I called my dad last night so that I could thank him for my college education. I've always been grateful for the fact that my parents funded my education and that I didn't have to work during college or take out loans. I always knew that I was very blessed.
This week, I felt even more keenly how blessed I have been. One of my students- one who is always pleasant and grateful- had not registered for classes, and I called his family to check in/see what I could do to help them with registration. His dad was on the verge of tears as he told me of their struggle to scrape together the funds for their son to return to school. It broke my heart...students were slated to move back into the dorms the very next day, and this family had no idea if their son would be moving into his dorm or not.
I contacted Financial Aid- having NO idea of what to say (Excuse me, I was wondering if you could just erase the massively large student account hold? Like, just make it disappear?)- and just asked if they could give me any advice of what to tell this family. I must have re-written that email 3 or 4 times. I just kept thinking about that student and his family, thinking of how I would feel if I were him. It made me shudder. I so hate uncertainty.
The end of the work day came, and I hadn't heard anything from Financial Aid. I didn't really have time to think about it after work; I had a work-related errand to run (which went very awry...I might write about it soon. It's one of those stories to keep me humble.) and my 5-hour training meeting to attend. When I got home that night (and unthinkingly locked Brad's sister, who was staying with us, out of the house for the night! I'll probably write about that, too.), I checked my work mail and had an email from Fin. Aid.
Would you believe that the director had located a $1,000 scholarship and applied it to the student's account? That dropped the balance owed to only a few hundred dollars. I was thrilled! It was too late to tell anyone, but I was excited about telling the family the next morning.
I got to work at 8:00 and called the dad's cell phone at, like, 8:07. I definitely woke him up, but I figured he wouldn't care. He almost couldn't speak because of shock. He was so grateful, and I was so pleased. Then he said,
"Now we only have to scrape together a few hundred dollars. That's so much better. My wife and I just talked last night about not paying rent this month so that we can send him back to school. We can scoot by for a little while until the next paycheck."
My heart dropped again. Not pay rent? What would that mean for their family? And, if their son came back to school, how would he pay for books? Or basic supplies? Also, he couldn't register for classes until the whole balance had been taken care of. By that time, it was move-in day. He wouldn't be able to move in until he had registered. I referred the dad to Financial Aid, to talk about clearing the remainder of the balance. I just had a sinking feeling that they wouldn't be able to come, even after the scholarship. I sat and mulled over the thought of their family not being able to pay their rent, and I felt knots in my stomach.
I kept on with work that morning, frequently thinking about my student. If I hadn't been at work, I probably would have squealed like a piglet when I got an email a couple hours later saying that they had removed the student's financial hold (which would allow him to register) and would allow him to pay it late- when his father's next paycheck came in.
Y'all, I felt like I'd witnessed a small miracle. I wish I could say that it was because I had been diligent in prayer. In actuality, it was because the parents of our student had been diligent in prayer; we found out that the mom and the dad had gone into separate rooms the night before and spent the entire night praying about their finances, asking the Lord to provide what they needed. I can't tell you how humbled I felt when I realized that I had been able to be a part of the answer to their prayers. How does that even work?
I saw that student today. He was as grateful as ever. Absolutely thrilled to be at school. I already knew I was blessed, but now I have a concrete reminder of that. I'm not taking that for granted, either.
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