Page 16 December 2 0 14 By Katie Mayer A student sits at the dining room table with school books open and a computer nearby. The refrigerator is stocked with snacks, the TV and other distractions are silenced, and mom or dad is close by to help with questions. This is what homework time looks like inside the homes of many Arcadia families. But for others locally and around the Valley, a routine like this does not exist, and completing school assignments can be impossible. Maybe the parents work all night and the student has to care for younger siblings after school. Perhaps the student also has to work all night to help support the family. Or maybe the student is simply hungry, and with a growling tummy, struggles to focus on homework. Within months, the student falls behind in school. With no help completing assignments and no way to catch up, the youth soon abandons the dream of getting an education. Statistics show that situations like these perpetuate the cycle of poverty through generations of families, but one local organization is breaking the pattern by giving at-risk children a chance at success. Boys Hope Girls Hope is an international nonprofit organization which helps children become leaders through education and life skills coaching. The local Phoenix chapter of the organization currently serves 92 students from sixth grade through college. Nonprofit breaks cycle of poverty through education The Phoenix chapter has served Valley students since 1989 and the organization boasts an 86 percent college graduation rate among participants. This is 50 percentage points higher than the national average for youth facing similar challenges. “We take kids who have the capability to succeed, but there is just no way in their current environment they will reach their full potential,” said Nicole Bidwill, volunteer executive director of the organization. “We educate them, nurture them and give them life skills training, test preparation, help them with college applications and essays. We do everything that their parents would do.” Boys Hope Girls Hope offers both residential and nonresidential programs. In the residential program, eight boys and eight girls live in a home environment with full-time staff acting as parents to create a family atmosphere. The students’ days are highly structured with group chores, homework time, prayer time and meals together, said Jennifer Koeninger, an Arcadia mom who volunteers with the organization and whose husband is chairman of the board. In the nonresidential program, youth are picked up from school every day and complete their homework assignments and prepare for tests before returning home to their families. “The kids who live with us have families who want them to live with us, and the kids want to live with us,” Bidwill said. “The families – they want something better for their children.” She added, “College has to be part of what they want. The whole idea here is to break the cycle of poverty.” Boys Hope Girls Hope was founded in 1977 in Saint Louis, Missouri by Catholic Jesuit priest Paul Sheridan and Bidwill’s father, William “Bill” Bidwill, who is principal owner and chairman of the board of the Arizona Cardinals. Boys Hope Girls Hope is privately funded through donations and relies heavily on volunteers. Many of the students who are in the program have the opportunity to attend some of the Valley’s top Catholic schools and nearly all go to college, while some even go on to the nation’s top universities. “They are being raised to be leaders,” Koeninger said. But even with such rigorous academics and ambitious goals, the program still understands the importance of helping young people in life, even as they head off to college. “We nurture them through college, help them get set up in their dorm rooms [and] send them care packages like many parents do,” Bidwell said. “The amount of support they get is incredible,” Koeninger said. “For all of them, it’s life changing.” In the organization’s video, several youth talk about the positive impact the organization has had on their lives. Carlos, one of the boys featured in the video, said in the film that he and fellow program participants came to Boys Hope Girls Hope because they wanted a better education and a chance at a better life. “Even though there are events that may be so tragic that you lose every bit of hope and every bit of faith in what you want to achieve,” Carlos said, “places like Boys Hope Girls Hope give you back that sense of hope.” To support Boys Hope Girls Hope, visit bhghaz.org. The program qualifies for the Arizona Working Poor Tax Credit and relies on financial contributions to operate. Donations of food, gift cards, toiletries, cleaning supplies and any standard household items are also needed. The program is also in need of qualified mentors to volunteer. The students with Boys Hope Girls Hope are offered residential and nonresidential programs. 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