May 8th, 2010 will mark my fifth anniversary as being a client of ACHIEVEability. I am one of the few male clients in this wonderful program. As a man and as a single parent, it was hard for me ask for help at first because I had this notion that my “independence” defined my manhood. While I believe it to be true that a man takes care of his family and himself, a man also must be able to recognize when he needs some assistance. ACHIEVEability has provided me with that assistance. From the great self sufficiency coaches and awesome tutors to the workshops and programs offered to the group outings and the reward system, ACHIEVEability has provided my children and me with an outstanding foundation to become successful and productive members of society. That’s not to say that there hasn’t been any challenges or obstacles because there have been many. The difference is having a great support system to help you through these trying times and that’s what this program has done. An example of this program’s great support occurred during my first year enrolled in the program. My son’s brother was viciously murdered and he was engulfed with grief and anger. ACHIEVEability had grief counselors come in and assist with getting my son back on track. With the assistance of this program and through my son’s personal, internal strength, he has graduated from high school and is now enrolled in an 18 month Associates degree program for computer technology. This situation could have easily deteriorated into continued violence but because of the help offered by this program, we prevented it. Another example is my educational progress. When I enrolled in CCP I was required to take remedial math because I needed to strengthen my skills in that area. Because of the great tutoring and support offered by ACHIEVEability, I went from remedial math to Economic 112(Statistics 1). In fact, I will be graduating from CCP on May 8th, 2010 with an AA degree in Liberal Arts (with a strong business foundation) and I will be continuing my pursuit of a Bachelor’s degree in Finance from Chestnut Hill College.
The beautiful irony of ACHIEVEability’s mantra of self-sufficiency is that one must have a great support staff in order to be self-sufficient. The greatest lessons I’ve learned from this program are to never be afraid or ashamed to accept help and to be smart enough to know what I don’t know.
I would like to give a special, heart-felt thank you to:
Brian Hoskins- A great Life Skills coach but a MUCH better person. I consider you one of my best friends.
Jamilla HARRIS-Morrison- A top flight motivator and one of the most intelligent persons I’ve ever had the pleasure to meet.
Heather Greaves- Tutor of the Gods.
About the Author
Gerald H. Parnell, Jr. is a single father of three children. He came to ACHIEVEability in 2005 and will graduate from Community College of Philadelphia this May with an AA in Liberal Arts. He plans to pursue a bachelors degree in finance at Chestnut Hill College this fall. Gerald currently works for Ricoh Copiers, and has his own disk jockey business.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
On the Road to Success
As a single parent of two and a sophmore in college, I came into Achieveability in March 2007 with high hopes. Coming from a single parent home, I had had my fair share of ups and downs. Determined to make a better life for my self as well as my children, I applied for the program two years earlier (June 2005), and I almost cried when I finally got the phone call saying, "we have a three bedroom house for you and your children."
The first year with Achieveability was rough; I was trying to make my rent while maintaining my GPA in school, raising the kids and making it to work every weekend. I was far away from my family (I had previously lived outside of Philadelphia), far away from my friends and to top it all I had lost someone very important to me, my best friend's grandmother who had a hand in raising me.To deal with all of this and maintain my sanity was hard to say the least, but with the support of my life coach I was able to transition somewhat smoothely.
As a senior, things for me have begun to turn around; Im graduating in May, my personal life is coming together and most importantly I am on the road to success. I came here with high hopes, and they matched my goals and ambitions with their own goals and ambitions they had in mind for me, and they have continuously motivated me to stay on the right track and given me the support I needed to move forward. In addition to the life coaches, they have a wonderful staff that is always polite and respectful and ready to help if you need them. They offer workshops, counseling and anything else you can think of to assist you with what you need to achieve your goals.
With all the support they give, Achieveability makes it impossible to fail, and I can not express my appreciation enough for Achieveability!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
April Broaddus is a graduating client of Achieveability, and is also an Intern with Achieveability's Development department. A client since March 2007, Ms. Broaddus will be recieving her Bachelors in Communication from Rosemont College in May of 2010.
The first year with Achieveability was rough; I was trying to make my rent while maintaining my GPA in school, raising the kids and making it to work every weekend. I was far away from my family (I had previously lived outside of Philadelphia), far away from my friends and to top it all I had lost someone very important to me, my best friend's grandmother who had a hand in raising me.To deal with all of this and maintain my sanity was hard to say the least, but with the support of my life coach I was able to transition somewhat smoothely.
As a senior, things for me have begun to turn around; Im graduating in May, my personal life is coming together and most importantly I am on the road to success. I came here with high hopes, and they matched my goals and ambitions with their own goals and ambitions they had in mind for me, and they have continuously motivated me to stay on the right track and given me the support I needed to move forward. In addition to the life coaches, they have a wonderful staff that is always polite and respectful and ready to help if you need them. They offer workshops, counseling and anything else you can think of to assist you with what you need to achieve your goals.
With all the support they give, Achieveability makes it impossible to fail, and I can not express my appreciation enough for Achieveability!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
April Broaddus is a graduating client of Achieveability, and is also an Intern with Achieveability's Development department. A client since March 2007, Ms. Broaddus will be recieving her Bachelors in Communication from Rosemont College in May of 2010.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
