To read Ra’Sha’s full story, click here.
Roy Hall, Jr., a soft spoken, well-mannered 31-year-old Literacy KC student eagerly walks across that stage knowing that his life is about to change for the better. Roy, born in Greenville, MS, was homeless when he first arrived to Kansas City, MO. He did not have family here. He did not know which direction he was going or what he really wanted to do. He had nothing. Through his transitional living home, Roy joined a program where he learned about Literacy KC. This opportunity could not have come at a better time. Roy had gotten to a point where he wanted to do something different with his life and better himself, but he knew in order to do that, he had to go back to school and focus on his reading while also trying to learn a trade. All of his family finished school and were bettering their lives, and he wanted to do the same.
While Roy had graduated high school through special education, it was not easy. He was a troubled child throughout and Roy acted out in school because of everything he missed out on. Roy got to a point where he no longer wanted to go because he was often judged by teachers. People say, “Words don’t hurt,” but Roy says, “…they actually do. They hurt especially when it’s an adult and you feel like they’re supposed to be guiding you, but they make you feel less than a person from the other students.” Roy no longer wanted to participate and due to his acting out, the education system abandoned him at an alternative school. Roy was going to school four hours every day for two years, got sent to juvenile detention centers, and by the end of it all was simply passed through the system. Roy lacked basic education and was not given the chance he needed from the one place that should have given it to him.
However, through his tainted view of school, he gave it one more chance with Literacy KC. It was not easy, but Roy put in the work. He took courses throughout the fall semester and even went to summer school. He saw students going to Penn Valley and thought, “I could do this.” Roy has been told so much in life that he would never be able to do this or that, and he believes it was God’s way of showing him to just try. Roy was later introduced to our forklift certification program and began taking classes online. Roy recalls the first time he drove a forklift. “It was surreal. I can’t explain it, but it took me to a place where I knew I could do this.” Roy found that this new atmosphere was bringing loads of inspiration and the push he desperately needed. After years of negativity and hearing what he could not do, Roy started to believe in himself and was determined to prove them wrong. Roy no longer felt like he was being judged. He felt as though he could be the real him. Roy finally felt like a normal human being at Literacy KC. He finally found comfort in his teachers, recalling all the great people he met stating, “Once you surround yourself around good people, good things happen.”
Today, Roy is making five dollars more an hour working at CKS Packing Company after graduating from our forklift program. His math and reading skills have also improved so much that he says, “Sometimes I just read stuff because. It’s my way of life now. It feels good and you feel free. You fill out a [job] application and even if you don’t submit it, you just filled it out. That’s freedom.” He is thankful for the encouragement and support he received throughout his time here and gives credit to Literacy KC for giving him the drive he needed and for opening this new door of opportunities. Roy thanks Literacy KC staff for their time and effort. He appreciates that they took the time to get to know him and provide what has become a second home for him. He encourages anyone in similar shoes who want to learn and succeed at Literacy KC to keep working because hard work works and to “take it a day at a time. Don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will fix itself. Stay positive. It’s hard and I know it’s hard, but life is a beautiful thing.”