Dear Ms. Jamie and S2S,

My name is Katrina McCullough. I really enjoy reading S2S every month. I thank God for blessing you as a great editor. I’m sure without your staff there would be no S2S, so I thank Jamie’s staff as well for doing a phenomenal job. When I’m at the airport or just away, I still make time to purchase S2S magazine.

The reason for my writing is to let Jennifer Hudson and her family know that I’m still praying for them. Ms. Jamie, I’m glad you did an article about the Hudson family. That really says a lot about you caring. I know I was shocked when I heard about the slayings, and I immediately started praying and asking God to cover her as well as her family.
Jennifer, I know that just because the funerals are over doesn’t mean the pain is over, so I will continue to pray for you. Please remain strong, keep on believing and never give up on what you were taught. When you feel like giving up, just know the best thing to do is pray. I love you, and please take care.

Katrina McCullough
Baltimore, MD

Mrs. Jamie,

I am writing on behalf of women of your caliber and men of mine. I’m a 25-year-old two-time loser. Life has been hell, yet I’ve endured through it all. The only family I had was my mother and she passed away from cancer in 2004. I’ve been in the streets since I was 9 years old, and for the most part, I was successful as a thug.

Growing up was hard for me because my mother was a paraplegic. School was secondary in my household because of the attention my mother needed to survive from day to day. Of course, the disability checks she received from month to month were a joke, therefore it was on me to keep us afloat from day to day. Being a kid with such a large responsibility taught me that life is what you make it and survival is a must. The community taught me how to struggle because they knew the struggles I faced looking out for my mother.

As I aged my infatuation with the streets grew and so did my reputation. Money was being made and saved and my mother was being taken care of by professional nurses, which freed me up to run wild.

I told you this to say this: I’ve never had a female relationship in my life. I’ve tried to establish relationships in the past but due to my lifestyle it never panned out. The older I got the less I tried. Most women my age only seem to want the materialistic things I can’t provide them with, so I didn’t entertain the thought of a relationship with them. Older women see me as a risk, and even when I’m persistent they only allow a friendship to occur.

I read about women who claim that there aren’t any good Black men left, and I beg to differ. I’ve been adjusting my whole life to take care of a woman, yet I never got the opportunity to experience love from a woman other than my mother. I’m not seeking sympathy from anyone, I’m just asking that someone empathize with me because, if being lonely is the opposite of being in love, then that’s something I truly missed out on.

Benjamin Davis
Perry, FL