Here’s a crazy question – when is patience really a virtue

Our office is in overdrive mode.  Everyone is on edge, doors are closed, people are mumbling, and there is this enormous expectation wait at our door….but

IT’S ALL GOOD!

THE GAUVIN SCHOLARS ARE COMING!11226551_434570200053750_1526811762107096674_n

I can hardly believe it.  It’s already been a full year.  It was a year ago I met our 2014 Gauvin Scholars for the first time.  Some days it feels like it was just yesterday that I took these pictures…

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But it wasn’t just yesterday.  It was A … WHOLE …YEAR … AGO.

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And what a year it’s been.  So much has changed with our Scholars.  They are such different people now.  Even if they don’t look a whole lot different, though most of them do, the way they carry themselves is different.  There is a maturity that comes with the stresses of full-time classes and full-time work.  There is an understanding that comes with learning to manage school, work, friends, family, and sleep.  They met the challenge of college head on…and they were victorious, with a little help from their friends. I adore these kids.  I honestly adore each and every one.  (You only see three here…there are ten more adorable faces. You can read all about them, just click on this link!) They are special, strong, and unbelievably kind.  I can’t tell you what a gift it is to be a part of their lives, of their futures.

This office is absolutely a-twitter this week.  The excitement level is bursting.  We all have exhibited such patience in the last few weeks.  I have to say, patience HAS TO BE a virtue, because is is hard to be patient.  Knowing that this time was coming, knowing we were about to double our numbers, to invite more AMAZING kids into this INCREDIBLE program.  Knowing that one month from now, we would be helping dozens of Aroostook students…not A DOZEN…DOZENS.  There is a special feeling with that knowledge.  We are helping to make Aroostook strong.  It is an honor; it is a privilege, and it is hard work.

Gauvin Scholars have a weapon in their corner, one that many Aroostook students may not have, they have us.  This program is powerful, it is consistent, and it WORKS.  We know what this program can do, we’ve seen the results.  This program can keep kids not just “in” college, it can help them find success there.  Our Scholars have bloomed.  They are learning about themselves, about what they are capable of, and about what they can do for the future of Aroostook County.  That’s what AAI does.  We help, we assist, we guide.  We are guiding Aroostook’s tomorrows, today–right now–and we need your help.

It isn’t just about that $1,000 scholarship (although that’s certainly a great accessory).  It’s about the mentoring, the professional mentoring our Scholars receive.  It’s about making sure they are engaged in their communities, making sure our Aroostook students know how much they matter in the future of this County; it’s about having the assurance that there is always someone to listen, to vent to, to get advice from.  Our Scholars have great parents, but sometimes, often times, kids listen less to parents, believing them to be bias.  You and I know, that the future of Aroostook sits in our classrooms, that future learns, laughs, and lives in Aroostook schools.  They ride buses, they giggle, they pass notes, they Facebook, and they hold the future in the palm of their hands.  We have to be there for them.  It is our job to protect that future, and we can do it.  We can work together and give our children and Aroostook County the best chance possible at a GREAT future.

Help us, help them.  It’s so easy…just $10 a month could truly help us increase our numbers to double what we will award this month.  For the price of one cup of coffee a week, you could help DOZENS of Aroostook County kids every–single–year.  Pretty sweet right? Help us, help them.  Just click.  You can do it, WE HAVE TO DO IT. Let’s just DO IT — together.  Stay tuned to our Facebook! The Gauvin Scholar 2015 announcements are just days away!