Edwin's Cookies

There are people who can change your life in a short amount of time; for me, that person was Edwin. For two years, I volunteered at Casa de Amistad, meeting with a student once a week to provide academic support and mentorship. Each year, tutors were paired with a student based on the grade level they felt comfortable teaching. In my first year, I worked with a young girl named Luna. In my second year, I was paired with a little boy named Edwin. Both students touched my heart, but it was my time with Edwin that left the most profound impact on me, and, I believe on him as well.

Edwin, a third-grader, changed my perspective on the power of simply showing up and believing in someone. As I got to know him, I saw how bright, curious, and full of energy he was, yet he often struggled to stay focused and motivated in school. I realized I needed to find a way to encourage him to work to his full potential. That’s when I decided to bake him chocolate chip cookies. When I told him the cookies were for him, his excitement was unforgettable. That day, he completed all his work without a single complaint and followed every instruction carefully. I was amazed by how much that small gesture motivated him.

Even though I didn’t bring him cookies every week, Edwin continued to behave wonderfully and finish his assignments, though he did ask for cookies every session. I may not have drastically improved his reading or math skills, but I know I made an impact on his life. I knew that when, at the end of the year, I told him I was moving and could no longer be his tutor, and he told me he wouldn’t come back because I wouldn’t be there.

That moment changed me. I originally began volunteering because I thought it would look good on college applications. But by the end, it taught me something far more valuable: the difference I could make in a young person’s life just by caring and being consistent. Edwin might remember me as the tutor who brought him cookies, but I will always remember him as the student who taught me to appreciate the small things and to never underestimate how much simply believing in someone can matter.