We are always excited and thankful to receive gifts from new donors, but today we received an extra special donation. The envelope was simple and white, like any other, but fat and heavy. When opened, a wad of cash and some coins were exposed. Normally we don’t receive many donations in cash, especially in this quantity. The enclosed letter explained it all.

A group of teenage students from the National Student Leadership Conference (NSLC), headquartered in Chicago, got together and decided  to raise money for a charity “to help out the community,” they say. They tell us how they were inspired by CSF “to get the word out there that we need to help these kids who deserve so much, but can’t have it all.” The NSLC group identifies with CSF students who are pursuing the best educational opportunities available to achieve their goals, even if it’s at a cost.

NSLC invites a group of select high school students to spend their summer participating in fast-paced, high-level, interactive summer sessions. Sponsored by the National Student Leadership Foundation, a 501(c)3, the NSLC provides students with the opportunity to experience life on a college campus, while developing leadership skills and exploring future careers. The average cost of tuition to attend NSLC is about $2,300, which is close to what a CSF scholarship family pays to send three children to private school for one year.

In participating in NSLC, this special group of teens said they now came to “understand that there are kids unlike us who sometimes don’t have everything when it comes to education.” Wow. We are absolutely inspired by this – a group of teens motivated to take extra educational opportunities available to them decided they would extend similar opportunities to their peers through their own fundraising efforts. It is truly a special donation, and we are so happy to have been chosen. Thank you, thank you to this special group of NSLC students. Know that you have inspired us as well. Best of luck in your future endeavors!