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Rural communities are often neglected, as urban and suburban youth and adults enjoy a plethora of programs and opportunities provided by grants, donors, and private and public agencies.
Group of young african american volunteers working at charity center

Many rural adults and youth do not own land and do not have access to activities such as those services that are available to persons who live in the city. The community residents who own small farms raise cattle, hogs, and vegetation to subsist. Little to no developmental or recreational programs are available for young children, teenagers, and young adults. Elderly citizens often have no access to public services and activities.

The Chapel Hill Community Service Organization has been in existence for over four decades, but its original rural leaders and community residents have either passed away or are too old to be actively involved. As a result, the organization has been holding on by the will and work of a precious few. Most community members are detached from what the CHCSO is currently doing and trying to do. Meanwhile, too many community residents, especially youth, are finding recreation and personal enjoyment in either larger cities or in some unwholesome places. Many are dying from disengagement and underrepresentation and are lagging behind academically because of unrecognized and unaddressed bio-psycho-social issues.

Vision

The vision of the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization is to be a leading rural community organization in the U.S., providing excellent, life-changing programs and services for youth and adults.

Mission

The mission of the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization is to provide significant services that enhance positive livelihood for youth and adult residents in the Jackson Community by communicating with the community and engaging them in a variety of nurturing programs, by obtaining major revenue sources for support, and by establishing substantial partnerships and collaborations with other related service groups, so that our rural community members can live more meaningful, healthy, and enriched lives.

Goals and Objectives
  1. Determine community residents’ needs and desires to offer the necessary and meaningful services.
    1. Develop and distribute flyers through other community groups to inform youth and adult residents of meetings and programs
    2. Conduct focus groups for youth and adults
    3. Distribute surveys or questionnaires to get community input
    4. Collaborate with school leaders, faith-based groups, etc. for support
  2. Determine ways to engage the community at-large in CHCSO programs and activities.
    1. Procure funding for visible signage at the Campbell-Davis Park
    2. Request school leaders, faith-based group leaders, and others to encourage participation
    3. Send letters/correspondence to community leaders, businesses, and others to announce CHCSO programs
    4. Conduct CHCSO-sponsored community enrichment events
    5. Hold fundraising events
  3. Determine ways to offer youth bio-psycho-social support and to offer inspiring, enriching empowering.
    1. Conduct youth think-tanks to address various themes
    2. Engage school counselors and other school leaders
    3. Engage the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service’s Smith County 4-H Youth Development agent to start meaningful youth programs
    4. Collaborate with community leaders for venues and resources for youth
    5. Conduct virtues-attainment sessions to help youth achieve positive socialization skills and to choose healthy living through exercise & diet
    6. Teach gardening skills so students can grow flowers and vegetables for healthy food, for fundraisers, and to help the needy in our community
    7. Teach and instill job readiness and money management skills
    8. Help students to excel academically through tutoring sessions and coach them for college readiness
    9. Offer technology training and support to minimize the digital divide among minority students in our community
  4. Determine areas in which adults need assistance and offer activities for parents on dealing with adverse youth issues.
    1. Conduct informational sessions about available parenting services
    2. Offer parenting workshops
    3. Help adults who are not literate
    4. Offer relevant health informational activities
    5. Engage the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, the Smith County Family and Community Health agent & regional program leader to develop programs for the community adults and youth
    6. Teach sessions on healthy living: diabetes, food-borne illness, healthy food preparation, preservation, etc.
  5. Procure sizable funding to advance programs, growth, and ensure safety and security at the Campbell-Davis Park.
    1. Seek funding from corporations, businesses, individuals, grants, foundations, etc.
    2. Provide empowerment programs for organizational leaders
    3. Purchase necessary supplies, equipment, and materials
    4. Pay for consultant services as needed
    5. Build fencing around the 10-acre property
    6. Conduct large fundraiser events and programs
    7. Meet with local leaders, county officials, state officials, and federal agencies to obtain funding for additional structures and equipment
    8. Keep grounds attractive and well-lighted
    9. Provide for positive leadership and organizational morale for leaders and community members
History of CHCSO

In 1974 retired educators, N. L. Davis and his wife, Espanola Davis, invited rural adult residents to their home to discuss starting an organization for community members. Initially, the organization was called the Jackson Community Action Club because the main school in the black community at that time was Jackson Public School in the Chapel Hill Independent School District. Mr. Davis reasoned that the Jackson community residents, both adults and youth, needed some place in their own community where they could grow and serve their young citizens by providing wholesome programs and activities.

