1/4/2020
On January 4, 2020, we rang in the New Year at our Holiday Huddle in Albany, Georgia. We were joined by Scholars, Board members and Parents, who, upon entering, chose a stone inscribed with such words as: Grit, Journey, Empathy and Fortitude. After greeting and meeting we shared a delicious meal catered by Little Jamaica, a local Albany restauant. Founding Board member, Flora Devine, zoomed in by video chat from her office as Chief Legal Affairs Officer at Savannah State University, one of the country’s many Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU). Devine spoke about the importance “…not only of giving Gaines-Jones Scholarships to help fill crucial gaps in funding, but equally important: guiding families towards other alternatives to loans so that our students do not have debt when they graduate and can fully function in society.”
We closed out in a sharing circle: each person shared their word stone and why they chose it. A simple exercise that emboldens people to open up from a heartfelt place.
Thank you to all who joined us. We had a fine time!