Last Updated on May 8, 2025
Sandtown Connection
Ted Churn and Dan Matthews, Co-Leaders
Our Mission: Listen, Learn, Seek Understanding
Born from the aftermath of the 2015 unrest following Freddie Grace death at the hands of the police, CSC was founded by concerned Charlestown residents determined to make a difference. Ten years later the partnership continues collaborating with non-profit organizations in the Sandtown area of Baltimore City. They are New Song Learning Center (fundraising, tutoring), No Boundaries Fresh at the Avenue (food market}, Jubilee Arts (scholarships for classes in the arts), and Turnaround Tuesday (coaching and life skills to return to work.)
Board of Director meetings are open to volunteers and residents. Guests welcome.
SCHEDULE | TIME | LOCATION |
First Wednesday in even months | 11 AM – 12:30 PM | Brookside Classroom 2 |
Remaining Meetings for 2025: June 4, August 6, October 1, December 3
Our Story
Born from the aftermath of the 2015 unrest following Freddie Gray’s death at the hands of the police, cSc was founded by concerned residents determined to make a difference. A decade later, we continue our mission as a registered 501(c)(3) organization, guided by a committed Board of Directors. We support four non-profit community organizations: New Song Academy, No Boundaries Coalition, Jubilee Arts, and Turnaround Tuesday.
What We Do
cSc supports the organizations in the Sandtown community through:
- Volunteer Mobilization: Connecting passionate individuals with meaningful opportunities to serve.
- Fundraising Initiatives: Generating resources to fuel impactful programs.
Our Impact
For over 10 years, we’ve been:
- Fostering meaningful relationships between Charlestown residents and the Sandtown community.
- Supporting initiatives that create lasting positive change.
- Building bridges of understanding across diverse neighborhoods.
The Charlestown-Sandtown Connection (cSc) has a new landing page to make it easy to sign up for the quarterly newsletter. The link can be found on MyErickson > Clubs/Organization> Charlestown-Sandtown Connection or here on CCIcharlestown.org. Your name will go directly to the MailChimp website which is used for the newsletter.
Charlestown Sandtown Newsletter
Charlestown-Sandtown Connection table at the September 2023 Fruits of Our Labors
Charlestown-Sandtown Connection News

As the Charlestown Sandtown Connection (cSc) celebrates a decade ofpartnership with non-profit organizations in the Sandtown community of Baltimore, we also celebrate the legacy of Phyl Lansing, co-founder of cSc.
Phyl, along with David Pollitt, spearheaded the cSc after the death of Freddie Gray, a young man from the Sandtown-Winchester area of Baltimore City, who died in police custody. Phyl helped our organization focus on, and listen to, the needs of the non-profit organizations already established in the area. In June of 2016, then Baltimore County Executive Kevin B. Kamenetz presented the group with an Executive Citation.
We will be donating a brick in Phyl’s honor for the Fall Memory Walk.
At the board’s April 2 meeting, Ted Churn and Dan Matthews were elected as Co-chairs. Lon Chesnutt assumed Chair Emeritus status after leading the group for several years.