Skip to main content

Pastor and Gospel Artist Marvin Sapp Serious About Educating All Youth

Pastor and chart-topping gospel singer Marvin Sapp is co-hosting a program at his charter school Monday, Nov. 11, with Carol Van Andel to share the school's mission with the community.

The Grand Rapids Ellington Academy of Arts and Technology (GREAAT), located at 600 Burton St. SE, is in its second year and serves 420 students in prekindergarten through 9th grade. The school is scheduled to add a grade each year until 12th.

"I want the community to know that we are not a fly-by-night organization (and that we're) serious about educating all youth, not just urban youth," said Sapp, who said no other school in West Michigan is offering the performing and fine arts in a core curriculum.

"We are passionate about bringing about a change in the lives of young people. We want children to want to be great."

Approximately 50 community leaders and partners will attend the event, which is open to the public and runs from noon to 1 p.m.

Sapp said his friendship with Carol Van Andel, wife of Amway heir David Van Andel and executive director of the David and Carol Van Andel Foundation, has blossomed into a partnership.

He said Van Andel served on a board with his late wife, MaLinda, who shared his dream of creating a school that linked education with the arts.

"I wanted her to be a part of keeping MaLinda's legacy alive and growing," Sapp said of Van Andel, who also co-chairs of the Educating GREAAT Students Campaign Committee.

A fundraising effort is underway to raise $5.8 million for a new school. GREAAT grew by nearly 300 students this year, after expanding from serving only grades 6 through 8.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

A Califonia pastor has been arrested for having sex with one of the teenage girls he took into custody, injuring his dog too

BCCN1 A California pastor was arrested for allegedly injuring his dog and having sex with one of the two teenage girls he had taken under his wing.33-year-old Hyo Bin Im, known in San Ramon as Pastor John, was charged with child concealment, unlawful sexual intercourse and animal cruelty on Tuesday. The bizarre list of charges were a shock for members of Im’s Contra Costa Korean Presbyterian Church. The youth pastor announced his resignation on Sunday, but didn’t explain why he was leaving. He told the police that he was the founder of The Living Well Ministries, a Christian non-profit that allegedly helped widows, homeless, and orphans.But he apparently never brought these high-minded goals home. The  Police also found two 17-year-old runaways living in the youth pastor’s house, BBCN1 reports. 

Frankenstein and the Bible

Mary Shelley's  Frankenstein  was published in London in the early 1800's well after the Jewish legend of the Golem-creature who protected 16th century Jews in Prague Although there are some differences between the story lines, the similarities between Frankenstein and the Golem are striking: For starters, they were both big and scary with superhuman strength. Plus, they both had to be Jewish. I mean, most of my Jewish relatives have names that end in "-stein"... Goldstein, Silverstein, Frankenstein... you name it. And my own Grandma swore that my Grandpa looked like a Golem. And just to drive home my logical deductions even more, the Talmud talks about a Golem being created who couldn't communicate verbally (Sanhedrin 65B) and it seems pretty clear that Frankenstein doesn't utter any intelligible language known to man. Either that or Frankie works as a NYC subway operator. Although the Talmud may have spoke about Golems, Isaiah spoke about "wearying...

Member of Isreali legislative government being attacked for saying ''Reform is not Jewish''

A member of the Israeli legislative government was slammed for his alleged comments about Reform Judaism on Wednesday, after   media outlets reported David Rotem stating , "The Reform movement is not Jewish … they are another religion." The statement shocked members of the Jewish community worldwide, especially as characterizing the Reform movement as another religion has political implications relating to Israel's Law of Return, which prevents non-Jews from making aliyah, or immigrating to Israel.   The Jewish Telegraphic Agency   reported that a statement released by Israel's Reform movement explained that by using the term "another religion," Rotem effectively stated that "Reform Jews have no place in Israel." Gilad Kariv, executive director of the Reform movement in Israel, called on the Knesset speaker to reprimand Rotem, who is the   Knesset Law, Constitution, and Justice Committee chairman . He said, "An assertion such as this makes it ...