Anna's Journey Forward Mentoring Fundraiser

When I look at this photo from my college graduation, I see more than a degree. I see my parents, who sacrificed so much for me. I see a first-generation college student navigating a world her family had never experienced before. And I see the mentors who answered my questions, opened doors, and helped me believe that I belonged.

Their support helped me find my way to Harvard and through college—and changed the trajectory of my life.

Today, I get to pay that forward through Journey Forward Mentoring—not only as a board member, but as a mentor myself.

My mentee, Madi, just started her senior year of high school, and we are full throttle on college applications: researching schools, thinking through majors, navigating deadlines, and turning the future she imagines into a plan. She wants to study kinesiology and ultimately become an athletic trainer or sports physical therapist.

It’s an exciting season and a reminder of how many questions come with taking that next step, and how much it matters to have someone in your corner.

That’s what Journey Forward makes possible.

This year, I have a goal: 15 people.

For North Texas Giving Day, I’m not measuring success only by dollars raised. My personal goal is to have 15 people join me by making a gift of any size.

Whether you give $10, $25, $50, $100, or more, you become part of a community saying to students like Madi: You don’t have to figure out your future alone.

Why This Matters

Talent and ambition are everywhere. Access to guidance and opportunity is not.

Senior year is filled with questions: Which colleges make sense for my goals? What should I study? How do I tell my story in an application? How will I pay for college? And the questions don’t stop when an acceptance letter arrives.

A mentor doesn’t need to have every answer. What matters is that a young person has someone committed to helping them ask the questions, find the answers, weigh their options, and keep moving forward.

Through Next Gen, Journey Forward pairs students with mentors who walk alongside them through high school and help them prepare for college and career.

And that support doesn’t end at graduation. Through Edge, students continue receiving coaching, advising, community, and financial support as they navigate college, credential programs, and early adulthood.

The questions change, but the support continues.

That’s one of the reasons I believe so deeply in Journey Forward: we aren’t deciding what a successful future should look like for a student. We’re helping each student build the future they choose for themselves.

Be One of My 15

Someone once took the time to answer my questions, encourage me, and help me see possibilities I couldn't yet see for myself.

Years later, I find myself on the other side of those conversations with Madi.

There is something incredibly meaningful about that full circle.

This North Texas Giving Day, I hope 15 people will join me in making that kind of support possible for more students.

No gift is too small to count. Will you be one of my 15?

Together, we can make sure more young people have someone in their corner as they take their next step forward.