James Crockett
Executive Director
James Crockett was raised on the west side of Chicago by a single mother who was raising 5 children in a very high-risk neighborhood. James got caught up in the street life and found himself in prison, which is where Jesus met him. When he got out of prison he was motivated to change his life around, and also reach those who are going through the same struggles that he has. In 2010 James began a men’s Bible study with the men in the North of Howard neighborhood, which was the beginning of what God has grown to become C24/7: Father’s Arms Ministries.
James has a great passion for street ministry and walking with high-risk men through some of the toughest of situations. He is passionate about obeying the call God has placed on his life of bringing hope to communities. He loves building relationships with those in his neighborhood and with others who do not look like him because he says he has something to learn from everyone. He is married to Natalie Crockett and has 9 children.
Natalie Crockett
Associate Director
Natalie Crockett, a graduate from Olivet Nazarene University, has been working in the North of Howard Neighborhood since 2011. Her passion to build relationships with the children, men, and women in the neighborhood inspired her to move in and become their neighbor. Her and her husband, James Crockett, founded C24/7: Father’s Arms Ministries in 2016 in order to reach more of the community and bring the good news of the Gospel of Jesus. She is inspired by the countless stories she hears everyday of her neighbors’ perseverance and grit…its what keeps her going. Natalie is also a mother to 9. Outside of trying to balance marriage, parenting, and figuring out how to be a good co-worker to a spouse, she also enjoys encouraging others to invest in their spiritual, emotional and physical health!
Nelson Thomas
High School Program Director
Nelson grew up in the Rogers Park neighborhood learning many lessons the hard way. He is a living testimony of God’s work in changing his life around. He knows the struggles and challenges the young men in our community face on a day to day basis and he wants to see them prosper because he sees a future for each of the students in our community. He has always dreamt about mentoring the youth so when the opportunity came to work for C24/7, he knew it was God’s calling. Nelson’s life has been forever changed because of his personal relationship with Christ and he hopes to encourage others to fight for what’s right too.
Bob Bobesink
Director of Academics
Bob’s goal is to develop a meaningful relationship with all the youth in the After-School Program so C24/7 can help them be the best student, best person, and best Christian they can be by providing the individualized resources, necessary tools, and positive reinforcement so each one can best use their own God given talents now and throughout their lives.
Bob is blessed to be happily married to his best friend, Linda Haven, for 38 years and to have 2 wonderful adult sons, Drew and Will. He is honored to have taught at a Christian alternative high school, Lake View Academy, for 9 years after finishing the Master in Arts in Teaching program at National Louis University. Before teaching, he had a 25 year career in food service, managing restaurants and catering at places such as the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., American Express headquarters in New York City, and Northwestern University in Evanston.
Sheri Gibson
Director of Development
Sheri is a results-oriented, dynamic, high energy fundraising professional with over 20 years of proven results-saturated career and leadership experience. These are the skills and experience she aims to bring to C24/7: Father’s Arms Ministries. Sheri has diversified experience in developing and implementing a variety of social and human services programs which focus on compliance within the federal, state, family and private foundations community. We anticipate her experience writing and delivering compelling and winning proposals will open doors and loosen purse strings to assist in taking C24/7 to the next level.
Sheri is in possession of a strong record of successful donor/grants management with her own branded tenacity in cultivating new funding opportunities, scaling business and program development, procuring bids for social enterprises, marketing communications, and cultivating Individual Donor relations to maximize results. Adept at driving organization growth through servant leadership, she’s intuitively able to identify collaborative partnerships at the personal, local, federal and national levels. She’s a superheroine in every sense and C24/7 is very fortunate to have acquired her superpowers of deeply caring empathy and the love of Jesus Christ.
Demetrius Underwood
Youth Mentor
I am a Youth Mentor at C 24/7, where I guide youth mentees through academic learning, Christian leadership, and emotional and social development. I was drawn to C 24/7 after walking past the building and witnessing the pure joy of urban children engaging in a space that felt like a sanctuary from the challenges of the surrounding neighborhood. That moment inspired me to become part of this unique environment, dedicated to creating a safe and nurturing space on the streets of Howard.
With a deep compassion and passion for providing Black and Brown children and teens with a safe haven grounded in love and faith in Jesus, I bring a wealth of experience to my role. My career spans from marketing to event production, including working with over 100 non-profit organizations across Chicago. I earned my Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Morehouse College in 2018 and later completed a post-undergraduate program with Northwestern University in the Ph.D. Black Studies Department.
Through my work, I strive to empower youth while fostering a legacy of compassion, leadership, and community impact.
Fatimah Mitchell
After-school Program Director
Fatimah is the newest member of C24/7 and takes on the role of the High School Program Director. “My goal is to create a safe space for growth and development amongst our youth in a community where guidance and support is truly needed. I seek to motivate the youth to further develop their relationship with God and Christ in order to cultivate a Christ-like disposition through the Fruits of the Holy Spirit. Me and the youth will work together, side by side, to develop our characters to be filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control.”
Fatimah graduated in May 2023 from Northern Illinois University with a bachelor’s degree in English. She was raised by her mother in the Southwest Suburbs of Illinois, but now resides in Rogers Park with her father and younger sister. She is the oldest of two siblings and takes on a huge role in raising her sister and is passionate about the developmental success of the up-and-coming youth.
Michelle Mallin
Facility Manager/Front Desk Administrator
Michelle is a mother of three kids, an artist and musician. “Our community means everything to me, I love to learn from the kids I feel like I can relate to them and their parents. I was raised by my dad and music really helped save my life. I dream of sharing art and music with the kids at C24. I also love Jesus so much, and my church community. I love to walk into program and start each day with prayer, I see how much it helps our day go a lot smoother. I am super grateful to work with such big hearted, community changing, coworkers.”
Inka Wells
Youth Mentor
My name is Inka, and I serve as a Youth Mentor for C24/7. I was first introduced to the organization through my connection to the Rogers Park neighborhood, where my brothers and son participated in its programs. My professional background includes working with nonprofit organizations in Rogers Park, where I served as a Community Engagement Coordinator. Currently, I am a sophomore at Harper College, pursuing my Radiologic Technologist certification. I am passionate about my role at C24/7 because I firmly believe that children are our future, and I am committed to being a positive role model for them.