The holiday season has arrived at last, and we have so much to be thankful for. This Thanksgiving, we want to give you a peek into the lives of our Teen Lifeline staff and what we are thankful for this year!
Ricky Lewis – Executive Director
What’s your favorite Thanksgiving dish?
I’m a sucker for the traditional turkey and dressing.
What’s your favorite holiday movie?
Classic: It’s a Wonderful Life, Comedy: ELF
What’s your favorite holiday tradition?
On Thanksgiving Day, dinner is any dessert you want!
What you are most thankful for?
I am thankful for many things but family is the biggest. Not just immediate family but also extended family and church family. There are so many things we have had to deal with the last few years, and I wouldn’t have made it without all of these groups of people.
What do you love most about working with students?
The most rewarding part for me is seeing a student realize a new perspective for the first time. Whether that is related to school, family, or their future, it gives me hope that they see the possibility of success in a new way.
Karlie Duke – Communications Director
What’s your favorite Thanksgiving dish?
I have always loved my mom’s homemade apple pie – so yummy!
What’s your favorite holiday movie?
I love all Christmas movies, but White Christmas is a clear favorite.
What’s your favorite holiday tradition?
Every Christmas Eve, my dad reads us The Polar Express. Even though we have gotten too big to sit on his lap, it’s still my favorite part of the holidays.
What you are most thankful for?
I am thankful for the blessings we have living in America. After going to Haiti this summer, I am especially thankful for the house that keeps me warm and dry, the car that let’s me go to work, the health of my family and all the opportunities I have because of where I was born.
What do you love most about working with students?
I love being able to sit and just listen to the teenagers I work with. When I was in High School, the adults in my life were vital, and now I have the opportunity to listen and speak encouragement into the lives of other teenagers!
Chris Robey – Program Director
What’s your favorite Thanksgiving dish?
Mashed Potatoes. Hands down. It has become my job each year to boil, mash, and season the spuds.
What’s your favorite holiday movie?
Home Alone and Elf.
What’s your favorite holiday tradition?
Dinovember has become something fun in our family. Our toy dinos “come to life” and engage in shenanigans overnight and our boys discover the chaos when they get up in the morning. Also, I really enjoy anything engaging in Advent.
What you are most thankful for?
Definitely my family. Getting married a little later in life than most makes me remember the days I was single and didn’t have all of this. My wife and boys remind me daily how awesome things can be and how blessed I really am.
What do you love most about working with students?
I love playing a unique role in a student’s life. For so many, they don’t have anyone to help them think and reflect – which is a new skill set for an adolescent. I love not knowing what I am getting into when I meet a new student. Teenagers are in the “in between” time of life where they could be playful like a child or truly reflective and engaging like an adult.
At Teen Lifeline, we are especially thankful for YOU! Thank you for the support, encouragement and time poured into us and the lives of teenagers. Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!