scholarship fund

there was a time when I thought we were on the verge of getting some kind of scholarship fund going for the SGAs who were leaving the F. Many were leaving parents behind or leaving with large families and having to help the parents, thereby keeping them from entering college. Then it all kind of went ka-put. I want to bring it up again and see if there is enough interest to start some sort of foundation for this sort of thing. I think that would be a positive step in making some sort of sense out of this chaos and the ruining of lives because of the COG/FOG.

Personally, I am convinced that going to college is one of the best things the young people leaving the F. can do. Even if one never uses their college degree in their job of choice, should they find a job in some other field, it doesn't matter. There are several reasons I feel going to college is a good thing and particularly for kids coming out of cults with no family support structure to guide them and having to leave the cult mentality behind is a daunting task for anyone.

1) They will meet new friends in a completely new environment separate and apart from the secret society they were born into. The new friendships will help them start a completely new life.

2) Employers like to hire from the colleges because college students demonstrate that they can be responsible by getting to their classes and getting through the year paying their bills, having a job or scholarships or loans or all of the above and finishing something they set out to do. It shows responsibility.

3) It gives young people a chance to determine just what it is they want out of life, what sort of career interests them and how to go about getting into that career.

4) Kids out of a cult can get scholarships, grants, financial aid, and student loans to get them started and not have to rely on some exmembers or even current members to help them. This would be beneficial because current members will likely try to bring them back into the full time lifestyle; many exmembers are ill equipped to help young people getting into college, putting them up, paying for their food and board and if they are, they are often too involved in the F. and F. politics to understand the dynamics of what these young people are going through.

4) There are many counselors, professors and other professionals on campus to get fine and intelligent direction from. There are many services available for the young student (and even old students with programs geared for returning students) to help them in many areas.

Therefore, I think it would be great to start some sort of foundation - heck, if Gary can do it, why can't we? and solicit donations from government and private sources to start a fund where kids can apply for scholarships to help them with their schooling. Of course, like any scholarship, they'd have to be enrolled in school before they actually receive the money. that would ensure that any F. friendly people wouldn't try and cash in on the money and lie about their status. I don't know - what do people think?