Wednesday September 22nd was the fruition of Greenhouse Project prayers and plans since day one. In my heart, it marks the special First Day launch of our Homework Club. Why is this significant?

In a city with the 2nd worst schools in PA and a near 30% drop out rate, we know supporting at-risk youth with quality education in Chester is a key component to renewal from the inside out. The heart of education begins in the home. As our other programs address other facets of family life, we know we can break the statistical norm for young students by providing accessible help with homework, learning disciplines, mentorship and long-term consistency to inspire kids to become lifelong explorers of truth.

So, we start small and do it really well.

While last Wednesday was just another day for most, I woke up with butterflies and wondered if anyone would show up. It was that feeling of a “big day” finally coming to pass, and after all the ways I circled it around in my mind, I knew it would play out differently. What if Homework Club flops? What if the students hate it? But God’s perfect peace came after our Greenhouse Project team met early in the morning to pray and seek Him for his will.

As our afternoon start time hit, only one volunteer showed up! Our freshly renovated basement, and no group to fill it. Like a scene from a movie, we got call after call from volunteers and parents who were running late. Was this First Day falling apart?

It took a full hour for everyone to arrive, eager to begin as six local students wearing giant backpacks and big smiles, along with our peer-to-peer student volunteers from Innovate Academy, finally joined together. After a sigh of relief and kick-off with prayer, we shared about Jesus and a read-a-loud story of Fredrick Douglas and Susan B Anthony. Brief history lesson here: Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony shared a great friendship. Douglass escaped from slavery in Maryland as a young man and became one of the most prominent leaders of the abolitionist movement. He was also a strong proponent of women's rights and attended the Women's Rights Convention in Seneca Falls in 1848.

We celebrated friendship and reflected on the story over a tea party complete with strawberry shortcake. Check out the photos below to see older students from Innovate paired up with our younger kids. It was a fun way to break the ice, and afterwards we transitioned into homework time. To be honest, I was not planning on sitting with kids to do homework, but in a matter of minutes I was deep into some math problems!

We were done by 6pm and each mom was grateful for a little break. What a success! After all the questions and uncertainty, God showed up big.

Our goal is to partner with the best teachers, tutors, and mentors to help cultivate and inspire in children and their parents the desire to become self-motivated lifelong learners.

Without volunteers, prayers and financial support from supporters like you, we would not be where we are! Let’s continue to invest into families and youth education in the Chester because these precious lives deserve to flourish.

HELP US OUT WITH SOME SUPPLIES!

Click HERE to sponsor some larger items for our Homework Club space.

Looking to become a mentor?
Homework Club is the place to start.

Please reach out if you want to see our Greenhouse Project ministry up close with a tour and conversation over coffee. We have so many stories that show our model is working and God is building momentum behind our programs!