As AmeriCorps members, we know that our term is always short. In either six months or ten months, we all have a limited time to make an impact on others. Now that the year is coming to a close, we’re learning that it can be hard to let others know we won’t be here for much longer.  

Yes saying goodbye is hard, but the time leading up to it is even harder. We go back and forth on what is working and what is not, and the temptation to get out as quickly as possible weighs on us. Those who plan out their goodbyes are able to better manage their stress on accepting reality, and staying accountable to their students and their work. They have had empathetic, honest conversations, learned from feedback, and instead of lashing out, they’ve held their head high and continued to move forward.

For us as College and Career Ambassadors, we are not only saying goodbye to each other, but we are also saying goodbye to our students. As the year has come to an end, we have taken the time to hold “End of the Year Celebrations” at each site. At these celebrations, we provided fun activities, cookouts, and even gifts for our students. But, we also can’t forget the students who we rarely see or those who didn’t make it to the celebration. We are still trying to hold one last session with them so we can touch base, say goodbye and prepare for the summer.

As for the students we won’t get the chance to say our goodbyes to, we can still say thank you to them. For some, it helped us to be persistent in getting things done and letting them know we are available. And it also helped us to know that even youth go through things that can prevent them from doing things that are required of them.

So from all of the Promise Corps CCAs this year, we’d like to say, loudly and proudly: THANK YOU and “Bye Felicia!” -Ice Cube.