Mr. C

What made you want to be a counselor and help kids?

I thought I was going to go into the military for a long time and I was presented with an opportunity to do an internship at a juvenile detention center. From there, I realized that I couldn’t necessarily help those individual students as much as I wanted to so I asked those students what did they need before they got there and the one thing they said they needed was a counselor, someone that would have helped them before they got into the system.

How old is your daughter?

That is Mac, my daughter Makaila, and she is 18 months old.

What is the hardest part of being a dad?

Oh, gosh. Never being able to ensure her safety 100%.

Being a father has changed my outlook on life.

If you were counselling your kid, would it be from counselling one of your students?

Yeah. For me, that would be too much of a conflict of interest for me to ever try. I’ve thought about how I will separate myself as a parent and as a counselor as I get older. A counselor has to test your boundaries of emotional and social security, and as a father, your instinct is to protect.

Did you ever think about counselling adults?

I prefer middle school students, I should say, because you’re at an age where life is most complicated and a lot of times adults forget that. You’re at an age where you are still impressionable and we can set you up for some things that will benefit you. Adults are more hardened and are harder to change.

What are your hobbies?

I love soccer. I play in an adult soccer league. I am an avid person in the outdoors. I’m an outdoorsman; I love being in the backyard gardening. I need things that will keep my attention.  

What are your biggest hopes for your daughter and for your students?

I do have a lot of hopes for you guys. I hope you will be individuals who are proponents of change, agents of change. I hope you are able to fill desires that you have, and in the course of that, make our society and communities better places. But more than anything, I hope that you guys and my daughter start to grow in a world that becomes more accepting, more tolerant, more loving.

Sophia C

Who is in the picture with you?

This is my cousin.  She can’t walk because she had a stroke in Hershey Park.  She goes to a private school because she has disabilities. She can barely talk, and she can’t walk.

What’s her name?

Ellie

Where was this picture taken?

At Turtleback Zoo.

How old is she?

She’s four.

How do you communicate with her and how does she communicate with you?

Mostly through sign language. She can speak a little bit of English but it’s mostly Spanish. It’s easy for me to understand but sometimes she doesn’t say it the correct way, so that makes it hard.

Were you with her when she had the stroke?

Yes.  She was three. We were in the line to go on one of the rides at Hershey Park and she stopped breathing. She stopped moving.  Everything in her body stopped moving. We had to drive her to the emergency room. It was really scary because I was sitting right next to her and her eyes wouldn’t move. It was the scariest experience I have had.

Who helped you handle the fear you felt?

Her dad, mostly, because before that she had migraines, she didn’t breathe correctly. Everyone thought it might happen but they didn’t know when or where. So they were very cautious about it.

When you got to the emergency room, did they give any information?

They thought it was a heart attack at first. But my father called early, they made sure they would wheel her away very fast to give her help.

What advice do you have for family members of people who have medical problems or disabilities?

Don’t be scared because it’s mostly going to be okay.  When my grandmother got diagnosed with cancer, they found what it is, they did it quickly, and then it was all over.  She was only two when it happened to her, and she remembers it but she doesn’t really, and she won’t speak about it.

Where do you get your strength from?

From her. She always has that attitude where she’s not going to stop. She knows what  happened to her but she’s not going to stop trying.

Zoe O

Is that your Mom?

No.

Who is it?

It’s my aunt and my cousin, seventeen years ago.

Why is she reading a book to him?

I don’t know...but she’s an author.

What kinds of books does she write?

She writes horror stories for young adults.

You’re a young adult. Does that scare you?

I’m not allowed to read them because they’re for older people who aren’t in middle school.

What do you have in common with your aunt and your cousin?  

I don’t really know my cousin but I like to write like my aunt.

Are you close with your aunt?

She lives on the other side of the globe, in Australia.  

Have you ever been to one of her book signings?

I know that she sends my mom pictures of the awards and stuff that she gets, but I’ve never been to one of the events.

How often do you get to communicate with your family in Australia?

Not often. Like, sometimes on the holidays, but other than that, not really.

How many times have you been to Australia?

Um, I have no idea. I don’t really remember because I was little and I have a horrible memory of anything that happened to me when I was little.

What is your aunt’s name?

Her name is Kaaren Warren but it’s spelled with two A’s and it won’t work unless you use both of them.

Do you remember your mom reading you stories?

Yeah.  She read me like this book called the Kangaroo and the Digeridoo and my brother still reads it.

Cadence F

Why are wearing a safety pin?

I’m wearing a safety pin to show people that I’m a safe person to talk to.

How many people have you given safety pins to?

About twenty.

How do they respond when you give them safety pins?

Not always do I give them pins, but  sometimes they ask me. When I give them to people, they are pretty happy.

What do you talk to people about?

Basically how it is important to treat people with respect and how you should treat them well even when they don’t treat you well.

Why is there a need for safety pins now?

Cause society has formed cliques and groups based on who people are and what they believe so when they are wearing safety pins, people know you are a safe person who won’t judge them or mistreat them.

How and when did you come up with this idea?

I didn’t come up with the idea. I saw it online and my group leader decided to give us all safety pins to give out.

How does this make you feel less alone in the world?

Well, because I know that like me, other people have been bullied and it makes me feel comforted to not be the only one.  I’m sad to know that there are other people who have been going through what I was and I want to help.