N. L. Davis and Espanola Davis
N. L. Davis and Espanola Davis

Mr. Robert Campbell, a prominent and very generous landowner in the rural community, together with his brothers, Jesse Campbell and Noble Campbell, agreed to sell ten (10) acres of land to the organization as a site for the Campbell-Davis Park. For the very meager price of $2,000, the organization purchased the land in 1976. In 1978 with Mr. J. B. Mayfield serving as president, the CHCSO was granted 501(c)3 status by the Internal Revenue Service.

Mr. Robert Campbell
Mr. Robert Campbell
Robert, Jesse, and Noble
Robert, Jesse, and Noble

Mr. Jerry Wayne Mumphrey, a Jackson community resident and retired professional baseball outfielder, did not forget his youthful stomping grounds. He donated enough funds to lay the foundation for a building at the Campbell-Davis Park. Mumphrey played in Major League Baseball for the St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres, New York Yankees, Houston Astros, and Chicago Cubs. This 1984 All-Star was honored by the CHCSO when the building was named the “Jerry Mumphrey Community Center.”

Mr. Jerry Wayne Mumphrey
Mr. Jerry Wayne Mumphrey

No other buildings exist on the property. A softball diamond with lights, along with playground equipment, was placed within the park. Also, a small concrete course with a basketball goal exists. Concessions were sold to the public to help raise funds for park maintenance and subsistence. However, as no funds existed to erect fencing, the equipment, air conditioning condenser units, and other things were either broken or stolen by people driving down the highway or by neighborhood passersby. The Campbell-Davis Park is located fourteen (14) miles east of Tyler, Texas on FM 2767 (Old Kilgore Highway). It is very dark at night, and currently signage is poor.

We are fixing the disengagement problem where only a few committed persons are involved. We are on a mission to advance an inclusion campaign that draws people in and empowers them to serve others.

Here’s Why We Need Your Help!

We believe the vision for the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization positioned at the Campbell-Davis Park is still one filled with noble and attainable targets for the Jackson community’s youth and adults. In late 2021 the CHCSO embarked upon new plans and bold transformational projects to make up for lost time and to bridge the gap between the earlier leaders and our youth today who are flailing in uncertain winds of life.

New leaders have developed a broad prospectus and outline of activities with timelines to achieve new, exciting goals. We have kicked up our interest and quests for quality, excellent programs. Our Constitution and Bylaws have been reviewed, revised, and ratified. Professional letterhead and envelopes have been printed. This new website, our first and only one, is a new step toward efficiency and quality.

Officers have expressed a renewed commitment to see that the CHCSO is a unique, effective, forward-thinking corporation, dedicated to the proposition that our elderly adults will be served and that our youth will become capable, positive leaders and community servants.

Please get involved! Reach out to our small community and help us to make a large difference in people’s lives.

Leadership
Ronnie C Williams

Mr. Ronnie C. Williams CHCSO Chairman of the Board

Ronnie Williams has lived in the Chapel Hill community for more than thirty-seven years. He is married to the former Sharon Willis, a graduate of Chapel Hill High School. They are the proud parents of two daughters. Ronnie is the manager of the Analytics and Data Services group at Tyler Junior College. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He serves in many community organizations, including the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization, Inc., Chapel Hill Education Foundation, and is Precinct 10 chairman. Ronnie served as a member of the Chapel Hill ISD school board for twenty-one years. The Williams family are members of Starrville Church of the Living God where he is a member of the deacon and trustee boards. Ronnie Williams was highly recommended to serve as the CHCSO chairman of the board.

Roy Williamson

Mr. Roy Williamson CHCSO Board Member

Roy Williamson was born and raised in Tyler, Texas, and is a 1970 graduate of Chapel High School. He is married and has six children. Roy worked at Jackson Elementary School for thirteen years and then became an employee at Baker Atlas Oil Company, where he worked for fifteen years. During that time, he was appointed to serve for two years on the Chapel Hill ISD school board. As the owner and CEO of Unique Custom Home, Roy built homes throughout East Texas. Currently, Roy is an advisor for Unique Consultants. One can traverse the highways and roads in the Jackson-Chapel Hill community to see countless beautiful homes that he has built and remodeled. Roy is graciously overseeing the remodeling and updating of the CHCSO community center at Campbell-Davis Park. Through his affiliation with Thrivent Financial, a Compass Financial Group, Roy has asked the Compass Financial Group to adopt and sponsor the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization, Inc. We are tremendously honored to have Roy Williamson serve as a CHCSO board member.

