Nonprofit inspires students to excel academically
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Every Tuesday, as part of our Greater Memphis on a Mission series, we highlight organizations making Memphis better. This week, we caught up with a group that believes education is the key to everything.
Rubbie King is the Founder and Executive Director of Inspire Hope, a nonprofit organization that breaks the chain of poverty through education.
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“Education is the one thing nobody can take from you,” said King. “When you’re educated, you are more aware of what’s going on around you. You’re more aware of others and their feelings.”
Growing up, King excelled at school, but college was never talked about at the dinner table.
“I grew up in a middle-income family but my parents didn’t have a college degree. They were laborers. My dad was a truck driver and my mom was a seamstress at a dry cleaner,” King told WREG. “College was not a conversation. So, no one ever told me I was smart enough to go.”
After graduation, King ended up going into the Air Force. It wasn’t until later on in life she would attend college.
“I didn’t go to college until I was a 30-year-old, single mom and divorced. That terrified me,” said King.
She graduated from the University of Memphis four years after majoring in paralegal studies.
As Inspire Hope kicked off its first week of summer camp inside Mt. Nebo, King asked each camper one simple question: “What do you want to become when you graduate from high school?”
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The first step is saying it out loud. Rubbie started with her camp counselors.
“I want to be a neurosurgeon,” said one counselor. Another stated, “A real estate agent or an accountant.”
Raven is 11-and-half years old. “I want to go to medical school to become a cardiologist.”
Eight-year-old Ethan’s first thought was a soldier. Now, it’s to be a lawyer. “I don’t really know what I want to be,” he said. And that’s okay, just start the conversation early!
That is why Brown Missionary Baptist Church and The Mid-South Genesis CDC donated $1,000 to Inspire Hope because asking one question early in life can chart a new path.
For more information about the organization, click here.
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