My husband, Steve, and I were so proud of our daughter, Elizabeth (Biz), on Tuesday night. She was among 17 youth honored at the 16th annual St. Louis Park Caring Youth Recognition reception. The evening was filled with remarkable stories about youth who have made a real difference in the community. It made me wonder how kids so young could have such big hearts!
One teen started a drive to get air conditioners for a school that couldn’t afford it, another ran a program that teaches and coaches chess for grade school kids. One young man worked at the local nature center doing everything from experiments to dressing up like a giant fox to the delight of kids on field trips.
Biz was the “obvious and unanimous choice” of Perspectives Family Center, where she worked with children after school. These kids are from homeless and broken home situations. Some are termed “troubled;” all are “at risk.” At the event, Laura Arne, M.A., Community Affairs Associate for Perspectives Family Center, praised Biz for her patience and calm, leadership, flexibility and commitment to the program.
I remember too many days when I asked myself if my kids would really turn out OK. On Tuesday, Biz proved that she already has.