Over the past few months, I’ve been privately working with a non-profit organization. This group reached out to me for help, and I couldn’t stand the thought of not offering support. The non-profit I’m referring to helps single, homeless mothers get back on their feet. These women have struggled to survive after being completely abandoned by their husbands. It’s sad to hear stories of how successful they once were and how far they’ve fallen. Because of their pride these women didn’t initially want to let anyone know of their issues. When these mothers were finally left with no options they turned to this extraordinary non-profit organizations for help.

I met with a few of the moms and you would not believe what they are going through – it breaks my heart. The non-profit has been helping these moms with shelter, food, clothing, etc., but they don’t know how to give support to their children for education preparation and career planning. That’s where I come in.

Since these mothers’ kids are in high school and they have a strong value for education, the non-profit reached out to me for help. Since they can’t afford our services, I waived our fees and offered all of the students our entire college planning program for free. I truly want them to have all of the tools necessary to find the right fit colleges, get accepted, and get grants and scholarships to cover all of their costs.

I’ve helped families and offered scholarships to other needy students in the past, but this project by far has by far been the most rewarding. I wanted to write about it on here to encourage you all to look for ways to offer your talents, expertise, and energy to serve those in need in your community. You can make a big difference in the lives of others, and while it does feel good to help, it feels even more exceptional to those of whom you’re impacting.

So I encourage you–give back to your community. It’s not about fulfilling a requirement on your college application. It is about helping those in need and making your community a better place to live.

Your friend in Higher Education,

Brian Safdari