So few people get to see what we see and hear what we hear at Cypress. We hold in our memories a million beautiful stories of growth and challenge and triumph that truly deserve to be told. I hope this story, about this teenager, capped off with her letter to me, inspires you to have the patience to listen between the verbal and non-verbal cues to find the truth.

Ryan Watford says, “Cypress showed me how to step outside of my comfort zone and take risks. Cypress showed me that I am enough and valued…If I could add more Cypresses to the world, that is what I would do. Everyone deserves the chance to be lifted up during some of their hardest years and learn how to fly. Every child is meaningful and if we could help them learn their own worth it would mean everything.”

In a small, rural town in South Carolina, something magical is happening. One drop is all it took. One drop of funding back in 2015 created a ripple that strengthened the relationships and leadership skills of close to 1000 youth, their peers, their families, their schools, their communities. This is Positive Youth Development. This is hope.