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| Becoming a Confident College Student, With the Help of an ‘Angel’ | Becoming a Confident College Student, With the Help of an ‘Angel’ |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| The police came to the door on the family’s cleaning day. Julio Reyes, then 13, remembers that the apartment was spotless; his mother was a stickler for cleanliness. | The police came to the door on the family’s cleaning day. Julio Reyes, then 13, remembers that the apartment was spotless; his mother was a stickler for cleanliness. |
| After the authorities forced their way into the Lower East Side home, they scoured the place looking for drugs. Furniture was flipped over, clothing tossed around, debris strewn everywhere, and somehow the toilet ended up broken. | After the authorities forced their way into the Lower East Side home, they scoured the place looking for drugs. Furniture was flipped over, clothing tossed around, debris strewn everywhere, and somehow the toilet ended up broken. |
| “I was like, ‘Really? We just cleaned,’” said Mr. Reyes, now 21, recalling the day, which ended with him being placed in foster care. | |
| He and a brother eventually ended up in the custody of an aunt who had raised Mr. Reyes until he was 4. Though he called her ‘tia,’ Spanish for aunt, he considered her a mother. He took on adult responsibilities and was like a parent to many of his siblings. | He and a brother eventually ended up in the custody of an aunt who had raised Mr. Reyes until he was 4. Though he called her ‘tia,’ Spanish for aunt, he considered her a mother. He took on adult responsibilities and was like a parent to many of his siblings. |
| “If you go back and ask my brothers and sister who raised them, they would tell you it was me,” Mr. Reyes said. | “If you go back and ask my brothers and sister who raised them, they would tell you it was me,” Mr. Reyes said. |
| Though Mr. Reyes was a leader at home, his tumultuous childhood left him more reserved at school. He saw himself as a geek, preferring the company of action figures or puzzles to other people. He was known as the student who played chess with the teachers and spent hours mastering solitary games like Suduko and KenKen, and puzzles like Rubik’s Cube. | Though Mr. Reyes was a leader at home, his tumultuous childhood left him more reserved at school. He saw himself as a geek, preferring the company of action figures or puzzles to other people. He was known as the student who played chess with the teachers and spent hours mastering solitary games like Suduko and KenKen, and puzzles like Rubik’s Cube. |
| In high school, Mr. Reyes began to shed his meek demeanor. “That’s when I started figuring out who I am as a person,” he said. “I started becoming more outgoing.” | In high school, Mr. Reyes began to shed his meek demeanor. “That’s when I started figuring out who I am as a person,” he said. “I started becoming more outgoing.” |
| He nurtured a passion for dance, something he had previously enjoyed only if he could avoid being seen by others. “I stopped caring what people thought,” he said. “People looked at me. I don’t know if they judged me, but if they did I was like, ‘This is what I like to do.’” | He nurtured a passion for dance, something he had previously enjoyed only if he could avoid being seen by others. “I stopped caring what people thought,” he said. “People looked at me. I don’t know if they judged me, but if they did I was like, ‘This is what I like to do.’” |
| Despite the strides he made in building confidence, Mr. Reyes’s plans beyond high school were murky. Family members had told him and his siblings how critical college was to their future. | |
| During Mr. Reyes’s junior year, he met Alex Blaise, a counselor with the Children’s Aid Society, one of the eight organizations supported by The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund. Mr. Blaise encouraged Mr. Reyes to apply to college and helped him with the process. | During Mr. Reyes’s junior year, he met Alex Blaise, a counselor with the Children’s Aid Society, one of the eight organizations supported by The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund. Mr. Blaise encouraged Mr. Reyes to apply to college and helped him with the process. |
| “He was an angel in disguise,” Mr. Reyes said. | “He was an angel in disguise,” Mr. Reyes said. |
| With Mr. Blaise’s help, Mr. Reyes was accepted at Borough of Manhattan Community College. He balanced his studies with two jobs, one at a moving company and the other waiting tables at a diner. | With Mr. Blaise’s help, Mr. Reyes was accepted at Borough of Manhattan Community College. He balanced his studies with two jobs, one at a moving company and the other waiting tables at a diner. |
| “Sleeping was not a thing,” he said. | “Sleeping was not a thing,” he said. |
| After two years, a desire for change, motivated in part by a breakup, turned Mr. Reyes’s attention to colleges outside New York City. He decided on Binghamton University and has been taking classes there since fall 2015. The Children’s Aid Society used $218.40 in Neediest Cases funds to help Mr. Reyes buy school books for his first spring semester. | After two years, a desire for change, motivated in part by a breakup, turned Mr. Reyes’s attention to colleges outside New York City. He decided on Binghamton University and has been taking classes there since fall 2015. The Children’s Aid Society used $218.40 in Neediest Cases funds to help Mr. Reyes buy school books for his first spring semester. |
| A more self-assured person has emerged since he moved to the Binghamton area. “At first, I was in this bubble,” he said. “And nobody was allowed in my bubble. Now, I don’t have a bubble. I’m very open to meeting people.” | A more self-assured person has emerged since he moved to the Binghamton area. “At first, I was in this bubble,” he said. “And nobody was allowed in my bubble. Now, I don’t have a bubble. I’m very open to meeting people.” |
| Mr. Reyes is working toward a bachelor’s degree in accounting and expects to graduate in May 2018. He plans to become a certified public accountant or financial analyst. | Mr. Reyes is working toward a bachelor’s degree in accounting and expects to graduate in May 2018. He plans to become a certified public accountant or financial analyst. |
| “I am the best at math — the best,” he said. | “I am the best at math — the best,” he said. |
| Mr. Reyes is also a member of the campus dance team, Quimbamba. Dancing will never be a career, he said. It is purely an expression of his heart, one that enlivens him. He brings the same discipline to his workout routine, waking at 5 a.m. to go to the gym, part of his effort to continually better himself and his life. | Mr. Reyes is also a member of the campus dance team, Quimbamba. Dancing will never be a career, he said. It is purely an expression of his heart, one that enlivens him. He brings the same discipline to his workout routine, waking at 5 a.m. to go to the gym, part of his effort to continually better himself and his life. |
| While on his way to accomplishing more than he may have thought possible a few years ago, Mr. Reyes refuses to accept congratulations for his successes. | While on his way to accomplishing more than he may have thought possible a few years ago, Mr. Reyes refuses to accept congratulations for his successes. |
| “I prefer to get the job done, then celebrate its accomplishment when it is completely done,” Mr. Reyes said. “It has more meaning and value when it’s celebrated at the end, rather than at every minor step.” | “I prefer to get the job done, then celebrate its accomplishment when it is completely done,” Mr. Reyes said. “It has more meaning and value when it’s celebrated at the end, rather than at every minor step.” |