The Power Of One

My name is Peter Jones. I want to share with you my story about the power and devotion that can lie within us, sometimes unnoticed or simply ignored. I'm telling you about this not to glorify myself, but rather to tell you my story and perhaps inspire you to take action as well.

What can I do? I'm just one person. What power does one person have? Perhaps a bit more than two months ago, I was sitting in my house, quite concerned by these thoughts. I had no idea what I would do as a social justice project which I had signed up for. Through an article in a magazine that my mom was reading and the Internet, I came upon the issue of children in foster care not having basic toiletry supplies. Before finding that website, I didn't really think about this being a problem. However, it is a problem, and that became my project. 

I started by emailing everybody in my class. My parents spread the word to their friends. My dad told his basketball team about my project. At first, we kept all the donations in the corner of my dining room. We decided I should write letters to some dentists to see if they could help out. I wrote to three, and all three responded to tell me they would be happy to help. From them, I got boxes of toothpaste, toothbrushes, and other basic toiletry items. This was when we realized that this would be bigger than we thought. We realized that the dining room corner was getting full, and I realized the true power of a single inspired person.

We were then faced with a dilemma. Where are we going to take this stuff? My mom made several calls, but we just never got that “This is definitely it” feeling. Not until we called the Lakewood Division of Youth, that is. They were so thrilled with my project they invited me in for an interview to talk about it. We discussed ways to make it bigger, to keep it going, and they told me of another even bigger problem that stems from the one I was trying to help with. They told me about kids who don't celebrate their 18th birthday, but rather, they fear it. Eighteen is the age at which they are too old for the foster care process, and are no longer eligible for adoption. They are left alone in this world, with virtually no form of support. These people have to think about things like what they will eat every day, what they will wear, and where they will sleep every night. That's not a very happy birthday. If they could just have basic toiletry items, they would have one less thing to worry about.

The Division of Youth invited me to one of their Lakewood Collaborative meetings at the end of April so that I could share with them the inspiration that I hope I have passed on to you, and to tell them about the power that one person possesses. So to those of you who want to do something, to start something, and to make a difference in the world, do not forget the power that you possess. Do not think for a second that nobody will hear you when you speak out. No matter who you are or what you are trying to do, you can change something. You can make a difference like I did.