It has been a journey over the past couple of months trying to track down my students and make sure they are showing up to school and putting their best foot forward. The unfortunate reality for some of our kids is that they do not have accountability at home to encourage them to do things that are difficult and painful but will bear fruit in the long run. Almost every Wednesday night when the StreetLeaders have school we have been running an optional tutoring program at LOMA Coffee. Thanks to their partnership, we have created an atmosphere that is inspiring young high school students to “put in work”.
This past month was a highlight for me as I have been picking up one specific student regularly from his home and bringing him with me. But, something changed on our last gathering… when I pulled up to his house his brother informed me, “He already left to go to tutoring about an hour ago”. Lo and behold! As I pull into my parking spot outside the coffee shop he is walking towards the door. I holler out to him, “Ricky!” I was elated that he made it, and he informed me that it took him an hour to get there, he had to stop and ask a couple of people if they knew where LOMA Coffee was located, but he persevered and made it. I am hoping to build on this perseverance and initiative to encourage him to take one more small step at a time so that he can get an education and pave a new path for his family in the future.
Aaron Orr
StreetLeader Director
Consider tutoring one of our teens and fill out our volunteer application here…
https://donate.urbanpromise.org/give/182395/#!/donation/checkout