A letter recently went out to all our members with information about the Toni Bram Scholarship Fund. The
money collected will go toward a graduation ceremony for the students who completed their GED in the years
2020-2022. Due to Covid, they were not able to conduct graduation ceremonies during that time period.
When I first started teaching in the GED program, I expected to find a classroom of surly teenagers who didn’t
care about learning in the traditional manner. What I found was so different than what I expected. Here are four
examples of the type of student I encountered:
 A 64-year-old homeless grandmother who wanted to get her GED before her grandchild did to show her
how important an education is in this world
 A young man who left school the second half of his senior year because his sister had been at Johns
Hopkins for the last seven months and he needed to drop out and get a job to help support the family
 A young woman whose life story was so tragic I thought to myself, “If only half of that is true, I am
amazed that you have the strength to be here.”
 A woman who received her master’s degree in another country but needed her GED to prove to
prospective employers that she had the skills needed for the job
Many students start the GED program, but due to circumstances, many do not complete it. The students
who do finish often have to overcome obstacles and persevere to make it to graduation.
Thirty-five dollars will help one student walk across the stage in a cap and gown with a tassel depicting
the year they received their GED. A donation of any amount will help make this day a special one for
them, and it will be greatly appreciated by the students and the staff.
Submitted by Maureen North