Lamond Dean

Mr. Lamond Dean CHCSO Board Member

Lamond Dean was named Superintendent of Schools for the Chapel Hill Independent School District in 2018, and he is a proud graduate of Chapel Hill High School. Mr. Dean attended Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas and earned a Bachelor of Science degree at Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky. He earned a Master of Education Degree from Texas A&M Commerce and completed his Superintendent certification in 2015 from Texas A&M Texarkana. Mr. Dean is well-versed in school business, having proudly served in the positions of teacher, coach, assistant principal, principal, executive director of operations, deputy superintendent, and superintendent. While serving as CHISD High School Principal, his campus received prestigious recognition by earning 17 out of 20 TEA Academic Distinctions in his final three years. Mr. Dean firmly believes that education is the key to a student’s success. He has an unwavering desire to help all students succeed and believes that anyone can go far in life with the right encouragement and direction. With this belief, Mr. Dean has willingly joined the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization team to help serve his learning community beyond the classroom. He and his wife Sabrina have three children. We are tremendously honored to have Superintendent Lamond Dean serve as a CHCSO board member.

Gwyen Dean

Mr. Gwyen Dean CHCSO President

Gwyen Dean is a life-long native of the Chapel Hill community in Tyler, Texas. He retired from CPS Medical, Inc. in 2013 after twenty-one years as a Service Coordinator. Gwyen also retired from United Telephone Company after twenty-two years as Data Collections Coordinator. He has been married to his wife, Belinda Dean, for thirty years and has three adult daughters and four grandchildren. Gwyen is a dedicated “family man” who has a love for classic cars. He is a member of the St. Violet Baptist Church where he serves as a deacon and assistant vice chair for the finance committee. A man of God, Gwyen has served as president of the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization, Inc. since 2009. He established the “Feed the Hungry” in the community in 2015 on Thanksgiving day, feeding over eighty-five recipients. Due to Covid 19, this project was put on hold. Under Gwyen Dean’s dedicated leadership, CHCSO will resume community services with more meaningful projects involving our rural adult and youth residents.

Jacqueline Everhart-Thompson

Ms. Jacqueline Everhart-Thompson CHCSO Vice President

Jacqueline “Jacki” Everhart-Thompson is a native of Tyler, Texas, and a proud alumna of Chapel Hill Jr. High (Jackson Campus) and Chapel Hill High School. She received a Proficiency Certificate in Computer Science from Tyler Junior College, a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree, and a Master of Education Degree from LeTourneau University. Jacki says that one of her greatest joys and blessings in life is being privileged to be a coach and encourager to her adult sons, her “daughters-in-love,” and her grandchildren. She marvels at seeing her grandchildren perform in their varied sports and musical activities. CHCSO is honored to capitalize on Jacki’s passion for youth, as she will serve as a youth engagement coordinator for our organization. She serves in the Upper Room Baptist Fellowship, volunteering as a singer and pianist at her church. Her favorite scripture is Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Jacki has seventeen years of employment with the State of Texas and currently serves as Business Relations Coordinator for Texas Workforce Vocational Rehabilitation – Northeast and East Texas. What a privilege it is for our organization that Jacki has been named CHCSO Vice President.

Sharon Willis Williams

Mrs. Sharon Willis Williams CHCSO Secretary

Sharon Williams attended Chapel Hill ISD schools her entire life and graduated from Chapel Hill High School in 1977. She also graduated from Tyler Junior College in 1978. She received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education from the University of North Texas in 1980 and a Master of Science Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Texas at Tyler in 1982. Sharon began her teaching career at Chapel Hill ISD in 1980. She taught third grade and later taught Special Education. She retired in 2017 after serving 37 years as a professional educator. Sharon is currently a tutor in CHISD. She and her husband, Ronnie- are the proud parents of two adult daughters. Sharon and her husband are members of Starrville Church of the Living God. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. CHCSO is very honored to have Sharon Williams serve as secretary.

Carlyn Davis

Mrs. Carlyn Davis CHCSO Assistant Secretary

Carlyn Davis is a native of Brooklyn, New York. She is a graduate of Syracuse University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Communications and is a member of Delta Sigma Theta, Inc. Her vast professional career includes having worked at major corporations, such as American Airlines/Sabre, Resources Global Professionals (RGP), and IBM. She served as Director of Recruiting, and her primary role was sourcing and coaching C-level professionals in executive leadership. Carlyn has provided significant guidance in helping to develop businesswomen through spiritual principles, through hospitality, and through advice to entrepreneurs in career transition. She is the wife of managing director, Richard Davis, and has two children and four granddaughters. After retirement, she and her husband moved from Dallas to the Chapel Hill community in Tyler, Texas. They are members of St. Violet Baptist Church. We are proud to welcome Carlyn Davis as the CHCSO assistant secretary.

