Why.

 I get asked a lot what motivated me to start The Shine Scholarship Project. What lead me to start Threads and why I have so much heart for inner city youth.

Today I want to show you why.

Brophy College Prep

Central High School

You might be surprised when I tell you that I could throw a paper airplane from one of these schools to the other. Separated by a canal, Brophy Prep and Central High School are in the heart of downtown Phoenix. Even though the schools are close, the obvious outward appearance can tell you right off the bat how different they are from each other. 

Brophy is a private school that has a 100% graduation rate. Their football team is always ranked high in the state, they have booster clubs, matching uniforms, parents who rally around them and a slew of opportunities when the time comes for them to go to college. Students that go to Brophy are taken care of and have a rally of supporters around them.

Central, right next door, is an inner city public school that has one of the highest drop out rates in the nation. A very low percentage of the kids that do graduate go to college. They come from broken homes, many of them have to have jobs to support their family, and even if the chance for college comes around, they don't have funds to get an education. Most of them would be the first person in their family to even think about going to college, some even the first to graduate high school. Sports teams get cut because of lack of interest and money, they have worn out books and uniforms and the support they have is very, very small.

I look at the two schools and feel like someone has slapped me in the face. What kind of message do these images send to the kids that go to Central? That they aren't good enough because they don't have money? That only a certain type of person can be successful? I look at these two schools and wonder why they are so different from each other. It all boils down to funding and family support. Central High School has neither, contributing to a high drop out rate, and a lack of confidence for hundreds of students.

I knew I could either close my eyes and pretend that this isn't happening, or I could spend my life trying to change something that for so long has been so unfair. I learned that closing your eyes doesn't take away a problem. When you close your eyes to something that is unjust and unfair it magnifies it... for now there is one less person to fight to make things right.

There's been a very overwhelming theme this past year as I've worked with the kids. They're always so, so, so grateful for the scholarship money, etc. But they always say something to the affect of, "It's not even about the money. The money is a symbol of hope and trust in me and that just feels really good. No one does this for us."

(To see what I mean, watch a video about some of last year's scholarship recipient's here) 

I know that everyone has different charity's that are near and dear to their hearts. We all need to be in charge of different things so the world runs the way it should. But this is different... This is standing behind the future of our country. I can't think of anything better to invest in than the future leaders that will one day run America. And helping the next generation overcome hard circumstances that they were thrown into without any choice of their own is a responsibility that I feel like I need to bare. 

We have kids, right in our own country, who miss days at a time from school because they can't afford a bus pass. We have kids, in our country, who don't know when their next meal will be, let alone think they have a chance to go to college. We have kids, who go to school with our kids, that have to sleep on tile floors with no pillow every night.
This is real. I see it every. single. day. It motivates me to keep going. When I'm tired, or frustrated, or worn out from trying to change these situations, images from what I've seen my students live in and go through play through my mind. After seeing what I've seen, I'd be held accountable to God for the rest of my life for not doing anything about it.

One of my students who I'm close with recently text me, "It's hard to focus in school when I honestly don't know when my next meal will be, and if the electricity will be on when I get home."

So why do I do this?

Because I honestly can't imagine pretending that these situations don't exist.
I can't imagine doing anything else. To me, this is what life is about.
I believe we all belong to each other, I've said that before. That when we have something, we have a responsibility to share it. And when we see others in need, we share the responsibility of helping them.
I am always blown away when I see pictures on social media of you in your Threads, coming together to team up to really make a change. And you know what? It's working.

The kids have taught me WAY more than I will ever be able to teach or give back to them.

Funny how that works.

Thank you so much for being a part of our journey, and helping shape the future of these lives that you've only read about. It means more than you know.

We have an opportunity for you to come really help us make a change. We'd love your help and support. If you live in Arizona, please come join us on April 20th for a girls night out at Phoenix Fashion Week's Fashion Hub. 100% of proceeds will be going to this years Shine Scholarship Recipients.

More info and to buy tickets go to www.shineproject.eventbrite.com

Early bird tickets are for sale until April 13th.

If you don't live in Arizona, consider making a donation, or buying a ticket so one of our students can attend (and that money goes straight to scholarships at the same time). Consider sharing this post or video and let's rally behind the most courageous people I've ever met in my life.

Also, every purchase of Threads allows us to employ inner city American youth. We teach them business skills and help them pay their way through college by providing them a job. When you wear Threads, you're wearing more than just a bracelet, you're wearing change.

Here is why we need your help, and what we've done with your help:

Shine on.