Every once in a while, we get to hear back from our students, who have graduated from school and started a new life. We think it’s fun to know what our students are doing in life – we invest so much in them, it’s fantastic to know that there really are success stories in life.

Below is a letter recently received from Graduate Scholar Jennie T from Chapman University in Orange, CA. Jennie graduated with a masters in Organizational Leadership in 2008.

Hello, Tina & Mary,

I wanted to give you both an update on what I’ve been doing the past year…not sure if your office likes to hear that info, but the things that are pertinent to helping other foster youth, etc. I’d like to share with you if that’s OK!

Part of 2008-2009 I moved back east to Lexington KY to help out my biological sisters for a time. I moved back to California in spring 2009 (it has been my home for 13 years now), and in the fall of 2009 I started a Development Associate VISTA Americorps position with a small homeless shelter called Colette’s Children’s Home, which serves homeless women and children in the Orange County, CA area. I’m loving my work here, and I’ve gotten a volunteer program up and running for them, assisted with a large fundraising event in November, and a host of other fundraising activities.

I have remained involved at Royal Family Kids’ Camps, Inc, and this will be my 11th year of participating in their national annual fundraising banquet on February 28th. I was actually invited to be a part of a video montage that has already been shot and will play during the evening, because this it is their 20th Anniversary Banquet and they are featuring various stories of volunteers and campers throughout their years of service. I’m also working on a volunteer project for them that includes developing a timeline of important dates in the history of child abuse prevention.

Lastly, in the Fall of 2009, I started my provisional (first) membership year in the Junior League of Orange County. I wanted to join the JL for a while but needed to finish graduate school first. The Junior League requires an 8 year commitment (one provisional year and 7 active years) so it is a huge commitment to take on. One of the primary reasons I joined was because the JL in Orange County’s primary focus has always been assisting foster youth–they have over 500 active women out in the community serving in various ways to support local nonprofits who are involved with area foster youth. I have LOVED my first JL year, and just got selected to serve in a vacant spot for this year on the Grants and Scholarships committee, and was informed this past weekend that I was selected to lead a committee for next year. The committee I was chosen for is the “Orangewood Academy” project–the Orangewood Academy is a new high school that is being developed and built in Orange County similar to San Pasqual in San Diego, and I will be the Junior League leader of our involvement in this project to determine how the Junior League will assist with this high school in coming years. I am MOST excited about this, as I just really feel like God has me in the right place at the right time and I’m going to be able to use my past experiences to help many others in significant ways who went through the same experiences I did. This new high school for foster youth really touches my heart because it was during high school that I was removed from my home and they were the most difficult years for me.

Sorry if this is long and rambling, but I have been meaning to send your office an “update” for a while. Please send this to whomever it would be appropriate to share this with. All of us former foster youth who you have invested in with your scholarships are just that much more equipped to go out and help others in big ways…obviously, I’ve had a heart for that for a while and am continuing to do that in big ways now that I’ve completed graduate school.

Thanks for all the letters, updates, holiday greetings, etc. They are truly appreciated and I smile every time I get them.

Blessings,

Jennie

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