Morris Boson

Mr. Morris Boson CHCSO Treasurer

Morris Boson was born in 1952 in Bellville, Texas. He retired after serving for twenty-six years in the United States Air Force. He served nineteen years in San Antonio, five years in Germany, and two years in Italy. Morris was employed by Union Pacific Railroad for thirteen years. He retired from the railroad in 2012 and moved to Winona, Texas in 2013 with his wife of forty-eight years, Mrs. Linda Gail Campbell Boson. He and his wife are members of Corinth Missionary Baptist Church, and they have been members of the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization, Inc. since 2014. Morris Boson is currently serving as the treasurer of CHCSO. We are blessed to have his dedicated service and appreciate his input and contributions to our community.

Richard Davis

Mr. Richard Davis CHCSO Managing Director

Richard Davis is a graduate of Chapel Hill High School. He was reared, like his sister, Mary Evelyn Davis Norris, in the Jackson Community by N. L. and Espanola Davis, community educators and CHCSO founders. Richard holds a B. S. Degree in education with majors in English and sociology from Baylor University and an M. Ed. in educational administration from the University of North Texas. He and his family have lived in Dallas, Texas for thirty-nine years. Richard served for thirty-eight years in the education industry as a high school teacher, principal, college instructor, and educational consultant. He has conducted workshops at over forty colleges and universities across the nation, including West Point Military Academy and U. S. Coast Guard Academy. He retired in 2019 as Dallas County Director for the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. He is married to Carlyn Christy Davis and has two children and four granddaughters. As managing director of CHCSO, Richard will oversee major fundraising events, business development, marketing, and corporate partnerships.

James E. Webb

Rev. James E. Webb CHCSO Parliamentarian

Reverend James E. Webb was raised in Port Arthur, Texas, and has spent decades serving churches and communities in East Texas. He currently serves as the pastor of the St. Violet Baptist Church of Tyler, Texas. Rev. Webb was pastor of the Bethesda Baptist Church of Marshall, TX, for twenty-two years and also a youth minister at the Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church of Longview, Texas. Concurrently, he was employed for thirty-three years by Merck Human Health, a pharmaceutical company based out of New Jersey. Rev. Webb holds a degree in Economics from the University of Texas at Austin. Additionally, he earned a Certificate of Ministry and Christian Education from East Texas Baptist University, maintaining a 4.0 GPA. Rev. Webb currently serves as secretary on the Board of Trustees at East Texas Baptist University, and in the past, he was named board chair. He has worked with the ETBU football team for the past five years in a ministry that he began called Rappin With the Reverend. Rev. Webb’s personal and alliterative vision statement is “To glorify God with my words, with my works, and with my walk, that I might be a worthy witness for the world.” Rev. Webb and his wife, Mrs. Sharon LaVern, reside in Longview, Texas. They have two children. For the last two years, Rev. Webb has been an active member of the Chapel Hill Service Community Organization, Inc. CHCSO is very pleased that Mr. Webb has been named parliamentarian.

Herbert Norris

Mr. Herbert Norris Chairman of the Board Emeritus

Herbert Norris has lived in the Jackson Community for over sixty years. He and his wife, Mary Evelyn Norris, have over eighty combined years of experience as educators – primarily in the Chapel Hill Independent School District. Herbert holds a BS degree in science from Texas College, an M. Ed. degree from Prairie View A&M University, and administrative certification from Stephen F. Austin State University. He has served in many capacities with the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization, Inc., including chairman of the board and president. On the state level, Herbert has served as president of the Texas Compensatory Education program, and he was the first black president of the Texas Retired Teachers Association. With two children and four grandchildren, he is a long-termed deacon at St. Violet Baptist Church. CHCSO is honored and pleased to grant Herbert Norris the title of “Chairman of the Board Emeritus.”

CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS OF THE CHAPEL HILL COMMUNITY SERVICE ORGANIZATION, INC.

ARTICLE I. NAME

The name of this organization shall be the Chapel Hill Community Service Organization, Inc.

ARTICLE II. PURPOSE

The purpose of this organization is to promote, preserve, and protect a better living environment for adults and youth within the rural community by providing informational, social, and recreational activities; by engaging youth in developmental activities and programs; by offering services and nurturing positive values; by developing individual talents and interests; and by collaborating with faith-based organizations, schools, and other worthwhile institutions within the community. Read More