Recent News:Fort Sill Officer Wins Volunteer Service AwardNovember 14, 2020Nicholas Levay is a Field Artillery officer that is stationed at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. He has been selected for the 75th FIRES Brigade FY20 4th quarter Army Volunteer Award. “Being selected for an award like this is something that I feel I didn’t deserve”, said 2Lt Levay. This award is given out every 90 days to a Soldier within the 75th FIRE Brigade. The selection process can be tough but, it is well deserved. 2LT Nicholas Levay has been working with the School of Athens since he was assigned to the 75th FIRES Brigade. The School of Athens is a 501c3 nonprofit charity that is dedicated to giving underprivileged children and veterans an equal opportunity at life. 2LT Levay has delivered several thousand pounds of food directly into the hearts of communities and he has been able to see its impact. “Going from door to door and seeing the relief on the children’s faces when you give them much needed milk and vegetables is something that I will never forget”, says Levay. School of Athens Board Member, Zac Christianson said “People like him is a force multiplier when it comes to impacting the lives of children. Nicholas is the person we call when we have a project that is bigger than our ability, and he has never said no to anything we have asked him to help us with”. 2LT Levay plans on becoming a Project Lead with the School of Athens over the next year and expand the charities capabilities throughout Oklahoma. If you are interested in donating or assisting 2LT Levay in nonprofit work, you can contact the School of Athens and see what is on the schedule for 2021.... Read more...Charity provides 1,100 lbs of Food To Community Feeding ProgramsJuly 17, 2020School of Athens delivered 1,100 lbs of potatoes to 11 needy families and five community feeding kitchens throughout Lawton Oklahoma. Michael and his sons were in the right place at the right time. “When I saw that the church giving away the potatoes, I instantly noticed the feeding potential”, Says Michael McGill. Michael made a quick phone call to Zac Christianson, a board member ” Want to help me feed all of Lawton at the same time”, Michael said jokingly over the phone. Zac replied “where do you need me?”. Zac just kicked off a Lawton Food Drive a few days ago to restock the M28 Ministries dwindling food pantry, so he knew exactly where to take a few hundred pounds. Michael called the local community feeding kitchens to see if they had a need for a bulk load of potatoes and they all said that they would take whatever they could carry. The McGill families youngest member Remington, which is nine years old was the mostly motivated by the opportunity. “I got to load food into a fire truck”, he said. Michael McGill III does this work with his father so much that if almost feels like a job to him. He has grown up taking care of others that need a helping and he sees the importance of community support, like this. If you and your family are interested in helping the School of Athens or willing to help cook for the community, you can reach out to many different organizations like the Center for Creative Living or C Carter Crane Center. If you would like to volunteer you can visit the School of Athens Facebook page or make a donation to support this nonprofit, they welcome Paypal, Venmo and Cash App.... Read more...Working Together To Keep South Miss Families FedJuly 10, 2020After completing one food drive in Lawton Oklahoma, The School of Athens started on their second in South Mississippi. A simple question was directed towards Michael and Remington. “What community project do you two want to take on while we are on vacation?”, asked Michael McGill Jr. It was easy for the two boys to decide to do another Food Drive like the one that they just completed, in which collected over 250lbs of food. The young community leaders were able to see first hand how their food drive made a difference so it was natural for them to want to do this for their own hometown community. They decided on the Long Beach Community Food Pantry, which feeds around 3500 families a year in South Mississippi. They started with a post on the Residents of Long Beach, 39560 Facebook Page and the School of Athens Facebook Page asking if anyone would consider donating to help raise 500lbs of food for the Long Beach Food Pantry. Cash donations started to arrive from all over the United States through Paypal, CashApp and Venmo from previous donors that have made contributions to other projects in the past. It wasn’t long before the Girl Scouts Troop 4625 out of Long Beach, Mississippi asked if they could join this community event. “The girls jumped into action almost instantly, and collected hundreds of pounds of food”, says Michael McGill. He never thought they would be such a powerful community asset. Other individual donors took it upon themselves to setup their own drop off locations for donations at their homes. The School of Athens and the Girl Scouts Troop 4625 were able to hit their goal of 500lbs by 10 July and delivered it to its final destination at the Long Beach Community Food Pantry on Johnson Rd, that will help feed families. The School of Athens is a 501c3 Nonprofit and all donations are tax deductible. If you would like to make a donation to help children in need, you can do so through Paypal, Venmo or CashApp. If you would rather write a check, one of the Board of Directors will personally pick it up from you. You can contact Michael at MMcGill@HelpSchoolOfAthens.com... Read more...Long Beach Family Kicks Off Food DriveJuly 2, 2020 “What would you two like to do when we get home?”, asked Michael McGill. Michael III and Remington are no stranger to getting involved in helping others. After donating over 250lbs of food to the Lawton, Oklahoma Food Bank, it felt natural for them to take on the same challenge here in their home town. The McGill family would like to ask your family if they would join them in taking part of their impromptu food drive for the Long Beach Community Pantry The fathers name is Michael McGill, him and his sons run a 501c3 nonprofit charity called the “School of Athens”. “We focus our energy on underprivileged children and veterans so that they can get an equal opportunity at life.”, says Michael McGill Jr. You might have saw this dynamic team on the news in January, were able to wipe out 17 elementary schools lunch debts across Harrison County and Gulfport School Districts. They also just recently provided around 1200 nurses with PPE here in South Mississippi. As you can see, they no stranger to working hard at making our community a better place for everyone. Two collection points have been set up and which are located at 128 West 4th St Long Beach, Ms 39560 and at McGill Supply Co. at 8155 Canal Rd Gulfport, Ms 39503. Their goal is to gather at least 500lbs of nonperishable items by July 10th. Although they are from Long Beach but they are an active duty Army family that is currently stationed at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. The McGill’s have returned home for a few weeks worth of much needed vacation so that is why the food drive is happening so quickly and has such a short deadline. If you would like to team up to support any family in need, you can contact Michael McGill at 856-689-3040 or MMcGill@HelpSchoolofAthens.comLB Food Drive... Read more...Children’s Charity Switches Gears for South Mississippi HospitalsMay 15, 2020The School of Athens Charity, which typically focuses on children and veterans, is switching gears in an effort to support the community during COVID-19 by helping 1200 medical professionals on the front lines in South Mississippi hospitals. Over the last few weeks, John Paul Beteta at Beteta’s Prints has been using 3-D printers to make Ear Protectors for any medical professionals who use one. John Paul knew that the School of Athens was looking for a project to take on so he reached out to them. Ear protectors take the pressure off of the nurses ears where the rubber bands normally rest. As a result of COVID-19, the School of Athens had all but stopped normal community projects. During the Board of Directors meeting, the board realized John Paul was on to something. The Ear Protectors were cheap to make, so even a small donation would effect a dozen nurses. Michael McGill reached out to Jamie Morris from Gulfport Memorial Hospital and Natalie Bourque from Merit Health Biloxi to see if this was something the medical staff at the hospitals in South Mississippi could use. Both were very thankful for the donation. “I would love to help get this out to the nurses around the area”, said Natalie. The School of Athens is thankful for the donors that made this possible. Without your donations, the charity would not be able to provide for underprivileged child, military veterans and now nurses on the frontlines... Read more... Donate today. All donations are tax deductible.We are currently in the process of upgrading our website. Check back soon for more information and updates….