Hello! I am Jaemasen (aka J.J.) and I want to talk about my experience at Rawhide.

I’m a 14-year-old freshman, who came to Rawhide from Lincoln Hills after surviving a very traumatic event that led me to make some poor choices. 

Before Rawhide, I was living with my dad and grandma in Sheboygan because my mom left when I was 6 after she got into drugs. I have been at Rawhide since February and expect to leave some time this month after showing improvement in my anger management, academic studies and willingness to help others. I have been playing a leadership role in the classroom to help the other boys make good choices when they are stressed about schoolwork.

I trust a lot of the staff because I know they actually care about me, and have helped me get through some tough times. When I was in school back home, the teachers didn’t help me because they saw me as a terrible kid and didn’t want me in their class. Rawhide’s academic instructors at Starr Academy help me catch up on my missing credits at my own pace with one-on-one help when I need it.

Rawhide taught me that I am more than my mistakes. I am not a criminal or a bad person. I do good things, too, and I am grateful Rawhide gave me this second chance to prove that.

Thank you for donating to make all the Rawhide programs possible and improve each year, so I could have this experience. 

 

Sincerely,

Jaemasen