Stories of Transformation
"Project Transformation provided me with a positive environment where I could grow and see that I had potential." - Sammy Ramirez
Our Summer Program officially begins next Tuesday, May 16, with the arrival of the first of our 124 college-aged young adults who will serve this summer with Project Transformation North Texas. While our program has grown and changed over its 19-year history, one constant remains: stories of transformation.
Over the course of this summer, we will share a few of these stories with you. The transformative experiences of our PT Corps Members, children, youth, volunteers, and churches happen only because of your partnership. Here is Sammy's story:
Sammy's Story: A Kid-to-Corps Member's Perspective
My name is Sammy Ramirez and I first came to Project Transformation the summer after 5
th
grade. I returned when I was in the 11
th
grade and participated in the Leaders in Training Experience (LITE) Program as a high school student. In the LITE Program, I met Kristen Singletary. She was serving with Project Transformation as a LITE Coordinator at the time, and she taught me many life lessons. I would never have aimed as high as I have without Project Transformation and the encouragement I received. Kristen taught me the importance of caring for others, even others who may not think or look like me.
Project Transformation built a community for us and gave us mentors who taught us about our importance and how our environment does not limit us.
My senior year of high school, Kristen supported me through the college application and scholarship process. I applied to five schools and got into all of them! She believed in me and her support gave me the confidence to see my potential. I now attend Texas Christian University and on Saturday, May 13, I will be the first in my family to graduate from college.
During college, I have returned to serve with Project Transformation each summer, and I will return again this summer in a leadership role. I still look up to Kristen and aspire to be what she was to me - a mentor and role model. If I have an opportunity to be a light in my community and help a child to be on a more positive track, that is an opportunity I have to take! These kids are the future of the community where I grew up. If I can help shape their future, it's not even a question for me whether or not I should do it. I will always consider it my responsibility to lead as I was led at Project Transformation. The program has forever changed me.
As Sammy's story illustrates, relationships are at the heart of everything that we do. It is through dedicated care,
individualized attention, and the belief in every child's ability to succeed in school and in life that transformation begins.
On June 7th, more than 1,000 children and youth will come through the doors at our 10 summer program locations and many more life-changing experiences will occur and relationships will form. You make stories like Sammy's possible.
From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you!
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