The Un-Included
Former Temple basketball star uses his own life lessons to help kids stay in school, out of trouble
Garfield Hawk works with a young Temple resident at an Un-Included Club program
DAVID STONE | OUR TOWN TEMPLE
“What the hell am I doing?”
That thought raced through Garfield Hawk’s mind as he looked down at the empty pill bottle. He had just downed 30 painkillers in an effort to rid himself of years of ache and frustration, but luckily for the children of East Temple, common sense prevailed.
“I started thinking about my only child and how he was going to need me, so I called 9-1-1,” he recalled. “I quit breathing twice before the ambulance got there — it was just in the nick of time. I passed out, and woke up two days later. It seemed instantaneous, like the snap of my fingers.”
FROM THE BEGINNING
Garfield was born and raised in East Temple, and lived in the same Avenue D home until two years ago.
“I graduated from Temple High in 1975 and was captain of the basketball team,” he said. “I’m still pretty proud of that.”
After graduation, he served on the USS Lamoure County in the US Navy.
“I was on an LST,” he said. “We carried Marines, tanks and Jeeps all over the world. I went to a lot of places in the Navy — Germany, Canada, Lebanon, the Virgin Islands, a lot of places.”
After his four-year stint in the service, Garfield eventually returned to Temple. His glory days on the basketball court were far behind him.
“I started having back problems and had surgery in 1988,” he said. “But I still was in pain and eventually that led to depression — severe depression.”
Garfield turned to drugs and alcohol to numb the pain and frustration.
“I was smoking crack and drinking a lot,” he said. “Eventually, it became too much to bear.”
That’s when he decided to take the pills, and his attempt at suicide was just short of successful. A sudden burst of reality helped him make the phone call that saved his life.
MAKING A CHANGE
Although Garfield was still alive, he was anything but well. He continued to pick up the crack pipe and bottles of booze, but that all screeched to a halt one day in 2007.
“I was sitting on my front porch, probably feeling sorry for myself, when a group of kids came walking by,” Garfield recalled. “They were walking in a line, the oldest first and the youngest — a kid about 10 — was last.”
“I knew the kid in front — he was about 16 and already had been in trouble,” Garfield said. “I knew the younger kids were looking up to him, and he was a bad example for them to follow.”
That’s when Garfield found his purpose in life. He tossed the drugs and alcohol, and hasn’t touched them to this day.
“I thought, to myself: ‘These kids are going to end up like me. What can I do to help them not follow the wrong footsteps?”
A DIFFERENT KIND OF HIGH
Garfield, who was on disability because of his ongoing back issues, spent his money on sporting goods such as a basketball goal, footballs and games and activities for younger kids. Apparently, you can buy a lot of “good” when the costs of cocaine and liquor are removed from the monthly budget.
“I started working with East Temple kids in 2007 and became a non-profit two years later,” he said. “Over the years, I think I’ve helped more than 500 kids through the Un-Included Club, and I’m sure lives have been saved.”
“I know one has — the Un-Included Club gave my life purpose and helped me quit drugging and drinking cold turkey. It truly saved my life.”
Garfield had committed himself to providing life options for the kids in East Temple.
“I wanted to serve the people against any negative peer pressure,” he said. “Every person, regardless of age, wants to be part of something — they want to belong. They want to be identified with someone or a group or a cause. It’s part of human identity to want to belong because we are social beings. For some, finding a healthy place to belong seems to come easy — for others, not so much.”
“At times, we are careless about our choices in finding a place to belong,” he said. “Sometimes we can feel desperate to belong or we decide to belong to a certain group out of anger or frustration. We can make costly choices that stay with us for years if not decades.”
NEGATIVITY IS NOT AN OPTION
“We are known by the company we keep,” Garfield continued. “If you lie down with dogs, you’ll get up with fleas. I wanted to give children and teens an alternative — an opportunity to say ‘no’ to a variety of self-destructive behaviors. That’s how I came up with the name Un-Included Club.”
Un-included means to be excluded from or not be part of the included, he said.
“We are un-included from illiteracy, bullying, drugs and alcohol, teen pregnancy, childhood obesity, hopelessness and giving up,” Garfield said.
Soon, a reborn Garfield began inviting East Temple kids to become a part of his new club and the organization was bustling with youthful energy.
“We had one rule: You had to be good,” he said. “The kids had to pledge to be un-included from anything negative. We emphasized the opportunities in life.”
Garfield assembled a team of community leaders, business people, teachers, physicians, ministers and others to come in and speak to the children — to provide mentoring, tutoring and counseling to teach them the importance of civic responsibility, leadership and education. He even provided transportation to and from weekly meetings at the Wilson Recreation Center.
The activities and learning opportunities were endless. The kids learned to grow vegetables in a community garden, and cooking lessons helped them learn where food comes from and the value of good nutrition. Garfield and his team led kids on nature hikes where they learned about trees, insects and fishing. They visited the science labs at Temple College and were introduced to art at the Cultural Activities Center.
Garfield has received many awards for his work with the children of some of Temple’s poorest neighborhoods, but he said his biggest accomplishment has been watching kids grow and excel in school and in life.
“We’ve had kids graduate with honors, go to college, service in the military,” he said. “It’s amazing to see just how far these kids have come, and it proves that investments in young people can really pay off.”
“I hope the club continues to reach more children,” he said. “It is in capable hands.”
DOREE TAKES THE REINS
Garfield turned the future of the Un-Included Club over to Doree Collins about seven years ago, and she has expanded its programs and operations.
“My parents were not doing very well, so I stepped away to take care of them,” he said. “My dad passed in 2020, and Mom is living with me.”
Garfield still is involved with the organization but on a smaller scale. Just last week he met with the kids for a bit of reading.
Just over a year ago, the Un-Included Club began using a family friendly events center near Temple Towne Center Shopping Center to cultivate friendships, creativity and a little money to support ongoing programs.
“Cultivate is an enrichment space for events, audio and visual arts, and entrepreneurship,” Collins said. “It allows us to obtain capital so we can continue to develop our Urban Farm.”
“We grow two kinds of microgreens on the farm — sunflower greens and pea greens,” she said. “The greens are sold at Treno’s Pizzeria in Downtown — they will even put them on your pizza — and here at Cultivate.”
In addition to growing microgreens, Cultivate holds classes, camps and events for children and their families.
Collins emphasized that Cultivate provides a stream of revenue that will keep the Urban Garden growing for years to come.
“We are primarily growing the greens but we’ve had pumpkins, squash and other veggies as well,” she said. “We we took over the Urban Farm, it was overgrown. We’ve been working to clear the land — there’s a lot we can do out there. Microgreens are just the tip of the iceberg.”
A STRONG FOUNDATION
Doree praises Garfield for building a powerful organization that has helped hundreds of East Temple youth reach their full potential. She has narrowed the focus and continued his work.
“When I came on board, the focus was to keep kids un-included from negativity,” she said. “We still do, but I also focus on issues such as leadership and literacy. Our goal is to cultivate wellness in our kids and their families.”
“Garfield is a strong, consistent leader who saw the opportunity to continue the work beyond himself. He’s done that. He is a gracious person and the work he started will outlive us all.”
Did you enjoy this story?
Perhaps it goes without saying — but producing quality community journalism isn't cheap. At a time when subscriber resources and revenue across the country are declining, Our Town Temple remains committed to informing, educating and entertaining our readers. Are you not a subscriber but still value my journalism? Please show your support:
