Perspectives: Build on the Positive, Build on the Love
By Chelsea Boniak
July 28, 2017
Dear Children Rising Community,
I am excited to become a part of this wonderful community. I’m also humbled to be in a position to build upon what you’ve accomplished over 16 years of supporting the children in the East Bay.
Children Rising’s service in the East Bay is made possible through good relationships with donors, volunteers, and prayer warriors like you, and with those in positions of authority like school districts, administrators, and teachers. Most importantly, Children Rising’s effectiveness is anchored in the one-to-one relationships developed by our volunteer tutors and mentors with their students. As our founder Randy Roth once observed: “Programs don’t change kid’s lives, people do.”
Our relationship, the one between you and me, is just beginning. It’s a relationship that I hope will not only be deep and enduring, but will also enable us all to reach more children in increasingly meaningful and impactful ways. To get us started, I’d like to share a bit about myself.
I’m married to a beautiful woman, Sophia, who is a certified dementia care specialist. We have four wonderful children, two fantastic sons-in-law and five even more fantastic grandchildren (three of whom arrived within the last eight months!). My parents, in their early 70s, founded a faith-based school in Cincinnati. Like Children Rising, this school was and continues to be a story of faith within a community focused on supporting young people.
I know how important it is to grow up in an environment with a lot of community support, including intergenerational support. I believe in God’s grace in using an organization like Children Rising in the community from having personally witnessed it over many years. These personal convictions, combined with my deep passion for continuing to serve the community, have brought me to Children Rising.
To quote from Randy’s retirement message:
“With your sustained support, encouragement, and prayers, Children Rising can and will go deeper and wider in its outreach to at-promise children and youth.”
I’m grateful to be a part of your community and I look forward to meeting all of you in the near future.
For the children,
Children Rising is delighted to announce the selection of James Wambach as our new Executive Director. He is married to Sophia and together, they have 4 children and 5 grandchildren. Jim is passionate about serving youth in the East Bay community in the hopes of dramatically and positively affecting the trajectory of their lives.
As many of you know, I am retiring from serving as Children Rising’s president as of June 30, 2017. It’s time for fresh vision, energetic enthusiasm, and discerning wisdom for Children Rising to move into the next level of mission impact.
team has taken this to heart and will make an announcement soon regarding my successor.
feedback from their tutors. The students then get the opportunity to say something about their tutors. I’ll never forget the second grade girl who looked out on the entire tutoring team and blurted: “When I get older, I want to marry all of you!” This was her way of saying, You’re my extended family.
them on, holding a crown before them and watching them grow into it – all of which is made possible by generous financial donors.
