4/5/07

Black River Brotherhood is raising a village
By Brian Jarvis

BRIAN JARVIS/Manning Times

The Black River Brotherhood gave $1,000 in scholarship funds to Manning High School’s FFA program. From left: Rev. Edward Sanders, Brittany Prince, Micheal Haynes and Andrew Dorch.

25 churches. Three counties. More than 250 participants. Packed bleachers. Roaring fans. Home-cooked fish platters. Sweaty smiles everywhere.

The Black River Missionary Baptist Association Brotherhood has done it again.

In February, they treated the county to a night of comedy basketball starring the Harlem Rockets; this past weekend they hosted their third annual basketball tournament starring the youth of Clarendon, Sumter and Williamsburg.

“Our goal is to do something for the kids in the community,” said Brotherhood president Andrew Dorch. “They really need this, because it gets them off the streets and away from hanging around a corner somewhere causing trouble.”

Held at Manning Junior High School, the all-day tournament for boys and girls aged 7-18 lasted from eight in the morning until well in the afternoon.

“We’re like a village trying to raise these kids,” said Brotherhood member Jersey Logan. “We’re trying to give them a positive outlook on life.”

“We want to make sure that we point them in the right direction,” added fellow member Robert Bowman.

If all goes as planned, Dorch said, he hopes to take the kids to see an Atlanta Braves game this summer. Last year the Brotherhood sponsored a trip to see the Detroit Pistons play the Charlotte Bobcats.

“The kids need that kind of exposure,” Dorch said.

But perhaps the biggest highlight came after the tournament, when the Brotherhood presented the Manning High School Future Farmers of America program with a $1,000 check for its scholarship fund.

“These young people are destined to make changes in all of our lives,” said moderator Rev. Edward Sanders.

To volunteer or make a donation please contact Rev. Edward Sanders at 972-3916.