Shared by Allison Mathews
Allison is an AACPS: PPW
One of my first assignments as a brand-new Pupil Personnel Worker was to visit a family and enroll a child under kinship care. After contacting the woman who had officially decided to care for this incoming 6th grader, I offered to visit her house to meet them and fill out the required paperwork. Little did I know that this would be a child I would follow through his middle school years and have now seen him in his first year of high school or that his caregiver would become one of my favorites.
After welcoming me into her house I nervously sat down at the table and began to ask questions about this child’s situation. This woman was this child’s biological cousin and was also his godmother. Since the child was four months old, he has lived with her. His parents tried as much as they could to be involved in his life, but their habits and lifestyle had not allowed them to provide adequate care for this young man.
As this woman shared her story, we began to form a connection because she knew I was there for one reason and one reason only and that was to help her. I have had the pleasure to watch this child move from a 6th grader with lots of energy that sometimes got him in situations to a 9th grader who is a three-sport athlete and a kid with a great head on his shoulders. The caregiver has made it a priority to keep him connected to his family, including his parents. When they are available to see him, she makes sure that they have time together and he sees his other relatives as well. Even now as they are incarcerated, she makes sure she takes him for visits.
The consistent love and support he is shown has no bounds. When he first arrived, this family had teenagers in the house. They were almost finished raising their children and now they basically were starting over with an infant! They provided a lot more than the necessities for this guy. They were always his biggest advocates. Education was always a huge priority for his caregivers. They pushed to get him in the AVID program and he has soared ever since. He also attended a three-week camp at a local private school in the summer to grow as a student and a young man. I am so proud of all that he strives for and I see great things in this student’s future.
When I asked her what advice she would give someone in a similar situation, she said she would tell them to go for it. I know that this wonderful, giving woman and her husband have given this child a solid foundation filled with love and opportunity. I am so excited to see what great things lie ahead for this student thanks to support of these people. I can only imagine what his life would be like without caregivers stepping up to help a relative.
As students and situations move in and out of my life, I will always remember this first taste of how important relationships are in this job as a PPW. From a nervous start at our first meeting, I am proud to say that I know this caregiver and the impact she has made on this child’s life. I am proud now to call her a friend!
