Former students credit Sandy Springs Mission with their success

Key Points Sandy Springs Mission celebrates years assisting at-risk locality The success of its focus on coaching is shown with a percent graduation rate Former students who participated in Sandy Springs Mission programs Allesandra Hernandez left and Valeria Lobo right were luncheon speakers along with Felix Lora center the mission s director Photo by Bob Pepalis Former students of the Sandy Springs Mission joined in its th anniversary luncheon on Oct to share how it helped them succeed in school and in life The Sandy Springs Mission was created by a group of Mount Vernon Baptist Church members to help the Latino area with challenges like learning English and finding jobs the focus has shifted to coaching Its success shows in a percent high school graduation rate Allesandra Hernandez and Valeria Lobo credit the Sandy Springs Mission for what they ve accomplished in their lives Both came to the United States with parents who didn t speak English and they had to learn the language themselves to help translate for them Related stories Standout scholar Johnna Gadomski supporters at Sandy Springs Mission Kenny Buckner joins leadership Posse after mentoring mission students Hernandez got held back in school for a year because she did not have an adequate grasp of English But in sixth grade she was introduced to the Sandy Springs Mission through a friend though she worried about being judged But then I arrived at the Sandy Springs Mission and I saw that there were a lot of students like me who didn t speak English as well and so then we made a lot of friends Hernandez explained She learned enough to succeed in dual enrollment during high school That led to her acceptance and attendance at Oglethorpe University where she is a junior studying business administration Valeria Lobo came with her family from Costa Rica to the area years ago when she was five As they tried to figure out life in the United States the family connected with the Sandy Springs Mission Each day after school when they got to the mission homework was completed first We couldn t go outside to play until we all did our homework So we got a lot of coaching through that and then we would have a few food Lobo revealed Lobo s family moved to Woodstock from Sandy Springs when she was in the fifth grade ending her time at the Sandy Springs Mission She attributes graduating from high school with honors from high school and her work with people who have special requirements to what she learned through the mission After a three-month mission trip to the Dominican Republic Lobo got a job at a day operation for adults with special necessities Three years later she accepted a job to lead First Baptist Woodstock s disability ministry She works with more than special-needs students aged three to years old This work led to opportunities that included visits to Kurdistan and the Middle East to help a missionary partner Felix Lora took the position of director of the Sandy Springs Mission a year after it formed He remembered heading to Roswell Road from East Cobb on his way to his job parking cars I also began to notice that there were more immigrants moving into Sunday Springs just south of and I would pray silently saying Lord is anybody doing any work with these people in this population not knowing that a sparse years later that I would be part of that group that would be doing something Lora noted the mission started with students and in its th year the mission impacts students annually Since the start families have been served with the help of helpers The mission first partnered with High Point Elementary School and Ridgeview Middle School which now has expanded to six Fulton County schools and two local colleges Lora announced the mission s success can only be achieved through the staff participants and the mission board of directors The Lord has sent majority of our staff I ve no doubt to work with us But we are not enough unless the Lord sent you too So thank you for being part of the mission Lora explained to the assistants and other supporters at the luncheon Programs offered by the Sandy Springs Mission include After-school academic enrichment Language backing programs High school advancement campaign Dual-enrollment college classes Summer camps Mission sports and recreation The post Former students credit Sandy Springs Mission with their success appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta