Ajax may be the youngest in our youth program, but he carries himself with a calm poise that is direct, open, curious, and charming. He asks questions and looks people in the eye. He’s done his Beautiful Day internship at a local non-profit called Harvest Kitchen where he’s already been promoted to a supervisor role—we’re quite proud of this.
Ajax was born in Mozambique where his parents had fled from the war in DR Congo. He grew up speaking Swahili at home and Portuguese at school; once he moved to Providence, he learned Spanish, then English.
He remembers his village school being outdoors, and having to find a rock to sit on. If it rained the teacher might not show up, so the kids would get to play soccer. On weekends there was church, swimming, and more soccer. If someone owned a basketball that meant they were rich. He remembers both planning to be the best in his class in the US, and then that terrifying first day! Thankfully he had some great teachers who were on his side.
Ajax is now at PCTA (Prov Career and Technical Academy). His favorite classes are History and English. He likes the food they create at Harvest Kitchen (not to mention the granola). He’s already a little nostalgic about the program ending. His cohort has really bonded. We’re going to miss them too, but we’re looking forward to hearing about their summer jobs.
