Ramadan 1433 - Tremayne

I met Tremayne tonight as I came back to my office. He was sitting in the lobby with his head low looking very dejected. One of the coordinators asked if I would talk to him and I agreed. When Tremayne came back with me to my office, he told me that he knew me, well, at least he had received a letter from me. I recalled his name instantly. I have been sending out emails to students that teachers have nominated for working hard in their classes - I call them attagirl/attaboy letters. I remember Tremayne's because his teacher told me he had no Internet access and I needed to send a hard copy to his home. Evidently he received it, as he was happy to meet me.

Tremayne had recently lost his job on the railroad, as he had no high school degree or GED. He had come tonight to register for more GED courses so that he could take the test soon in order to get his job back. He is a very tall, nice looking African-American about 40 years old or so. He shared with me that he had been in learning disabled classes as a kid, probably because he had been a victim of lead poisoning. He was from the worst part of Youngstown, Ohio, the worst town in Ohio. Now, after having done his job faithfully and well for ten years, he was unemployed. Tremayne had worked for a contractor that was bought out by the railroad who has strict background requirements. The good news is that the railroad values him and will rehire him once he passes the test. The bad news is that it might take awhile.

He cried several times as the frustration poured out of him. He didn't want to take unemployment, he simply wanted to provide for his family. We talked for a good while, talked about just focusing on the immediate tasks at hand, the support he will have here at the college, and having faith in God as we do all that we are meant to do. Because Tremayne is working  hard, my college will provide psychological testing for him at no cost that will most likely allow him to have accommodations on his test that will help him a great deal. He will continue to take classes as  he prepares, and he will come and work with me regularly for some tutoring. Tremayne will make it, there is no alternative.

He left about an hour ago feeling a bit better, and appreciative for the help the college is providing him. This is why I came to Chicago, came to Moraine Valley Community College. We will marshal all our resources to help this good man as he fights to help himself. This always reminds me of how much I love this country - I can't think of anywhere else on earth where a school, a community, a country would not have given up on this man by now. We will not.

Tremayne is grateful, I could see that behind his tear-filled eyes. What I haven't told him yet is how grateful I am to have talked to him. Tremayne inspires me like few others can - a decent human being in unfortunate circumstances keeping his dignity even as he imagines his world crumbling around him. I would pray for this kind of humility and grace, but I am not sure I deserve it just yet. Maybe in ten more years working with a few hundred other souls like Tremayne. Maybe then. Alhamdulilah.