Kingdom Builder
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Eric WatkinsFor many years, I knew darkness very well. I was raised in a Christian home and enjoyed a comfortable life. I made ungodly choices that led to me living a life of reckless behavior at a very young age. But, one day after experiencing God’s grace in my life after He had spared my life on multiple occasions from disaster, I looked in the mirror and told myself that I didn’t like the person that I saw.
In short, God made me a new man through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. God delivered me from a bad sinful habit and He healed me from a painful past, I still have daily struggles but, I know that God’s grace is sufficient in my life. I have enjoyed the pleasure of entrepreneurship and of serving on staff in local churches in both missions and Christian education. Through all of my life experiences – God has placed a passion in me to see those that have been marginalized, neglected and ignored come to know the love, hope, joy and peace that can only be found through faith in Jesus Christ. By God’s grace and for His glory, I was blessed to attain a BA in Finance from Morehouse College in 1990 and a Master of Christian Education from Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary in 2009. I am unworthy to be married to such a loving wife, Claudia, and to have three great children by marriage. |
Keondra SasfrassAs a child, I loved working with computers and graphic design; however, growing up that passion began to drift into other areas as I began to adapt a passion for working with children. I got my first experience working with children in 1999 as a babysitter for my family and their friends. In 2010, I applied for my first childcare job as a Teacher's Assistant at Sensational Enlightenment Academy (S.E.A.). After being promoted to a Lead Teacher in January 2011, I dedicated several years working for childcare and mission centers and teaching and tutoring children. In 2019, I earned my Associate of Applied Science in Graphic Arts from Independence University and then my Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education and Administration in 2020 from University of Arizona Global Campus (formally Ashford University).
In my role as the Program Developer and Senior Executive Administrative Assistant, my mission is to make a difference in the community, starting with the program I serve. My goals are to contribute my skills, talents, and motivation to increase reading proficiency amongst the youth, build the program's capacity, and increase community support by engaging the unique needs of the community members. I believe that to reach the youth, we must first get the parent's attention. I'm passionate about this because today's children are the leaders of tomorrow, so we must use the gift of education to adequately prepare them for their future roles as leaders of the community. |
Program Developer
Senior Executive Administrate Assistant LMS AmeriCorps Site Supervisor |
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Head Sports Coach
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Elijah GibsonElijah Gibson is a proud graduate of Mitchell High School's class of 2003. Growing up, I remember how my friends all played football and I knew from watching them practice that I wanted to play. One day I just joined one of their practices. The coach saw me and said, "Son, you can play, but you have to get permission first." I said, ok, but I knew my grandmother didn't want me to play football out of fear of getting hurt. I took the paper home as I was instructed to do and thought about it that whole night. I wanted to play football so badly that I decided that would shape the rest of my future - I signed the papers myself. It wasn't until three weeks later that I finally confessed everything to my grandmother. It took some convincing, but she ultimately decided to let me play.
From that day forward, I was on the field every year. In my senior year of high school, I was an all-state football player with several college offers from the University of Arkansas, University of Miami, University of Georgia, and Lane College; however, my college dreams abruptly ended due to my sports injuries. After recovering from my injuries, I tried out for a professional arena football team - The Batesville Stars in Batesville, MS. In their inaugural season, I was the #3 pick, but the season was cut short soon after due to a lack of funding. I decided to hang up my cleats at that moment, but my passion for the game still burned in my soul. In 2021, Mr. Eric Watkins came to me to arrange a sit-down for us to discuss the possibility of me coming onto the team. We met that following day and that meeting led to me accepting a position as the Head Coach of the Athletics Department. From that meeting, we hit the ground running to start and build the Athletics Department that year. We began Red Door's first official baseball (Dodgers) and football (Stars) team. Today Elijah Gibson is the Head Coach for our Boys Youth Baseball, Flag Football, and Basketball teams. |