Sharing the Hope

Thanks to her Communities In Schools mentor, Ashlin and her family now have the resources they need to thrive.

Christopher “Kit” Fox is a site coordinator in South Carolina. When he first met Ashlin, the 16-year-old was sitting in a corner crying because other students had been bullying her and spreading stories dealing with her promiscuity, pregnancy and poverty. Ashlin was failing her classes. She had a five-month-old baby without diapers. Ashlin’s mother was in the intensive care unit for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and on a ventilator. The power company was going to turn off the family’s electricity. Ashlin didn’t have a whole lot going for her.

Over the course of getting to know Ashlin, her two brothers, her beautiful baby and her mother, Kit learned a great deal about the barriers to success facing this family. And he resolved to work relentlessly to get Ashlin the resources she needed to succeed in school and in life.

With help from community partners, Communities In Schools was able to provide Ashlin’s family with meals from the local food bank, school and winter clothes, and diapers and wipes for the baby. Toys for Tots donated Christmas gifts, and Basket Brigade made sure the family had a Thanksgiving meal. Kit, who prior to working with Communities In Schools was a wilderness therapist for at-risk youth, also made sure Ashlin’s emotional needs were met by giving the teenager daily supportive guidance on topics such as goal setting, anger management and conflict resolution. He also organized regular parent conferences, to make sure Ashlin’s entire family was working together to improve their lives. The teen was also given information on STD prevention and dating violence prevention.

“As Ashlin’s opened up to me, I got to see more and more of her incredible strength rise to the surface,” Kit said. “I have known her for almost a year now and her transformation has been inspiring to watch.”

Today, Ashlin and her baby are happy and healthy. The teenager is seeing a tutor and her grades are improving. In her free time Ashlin is brainstorming ideas about how to help other girls at school who have ended up in situations similar to her own. At some point she would like to join the military.

“When Ashlin smiles down at her child, I realize what had changed,” Kit said. “She has hope now, and it is contagious.”