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Winners of scholarships mirror those who helped

By ANDREW SKERRITT
Published March 17, 2006

I've never met Erin Braden Hendricks or Abbey Surrena. I only know them from reading their essays when I volunteered to serve on the Times' Barnes Scholarship selection committee earlier this year.

Abbey attends Springstead High in Hernando County. Braden goes to Armwood High in Hillsborough County.

Both are among the four, along with Gregory Horn and Zorana Kojic, who won $60,000 college scholarships.

Both had every excuse to fail but didn't. Reading their stories moved me. Growing up in a messed-up family is an excuse to fail, but it doesn't have to be. Sounds like a cliche. But there is nothing cliche about what they've accomplished.

Abbey grew up in an abusive family and was placed in foster care six years ago. She was separated from her siblings. Her dad is in prison. She has no contact with her birth mother. Recently she was adopted by a family in Spring Hill. She's fifth in her class of 315 and plans to attend the University of Tampa to study art therapy.

Braden has lived a pretty nomadic existence. His parents split up when he was young. While living with his mother, they fell on hard times. They had to live with relatives and moved four times in 18 months. For a while, his paternal grandparents took him in and provided stability. Later, he went to live with his father, who despite a law degree works odd jobs so he could have time for his son. Braden works part time to help make ends meet. He's 14th in his class of 384. He wants to be a writer.

When I served on the selection committee, I read Braden's story and initially picked him as the third of my group's three best candidates who would be among 15 selected before the cut down to 10 finalists.

Then I looked at Braden's file again and realized that although other candidates had suffered greater hardships and had more compelling stories, Braden had shown a persistent refusal to be mediocre. I argued on his behalf.

Anyone who demonstrates that kind of effort deserves a hand. I take no credit for his winning the scholarship. He'll be a credit to us all.

There are other Bradens out there; countless Abbeys walking the hallways of schools all over, says Joel Myers, who has taught Abbey at Springstead High.

Myers accompanied Abbey when she went for her scholarship interview. He had made two similar trips before. Abbey is Myers' third Barnes scholar.

In 2002, his student, Chad Jones of Hernando High, won a full ride to study architecture at Washington University in St. Louis. He graduates in May. Last year, Myers had Carla Baricz, who is now a freshman at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio.

Myers met Abbey when she was a freshman in the AP academy at Springstead. She soaked up knowledge like a sponge.

Along the way, Chad had mentors, but he also had a great grandmother who raised him and his siblings. She was a tough lady. Carla had a grandfather in Romania who was a big influence of her.

"With Abbey I don't have a clue," said Myers.

Some teens just have something special inside that makes them push back; they won't settle, said Diane Zambito, executive director of Connected by 25, a Tampa nonprofit that works with youths aging out of foster care.

When Zambito talks to former foster kids who are succeeding, all of them say they had someone, a teacher, coach, foster parent, someone at church, who showed them that things could be different.

That person, held up a mirror "so they could look at themselves in a way they've never done before," Zambito said.

By the quality of the Barnes scholars, it's obvious that some people are holding up mirrors for our students. Have you held up a mirror for anyone lately?

Andrew Skerritt can be reached at 813909-4602 or toll-free at 1800-333-7505, ext. 4602. His e-mail address is askerritt@sptimes.com

[Last modified March 17, 2006, 01:54:15]