‘Give kids the help I wish I had’
A difficult childhood has inspired Oak Lawn high schooler Sammantha Carmolinga to work toward becoming the social worker she wishes she had had.
So rather than wallowing in heartache over a mother who let her down, Sammantha, a sophomore at Oak Lawn Community High School, has volunteered helping other kids at the True Value Boys & Girls Club in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood.
She recently won the Boys and Girls Clubs of Chicago Youth of the Year award for her leadership. The award included $1,000, a laptop and baseball memorabilia. It also qualifies her for state level competition and possibly the national contest.
“Growing up in such an unstable home and having social workers know and see how unstable it was and doing nothing about it inspired me to want to give kids the help I wish I had had and the help I know they deserve,” Sammantha said. “That’s basically what’s pushing me to reach my goals even more.”
She said her mother was “always under the influence,” and she and her brother didn’t always know when their next meal would be and they lacked nice clothes. They lived in the Little Village neighborhood until the family moved to Wisconsin.
“It was just a lot for me to handle at a young age,” Sammantha said.
But luckily for Sammantha and her brother, their aunt became their guardian, and they moved to Oak Lawn. Their aunt made sure they became involved in extracurricular activities, and about seven years ago Sammantha joined the True Value Boys & Girls Club, where she has hosted events such as a food stand, setting up game nights, movie nights and distributions for homeless people.
She’s also had the chance to have some fun dancing, doing art, swimming and taking advantage of a computer lab.
It’s a long day for Sammantha, going from remote learning at home to spending the afternoon and part of the evening at the club, also squeezing in hours of studies. Her aunt drives her there and a cousin takes her home.
“She’s had a big impact on me and my brother,” Sammantha said of her aunt. “I never pictured myself doing this — being as far as I am.”
School has also been a welcoming place for Sammantha, giving her the chance to express herself and feel accepted.
“English has a lot of assignments where you can share your personal life and expressing my feelings makes me feel better about me and my story,” said Sammantha.
Her school activities have included being on Student Council, the Freshmen/Sophomore Advisory Board, Student Helpers, Spartan Screamers, leadership Club and OLAS/ World Language Club.
English/Speech teacher Amy Perras is wowed by how far Sammantha has come. Each student did a documentary in her freshman class and Sammantha brought her family into the video, each sitting on a couch and introducing themselves.
“It was the most beautiful heart-wrenching story,” said Perras. “By being able to give a voice to her pain, I just saw a change in her … it was beautiful.”
Perras said she was impressed by how Sammantha was able to use her pain to grow.
“She knows pain, she gets other people’s pain,” Perras said. “I don’t believe any pain is ever wasted … It’s only wasted if you don’t turn around and help others.
“She loves to help her fellow man and you can see that in the classroom,” Perras said.