIBLE donation.
