Angela Finds Solid Ground in the After School Program

Meet 12-year-old Angela. An active participant in LifeSTEPS’ After School Program, she is known as a leader who takes the initiative to help other students after completing her homework. With a big heart, Angela also enjoys lending a hand at other LifeSTEPS events by serving food and cleaning up. But before joining the After School Program, Angela was on a difficult road. A year ago, on a day like any other, she was told that her father had died from a sudden stroke. Paralyzed from shock and grief, the loss of Angela’s father affected every aspect of her life. Her world was turned upside down.

Concerned about Angela’s grades, and hoping to find support for her grieving daughter, Angela’s mother Tracy enrolled her into LifeSTEPS’ After School Program. There, Angela was able to be around children her age, get help with her homework, and find the support that she needed in order to cope with the family’s loss. As time progressed, Angela began to feel grounded again. Not only did she excel with the After School Program’s summer reading curriculum, but her confidence and positivity began to radiate once more, and she blossomed into the resilient leader that she is today.