FOR BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB COLLEGE BOUND GRADS
FOR ONCE IN THEIR LIVES THE SKY IS THE LIMIT (See Story below)


Left: Adell Hodge, 17, El Camino College,

Right: Morgan Cooper, 18, UC Santa Cruz

Dominic Braggs, Sacramento State University (left) Ruby Noriega, UC Santa Cruz (above)
ONCE THOUGHT IMPOSSIBLE and DESPITE THE ODDS, 140 KIDS ARE ON THEIR WAY TO a HIGHER EDUCATION

From Left to Right: Chris Ahamira, 17, El Camino College, Richard "Oja" Coleman, 17, Texas City College, Dante Kelly, 17, El Camino College, Don Martinez, 17, El Camino College, Jasmine Rettig, 17, Long Beach City College, C' Grace Scipio, 18, (front) Cerritos College and Dominc Braggs (back)

College Bound Gives Youths First Shot at Success as a pathway out of Crime and Poverty One SAT, One college application at a Time

Anabel Jiminez, 18, UC San Diego(above)




Danielle Thompson, 18, Long Beach Community (right) Isaiah Alexander, below, Sacramento State University

KIDS WHO ONCE SEEMED TO HAVE NO FUTURE, 140 MEMBERS OF BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB COLLEGE BOUND PROGRAM DANCED ACROSS THE GRADUATION STAGE AND ARE ON THEIR WAY TO COLLEGE AND THEIR NUMBERS ARE GROWING;

Kids who never thought they would move onward and upward likely will break the cycle of living in poverty and crime

“…Nobody I know was killed in Central LAToday Was a Good Day” -- Ice Cube

“Somewhere over the Rainbow Bluebirds Fly”

“Remember these numbers: 4 8 27 43 140,” – Mike Lansing, executive director of the Los Angeles Harbor Area Boys and Girls Club. “Break the cycle.”

By Diana L. Chapman

Living lonely in foster care, Dominic Braggs was adopted by a second grade friend who taught him basketball; the two were inseparable. While happily playing their game, just one week shy of their eighth grade graduation, gang members rolled up, pulled out a gun and shot his best friend in the head. That was the first of Dominic’s innocent friends to be murdered.

His future: San Jose State University.

Most of the time, Anabel Jiminez was the only true parent in her household. She cleaned the house, fed, clothed and cared for her brother sister and lived in a constant cyclone of her parent’s battles, so severe that police and social workers descended frequently on their home. Anabel and her siblings were repeatedly put in foster care, then sent home again, removed and sent back -- again and again and again.

Her future: UC San Diego. She plans to be a judge.

Living in poverty, Danielle Thompson pulsed with so much anger inside that she clearly enjoyed making other people uncomfortable. She poured some of her anger in reams and reams of poetry, so much so that she could compile several books. She had no idea where she was going with her life; she knew one thing; College was not part of it.

Her future now: Long Beach City Community College.

Thursday evening, Dominic, Anabel and Danielle – and 137 other members of the College Bound Boys and Girl’s Club program beat the odds – happily dancing their way across their stage to graduate to make one of their greatest leaps in life – they will all attend college this fall.

Kids who coped with living side by side with gang members, watched their friends get murdered, saw drug deals go down, witnessed police breaking down doors and doing drug busts – kids who have stories sometimes so awful, it’s a whole lot easier not to hear them.

They were given the chance to dream big and realize they didn’t have to live this way. After all, they could go to college, Mike Lansing, the executive director, told them. At one time, a bit more than five years ago, this was deemed next-to-impossible. But this week – with months of extensive training in the College Bound program – these kids made it over the wall of impossibilities and leaped into the world of miracles and faith.

Mike lit a lot of lights that will ripple and beam out across the country, Los Angeles Unified School Superintendent David L. Brewer the III told the crowd.

“When you look at these numbers,” the superintendent said, “you realize something is going on here…What young people want is adults that care about them. It’s very interesting because when you show them you care about them and you inspire them, young people will succeed. This is a universal truth.”

Mike, he said, had shown the kids he cared and gave them the light they needed to shine. The growing numbers of graduates from the program reflect that. When College Bound began five years ago, the first year four members went off to college. The second year, the number doubled to eight. The third year, the number more than tripled to 27. Last year, 43 members departed for a higher education. This year, 140 students are on their way. In my opinion – short of becoming the president of the United States – Mike will never be able to surpass what he’s done for these kids in his lifetime.

Despite their often chilling stories, these youth have done much more than beat the odds.I know, because I had the honor and the privilege to volunteer as a writing coach to help with their personal essays – required for many college applications.

When I started, it seemed like a purse had been opened upside down and the contents of misery had spilled out and were strewn all over the place. Sometimes, it seemed the writing opened the valve and the water was gushing everywhere – and was never going to stop.

I had some fears that the Boys and Girls Club officials would back off when they heard these painful stories. When you have hundreds of kids pouring into your club everyday, day after day, learning about their personal lives isn’t easy. What I really wondered was would they really want to hear them?

Writing gave the staff the key, but it was like opening a Pandora’s Box. I called Mike time after time. Did they know about this kid? Did they know about that kid? I was especially concerned about one kid named Emmanuel, who was a beautiful writer, but told me in front of 16 kids that he was "worthless." The writing gave us glimpses into their souls. Instead, the staff embraced the stories and ran around trying to fill the gaps and save kids who almost lost their shot at education – because a parent was standing in the way.

In the case of Gruiicel Evelynn Santiago, her mother tossed out several letters of acceptance and when Evelynn settled on Sonoma State University, her mom tossed the letter that told her when to arrive. When the college bound director, Yesenia Aguila, inquired with the college and discovered that Evelynn had to arrive the next day, the staff piled in the car and drove her there.

When Emmanuel Catlan discovered he was not worthless and that the other kids and staff cared about him," he turned his grades over night from a 1.8 to a 4.1. At last, it seemed Emmanuel, who had moved all his life, had found his home at the Boys and Girl Club and was on his way to college. Staff members stepped up to get him on target.

But just one month short of his junior year ending at San Pedro High, Emmanuel’s step dad announced that whole family would move yet again, to Florida. Fearing that “we would lose him,” Mike offered to open a room at his home so Emmanuel could finish his junior year off – and continue pursuing his college aspirations. The step dad refused the offer – knowing the marriage would probably break up when they arrived there.

The last email I received from Emmanuel was that his dad had moved away, his grades had plummeted and he was working hard to help his mother raise his two younger brothers. College was forever on hold, he said. But more recent news sounded much more promising. Emmanuel has been accepted to four colleges in California, including Cal State Long Beach, Cal State LA, Sonoma and San Jose state universities. Getting him here and how to fund his education is what the staff currently is working on.

At the end of the starry evening, screens flashed up of all the happy graduates – the last being Emmanuel. This made me believe that Mike and his staff will somehow figure out a way to get this kid’s light to shine so he too can join the ripple effect of rays that will soon be lighting across the nation.