I remember going off to college like it was yesterday. The excitement of leaving behind my South Georgia town for the chance to follow my dreams. Waving goodbye to my parents as they left the dorm parking lot, I thought how wonderful it was to be free to do things my way. It was awesome being on my own!! Until...it wasn’t.

See, there was this night when I was cruising with some friends  around the 10 Loop in Athens and thought it’d be great fun to weave in between the caution barrels the road crew has left out to keep normal drives safe. Needless to say, this did not end well for me. Let’s just say those barrels are HEAVY! So, there I was, Miss Large and In Charge, I’m the Boss Of Me, crying home to Daddy about what to do with my broken car.

My dad is the best and I’m here to tell you I called on him and my mom plenty of times to help me figure out how to get me out of whatever jam I managed to get myself in. I don’t know what I would have done without them.

I came to a whole new level of appreciation for my parents when I found out about a non-profit called Lydia’s Place. Their mission is to come alongside young people who are aging out of foster care and who are seeking post high school education.

Most of these students have had a rough start to life, but they are beating incredible odds against them and are getting into college. Thankfully, if they can actually get into a college or tech school, their tuition, room and board cost are coveted by the state. But if you have ever been off to school, you know there are lost of extra costs. And sometimes- ok, often times - unexpected costs.

Like a parking ticket. Which pretty much everyone who’s ever been to college gets at sine point. For most of us, we call mom and dad, beg them for the extra cash to get us out of the jam so we can register for next semester, we promise it’ll never happen again and easy peassy, we’re back on track.

If only it were that easy for a foster kid. Most of these kids said goodbye to their parents long before they entered college and the idea they could call mom or dad never crosses their mind.  A simple unpaid parking ticket can lead to a cascade effect of problems.

In my podcast interview with April Farlow, she shares the stories of how Lydia’s Place is help these young people thrive. From providing dorm essentials and financial assistance with unexpected bills, to just mentoring with learning how to be an adult, Lydia’s Place is helping “the least of these.” By being the hands and feet of Jesus, the volunteers at Lydia’s Place are showing kids who have come to distrust almost everyone, that there is a God who loves them and who will never leave them.