4....KKK...A Dream Realized.../1/25/16

 
 
"A KIWANIS MEMBER'S DREAM REALIZED"
 
​    ( I got this email from Dr. Garry White,a fellow Kiwanian. on Monday, the 25th  and I asked him if I could put it in the bulletin, and he said "Yes!!!")
 
​     "After 6 months of parental idle time, I found something.  This past week, I started as a math/science tutor for Boysville, a home for CPS foster kids, ages 6-17.  Boysville admits only Basic level care kids.  Those with violent or criminal history are not admitted.  The foster kids signed an agreement stating that they want to be there be there and will cooperate.  Boysville is on Hwy 1604, across from Randolph Air Force base.,  It began in the early 1940's when the police picked up boys sleeping in Travis Park in San Antonio and took them to a church rather than juvenile detention.
​     The advantage of being a tutor is having a very structured interaction with a purpose; good grades in school, good future.  The cottage and gym volunteers are basically extra eyes for the staff.  I will get to know the kids better and have a more meaningful interaction.
​     I was impressed with the good behavior in the Boysville library, where they do their homework.  They were cooperative and quiet; no horse playing around.  The elementary kids came in, sat on the floor and waited for instructions.  A middle schooler, who works in the library after school, told me he is to get things for staff & volunteers.  He is the staff "Gopher"
​      One high school teen blew me away.  I was helping him read words.  He is a poor reader.  His reading level was similar to my reading level when I was in high school.  You can imagine my internal reaction.  He told me he likes to work with his hands and wants to be an auto mechanic.  Another teen, I helped with Algebra II; imaginary numbers, "i", the square root of -1.  In other words, the square of "i" or "i" times "i" is -1.   This teen wants to be an orthopedic surgeon.  Well, with the A's being made in High School physics, that is a possibility.
     Where all of this will go in 6 months, I do not know.  But I do know my parental time is no longer idle.
                                        Garry White