This morning, we’re thinking about the needs of our students. Two have been laid off, the others are doing school remotely. We’re concerned for them. They’re already prone to isolation without strong family connection or places to be every day. How will they weather this storm psychologically? 

Then we realized that our tiny fledgling of a non-profit will have to fly in the hurricane winds of an economic meltdown. We’ve suspended classes for the time being (social distancing is tough with teens, plus acting and dinner). We have one class who is on the verge of graduation- the very first Seen and Heard graduates! We were going to celebrate them! Our curriculum is pretty much impossible to do remotely. How will we meet our goals for March? Who will see our success or continue to support us? 

We calmed down for a second. It’s not about us being seen. Our goals seem pretty trivial in light of one of our students not finding wipes anywhere for her two little girls. If we are more focused on funding or growth or board development than the human beings in our class, we’re missing the mark entirely. So what do we do now?

We let go of our goals and do the next right thing. 

Here’s what we’re going to do now that our classes are suspended:

  • Every week, until this is over, we are going to go for one on one walks with our students. They need to get outside and off their phones. Heck, we do too. 
  • We will check in with them the day before we visit to see what their needs are and do our best to meet them. We will reach out to other awesome organizations like ifosterTogether We RiseClaris HealthAlliance For Kid’s RightsCASAPeace 4 Kids and others who are helping to meet the needs of youth in foster care. Look them up, they’re awesome. 
  • We also know you, our supporters are willing to help. We will update you via social media @seenandheardla about the needs of our students and if you can help, great. If not, we understand, we hope you can participate later when things level out. 

Today and for the foreseeable future, our only goal is to make sure our students are being seen and heard during this unpredictable time. That’s the goal for now. 

We hope and pray you all are well and thanks to the many of you who have reached out.