I went back to where it all began for me…
On Wednesday, March 23rd, I went back to where it all began for me…
If someone told me in the spring of 2012 that a simple conversation would have changed my life forever, I wouldn’t have believed them. This is what I’m talking about. When I was a graduate student at the University of Miami, I was introduced to an organization called Casa Valentina (Casa Valentina provides subsidized housing and life skills training and development for foster care and homeless youth) through an evaluation class. At the very end of this class, I casually walked up to the program director and shared that I was interested in being an intern if the opportunity arose. I didn’t think anything of it- maybe it would have materialized, maybe not. Less than 2 months later, Sharon Katz, the 1st Program Director at Casa Valentina, emailed me and shared that they had funding for an intern. I was super excited. It couldn’t have come at a better time and I desperately needed the money. I didn’t know how much Casa Valentina would change my life forever. I’ve never felt such a strong sense of purpose while I was working with the young moms, young men, and young women at Casa Valentina. I loved meeting during one-on-ones, I loved helping them set goals, helping with school enrollments, driving tests, and more. I knew that this work was bigger than me but I didn’t know how.
During my time at Casa Valentina, I befriended Lynn. Lynn has been dedicated to Casa Valentina’s mission of supporting foster care alumni and homeless youth since day one. Lynn made a concerted effort to stay connected to me since I left Miami in 2014. Lynn has been an avid supporter of Fosterpreneur.
Fast forward to February 2022, I immediately called Lynn once I booked my flight to Miami because I had to see her and I wanted to meet the team at Casa Valentina. Lynn scheduled a meeting with Janice, executive director of Casa Valentina. Because of flight changes, I almost missed this meeting but it was destined to happen. As we pulled up, I realized that I hadn’t been to Casa Valentina in nearly 10 years. When I stepped out of the car, I was immediately greeted by Janice. Have you ever felt like you already knew a person before you even met them? That’s how it felt when I met Janice. After a brief tour and program updates, I met the team virtually for their team meeting. I was so touched by their enthusiasm and desire to learn more about my story and how we could truly collaborate. It all came full circle for me, in those moments.
I’m incredibly grateful to Sharon Katz who saw my passion before I even could identify it. Grateful for Lynn and her friendship, and the Casa Valentina team for enrolling in the Fosterpreneur vision.
Stay tuned for what’s to come for us.