From time to time, my mother will send me a news clipping from my hometown paper. It is usually an inspirational story of an individual who started from scratch beginnings and was able to overcome remarkable obstacles in order to achieve greatness. I’m pretty sure this is her sarcastic, yet artfully subliminal way of telling me “there is still hope for you yet…” ergo I think she feels guilty for bringing me into the land of beer and cheese instead of say, the glamor of LA or New York City – but really Mom, it’s okay, no hard feelings. (I’m blogging for Social Earth now = success!)
The most recent addition to my scrapbook of inspirational tales is the story of 35 year old, Jennifer Jenkins, born in New Jersey and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from the age of 8. As the Capital Times reported, Jenkins managed to make it from being homeless herself to becoming a med student who uses her talents to help the homeless. Jenkins came from an unstable family life, but was able to succeed well enough to gain acceptance into the University of Wisconsin-Madison at the age of 17. However, independence did not suit her well as she dropped out of college at 19. By 20, after a rocky relationship and a series of bad decisions, she found herself in Chicago at a homeless shelter, with nowhere else to turn.
Since serving her time at the homeless shelter in Chicago, she slowly managed to turn her life around well enough that she was accepted into medical school at UW-Madison by the time she was thirty years old. That’s not even the best part! What I love most about Jennifer Jenkins’ story is that she decided to take a year off in between her third and fourth year of medical school to reconnect with her past. Through a grant provided by LOCUS (Leadership Opportunities with Communities, Under-served, and Special Populations), Jenkins became the first ever fellow for Operation Safety Net in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Operation Safety Net is a health care outreach program for the homeless population of Pittsburgh that provides case management, medical services via van, a drop-in clinic, education and awareness, and a resource database. It was founded in 1992 when Jim Withers, an internal medical physician, began dressing up like a homeless person and providing his services to the homeless in what later became dubbed as “street medicine.” Jenkins didn’t wait until the middle of her medical career to make a difference – she interrupted her studies to service a community that she knows best.
Often in life, we are told that we need to get ourselves settled as individuals before we can start worrying about the rest of the world:
“Focus on your studies.”
“Your time will come.”
“You’re too young to worry about that yet.”
This is a message that I have always disagreed with. There is never an ideal time to start caring, in fact, you should never stop caring. You have to make the time to make a difference because there is never going to be a time when it’s completely convenient – and, like Jenkin’s case, I am a huge advocate for going with your gut. You should interrupt your academic career for a year of service if it feels right! A week before my high school graduation ceremony, I impulsively jumped on a plane to Guatemala with a couple that I had never met to work on a humanitarian aid project. My mini real-world experience put me well over my allotted amount of excused absences for the year and it was debated whether or not I would be allowed to walk at graduation. Eventually, the principal conceded, but looking back, it seems ludicrous that it was even a question. Poor timing yes, but it was that single act of curious independence that offered me the most sense of direction for the future.
Jenkins story is touching because she demonstrates an incredible determination to make a difference, but it’s also valuable because she did not seem to concerned about the question of “when.” She just did it [and with a very cool organization!]
Operation Safety Net
- Operation Safety Net is a health care outreach program for the street homeless population.
- Organization Type: Non-Profit
- Website: http://www.operationsafetynet.net
- Founder(s): Jim Withers
- Founded: 1992
- Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
- See complete company list here
Contributor Profile: Ashley
Ashley is a friend of anyone who is fighting the good fight for social change. She currently resides in Bilbao, Spain where she is teaching English and researching the history of the Basque conflict. Personal blog
Twitter: @socialearth
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