A Back-to-School Block Party was held on July 15th at the new Wilson’s and Dingle’s Lot on 202 Dickson Street. The Block Party was a fun event for the community and fun for all ages. The day was filled with good food, music, and fun activities. There was even a Back-to-School giveaway where over 300 backpacks with school supplies were given to kids who attended.
Teon and Breanna Wilson, as well as other community members, in collaboration with Pastor Aaron Gross and Jennifer Gross of Seacoast Church, began doing events such as the Back-to-School Block Party to share some positivity to the area and help the community in any way they can.
Wilson owned a portion of land that he turned into a community park for kids of all ages to enjoy.
He saw it as an opportunity to do something good for the area he grew up in. He said, “We wanted to give back to the community with some good food, as well as educational aspects for the kids,” said Wilson. “We hope to do this as often as possible.”
The event was held in the new community park, Wilson’s and Dingle’s Lot. Still, according to Wilson, they have started to venture out to other locations within the neighborhood. Pastor Aaron and Seacoast Church have donated their time to help members of the community make repairs on their houses. Of course, current and future events are entirely cost-free for those who attend.
The Back-to-School event was about more than food and fun. According to Wilson, “We had kids out playing and eating food, but also learning how to communicate and socialize with people, teaching them basic skills such as customer service, learning how to manage money and invest themselves in the real world. How they can get out there and make a difference when they get older.”
Wilson’s goal is to reach people physically, without sitting down at a desk; he wants to be in the community, walking around, and seeing people in person so that he can shake their hands. Pastor Aaron and Seacoast Church became involved after a series of meetings.
“We were trying to put something together that would bring a lot of positivity to the neighborhood,” said Wilson. “We actually sat down, had a few conversations, and just kind of came together and provided. We didn’t really go into a who pays for what, we just stuck it out together and came out on the other end.”
In addition to the event’s fun and educational aspects, free haircuts were provided for children in preparation for the new school year. Tye “Nitty” Caesar, who owns Nitty Cutz in Sumter, donated his time to give away haircuts to any kid who needed one.
When asked why this community was so near to Wilson’s heart, he said, “For one, my mother and her mother were from that neighborhood, and I came up in that neighborhood, and the way the neighborhood was at one point, it wasn’t the greatest place. It slowly became a better community over time, and for me personally, it’s a family thing. Just being from there is more than enough. I was over there for so long growing up, and I’ve even brought my kids up on that side of town before. I mean, it’s history, and it’s a family thing for me. Also, knowing the neighborhood, knowing everybody from the neighborhood, and wanting to give back to the neighborhood.”
Wilson also touched on the park already in the area. “They have a basketball court at the end of the neighborhood, but it’s closed most of the time at night. Don’t get me wrong, you may not want kids shooting basketball at night, but sometimes I see the lock on the fence in the daytime. It’s not open as often as it should be, and it is pretty rough down there. The park area has been worn and torn over time from people and children, and it just needs to be cleaned up. So, we decided to do something of our own.”
In the future, they are planning to have a Halloween Party on the same property. “Basically like a trunk or treat,” said Wilson, “we’re going to just give out candy and do a bonfire that night with the community and with the church.” According to Wilson, You don’t see kids trick or treating during Halloween in that neighborhood. “When Halloween comes up, you really don’t see any kids walking the streets, getting candy from door to door like you used to, they’re going to other neighborhoods, and we wanted to do something in our neighborhood.”
At the end of our conversation, Teon was sure to thank every person or business involved in sponsoring the event. The Manning Times and indeed everyone who attended the Back-to-School Block Party would like to extend a thank you to Wilson’s Junk Removal, Tony’s Body and Paint, Nitty Cutz, The Lady Egos from Sumter, Heather Judy, Pastor Aaron, and Seacoast Church.
Closing the interview, Wilson was asked what his message was by doing all this for the community and the younger generation. “My message would be, kids need to have stuff to learn about, they have to grow, and they need to have fun and be kids while they’re kids. Some people get stripped of their childhood, and I believe that kids are supposed to be kids. They’re supposed to just run around happy and be filled with joy so that they can make the world better, make the community better, make the job better; if they are growing up with positive messages being pushed to them, then they’re about to have a positive outcome on anything that they come in contact with. As long as they have a childhood, they are much better off than not having a childhood. That is probably the biggest message I can send out to them; they need to have positive being given back to them so that they can generate positive as they are growing up.”
Look for the Halloween Trunk-or-Treat this Fall and other cost-free events in the future at Wilson’s and Dingle’s Lot at 202 Dickson St!
