Phoenix Cowman

My name is Phoenix Cowman and I started here at One Stone about ten weeks ago. Because of One Stone I feel a lot more inspired to do good in my community. I have been most impacted by my experiences with the kids at the Boys & Girls Club. The relationships I have built with them have been special. It has felt good to make such a profound impact in my community. The first time I worked with kids from the Boys & Girls Club was through Love of Learning. This is an after school program offered by a coach at One Stone. I worked with a kid named Knox to build a catapult, used to launch candy into a bucket. He told me about financial struggles at home, with his parents only being able to afford for one of their kids to be able to go to school, while the others would be homeschooled. Before this I did not have much experience working with kids, in fact I thought I really struggled working with kids. But, the experience not only helped me work better with kids, it also helped me work to build relationships with them, understanding their struggles and hardships, as well as their interests and hobbies. In short, I believe this experience has allowed me to become more empathetic, and I also believe that right now, it is more important than ever. COVID-19 has had a huge impact on kids. The education aspect of school for young kids is still there, but the social aspect is more difficult and unpredictable. I know how hard it is for me to focus during online school, but I can’t imagine how hard it is for someone that age to focus, learn, and gain a normal education experience hardly at all. The social aspect of school is what makes the learning process a lot more meaningful and impactful. Working with the Boys & Girls Club provides a unique opportunity of finding ways to work with the restrictions we have because of COVID-19, especially ways to incorporate the social aspect back into learning.