“The word ‘hope’ for me stands for the future, and overall just how I want my life to be something that my mom can be proud of.”
Hope Journals is a new video and blog series which tells just a few of the amazing stories of young people who have the kind of will and perseverance to do the work, to be the first in their families to go to college, to be humble servant leaders in their circles of influence, and to use their hard-fought achievements for something beyond themselves.
At Boys Hope Girls Hope, we know each scholar has a unique story. When we say we serve “young people in need” that can mean a lot of things, and it’s not exactly the same thing for any two scholars. While we encourage scholars to own and tell their stories, we also understand and respect what and how they choose to do so. Each time a scholar opens up and lets others into their lives, they are giving a gift to the community. As we prepared to work with Jenny in Southern California, we were consciously aware of that.
On February 24th, Patience and I left Kansas City on a 5:00 pm Southwest Airlines flight for Los Angeles with our suitcases and a large bag full camera equipment in tow. The headlines that week read “Coronavirus has ‘pandemic potential,’” and while some travelers were wearing face masks, airports were still buzzing with people. Some gave off a silently cautious vibe, and I, for one, was using more hand sanitizer than usual.
Patience Randle, my colleague and travel companion, is the other member of the Network Headquarters marketing team. She’s an accomplished video and social media content creator. I had fallen in love with a video docu-series created by a hotel brand and had a vision of telling scholar stories through a similar lens. I was thrilled that Patience brought her experience to Boys Hope Girls Hope to make it possible.
Weaving through the darkness and construction zones led to a few wrong turns before finding our hotel. We traded having a sit-down meal for grabbing Chick-fil-A from a nearby drive-through. Once we lugged everything inside, we parted to our rooms, both very tired, but excited for the day that we’d been dreaming about.
In addition to his duties as Executive Director, Tim is also the home’s landscaper. The amazing backyard has spectacular views spanning all the way to Anaheim. There is a patio with a picnic table, a sitting area under a spacious wood pergola covered in floral vines, and an expanse of fragrant orange and lemon trees. We were told that the girls have watched the Disney fireworks from there on a clear night. I wish we could have captured the fruit trees before the shoot was over, but unfortunately, we ran out of sunlight.
Maritza Palacios, Development Manager, stopped by to say hello on her way to do after-school duty at the boys’ house. Boys Hope Girls Hope is the kind of community where there is truly a team mentality and a culture to help where needed. Maritza and I have collaborated on network-wide projects before, so I have experienced her bubbly and energetic personality. More recently she was a part of the local video planning team, and we appreciated her liveliness, creativity and ideas.
