
We have laid the foundation and made great strides in the building of a community and education center in the Northwest neighborhood of West Palm Beach, one of our city’s most impoverished. We are closer to the finish line than when we started but we still have a long way to go. With your support, this dream can come true for the hundreds of children and families that call this inner city neighborhood home. The facilities that many of us take for granted, they will have for the first time – modern classrooms with up-to-date computers, a school library, dedicated space for a supervised aftercare program, a large multi-purpose room for civic meetings and community events, and a fully equipped kitchen to provide nutritious, homemade meals including locally grown fruits and vegetables. The School of Nursing at Florida Atlantic University has also expressed interest in staffing a small health clinic in the facility that would provide urgent care to the residents of this community.
When completed, the center will be a two-story structure with administrative offices, lobby, a multi-purpose community room, multiple classrooms, library, kitchen, gazebo, urban garden, and landscaped grounds. The architectural style will be similar to that of the historic church and will feature a lighted dome, which is intended to symbolize a beacon of light shining on this inner-city community. The landscaped grounds around the center will include an urban garden that will feature engraved bricks or stones in a designated area commemorating the contributions of the many benefactors and volunteers who were instrumental in the realization of the center.
Tabernacle Learning Center Board Members
The Tabernacle Learning Center has assembled an experienced Board of Directors:
Director – LaVoise Smith, Retired elementary school teacher/principal
Director – Mrs. Virginia Smith, Retired elementary school teacher/principal
Director – Mr. John O’Mahony, Assistant Director of Acquisitions & Development, JEI
Director – Dr. Beverly A. Barton, Retired School Administrator
Secretary – Ms. Sheree Davis Cunningham, Palm Beach County Criminal Judge
Treasurer – Mr. Paul Dumars, Sr., Chief Financial Officer of Solid Waste Authority
President – Reverend Gerald Kisner, Reverend of Tabernacle Baptist Church of WPB
Vice President – Reverend Kevin L. Jones