Susan Zaghlool should have been ecstatic. She was graduating in May from LECOM School of Pharmacy in Erie, Pa., with a Doctorate of Pharmacy, the culmination of four long years of work and the realization of a dream. But instead, the night before the big day, she found herself sobbing, engulfed by all her old foster-child fears and the familiar loneliness. Everyone else had family. Who would be there for her?

My dad took me out of school when I was 12 years old. This made me feel hopeless about my future.

Susan’s father, with his rigid old-world views, forced her to cook and clean and run his business. Had she still lived in the family’s native country, that might have been the end of the story. But the Zaghlool family had immigrated to the United States when Susan was 5 years old, and the state of Ohio had something to say about her fate. School officials noticed that while the Zaghlool boys were still in school, their bright young sister had been strangely absent for a month. Child welfare authorities removed Susan from the family’s mobile home and placed her in foster care, but because of legal difficulties, it was a year before she was back in school full time. Her father fled with her brothers to Canada; her mother was deported. Ultimately, Susan went to a group home in Cincinnati where she stayed for five years.

“At times, there were as many as were nine boys and nine girls in the group home. I never started a fight but I had to defend myself. I tried to be a role model, someone the girls could look up to.”

She graduated from high school with a 3.9 GPA and highest honors. But college seemed like a distant dream, even with her good grades, until her caseworker told her about the Orphan Foundation of America.

“OFA changed my life. I didn’t have a family and I had aged out of the Butler County system. OFA stepped in and became my family—financially, mentally, spiritually.”

Susan received $12,000 in scholarships from OFA, in addition to federal and state grants, to attend the University of Cincinnati. But more than that, with OFA, Susan had someone looking out for her. Her OFA mentors sent her regular care packages, cards and emails. Her high school mentor, John Kasak, a 78-year-old retired engineer, also stuck with her through college, even co-signing loans and the lease for a car. For the first time in her life, Susan felt like she had people in her life who really cared about her. In 2005, she graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a chemistry degree.

“I have to say that I don’t think I could have made it—I wouldn’t have been able to do this—without OFA. And it’s not just the scholarship. They’ve always been there when I needed them.”

At the Kroger grocery store, where she worked part time, Susan rose quickly from bagger to cashier. The manager, recognizing her smarts, tapped her to work in the pharmacy as an assistant. Susan wanted desperately to go to pharmacy school, but there was no grant money and her courage was flagging. Enter Barbara and Marshall Grimes. Barbara had volunteered for six years as an OFA virtual mentor, corresponding with OFA students via email. The couple wanted to give a scholarship to a pharmacy student in memory of Marshall’s father, who had been a pharmacist. Through the OFA scholarship program, the Grimes donated $5,000 a year for four years toward Susan’s pharmacy school tuition. With that vote of confidence and the emotional support from OFA, Susan had the courage to borrow the rest and embark on a course of rigorous study. Last year, she also became a U.S. citizen.

Barb and Marshall are just amazing people. All the way through pharmacy school, they were there for me, sending me emails and care packages with cookies. I will never be able to thank them enough.

And on the morning of graduation, Barbara and Marshall Grimes were there for her again. Susan had invited them to the ceremony, but she hadn’t really expected them to come all the way from their home in Virginia.

“It was the happiest day of my life. We hadn’t met in person before and you might think it would be awkward, but it wasn’t. It felt so comfortable. They have been so good to me.”

The Grimes gave Susan antique pharmacy tools that had belonged to Marshall’s father. They talked over dinner like a family about Susan’s job offers (four!) and her financial future. (Start saving now.) For the Grimes, who have no children of their own, watching Susan accept her diploma was like watching a daughter graduate. This time, when the tears flowed, they were Barbara’s tears. Happy tears.

Thousands of teenagers just like Susan need YOU to step up and help. Will YOU commit to making a difference?

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