That’s My Child aims to brighten future of Montgomery teens
Charles Lee talks with Jamarvin Brown at the Chisholm Community Center. Lee's nonprofit group, That's My Child, tries to set youth on a positive path through sports, arts and recreation. (Karim Shamsi-Basha/Alabama NewsCenter)
At age 13, Charles Lee lost all hope.
Growing up in a gang-riddled neighborhood in Chicago did not leave Lee many choices. He began selling drugs before he was a teenager, and chances of him making it to 20 seemed slim in one of the roughest areas in the country.
“I was born in Chicago to two crack-addicted parents,” Lee said. “I was actually a crack baby. I wasn’t supposed to make it to my fifth birthday. At age 11 I started selling crack. At the age of 13 I was shot in the chest, and by 19 I was in prison.”
I met Lee at Chisholm Community Center near the Montgomery Zoo. From a casual man with a cheerful smile and a more cheerful attitude, it was shocking to hear his story unfold.
“When I was locked up, I asked God why my life was so messed up, why I was dealt this hand,” Lee said. “I found out he had a purpose and a mission for me, which was to go back and help the next generation. So when I got out of prison, I started doing just that. I coached football and basketball. Years later, I realized I was supposed to teach kids not how to win at sports, but how to win at life.”
Charles Lee is an Alabama Bright Light showing teens a positive path in life from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.
Four years ago, Lee started That’s My Child, a nonprofit foundation with the mission of building a family-like support system for less fortunate teens facing hardships of violence and poverty. Ultimately, the foundation hopes to provide them with a brighter future.
“We try to show kids a different and positive way of living; we try to get them off the streets by giving them affirmative things to do,” Lee said. “We mentor them through the arts. Classes include singing, poetry, dance, creative writing, baking, scholastic tutoring, and health and fitness.”
Lee and his foundation create projects for the teens that match their skill level. They also participate in community-service projects a few times a year. The teens then get to take the classes they desire free of charge.
“We do it like an after-school program, every Monday to Friday for about three or four hours depending on which class. I think we all have a story. Everyone is sent here for a reason and we all have an individual purpose,” Lee said.
In addition to classes, the foundation provides the neighborhood kids the Barbershop Book Club, where they get a free haircut if they read a book.
On the evening of March 23 at the Renaissance Montgomery Conference Center, Lee and That’s My Child will hold a gala to raise money for a new building on Fairview Avenue.
Sitting at the Chisholm Community Center and watching Lee play basketball and hang out with teens like he was 16, I wondered why a man with his past would put his life toward the benefit of others.
“That’s My Child gives me hope because I get to see these kids mature. I get to see where they start from when they first enter the program, to seeing them graduate and taking them on college tours. Some of them have never dreamed of going to college,” Lee said.
There’s that word: “hope,” the word Lee did not feel growing up. It’s the word he wants to provide for teens in the poor sections of Montgomery and beyond.
For information, visit www.thatsmychildmgm.org.
Alabama Bright Lights captures the stories, through words, pictures and video, of some of our state’s brightest lights who are working to make Alabama an even better place to live, work and play. Award-winning journalist Karim Shamsi-Basha tells their inspiring stories. Email him comments, as well as suggestions on people to profile, at karimshamsibasha@gmail.com.
