Yesterday the Peachtree Corners Business Association Juniors spent the evening with the children of Rainbow Village making gifts for Mother’s Day. Whenever their schedules allow, these teenagers spend the year helping many non-profit groups with events. Yesterday’s activity was particularly meaningful as they worked with 80 children in various craft stations to produce gifts worthy of their mothers.
Rainbow Village is a transitional housing community for homeless families with children in North Metro Atlanta. Their goal is “to break the cycles of homelessness, poverty and domestic violence. We teach adults and children to believe in themselves again, charting a new course towards a lifetime of self-sufficiency.”
Many of us take for granted that our mothers live to care for us and owe us a good life. The children of these families have had quite a different experience than we and our children have had. We were prepared for some push back, particularly from the older male teenagers, since “craft day” is hardly a cool activity in the later teen years. It was a pleasure to see the pride all of the children took in their projects and the thought they put in before the first stroke of pen and paintbrush. It was easy to sense the love and respect that these children have for their mothers and I hope that the Juniors could see what I did.
One of the pleasures we at CDA Inc. have experienced has been our involvement as senior leadership with the Juniors since their club’s inception in 2006. Spending the evening with a group of excited children and pretty cool teenagers is always fun, but it was heartening to be reminded of what Mother’s Day should be about through these children’s efforts.
We wish a Happy Mother’s Day to the mothers of Rainbow Village and mothers everywhere.