Forestdale, Inc.

Congratulations to Forestdale’s Class of 2007!

We are thrilled and proud to announce that seven of Forestdale’s seniors will be graduating from high school in June and have been accepted to the colleges of their choice.

We interviewed two students, Jane and Anne (not real names), to find out how they felt about achieving this important milestone, what they wanted to do professionally after graduating from college and whether they had any advice to offer to other youth at Forestdale. Here are their inspiring stories.

Jane: I’ve always loved learning and reading. It’s important for me to go to college, because no one in my family has ever graduated from high school before. I always knew I wanted to make something of myself. The more problems I faced, the more I pushed myself to do more. A lot of my friends are the complete opposite of me. They hang around the neighborhood and pick up all the negative stuff. But they have never tried to change me or make fun of me because I study. I try to tell my friends that education is the most important thing. You can lose money and friends along the way, but no matter what else happens to you in your life, no one can take your education away from you. I’d like to help other people in trouble when I graduate from college. I want to thank my foster mom, because she always keeps me up and encourages me to do better.

Anna: I am blessed with a good family, both my foster and birth families -- who gave me the strength to persevere. I felt I owed it to them as well as to myself to succeed in school. I didn’t want to get an associate’s degree, so I studied hard to get into a four-year college. My foster mother is very strict and gave me the discipline to keep on top. It was tough, but I want to thank her. I tell my friends that, without a good education, life is hard. I heard that even MacDonald’s requires an associate’s degree to work there these days. I would like to be a physical therapist after I graduate from college. Because I play and love basketball, I’d like to specialize in helping athletes. I’d like to thank Yasmeen Garrick, Andres Gomez and my social worker, Janelle Morris, who helped me with my problems and always listened to me with open ears.