Blog

Caring Mentors Transform the Life of a Young Refugee

By Eric Steckel
January 27, 2022

Few children have overcome the challenges Abraham Wordsworth faced. Born in Liberia in 1996 amid a violent civil war, Abraham was just six months old when his Aunt Theresa fled with him and his two older cousins to nearby Ivory Coast. After spending his early childhood in a refugee camp, Abraham’s family finally relocated to Oakland when he was seven years old.

The transition was difficult. Kids would tease and bully him about being a refugee. Fortunately for Abraham, he had a caring third-grade teacher who recommended he enroll in Succeeding by Reading. He vividly remembers his first meeting with Miss Nancy, who tutored him in reading twice a week throughout the year. Abraham understood at that young age that it was unique to have a caring adult pour so much into him.

“As a child, there is nothing that shows them their value like an adult who, for no other reason, just cares for them. Tells them they are loved, regardless of who they are or what they have been through,” Abraham shared.

“As a child, there is nothing that shows them their value like an adult who, for no other reason, just cares for them.” — Abraham Wordsworth

During a field trip to the Santa Cruz Mountains as part of our former Science Horizons program, Bill Branagh, Nancy’s husband, had a long conversation with Abraham. Bill invited the youngster to the youth group his son led at First Covenant Church in Oakland.

“That was when the relationship really transformed,” Abraham recalls. “Every Wednesday, they would pick me up, take me to dinner and youth group. And it became a routine of ours. We would hang out on Fridays and Saturdays and go to the movies. They were showing me all of this love when all I did was enroll in a program.”

The Branaghs and Randy Roth filled a role in Abraham’s life that his aunt could not fill. They encouraged and supported Abraham and provided him with experiences he would never have had, including trips to conferences hosted by The National Youth Leadership Council in Nashville and San Jose.

When it came time to enroll in High School, Abraham had a burning desire to attend the Head Royce School. Although he was unable to afford tuition, the Branaghs helped Abraham apply for acceptance and then for scholarships. They even interviewed with the school when Abraham’s aunt could not do so. Abraham received a scholarship and graduated from Head Royce.

Today, Abraham is an account executive at Salesforce and still very close with the Branaghs and Mr. Roth. “Without the vision and love they poured into me, I would not be here today. If every child had that, we would be in a much better place.”

YES, I CAN empower a child to build bridges to a better future!

 I want to learn more about online reading or math clinics to see if tutoring is right for me!

I want to help fund Children Rising tutoring and mentoring programs to empower more children this year!

CareerBridge Interns Support Path2Math Program

By Eric Steckel
January 20, 2022

Enthusiasm and Compassion Fuels Summer Learning

When Randy Roth founded Children Rising in 2001, his vision was “to prepare today’s youth for a life of serving others and contributing positively to their communities.” This year, we watched that vision spring to life in a profound and touching way.

Last spring, as COVID continued to disrupt classrooms, Path2Math launched online tutoring with a limited number of tutors. It was a daunting challenge, but the need was great. Testing revealed an exceedingly high number of second-grade students experienced significant COVID-related learning loss. Many were at a kindergarten level in math. More than ever before, children needed continued tutoring throughout the summer to have any hope of catching up to grade level. At the same time, our CareerBridge students were eager to begin summer internships despite a scarcity of opportunities.

As the director of both programs, Margena Wade-Green saw a chance to harness youthful enthusiasm and provide online tutoring to eager children. She created a unique internship for CareerBridge students to support the fledgling Path2Math online program. The interns tutored second-graders in math, helped troubleshoot technical issues with the online platform, and hosted a Math Club game room where students watched fun math videos and singalongs, socialized, and worked on their assignments before and after tutoring sessions.

“Realizing that I can make a difference was really nice…If this helps even a few students then that’s good.”

Leticia, a senior who has been with CareerBridge since her freshman year, was grateful for the Path2Math internship. “It expanded my worldview…it gave me a sense of working and the many different opportunities out there.”

She took her responsibilities very seriously. “It was upsetting to hear that so many kids were falling behind in math during COVID because it is a difficult subject and there was a shortage of support programs.”

It opened her eyes to opportunities to give back. “It was my first time tutoring…and you could see they were really having fun singing and dancing and smiling. Realizing that I can make a difference was really nice. I experienced working and directly helping someone learn math. If this helps even a few students then that’s good.”

Sabine, a junior who has also been with CareerBridge since her freshman year, found the experience to be extremely meaningful. “As someone who enjoys working with kids and is passionate about education issues in the school system, I felt like I really made an impact when engaging with the children,” she said. “I always looked forward to the students I would get to see once a week and work on math with because those were very special connections to me.”

