The Power of 5: A Letter to Our Friends

Dear Friend,

As a nonprofit, we are often asked, “How many people do you serve?” Funders want to know how many lives are impacted by our programs. Volunteers want to know how many people they'll be serving. This is understandable—they want assurance that their time or donated dollar is making the greatest impact possible.

So when we found ourselves running a College Day event for five students, we paused. This is a massive event—a partnership between MAAC and Essex Regional Educational Services Commission that allows high school students experiencing homelessness or displacement to immerse in a day of learning, self-reflection, inspiration, and love.

A lot of work goes into this event: getting permissions from schools, coordinating bussing, breakfast, lunch, and materials, enlisting volunteers to present workshops and speak, arranging college tours and chats with college students. All this work—for five kids? No funder wants to hear that.

Let us tell you why we do it anyway.

April 3 was the first of our three College Day events; this at the County College of Morris. Music played and a breakfast buffet lined the walls as the five registered students quietly trickled in, clearly apprehensive, not knowing what to expect. If you're picturing The Breakfast Club, let me adjust the lens...

Our scholars on this day included one in foster care. One living in a hotel with his mother. A third who was taken in by a local family after spending weeks living in the woods when his parents abandoned him. And the remaining two, trying to acclimate to new surroundings and a new language as the children of migrant workers. Their stories, though varied, share a common thread—they all come from a place of uncertainty; of having lost their childhood definition of “home.”

At College Day, staffers invited the scholars to help themselves to breakfast and welcomed them to “a special day of learning,” before splitting them into two groups to rotate through interactive workshops. The skilled and caring presenters worked their magic, and before long, we were watching in awe as the scholars opened up—in English and Spanish—chatting and laughing with one another and their facilitators. The parent of one scholar leaned over and whispered to us, “He never speaks. And there he is, speaking.”

After the workshops, our keynote speaker, a highly successful psychotherapist and owner-founder of a multi-state counseling practice, shared her own story of hardship, resilience, and determination, then implored the scholars to start writing their own story and planning their future.

After lunch and a tour of CCM, the scholars met a college student who shared her life-altering experiences with mental illness and abandonment, and how she found hope and strength through courage and the kind mentorship of school leaders.

As College Day came to a close, the scholars filled bags of candy and collected gifts of swag and donated books and wellness kits. Before leaving, they completed a survey about their experience.

After they left, we reviewed the results.

Workshops, 5 stars.

Keynote speaker, 5 stars.

The day itself, 5 stars.

Ah, the power of 5.

They left messages, too.

“It was amazing. I’m happy I came”

“I loved everything I’m very happy that they took me into account thanks to everyone❤️”

It was, however, the expressions on the scholars’ faces that really told us everything was right. A staff-to-scholar ratio of 2:1 gave us the freedom to look in their beautiful faces and watch the transformation as they opened up, shared, and accepted the love coming to them.

We would not have changed a thing. Five was perfect.

As we reflected, I decided to look up the symbolism of the number 5. It said: Change. Transformation. Freedom. Curiosity. Adventure.

See photos and hear more about College Day in April's newsletter, coming later this month.

In this intimate space of learning, we changed five lives. Transformed perspectives. Allowed freedom of expression. Sparked curiosity about the future. And set them off on their adventure—a life not defined by the past; but by their purpose.

Who can say they transformed 5 lives last Thursday? Kudos to all who did! It was a perfect day.

Going forward, we will serve 8 more scholars next week at Union County College, and 20 two weeks later at Essex County College. As we do, we will ramp up and adjust and provide a safe, intimate space for all of these scholars, no matter the number.

But numbers don’t matter. Individual stories matter, and this is the beauty of MAAC.

College Day is free to students, and MAAC receives no funding for this event. If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation to MAAC to help continue programs like this, please click here.

Thank you for being part of our story, and for your ongoing support.

Blessings,

Andrea Nicole Smith-Morgan

Executive Director, MAAC

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MAAC Board Members

Eleanor Gil-Kashiwabara | Tanya Isler-Home | Nadine Verna | Tamara Williams

Mindful Awareness Academy for Children (MAAC), PO BOX 338, Montclair, NJ 07042, United States