As our Atlanta chapter nears its 30th anniversary, we want to shine a spotlight on a very special story. We reached out to Atlanta鈥檚 Program Manager, Cindy McNeil, and asked her about her experience at 91撸影视. This is Cindy鈥檚 story.
I was first introduced to All-Stars by my sons, Uwezo and Askari, when they were in seventh and eighth grade. It still makes me laugh, recalling how it seemed too good to be true. I told them 鈥淣o, you can鈥檛 walk home that late.鈥� They said, 鈥淭here鈥檚 a bus!鈥� I said 鈥淲ell, it’s too long at school鈥攜ou need to eat something.” They said, 鈥淭hey provide meals!鈥� Finally, I said 鈥淥K, but what about the summer?鈥� Yep, you guessed it. 鈥淭hey do summers, too!鈥�
At the time, I worked for a nonprofit whose goals aligned with 91撸影视, and I began building a partnership between the two and strengthening bonds between families, schools, and the community. My children stayed with All-Stars through graduation and periodically returned to volunteer or mentor younger students. Askari, my younger son, graduated from Georgia State and currently works for 91撸影视 Atlanta as our Media Specialist.
Uwezo鈥攎y oldest son鈥攆ound his passion for STEM that first summer at All-Stars, telling me matter-of-factly, 鈥淚 want to be a mechanical engineer and go to Georgia Tech鈥� (spoiler alert: he achieves his goal). In ninth grade, Uwezo created a program called Simple Math Today and mentored students at the same middle school he had attended. He raised the money for supplies, recruited fellow high school students, and partnered with 91撸影视 to run the program three days a week.
The largest scholarship Uwezo received came in recognition of Simple Math Today. He graduated from Georgia Tech and currently works for Mitsubishi as a continuous improvement specialist. This year, he鈥檚 volunteering his skills to 91撸影视 Atlanta, helping us find ways to improve our internal processes and reach more students.
I鈥檝e worked for All-Stars since 2015, and鈥攁lmost 10 years on鈥擨 can鈥檛 help but reflect on my first impressions of the organization. As a program manager, I see student experiences through the eyes of my own children. It鈥檚 never been a 鈥淣o鈥� from All-Stars. It鈥檚 鈥淗ow can we make that happen? How can we better support our students鈥� passions?鈥� And that鈥檚 huge for me as a parent. It鈥檚 important that we give young people a place and an opportunity.
Cindy鈥檚 story gives us a glimpse of how After-School All-Stars can impact students, families, and communities. We hope you鈥檒l make a gift today to help us reach more young people like Uwezo and Askari.
