Christian Minister's Alliance Aims To Clean Up The Streets Of North Tulsa

The Christian Minister's Alliance is raising money to build a new youth center in an effort to help clean up the streets of north Tulsa. But the project comes with a hefty price tag.

The "Saving Our Kids" project is a $7.3 million dream. When it's all said and done, the Christian Minister's Alliance hopes to provide a safe place for north Tulsa's youth.

It sounds like fun and games and it's all for a good cause. Reverend W.R. Casey and the Christian Ministers Alliance are working to build a youth center and daycare in north Tulsa.       So far, they have three acres of land on the northeast corner of Apache and Lewis and they're hoping to buy four more acres.

"We need to reach out more to our young people and with this youth center hopefully we can curtail some of the things that's going on in the community," Casey said.

Casey was born and raised in north Tulsa. As a product of the area he says it's sickening to see so many crimes, like the shooting that happened on Saturday that seriously injured a 19-year-old man. The youth center will have after-school programs, offer assistance for teenage pregnancy and help people looking for jobs.

"We want to help gang members get out of gangs and kids that are dropping out of school. We want to help them stay in school," Casey said.

Part of the center will be named after Pete Theban, principal at Marquette Catholic School. Casey says Theban worked in north Tulsa as a teacher when it was "unpopular" to do.

"I just loved the community and it just kind of planted the seed that we need to do things a little bit different in terms of outreach to kids," said Theban.

So far they've raised $25,000, and at this fundraiser they're hoping to raise an extra $175,000. Theban says this center could be the difference between life and death.

"The one who gets hurt could be the one who discovers the cure for cancer and you never know or vice versa, the one who hurts somebody else and gets put in the system could have done something really good, but there was no direction or no place to go," said Theban.

Casey hopes to have the center up and running by this time next year.

If you'd like to donate for this cause, you can send a check or money order to P.O. Box 2095 Tulsa, Oklahoma 74101.