In True Super Chapter Fashion, Gamma Pi Answers the Call on COVID-19 for Prince George's County

Styling the "PPE," America's new health gear in the midst of COVID-19, Brothers prepare as families roll in 

“We’ve made a commitment to be of service to this community and we will honor that pledge through thick and thin. When duty calls, our boots are on the ground ready to go.”

                                                                                             Bro. Steven Walls, Basileus
                                                                                               

Since the State of Maryland went into a shelter-in-place posture in March in response to the dangerous COVID-19 crisis, the Brothers of Gamma Pi Chapter have been anything but sheltered when it comes to Social Action. While being careful to follow government-mandated guidelines on social distancing and wearing proper protective equipment, the chapter has been on the move throughout the county helping to provide relief for the residents of the community through a variety of Social Action projects. Dressed smartly in their Royal Purple and Old Gold “PPE,” members of The Super Chapter braved the threats of the lurking virus “to be of service.”  

Like clockwork, Brothers had the process planned to a "T"

On April 2, several Brothers directed traffic at four county schools – Wise High, Suitland High School and Surrattsville High and Benjamin Stoddert Middle School – while the students and their families picked up free Chromebooks provided by the Prince George’s County Public Schools.

About one dozen Gamma Pi members served simultaneously at the four schools, helping to keep a safe and orderly flow of traffic in and out of the school property. Brothers also helped with the laptop distribution in between regulating the traffic flow.

Bringing Fresh Homemade Sandwiches to the Homeless; Groceries to Hungry Families

On Saturday, April 8, the Brothers of The Super Chapter strode into the PG Homeless Shelter to deliver sandwiches to the residents. The food was prepared in advance at the home of one Brother whose wife and daughters stayed up into the wee hours of the night to prepare the sandwiches, wearing protective gear in their home kitchen. For the residents and staff in the homeless shelter, the Brothers of Gamma Pi were the light shining brightly through the storm. In the middle of this frightening pandemic, somebody thought enough of them to take the risk to prepare and bring them fresh food. 

Brothers discuss distribution strategy

The Brothers also completed two major free food distribution projects for the community in April and one in early May when the virus was raging in the midst of a stay-at-home order. On two consecutive Saturdays, April 18 and 25, Gamma Pi, partnering with its Friendship Charities Foundation, Inc., 501 (c ) 3, led the distribution of more than 1,700 grocery bags full of free food to needy families who represented three area schools in the chapter’s adopted community – Suitland Elementary, Drew Freeman Middle School and Suitland High School.

Omega Style Strategic Planning

At these events, the chapter organized the planning and the process, overseeing every aspect of distribution of the food from unloading the truck to unpacking the boxes to putting the packages into the hands of families as they drove through the Suitland High School parking lot. Once in the parking lot, bags were quickly deposited into their open trunks by the Brothers.

On Saturday, May 2, Gamma Pi kept the pace going in the local community but at a different location. This time, it was Largo High School in Largo, Md. During the morning and midday, Brothers oversaw the delivery of hundreds of boxes of food for residents in need. Again, it was Gamma Pi leading the way in helping to connect much-needed free foods to families in need, many who suddenly experienced "the bottom falling out" when the shutdown occurred for public heath reasons.

Checking out the horizon for more vehicles

The work at Largo actually began the day before when a contingent of Gamma Pi men loaded and unloaded a truck that was used to transport the food from refrigerated storage to Largo High located along Largo Road. 

Offering Manpower to Local Government

Basileus Bro. Steven Walls initiated the food drive projects while in conversations with local officials over a period of weeks. Obviously, this was not on the chapter's agenda for this year as COVID-19 appeared out of nowhere and caught fire fast. “We’ve made a commitment to be of service to this community and we will honor that pledge through thick and thin. When duty calls, our boots are on the ground ready to go.”

Keeping the machine running

All the work the Brothers put in during a difficult and uncertain time has solidified Gamma Pi’s reputation as a reliable, committed and courageous Social Action pacesetter in the Mighty Second District of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. To the public, this is amazing, but to the Brothers of Gamma Pi, this is everyday Omega Psi Phi. We observe...then we serve...

