Education has always been at the center of my purpose.
It’s the reason I created JustINSPIRE Mentoring during my time in Baltimore. Working inside one of the most challenged school systems in the country opened my eyes in a way few experiences ever have. I saw firsthand what happens when young people don’t get the resources, support, exposure, or structure they deserve.
And I knew I couldn’t just stand by and watch.
I needed to build something that fought back — something that gave young men a real chance to grow, learn, and rise.
This morning, I found myself thanking God for putting Eduardo in my class.
When I think about everything I’ve poured into mentoring — the hours, the lessons, the personal investment — there is no greater testimony than seeing a young man step into a future brighter than the one I started with.
Being able to say:
“I helped put a young man in position to live a better life than me.”
That is why I do this work.
That is why I refuse to quit.
That is why JustINSPIRE exists.
When the Funding Didn’t Come — Purpose Still Did
Baltimore City released $31 million dollars for mentoring programs, and I didn’t receive a single penny. Not one.
And yet…
I still delivered results.
I still poured into young men.
I still showed up with consistency, discipline, and love.
I still walked in purpose when there was no paycheck attached.
That’s how I know this work is real.
That’s how I know it’s bigger than funding.
That’s how I know I was called to do this.
Money didn’t validate my work —
impact did.
Eduardo is the proof.
Every young man who has grown under my mentorship is the proof.
A Better Question to Ask
Instead of wondering why I didn’t get funding, I ask myself a different question:
“What more can I build with the young men who do show up?
What legacy can I leave behind?”
Because at the end of the day, purpose is not determined by grants.
Purpose is determined by impact, consistency, and heart.
And the truth is this:
Some programs get funded.
But some programs produce men.
I’m building the latter.
Final Thought
I planted a seed in Baltimore — one the system didn’t pay for, but God watered anyway.
And now, watching young men like Eduardo rise, I’m reminded:
When you walk in purpose, no funding can stop you
and no system can silence you.
JustINSPIRE Mentoring was built for moments like this —
for every young man who just needs one person to believe in who he can become.
And I’m not done yet.
If you read this far let’s take a moment to applause Edgardo Ramos-Euceda, my first official JustINSPIRE Mentee,
We met in my Communications Class, I was his professor, and he demonstrated so much determination and desire for more. It just captured and captivated to want to pour any resources I could offer at his need, to help him go as far as he can.
When he shared with me that he not only got accepted, but received a full ride to Columbia University, I fell to the floor in my living room and cried tears of joy. Not just because Columbia is an exceptional Ivy League institution—one that positions its graduates for incredible opportunities, leadership roles, and generational advancement—
but because of what that place means to me.
Just down the street from Columbia is a part of my own story. I spent significant time at NYCHA Grant Houses, on the 13th floor, where some of the strongest family bonds on my mother’s side were formed. Those walls shaped us. Those moments grounded us.
So for my first mentee to be heading to college in New York City—Harlem, of all places—this feels like a full-circle moment. A divine echo. A reminder that nothing in my journey has been wasted. He is already stepping into a life with a stronger foundation than the one I started with.
And that means my struggles have already turned into a bridge for someone else’s success.
Everybody didn’t want to show up on a Saturday.
Everybody didn’t want to be at the park on a Friday talking about goals.
Everybody wasn’t reading books the school didn’t require.
But he wasn’t trying to be “everybody.”
Follow the JustINSPIRE Mentoring YouTube channel — we’re sharing his story soon. If you can’t be part of the program, at least take the lessons and apply them.
How many lives did you change this year?
This morning, I am truly thankful to God for letting me see this day.
I may not have gotten everything right in life
I’m grateful for even one.
Maybe one day it’ll be 100.
Or 1,000.
Or why not… a million?
I’m just getting started.
Eduardo’s Article is referenced herehttps://www.newsbreak.com/nottinghammd-com-1588618/4382650526664-perry-hall-high-school-student-wins-full-scholarship-to-columbia-university-via-questbridge
