Understand and Clarity

I am sure you will help many children with your experience and success in life. I wish you well!

Yes. I am positive that something good can happen. I just feel my time is more useful spent with 20 kids for 3 hours rather than volunteering to spend time with one. When I go to speak at middle schools and high schools kids gain confidence in numbers. In a classroom or auditorium setting, their is a lot of nervous laughter, but when one or two kids stand up and read Shakespeare and play act more kids want to do the same. The fact that I know, have met, or worked with celebrities or anyone they have seen on television or at the movies is a good vehicle to get them to pay attention. We all must use whatever resources we can to help build their trust and confidence. When they find out I share similar experiences but have gone to not let my bad experiences define who I am, it can be a useful key to unlock some their confidence and little by little build some resilience. One kid reached is as valuable as twenty.

I hope that you're able to arrange a situation where you'll pass on your considerable skills to kids who want to figure out a way to tell their own stories, Sterling. Keep us posted.

Hi, Jane. Nice to meet you. A friend told my wife and me about her CASA training in Yolo County. She was very excited and told us we should try to squeeze in time to also do the training. When I watched a video on Aces I discovered that I am someone who got very lucky in life. I have probably a 6.5 Aces score. My wife and I thought it over and decided that perhaps our service would be of better use on a larger scale. I am a Hollywood screenwriter, producer who does a lot of volunteer work (guest speaking at career days) and mentoring in high schools and middle schools. We met with the Yolo CASA director and some board members to talk about a monthly performing arts program for kids. We proposed setting up at the community center in Sacramento. Kids can learn how to write scenes or monologues and do some acting. Our primary motivation is to give kids some tools to build their resilience through positive reinforcement. It's possible if I share my experiences of being a successful Hollywood type person through my own adverse experience as a child, perhaps kids can begin to build their own belief that they too can prosper. Sorry, I know this is a bit long winded, but this is how I came to ACEsConnection. 

Sterling

sterlingandersonwriter.com

Welcome, Sterling! How did you hear about the ACE Study, and ACEsConnection?

Cheers, Jane