Thanks to the Social Action team headed by Bro. Ikey Staton, Jr. and Co-Chair Bro. Tony Kelly for doing an excellent job organizing the team into action for The Super Chapter. Other Gamma Pi members who have been singled out for their leading roles are Brothers Mabili Akinyele, Tiresias McCall (distribution manager), Donovan Benton, and Ed Ryans, who is an official with the county schools.

Some of the volunteers identified by Vice Basileus Rick Allison have included members of Galilee & St. Paul’s Churches, the Ayana J. McAllister Legacy Foundation, Fort Washington Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta, The Chi Beta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the Prince George’s County Public Schools, Mettle Works and Pits.  Logistical support was provided by the Athletic Republic.

VIEW ALL THE PHOTOS AND VIDEO CLIPS HERE: COVID-19 PHOTOS

(Thanks to Brothers Raphael Terrell, Tony Kelly & Marcus Whitfield of the Public Relations Committee and Brother Tyrone Smith for photos and video clips)

CLICK HERE TO MAKE A DONATION TO OUR PARTNER:

 FRIENDSHIP CHARITIES FOUNDATION, INC.

Also, click here to see how Gamma Pi is helping college-bound students in its Project ENRICH program stay on track with the program despite the pandemic, using the wonders of technology

Gamma Pi's Project ENRICH Students Use Technology to Deliver Essays During Coronavirus Shutdown

Munyang Tengen gives her stellar presentation

The students and parents of Gamma Pi Chapter’s Project ENRICH program circled April 11 on the calendar months ago. It was, after all, the date for the students to deliver their essays. Every year, it is the most anticipated time in the programs’ nine-month agenda. Students get both excited and nervous about writing and presenting their essays.

No one could have predicted that 97% of the United States and almost the entire world would be under lockdown from a deadly, highly contagious virus. There was no way Project ENRICH could meet in person. But Brother Willie Hines, the program’s director, and his team Persevered outside the box and came up with a strategy to hold the essay presentations anyway, despite the public health lockdown, thanks to online video conferencing via Zoom. From safe inside their own homes, a total of 25 students presented their essays to Project ENRICH staff during the same date and time they were scheduled to be at Bowie State University.

Junior Julian Thomas helps get things started

“The COVID-19 pandemic created an opportunity for Project ENRICH staff to utilize creativity, communication, collaboration, Perseverance and Uplift. Project ENRICH conducted 2020 Oral Essay Presentations by utilizing the Zoom technology platform,” said Bro. Hines.  “Conducting these essay presentations maintained the continuity of Project ENRICH and provided our students the opportunity to focus on something positive besides COVID-19. "

Zoom, which has become a popular form of group video communication in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, allowed these students to make their presentations in living color to the Project ENRICH team members who were also safe inside their own homes. To keep the environment “real” and professional, students still had to dress up as if they were sitting in the Thurgood Marshall Library on the Bowie campus. Much of the same energy and enthusiasm that defines the Project ENRICH essays was still present in the virtual version.

Listening to the presentations. aside from director Bro. Hines, were Project ENRICH team members Brother Andrew Clarke, Anthony Kelly, Jason Crump, John Howard and James Riley Jr. As always with the essays, the Brothers provided constructive feedback to each and every student.

Bro. Riley guides the students through the program

“Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Project Enrich utilized a new platform as a means to allow each student to present their essays to the staff.  We were very proud that each student was able to adapt seamlessly, and even more proud of what we heard from each of them today,” said Bro. Riley, who moderated the event. “All of them truly exemplified hard work, determination and perseverance, there is nothing that can stop us.”

The nearly three-hour session was smooth and organized. Brothers had given each of the students specific time slots to sign on, so that at any given time, one person was presenting and one was waiting in the wings. Each presenter was assigned a member of the Project ENRICH team who formally introduced them and asked the follow-up questions afterwards. There was no audience.

