Our staff held an informal Christmas luncheon late last week, and we were reflecting on the past year and the good things happening at Operation Shoestring. One of our program directors told us a great story that we wanted to share with you.

An elementary school student named Sentriz was part of our Project KIDS after-school program last academic year. Because of some transition in his home life, Sentriz didn’t officially register for Project KIDS when this 2009-2010 school year began last August. But he didn’t want to miss a day at Shoestring, so he walked to our building after the first day of school at Galloway Elementary School. When our project coordinator noticed that we had one child too many, she approached Sentriz and said that she’d love to have him join us, but that his parents had to register him.

To her surprise, nine-year-old Sentriz was back at Shoestring that same afternoon! He had walked home just around the corner, gotten his mother and walked her right back to our Project KIDS after-school classrooms so that he could immediately get back to his school work and to the learning opportunities that we offer!  He obviously wanted to be a part of the Spanish classes, arts instruction, academic reinforcement and character education that Shoestring’s Project KIDS ministry provides every school day and most of the summer.

I think Sentriz’s story illustrates perfectly the drive that so many of our children display and the value that they place on the nurturing and support they receive at Operation Shoestring. We can’t thank you enough for helping us provide this to them.

We all rise together. Operation Shoestring has educated children and inspired families for more than 40 years. Much of our daily work focuses on the 120-plus elementary school students we serve each afternoon from Galloway Elementary School. Because of the innovation and generosity of several board members and local businesses, we recently were able to expand our programming.

Through the Youth Employment Program (YEP), which was held this past summer, Operation Shoestring and its partners trained Lanier High School honor students to be top-notch professionals. These honor students learned the importance of financial and time management, they learned the appropriate attire for a professional workplace and the expectations an employer has for employees. Perhaps more important, they learned that the choices they make in school, at home, with friends and at the work place will determine their future. These students learned lessons of personal responsibility – and they embraced it!

After their training, these students worked at numerous Jackson-area organizations and businesses, including University Medical Center, Barksdale Cadillac, the Butler Snow law firm and The Clarion-Ledger. We were proud of the results of the program and of the press coverage it received (see the front page Clarion-Ledger Metro Section photo above). Over the course of the summer, these outstanding students gained valuable work experience. More than that, they realized that they could – and should – set their sights very high. The YEP students discovered that an enriching career should not be merely a dream. They learned what it takes to make it a reality. And we couldn’t be prouder of them.

In addition to their professional duties, these students pledged to be involved in their community. Nine of our YEP students were trained as docents for the upcoming “Jim Henson’s Fantastic World” exhibit at the Mississippi Museum of Art, which opens December 19th. This collaboration between individuals, nonprofits, business entities and educational institutions is an inspiring example of the work being done by Operation Shoestring. Thank you for your interest in our work and for making it possible.