Man aims to help area in need

Jesse Williams, 28, said he saw "a need for jobs, a need for education, people going hungry, a need for food, a need for hope" in the North Charleston area where he grew up.

So, in early 2007, he founded the nonprofit organization Take it to the Streets with just a few members of Seacoast Church.

Two years later, the nonprofit has a board of directors, about 25 volunteers from various area churches and a base of roughly 25 community members to help.

Williams spends most of his time meeting with the North Charleston community and doing administrative work. Every other Saturday, Williams and other members take food to various North Charleston neighborhoods.

But Take it to the Streets isn't about handouts. On Mondays, Williams and others can be found downtown leading educational workshops on how to apply for a job, how to create a resume, get a driver's license, apply for financial aid and more. "It helps us to help them. It helps our community and society," he said.

Williams moved to North Charleston when he was 9 years old. He had been living with his family on an island in the Pacific and wasn't exposed to formal schooling until the move to the States. He graduated from Garrett Academy of Technology, earned a bachelor's from the College of Charleston in 2005 and a master's degree in business administration from Charleston Southern University in 2007.

He is working toward a doctorate in business administration from Argosy University with a dissertation on how to increase the educational level of low-income people. He's furthering his education partly out of personal interest and partly to build his credibility for running Take it to the Streets. He said he wants to be "an intermediary for people who have less."

"We recognize that the small things make a big difference and we're willing to help with the small things like getting a driver's license or giving a ride to college," he said.

Williams said just giving food or money to the poor doesn't solve the problem. Yes, jobs are a need. But what the organization focuses on is teaching skills and conveying the importance of getting an education to get that job.

Over the coming months, he'll be figuring out the details of renovating a building off Dorchester Road and turning it into an office for the organization.

The building was donated by the Rev. Wilhelmina Hicks of Miracle Temple off Spruill Avenue. Take it to the Streets has no formal office space, but the building, once major renovations are made, will be the headquarters.

Hicks said she sees Take it to the Streets as a good way to reach those in need. The building, at Dorchester Road and East Surrey Avenue, is near an area that is in need of help, both Williams and Hicks said.

"I lived in that area," Hicks said. "I raised my children in that area. That building is just a small thing" to help Take it to the Streets with helping the poor, she said.

Williams said he hopes the building will be cleaned and usable by July. It will have a learning center with a computer lab and office.

"I love his spirit, and I love what they're trying to do," Hicks said.