SUCCESS STORIES

LEAD Program:
Here are some stories from teens who have been helped by CLC:

He leads almost every group he joins, yet Gabe Kiritz did not always take the initiative to lead. Concerning his first year in LEAD, Gabe shares, “During debriefs it would always be a pain to get people to raise their hands. I just quietly sat by.” Outside of the LEAD program, his National Outdoor Leadership School instructors told him that he needed more confidence. Read more about Gabe

With a great smile, and a glint in her eyes, Haidee Raygoza tells it as it was: “I was just a rude, nasty, really angry kid.” She recounts how she used to be a bully, and would pick on other kids. “People remembered my name,” she says, “even though it was because I was a bully.”   Read more about Haidee

Leo Mendoza volunteers with the Challenge Learning Center middle school program with quiet faithfulness. He serves as a leader and role model to middle school students who are learning how to lead low ropes courses. “Before, I thought that grown-ups did it [leadership], not teens or kids,” says Leo. Read more about Leo

Nick Cunliffe works at the Challenge Learning Center with a calm, assertive and friendly demeanor. His easy smile belies a past when he aimed to disappear in social interactions. “My goal was to be a ghost,” he says, “I wasn’t as there as I would like to be.” After walking out of the home of his alcoholic father, moving to live with his mother, and then being kidnapped by his father, Nick’s home-life offered little stability, which affected his personality and his performance in school. Read more about Nick

Raquel Kline’s experiences and character reveal themselves best by her own analysis of them. Depression, loneliness, and fear controlled her life during middle school and early high school. “I was really depressed,” she confides. Read more about Raquel