SEATTLE — A community leader in Seattle is using his personal experience to mentor kids and provide a space for parents and teachers to find support.
Jesse Rhodes recently became the board chair for the After-School All-Stars Puget Sound Chapter. The program provides free, comprehensive after-school programs that keep kids safe and help them succeed in school and life.
The organization’s vision is that students graduate high school, attend college, find careers they love and give back to their communities.
“Middle school is an important time to remind kids they are shaping their future and they have choices to make,” Rhodes said.
After losing a high school friend to drugs, Rhodes knew he wanted to commit his life to supporting kids as they navigate through complicated stages of adolescence.
“I had someone introduce me to accounting and math in middle school and I ended up going that route, but my friend chose a very different path, with drugs and violence,” Rhodes said.
After-School All-Stars partners with schools on innovative enrichment programs to help students and their communities. The program chapters are strategically placed across the nation to in under-resourced communities to keep kids safe.
Rhodes said the model is simple and effective, and something he’s integrating into another passion project of his: Poco Bar & Lounge, which he recently took ownership of.
“What about our teachers? Who’s genuinely looking out for them? This is a place for people to be seen and heard,” Rhodes said.