Director Bro. Willie Hines

The students were assigned specific questions to address by grade level. For freshmen, the essay question was, “What are the attributes of the 21st century learner, which attributes have you mastered and which attributes is your greatest deficiency in achieving your scholastic goals?” Sophomores were asked to look at “Key drivers causing African American college dropouts and what is your solution to fix the problem?” For juniors, the challenge was answering, “How would you change the American educational system to properly educate African American students?” And, finally, the Seniors got the toughest question of all, “Describe the impact of racism in development of African American youth in 21st century.  What are the mitigations and solutions to overcome racism in reaching your potential as a global citizen?”

Overall, Saturday’s program was a lesson in life for the students. It demonstrated the value of Perseverance despite the obstacles. But it also showed how difficult times can present opportunity.

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Below is a list of the participating students, including two who are prospective students for Project ENRICH next year. One of those students is only 12 years old and stars in his own local cable television show.

Freshmen

Quinton Sims (CMIT South)

Joshua Washington (Washington Christian Academy)

Shelemiah Griffiths-Johnson (Samuel Ogle Middle School) -7th grader

David Howard (Frederick Douglass High School)

Cyrus Brookings (Riverdale Baptist)

Anike Akinfolarin (Imagine Foundation at Leeland)

Jana Tengen (Samuel Ogle Middle School) - 8th grader

Sophomores

Jada Smith (Glen Burnie)

Jaylyn Crump (Elizabeth Seton)

Druex Robinson (Bishop McNamara)

Juniors

Justice Flora (Charles Herbert Flowers)

Kennedy Cheek (Charles Herbert Flowers)

Christa Mathieu (Elizabeth Seton)

Stacey Spencer (Charles Herbert Flowers)

John Howard (Frederick Douglass)

Christian Jenkins (John F. Kennedy)

Imani Roberts (Charles Herbert Flowers)

Julian Thomas (Charles Herbert Flowers)

Justin Coles (Arundel High)

Seniors

Munyang Tengen (Bowie High School)

Matthew Wesley (Springbrook)

Kai Merriman (Eleanor Roosevelt)

D’Mani Washington (Washington Christian Academy)

Starr Williams (Charles Herbert Flowers)

D’Naja Washington (Washington Christian Academy)

"100 Ques in Annapolis:" Gamma Pi Leads Second District Meeting with State Legislators

You can best believe that when Omega men get together, something good is about the happen. When Omega men get together at the Maryland State Capitol, something important is about to happen. That was the case on Tuesday, March 10, when Brothers from the Super Chapter, from nearby Epsilon Sigma (Bowie State University) and other chapters in Corridor I assembled at the Capitol in Annapolis to bring Uplift to the community through civic participation.

Called “100 Ques in Annapolis,” the event was held in Annapolis at the State Legislature, where both the House of Delegates and the State Senate for Maryland meet each Spring to discuss and pass legislation impacting Marylanders.  In short, Annapolis is “The Capitol Hill’ of the State of Maryland – the center of power and influence in how the state is run, from the rugged mountains along the state’s western border to the in the crystal clear waters of the beaches and the Atlantic Ocean in the east.

This was no tourist adventure. This was about business. In a series of planned events based on a carefully crafted agenda, the men of Omega – more than 100 strong – arrived in Annapolis armed with information about pending bills, ready to ask questions and discuss various legislative proposals, all in the context of what was good for their communities.  For the Brothers of Gamma Pi, that meant especially looking out for the residents of Prince George’s County. Gamma Pi was charged with organizing this year’s event from a Corridor level. Corridor I is comprised of all of the chapters in Maryland.

The schedule for the day was packed from 9 a.m. until lunch that began at 12 noon, with some optional educational events available afterwards for those Brothers who wanted to stay into early afternoon after the business was complete. This included a visit to the Historic Ashbury United Methodist Church to see Bro. Bishop Edgar Amos Love’s Library and personal artifacts.

 “Looking back, I was fortunate and honored to have been supported by our 1^st Vice District Representative, Bro. Roni Kent; Corridor I Representative, Bro. Amir Shareef; representatives from Chapters across the Corridor; and the Brothers who made time on that historic day to ensure that our event was a success.”

