NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) — North Charleston and surrounding communities will soon have a central hub for community connection and wellness focused on helping underserved youth in the area.

The Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation, The Sandlot Initiative and the City of North Charleston are partnering on the project, which has been in development for more than five years.

“We want to impact kids’ lives,” Andy Brusman, founder of The Sandlot Initiative, said.

Building connections through sports

Brusman said the initiative aims to connect communities through sports, where children focus on teamwork rather than differences.

“You have a black child that’s playing second base. You have a white child that’s playing shortstop. Neither one is looking at black and white. They’re looking at a double play partner,” Brusman said.

The hub will address what Brusman identified as a key issue for underserved youth: unstructured free time.

“It brings you discipline. From a young age, you’ve got to be able to learn how to manage your time, your schedule, and how it interacts with everything else that you’re doing,” he said.

Expanding beyond sports

While the center will start with sports programming, organizers plan to expand into mentoring, wellness and academics.

“If you can continue to build on that and add things, like getting them exposed to coding at Clemson, you’ve set that child up to understand what they can achieve going forward,” Brusman said.

The partners believe the hub will provide a safe space for children in the community.

“Soaking it all in, because at the end of the day, is the end goal here, is just give them that place to go, a safe place,” Brusman said.

The organization is currently fundraising to build two baseball and softball fields and a training facility.

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Daniel S Kippert, age 63, born on April 24,1962 to parents Jack and Patricia (Sweeney) passed away on Aug 26, 2025. Dan attended Madison West High School and graduated with an Economics degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1991.

Dan worked many jobs over the years, primarily in retail. Enjoyed his time refereeing youth basketball, umpiring softball games, watching Wisconsin Badgers and Green Bay Packers.

A man who valued his privacy, Dan faced significant health challenges throughout his life, including a long battle with Ulcerative colitis and the complications of alcoholism.

While these struggles were a part of his journey, they did not define the totality of who he was as a son, brother and a friend. He is now at peace, free from the physical and mental burdens he carried for so long.

Dan is survived by his mother Patrica, brothers Mike, Dave (Jo Ann) and sister Kathy (Dan) Schmudlach, Including several cousins, nieces, nephews, their families and his beloved cat Sammy.

In keeping with Dan’s wishes, a private family memorial will be held at a later date.

He is preceded in death by his father, Jack and brother, John.

Dan’s family would like to thank all the care givers who assisted Dan throughout his healthcare journey, Sun Prairie Emergency personnel including Social Services, St. Mary’s Hospital, Dean clinic and Agrace.

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By Edward Henderson, California Black Media 

Assemblymember Mia Bonta (D-Oakland) serves California’s 18th Assembly District (East Bay). She was first elected in a special election on Aug.31, 2021. 

Bonta, who says she is guided by a long-standing commitment to educational equity, community safety, and expanding opportunities for working families, has built a legislative record focused on addressing systemic inequities through prevention-focused, community-driven solutions. 

Raised in a Puerto Rican family that valued public service, she has spent her career advocating for resources that strengthen schools, expand access to childcare and healthcare, and remove bureaucratic barriers that disproportionately harm Black, Indigenous, immigrant, and low-income communities.

Her work, she says, reflects a deep belief in uplifting historically underserved neighborhoods, ensuring families can afford to live and thrive in the East Bay, and protecting the social safety nets that help vulnerable residents meet basic needs. 

Throughout 2025, Bonta’s efforts emphasized dignity, access, and fairness across issues ranging from maternal health and immigration to youth justice reform. While celebrating hard-won policy victories shaped by community advocates and impacted families, she has also been candid about the persistence of deeply rooted challenges –particularly for young people navigating systems that too often prioritize punishment over support. 

California Black Media (CBM) spoke with Bonta about her successes and disappointments in 2025 and her outlook for the new year. 

What stands out to you as your most important achievement last year and why?  

I was proud to lead AB 1261, expanding access to legal counsel for immigrant youth. I came into the Legislature to fight for our children, and with the federal administration openly targeting young people for deportation, this bill was a labor of love. No child should be forced to stand alone in a courtroom, navigating a legal process they don’t understand, often in a language they don’t speak. That is not who we are as Californians. I’m grateful my colleagues and our governor agreed.

How did your leadership last year contribute to improving the lives of Black Californians?   

I led AB 1376 to reform our youth probation system, which for too long has kept young people trapped in cycles of law enforcement contact and contributed to the school-to-prison pipeline. Of the more than 10,000 young Californians navigating probation, 86% are youth of color. Under prior law, non-custodial wardship probation often came with as many as 50 separate requirements, each one a potential technical violation that could extend supervision and derail healthy adolescent development. Research shows that this instability leads to school disengagement, employment barriers, and repeated involvement with the system.

AB 1376 limits the length of probation and requires that conditions be individualized, developmentally appropriate, proportional, and not excessive, to provide real, immediate relief for youth across the state.

What frustrated you the most last year?  

It has been frustrating to operate under yet another Trump administration rather than one that could have been led by a daughter of Oakland. With deep cuts to health care, violent immigration raids, and rising costs, the challenges facing California families have only grown. But these pressures also make the work we’re doing more urgent.

What inspired you the most last year? 

I am constantly inspired by the people of AD-18 – Oakland, Alameda, and Emeryville. They never give up, never back away from a righteous fight, and continue to push forward even when the odds are stacked high. Their resilience fuels my own, especially in the hardest moments.

What is one lesson you learned in 2025 that will inform your decision-making in 2026? 

We are strongest when we fight together. Last year, I was especially proud of the broad coalition we built to secure funding for the RIGHT Grant, which allows community-based organizations to provide critical in-person rehabilitation services inside our state prisons. Even in a tough budget year, we were able to elevate this as a priority because we demonstrated how wide and deep the support was.

In one word, what is the biggest challenge Black Californians are facing currently? 

Trump.

What is the goal you want to achieve most in 2026? 

In 2026, I look forward to fighting to protect health care access, advancing smart and effective public safety policies, and continuing to invest in communities that have been overlooked for far too long.

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Executive Hockey Director Garrett Stephenson shared that they hosted a “Try Hockey for Free” event in October, which saw 42 girls participate. “This is the most this program has seen for a Try Hockey for Free event before,” said Stephenson.

With professional women’s hockey gaining popularity, girls now have role models to look up to and opportunities to pursue the sport. The girls’ club is continuing its efforts with tournaments scheduled for March.