Dontae and I met about 5 years ago. Dontae had aged out of foster care and unlike Semaj, Dontae’s state support stopped at age 18 so he was utilizing Ready For Life Pinellas for food, clothing, showers and any stability he could find. After a couple of years of utilizing RFL services to better his situation, Dontae’s best friend and probably the person he trusted most in the world was killed in a motor cycle accident. Did I mention that Dontae’s father died in prison and he is the oldest of three siblings. Anyway, luckily for Dontae he did have support from RFL when it came to processing grief. And he was going to need it❤️ By the time I came along he was simply trying to navigate life. We worked on his GED, he loves cars, motorcycles and trucks and will wrench on any of them. It’s his passion! Over the last few years Dontae got a job as a tow truck driver and in one short year he was running the tow yard. He’s been able to help his family and siblings over the years! Now, I would have loved for Dontae to get his GED but the reality is that he needs to be able to support himself first. The priorities of life are what they are. 

 

In a perfect world, God will connect me with someone in Pinellas County and they can help us explore Dontae’s future as a mechanic or just help him expand his knowledge in the field. At the end of the day, I’m only as good as the village we create to help this child. And yes’ at 24 he is still a child to some degree. Children without resources don’t age at the same rate as others. Or they age too quickly because everything they are dealing with is years above their pay grade. Sexual abuse, abandonment, becoming homeless!!! The world sure isn’t’ the same for everybody. We see what we want to see.