Meet Our Youth

“The Miracle Center has helped me with reading, spelling, and learning how to dance. Nana, Katie, and Jennifer give me a good hug if I have had a bad day. If other kids want to join The Miracle Center they should. Everybody just loves everybody here, that’s why I like it, especially Jose, Mary, Katie, Nana, and Jen. I’ve been at TMC since I was 6 years old and now they made me who I am today, a happy person who always loves TMC.”

Gio has been the “Mayor of TMC” since Summer 2006, and is your future Mayor of Chicago, Illinois.

“TMC had helped me because the first time I came here I was in 6th grade and I had trouble with math and science. When I met Nana and Jennifer they teached me stuff that I didn’t know yet. I had noticed a big improvement in my report card. Subjects that were once really hard now seem like a piece of cake. Now I am in high school and I see the grades I have now and I thank Nana and Jennifer for putting their time in to helping me get better grades. The first day I came here, I made a lot of friends and now that I’ve been here four years, all of my friends know who I really am. Its a pleasure to be at TMC, they are like my second family.”

“I’ve been at TMC since I was 4 years old. I knew a lot of kids here from church, so it was so great for us to be together. Being here has been one of the greatest experiences of my entire life. Being here has helped me build my character and who I am as a person. TMC has given me an opportunity to show what I really have. It has brought me through some of my greatest hardships and I have come to know myself as a person and appreciate the self-image God has given me. They’ve given me opportunities here that I’ve always wanted to experience; I’m able to use my talents, lead worship, dance, sing, and help mentor. I definitely plan on coming back to TMC after college and becoming a mentor and a leader for the future youth of TMC. This place is most positively my second home.”

The Miracle Center is a wonderful place because here everybody listens, respects, cares, and talks to each other. I’ve been at TMC for almost a year and it has changed my life because now I am not afraid to dance in front of people. I use to have stage fright. I personally think more people should go to TMC because Katie, Nana, and Jen are wonderful people. Nana is the fun type that will dance and listen to hip-hop music. Katie is the artistic, fun, laughable type, she will be the one who sit down and talk to you about whatever you want. Jennifer is the artistic, laughable, poetrist, hair stylist, nicest person you will ever meet. We would all wish you would come to TMC and be our counselors and friends. And I love everybody at TMC.

“TMC has helped my talents come out. This has provided me with my friends and my family, my friends here are my family. When there is stuff happening at home, there is always someone here to talk to. I’ve been at TMC since I was in 5th grade. I also come to the summer programs. TMC has changed me and who I am has been able to come out. I feel like I can be who I am and not have anyone say anything about me. People here accept me for who I am and what I do. I hope I can be here still after high school and college. I hope I will work here like Mary, Jose and Elsa. I use to think horrible about myself, but when I started to go to girls mentoring it turned my whole life around. I wish everyone in the world could come to TMC, they would love it.”

“The Miracle Center has changed my life for so many years. I’ve been here since the beginning of TMC ever starting. I was like 3. The only reason why I’m coming here is for friends and to build my relationships with others. I get to show my talents and express my feelings. I love coming to TMC because it always puts me in a good mood, always.”

“I’ve been here since I was about 6 years old. TMC is somewhere where I can be myself without caring what others will say. I have a lot of family issues but I know my real family at TMC is always there for me, they don’t judge me. It has made my relationship with God stronger and everyone here makes me feel safe, but is fun at the same time. I couldn’t ask for a better second home. TMC has made me want to go to school and I want to come back after I go to college. I want to be able to share with the world what TMC has done for me, it makes me think twice about what’s really out there in the world. Mary has done so much for me, she’s like my second mother. I don’t know what I would have done without her... without TMC. ”

“I first came to TMC when I was 10 years old. I like that I have friends here who care about me. There are tutors for me here too, I have become more confident in school. My friends here at TMC have helped me through a lot of problems I have been going through, especially my good friend Miguel. TMC will make me more of a leader, I want to make graphic design and program designs when I’m older. TMC has given me a lot of ideas for my future by how they do things and set up things. TMC is my home away from home.”

“I’ve been at TMC for 3 or 4 years. I look forward to seeing friends, getting help from staff with homework, and playing games. Without TMC, I’d be in school playing sports; but TMC is the place I really want to be. My favorite memories are when we do performances, like when we are getting ready to go on stage, and actually doing the performances is something I will never forget. The Miracle Center has given me a lot of talents in things I have never done before. I’ll be exploring new things and coming out of my shell.”

“I first came to TMC my sophomore year of high school, I was 15. I heard about TMC through my friend Laura and she told me about the theatre ensemble. I thought it was going to be just like other theatre things I have done and it was so much more, it was a family. It is a family. You become so close to people, you are just able to help other people, help the kids, volunteer your time, but at the same time have fun. For me personally, TMC is a place where I have grown and made me realize what is really important in life and the things I want to do. There’s just so much to say, I love TMC, it’s my second family. I wouldn’t trade my time here for anything else in the world.”

“I’ve been at TMC for like 4 years. I started off doing Young Entrepreneurship Program, I liked it, but I think I really really grew when I stared with the theatre program and I met a lot of really cool people there. TMC has given me the opportunities to do a lot when it comes to theatre. In school there’s a lot of favoritism when it comes to casting, and at TMC everybody is given the same opportunities. I gained a second family and I’m definitely going to come back after college and give back.”

“I’ve been in TMC since I was 7. It helped me find what I want to do in life, and that’s to be a professional in theatre and dancing. TMC has always been a safe haven for me. I grew up with a lot of the staff here and they have more than just helped me through my problems and troubles. They have allowed to me to express myself in ways that have never been possible to me. With TMC I have developed creativity to my imagination. They have helped me with school and helped me to become a leader. TMC has been a stepping stone and ground for me and my future, something that will never be forgotten and always be cherished. TMC is my home, my family, and my childhood. With all that said, I hope you can stop by TMC and see what we can be to you.”