There is no higher calling than to serve others. By creating genuine connections with the children they tutored, CareerBridge interns fulfilled Randy’s vision. We look forward to seeing how they continue to find opportunities to uplift their community, one precious child at a time.

You can become a tutor today. Give an eager child the boost they need to reach their God-given potential.

YES, I CAN empower a child to build bridges to a better future!

 I want to learn more about online reading or math clinics to see if tutoring is right for me!

I want to help fund Children Rising tutoring and mentoring programs to empower more children this year!

Perspectives—MLK’s Legacy: Serving Others for the Shalom of our Community

By Jim Wambach
January 15, 2022

“Everybody can be great … because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” — Martin Luther King Jr.

Today we celebrate the life, the work, and the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. Despite the pervasive, systemic racial injustice he experienced—and is still prevalent today— his vision for what is possible in America was full of optimism. Despite encountering and ultimately falling to the worst in humanity, he was able to see the reservoirs of goodness as well. He became a beacon of hope and light for the oppressed, the marginalized, the voiceless.

Racially-biased structures continue to be deeply rooted in many aspects of our society, including the criminal justice, healthcare, and education systems. The result is that generation after generation of Americans, mostly Black and Latino, live in the shadows of poverty, violence, fear, and inequity.

Together We Serve for Racial Justice

Serving others—nurturing and equipping the children in our community—is the core of Children Rising’s mission. As Dr. King reminded us, to serve, “You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”

Through the softening of individual hearts, and a simple decision to act out of grace and compassion, we can realize Dr. King’s vision. It reflects Children Rising’s faith-inspired foundation from Jeremiah 29:7, to “Seek the shalom of the city where I have sent you.” Shalom—the health, welfare, and prosperity of the community. To seek the shalom of this wonderful community, we must serve the community. And through service, we may all achieve greatness. Together, we can become a beacon of hope and light in this world.

Through the softening of individual hearts, and a simple decision to act out of grace and compassion, we can realize Dr. King’s vision.

As an organization, we are inspired to strengthen our commitment to equal education for all children. Indeed, educational inequity continues to be at the heart of why so many people of color continue to suffer under the weight of societal ills.

We also believe in the overall goodness of our neighbors, and seek to provide opportunities where the broader community can serve in support of the children and teachers in our urban public schools.

Serving the vulnerable and marginalized in our society promotes understanding and compassion. An increased spirit of service will open more ears to listen and more eyes to better see. We will approach a new era of community—a community of fairness and equality for all, regardless of the color of our skin.

As you take the day to reflect on the life and legacy of Dr. King, I encourage you to consider purposeful ways of serving your community. Meaningful change—personal and societal—starts when individuals put good intentions into action.

In community,

 

 

 

YES, I CAN empower a child to build bridges to a better future!

 I want to learn more about online reading or math clinics to see if tutoring is right for me!

I want to help fund Children Rising tutoring and mentoring programs to empower more children this year!

The Callison Foundation Donates $25,000 to Bolster Early Literacy in Oakland

By Chelsea Boniak
January 12, 2022

Local Foundation Supports Children in Oakland’s Under-resourced Neighborhood Schools

The Callison foundation has recently awarded Children Rising a generous $25,000 grant. The funding will help support Succeeding by Reading, our proven one-on-one interventional literacy tutoring program. We are so honored and thankful to have once again received this funding. Support from amazing local corporations and foundations enables children and youth in our community to rise above their challenges to reach their God-given potential.

A focus on local education and youth development

The Callison Foundation, founded in 1965, supports education, children’s and youth services, and adult/senior services in nine counties of the San Francisco Bay Area. They typically fund smaller organizations with unique, local service offerings. Our Succeeding by Reading tutoring program aligns well with those education and youth development goals. Our focus on Oakland community schools most impacted by poverty, violence, and educational inequity nurture children who typically face multiple obstacles to education. As a result, the foundation has awarded Children Rising with a grant each year since 2018.

Children Rising will use funds from the grant to bolster our Succeeding by Reading program to support both in-school and online tutoring. This provides us the opportunity to reach more children and extend our tutoring services to include homework support, additional tutoring sessions, and support parents as partners in our tutoring process. All of these capabilities will accelerate learning for the children we serve.

Thanks to the Callison Foundation. We are grateful for your ongoing support—working together to empower children and families in our community.

YES, I CAN empower a child to build bridges to a better future!

 I want to learn more about online reading or math clinics to see if tutoring is right for me!

I want to help fund Children Rising tutoring and mentoring programs to empower more children this year!