{"id":16908,"date":"2015-07-21T19:05:23","date_gmt":"2015-07-21T19:05:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/baylorproud.wpengine.com\/?p=16908"},"modified":"2015-07-21T19:05:23","modified_gmt":"2015-07-21T19:05:23","slug":"baylor-grads-minister-to-impoverished-miami-area-communities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.baylor.edu\/baylorproud\/2015\/07\/baylor-grads-minister-to-impoverished-miami-area-communities\/","title":{"rendered":"Baylor grads minister to impoverished Miami-area communities"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Touching<\/p>\n

The neighborhood of Overtown, Fla.<\/a>, isn\u2019t what most people picture when they think about Miami. Located just across Biscayne Bay from\u00a0the glamour of Miami Beach, Overtown\u00a0is one of the poorest neighborhoods in the city, and its residents daily face the difficult issues that come from living in poverty.<\/p>\n

Overtown is also the home base for Touching Miami With Love<\/a>, a nonprofit organization led by Baylor graduates that ministers to neighborhood families<\/a> by providing resources to help them overcome the negative influences in the area.<\/p>\n

Jason Pittman (BA \u201995, MDiv \u201902, MSW \u201902) and his wife, Angel (BSEd \u201995), direct Touching Miami With Love (TML), and their outreach in the neighborhood is personal. The Pittmans live in Overtown, so the people they serve are neighbors, and the issues they address hit close to home. TML seeks to \u201cbe the presence of Christ<\/a>\u201d by serving youth and adults alike in an area that sees nearly 60 percent of its residents drop out of high school, with over half living in poverty.<\/p>\n