1997 SDX Awards--Dad says church was no help

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SUNDAY, NOV. 16
Secrets inside the revival
–text
Church budget is $6.6 million
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On the road: Pleas for money intensify
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Give at least $100 revival leaders urge
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Brownsville Revival costly, figures are vague
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Revival maestro's money, business is no secret
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Ministry fails to meet watchdog's guidelines
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Revival for sale through merchandise
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3 top ministers fail to pay state sales tax
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MONDAY, NOV. 17
Kilpatrick rules over revival
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Pastor's visions launched his career
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New lifestyle includes a $310,000 coach
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Kilpatrick takes hard line against dissenters
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Pastor's homes raise financial questions
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Authors: Prophecies aim to silence critics
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Kilpatrick: History shows revivals
are divisive
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Sadness, fear fill members who left Brownsville
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TUESDAY, NOV. 18
Hill's bio fraught with fallacies
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Hill's boasts often exaggerate the facts
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Money for missions fails to add up
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Hill's criminal record not what he says it is
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Revival's leader touts 'Son of Sam' conversion
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Hill settles down on 40 acres in South Alabama
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Teen Challenge is Hill's longtime favorite
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WEDNESDAY, NOV. 19
Pastor orchestrated first revival
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Brownsville Revival similar to one in Toronto
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Critics attack tactics, theological basis
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THURSDAY, NOV. 20
Revival benefits: Fact or fiction?
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Escambia sheriff disputes claims of crime reduction
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Neighborhood sees no benefit from revival
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No medical proof of 'miraculous healings'
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Confused? Question, reason, consult the Bible
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Addicts may be getting false hope, experts say
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Dad says church was no help
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Other churches reach out to community
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9. Public Service in Journalism
CIRCULATION LESS THAN 100,000

PUBLISHED SUNDAY NOVEMBER 20, 1997
Copyright 1997 The Pensacola News Journal. All rights reserved

Dad says church
was no help

By Kimberly Blair
staff writer

Rick Gaskins, 28, father of a toddler and a newborn, stands on the porch of a tiny, run-down house and shakes his fist at the red metal framework of Brownsville Assembly of God 's newest expansion: a $3 million family life center.

Gaskins and a number of others living nearby are angry that the revival 's wealth is not benefitting the neighborhood needy.

Gaskins has degenerative arthritis. His wife, Michelle, 24, has curvature of the spine. They don 't know from one day to the next whether they can feed the babies and buy diapers.

They came to Pensacola from Michigan six months ago. Their car has died. Neither has been able to find work. They often go hungry.

Gaskins, a Pentecostal, says he went over to the church three times to ask for help to buy baby formula and diapers. Each time he was turned away, he says.

Gaskins said he talked to church treasurer R.L. Berry, and Berry said: "We only help our church members."

Berry would not accept News Journal phone calls. Business administrator Rose Compton spoke on his behalf. She said Berry does not remember Gaskins ' request.

Compton told the News Journal: "A lot of this stuff comes up. Every day people are coming up here for groceries."

She said she heard that people in the community were taking the groceries and selling them for drugs.

"You can pretty much figure out who is legitimate," she said. "It is a real hard place to be because there is so much need. So many scenarios. So many children."

The presentation of these materials is for educational purposes only to further the appreciation and understanding of journalism. The materials may not be copied, distributed or displayed for commercial gain without authorization from the originating news organizations.

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