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Training Up A Child
Compton’s Sandra Lightner and her Sunny Cove Beautification Crew instill values in local youth

By Allison Jean Eaton
Bulletin Staff Writer

COMPTON – “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it,” said Sandra Lightner, quoting from Proverbs 22:6.

Last Tuesday, she and the flock of youth, including her six children, who participate in her Sunny Cove Beautification Crew performed at City Hall and were feted with a reception. Later, at that night’s council meeting, Lightner was honored for her work with the youth and the youth for their work in the community.

Themed “There is a Time for Everything,” performances by the children included Malik Phillips playing the violin, Presh-iousmargie Polk praise dancing, Raeseanna Lightner singing “If I Could Have Somebody,” Rasaundra Light-ner singing “Wind Beneath My Wings,” Raelyce and Raeniece Lightner singing “Is My Living in Vain” and a martial arts display by Grand Master Eddie White and his son, Elijah.

The crew, also known as VIPER (Violence Inter-vention Prevention Edu-cation Resource), numbers about 50, said Lightner. Not all of the youth live in Sunny Cove, a cozy neighborhood just east of the airport; some come from Carson, Long Beach and Los Angeles.

They gather every Saturday morning at 7:30 to beautify their neighborhood. They also assist and participate in various endeavors citywide, including Compton Creek cleanups, Council-woman Barbara Calhoun’s annual veterans stand down and the restoration of Jackie Robinson Field at Gonzales Park, Lightner said.

Lightner has been working with the children for the last five years, and it shows.

During the council meeting, the 25 who were able to attend, all clad in VIPER T-shirts, demonstrated the structure, respect and discipline she has helped to instill in them.

“There is a time and a season for everything,” said Lightner, who also heads the Sunny Cove Block Club. “In the Sunny Cove Beautification Crew, it’s your time, it’s your season.”

Each child, standing tall and in near drill-order fashion, gave his or her name with authority before saying “and I represent my Compton.”

Later, when Lightner called out to them and asked who they are, they in unison responded “I am a blessed child of God,” their united voices reverberating against the walls of the Council Chambers.

“There is so much negativity in the press about young people,” said Councilwoman Yvonne Arceneaux, in whose district Lightner resides. “And especially in Compton, we’ve had bad press on our youth, but what people don’t know is that we have great children in the city of Compton.

“This group of kids has gotten together because of one person, Mrs. Lightner, who had a great idea and has turned it into a movement,” she said.

Mayor Eric J. Perrodin described Lightner as a model citizen.

“We definitely appreciate the hard work that you do,” he told her before turning to the crowd. “Without people like Ms. Lightner, Compton can ’t move forward without the citizens. ”