I believe in you

When I made the decision to join Teach For America, and even more when I decided that the Rio Grande Valley was the absolute number one place that I wanted to be while on this adventure, I knew that I was taking my first step into a part of my life that I had been anxiously awaiting for a very long time. After I returned from Chile, I had a very different sense of what I actually "needed" to survive throughout each day; I had a completely different outlook on relationships and what love looked like; I had a changed mindset about other cultures and races; I had gained a new sense of independence and adventure; and, I was incredibly devastated. This is probably the first time I have openly written about it, so why, you may ask, was I devastated? I was happy to return and see my family and friends but I had the absolute worst time readjusting to my life in the US. There were too many things that I felt like I need to have, time moved too quickly, people demanded too much, and I missed the instant gratification that came from learning something entirely organic about another culture each day (this was heavily based on the fact that I was constantly learning Spanish). So yes, as excited as I was to move back home, it completely broke me. I stayed pretty broken for most of the year--and it was awful. Don't get me wrong, there were great things about my senior year of college, but it was very very emotionally exhausting and difficult. I thank God each day that I have such good people who constantly helped me out while I continuously processed all of my reverse culture shock. I'm not sure at what point I knew, but soon I realized that I had to go back to simplicity. How do you even do that right? Well, for me, it was going rural. It was moving to a culture in the US that identified with the one I experienced in Chile--but still remained an adventure in and of itself. It's very hard to tell people exactly "what" Raymondville is like, and so many people have so many different opinions about what it is like to live here. But this video helped me really understand the town which I have come to call home.

This place is nothing like my home, except for the fact that it is a rural, small, sports-loving town. Now, getting down to my kids.

What do kids in the Valley face compared to other students? For every 100 students entering a public school classroom in South Texas today, only 12 will earn any type of degree within six years of graduation. As early as third grade, students in South Texas are performing behind their peers across the state, and this gap persists through the grade levels and into college for those students who are able to further their education. 

When I was in high school my biggest worry was making a B, not being able to CLEP a college exam, or not getting into the college I wanted to attend. It is impossible for me to try and even remotely understand what my kids face each day at home, in school, and for their future. But what I do know is that they can succeed at levels just as high as any other students in the state. Where does that start? Success is rooted in what my students experience at home, at school, in the community, within the government, within themselves.

Any veteran teacher knows that building a classroom is an insanely expensive and difficult thing to do and takes lots of time. Many of us are young 20-somethings fresh out of college who can't rub two pennies together--thank goodness I have amazing parents who help me rub pennies. So yes, anything you want to donate to our classrooms is always welcome. I have gotten the most amazing supplies from peoples' used or unwanted school supplies from previous years. However, putting all of the material aside, what can you really do for our kids that may end up changing their lives forever? Believe in them. Do not tell my kids that they cannot go to college because they aren't smart enough, don't have the money, actually....just don't ever tell them that they can't, for any reason. Tell them that they can do it. Tell them about your life and how you were able to push through your struggles. Tell them about how amazing life is even when it doesn't seem like it in the moment. Tell them you are here for them. And most importantly, tell them that you believe in them.

I know that many of you haven't had a conversation with me in a very long time and just keep up with my life on here. Others of you I communicate with all of the time. Whichever it may be, something brought you to my blog--something brought you to this post and I want to ask you to do something (which isn't something I ever really like to do...besides like watching videos and listening to songs and such). I want you to write my kids a letter. Yes, the snail mail kind (or the email kind I guess). I know that you don't know my kids from Adam (right now neither do I) but you have to care about the future, right? The future is my kids. Write to them and tell them that you are cheering for them--write to them and tell them that you are on their team. Let them know how you succeeded in life and overcame your struggles. Tell them that they can go to college. Explain to them that they were made to do great things. Really, write anything that you believe will inspire my kids to dream big, challenge themselves to go beyond mediocrity, always find the silver lining, and let them know that there are people out there in the world that care about them. Even if it's just one sentence, let these kids know that you believe in them.

Leigh Anne Winger
12712 State Hwy 186 W
Raymondville TX, 78580

lawregion1@gmail.com