By: Gloria A. Lopez, Chief Executive Officer, Alumna, Mentor, and Donor of Trinity River Mission
Veterinarian. Chemist. Teacher. Environmental Conservationist. Aerospace Engineer. Nurse.
This is just a sampling of the dreams held by our Class of 2019. On North Texas Giving Day, you can help make those dreams come true by donating to Trinity River Mission (TRM).
TRM is an afterschool nonprofit in West Dallas providing educational and social opportunities that inspire students and their families to dream, believe, and achieve.
On September 20, we hope you’ll join us to raise $30,000 for our Believe & Achieve Scholarship Fund and Program. In doing so, you will support our Class of 2019 through their high school graduation, college, and beyond.
As an alumna of TRM myself, a college graduate, and recipient of the Believe & Achieve Scholarship, I know firsthand what this support means to our kids. I have personally seen what happens when young people have no safe place to go, no positive activities, or supportive and caring adults after school. I sometimes wonder what my Uncle Freddy would be doing if he was still alive, what he could have achieved. Freddy, who was just a few years younger than me, was murdered near our home over a simple argument when he was just 18. He never got the opportunity to achieve his dreams. He had a big one; he dreamed of a bright future where the challenges of poverty did not limit him. A dream of becoming a baseball player, a dream to buy his parents a home, a dream to see all of us succeed.
Every day at TRM, I see Freddy. I see him in our kindergartners, who smile and point at the graduates on our Wall of Honor. I see him in our 6th graders, whose eyes glimmer with possibility when they first step onto a college campus. And I see him in our seniors, our Class of 2019, who look to our TRM family for guidance as they waver between apprehension and excitement for the next stage in their journeys. I know Freddy would give anything to be here today and to be supporting kids like him who just want a chance at their dreams.
Each of us has the power to change a child’s life. On North Texas Giving Day, you can do just that.
This is their education, our future. Let’s create a better and brighter one for generations to come.
To donate to Trinity River Mission on September 20th, please click here. To find out more about North Texas Giving Day, please visit www.NorthTexasGivingDay.org.