Omega Leaders pose with legislator

In addition to Brothers Kent and Shareef, other notable Second District Omega men in attendance were Delegates Bro. Nick Charles (Prince George’s County),  and  Bro. Nick Mosby (Baltimore City), Bro. James Hicks, Past District Representative;  Bro. Michael Lyles, Annapolis City Attorney; Bro. Brian K. Long, District Chief of Staff; and Bro. Kelvin Ampofo, District Keeper of Records and Seal, Second District Director of Public Relations Bro. Zanes Cypress and Gamma Pi’s own Basileus, Bro. Steven Walls.

Brothers identified four (4) legislative bills for which they prioritized support in Annapolis. These bills are being sponsored or supported by Delegates Bro. Charles and Bro. Mosby.  In true Omega fashion, each bill is aligned with each one of the Four Cardinal Principles of the Fraternity.  In short, they deal with the following:

Manhood - HB1114 - Child Custody and Visitation - Best Interest of the Child - Factors . This bill seeks to eliminate historical preferences/bias towards mothers when analyzing child custody/visitation issues.

http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB1114

Scholarship - SB0001 - Built to Learn Act of 2020 . This bill deals with budgeting money that will be used for public school construction.

http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/SB0001

Perseverance - HB1343 - Criminal Procedure Expungement Expansion. This bill seeks to expand expungement opportunities for certain offenses.

http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB1343

Uplift - HB0416- Medical Cannabis Business Development Fund. This bill seeks to obtain funding and opportunities for small minority and women businesses in the cannabis industry.

http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB0416

To muscle support for the bills, Brother employed the “fan-out” strategy, that is, they broke up into smaller groups that went out and visited their own local legislator’s offices to discuss the priority bills. Brothers were armed with leave-behind letters of support as part of that effort. The idea was to leave Annapolis with an impression and a message about the most important community-based priorities are from The World’s Greatest Fraternity.

“If we are to have an impact on decisions that are being made that can affect us or the ones we love, we must sacrifice time to inform our legislators regarding how we feel about various issues,” said Bro. Allison, in explaining the significance of the event. “Over the years, the Brothers in Maryland have done exceedingly well at ensuring that legislators know that we are here and that we vote; however, an area where we wanted to improve was in expressing our interest in support of or against actual legislation.  Through this kind of expression, we can achieve impact.” 

Gamma Pi Brings Black History to Life with its QUE Kidz Program

Bro. Ken Jones talks with students

With its monthly sessions, Gamma Pi’s Que Kidz program opens doors on the world for the young preteens who live in the underserved Prince George’s County community of Kentland. For Black History Month, the Brothers threw wide open the doors to the history of African Americans with an entertaining and educational program held at the Kentland Community Center on Saturday, February 22.

The group was small, but the lessons were big. Members of the chapter used the morning to share the biographies of historical Black Americans, lead the youth in history-based trivia games, screen short powerful YouTube mini-documentaries about the Black Experience in the United States and share their own personal stories of racial struggles in America. The youth were wide-eyed and seemed fascinated by the stories and bout the contributions of the African Americans who paved the way before them. Not all of the names of historical figures were household names.

Youth raises hand to ask a question

During the program, the youth were encouraged to relate their own personal stories and ask questions. They wanted to know what I was like during the Civil Rights struggle? How did segregation affect their families growing up? How did Barack Obama become the nation’s first Black president?  Why did African Americans drink out of different water foundations or ride in the back of buses? Some of the questions were sensitive personally, such as students asking why were they seemingly treated differently than other kids in class?  Or, what if someone makes a racially sensitive remark in their presence?

As the noon hour approached, the students were served lunch. That gave them a chance to discuss what they had learned and to continue asking questions. The Brothers of Gamma Pi had a goal with the program, and they accomplished it. They wanted the youth to leave the Kentland Center feeling a sense of pride and self-worth from their heritage. They did.

All in all, it was a productive morning of education and fun. For these youths, Black History Month leaped from the pages of the history book and into their hearts and minds. It became real.