Marc-Daniel Paul
BS, Suffolk University
It is Zack again, and I have my final trip update for you... my trip to the coastal city Busan.
This time I went solo, but that didn't change the fact that it was incredibly amazing. The places I went to were, specifically, Busan Tower, Haeundae beach, and Gwangalli Bridge/Beach. The areas around these places looked incredible--I felt like I was living in a future city. The buildings must have definitely cost fortunes to build, but they are hot-spot areas to live in. Near Haeundae Beach there was a festival going on, which I didn't know was happening. It was interesting, because people were sculpting these amazing portraits out of sand and there some talent shows. There were many other foreigners at this beach and it was very refreshing to simply see and smell the surrounding sea. I will say that this was a great trip to sign-off my stay in Korea. Now, it’s all about finishing classes and work, and coming back to the US on June 16th!! I feel sad to leave, but at the same time, I’m eager to return, work hard, and continue towards my graduation and path of success.
On the very rainy evening of Wednesday, May 4, 2016 School on Wheels tutors and volunteers gathered for a dinner in their honor at the Bridgewater Vets Club. Guests enjoyed socializing and sharing stories and good feelings about their experiences working with students at SOWMA’s tutoring sites over the past year or collecting, sorting, and preparing donated school supplies at SOWMA headquarters.
Will has been a part of School on Wheels for a long time, now. His story began eight years ago when Founder and Executive Director Cheryl Opper handed Will a new backpack at the Holiday Inn in Brockton when he was just 14 years old. Will and his family became homeless the summer before his freshman year at Brockton High. They were placed at a local hotel with many other families who were also experiencing homelessness. One evening a few weeks before school started, a woman (Cheryl Opper) stopped by the hotel to give the kids new backpacks filled with supplies. Will said this gift of a new backpack motivated him to work harder in school and become a better student because he felt like someone truly cared about him and his education.
School on Wheels was selected to be the beneficiary of Pre-School Playmates’ 10th annual Building Blocks Fundraiser. On the evening of March 4, 2016, Cheryl Opper, founder and executive director of School on Wheels of Massachusetts, attended the gala fundraiser and received the very generous amount of over $19,000. About 70 parents and friends of the local pre-school attended the event which was held to benefit the education of SOWMA’s students who are impacted by homelessness.