THE OTHER WES MOORE
1/30/2014
“The Other Wes Moore (one name, two fates)” is the story of two teenagers with the same name who began their lives in the drug infested inner city of Baltimore. Single mothers, no father at home, poor, their high school had a 30% graduation rate and college was on the horizon for few, if any. Many spent their afternoons on the street running drugs, soon most would use the drugs they ran.
One ended up in prison for life when a jewelry store robbery went bad and a security guard and off-duty policeman was killed.
The other Wes Moore followed a different trajectory, graduated from Johns Hopkins University on an ROTC scholarship, became a Rhodes Scholar attending Oxford University in England, a decorated Army officer serving in Afghanistan, a White House Fellow, a business leader and now author of a New York Times Best Seller.
Pearls of Wisdom from Wes Moore
• Parents should not be naïve or all believing the words of their offspring.
• Do not doubt the presence of privilege and preference in the world of work. You could easily be outside of the ring of power and prestige because of your disposition or choice of schools. There are clear and powerful measures that can be taken in the life of a young person that effect these factors. Strong mentors – providing information and tools that place them where they need to be are important. Location is critical.
• One measure of success is the discovery of mentors who are moral anchors and trusted advisors in student lives. Another is to levy responsibility on their shoulders.
• “Fail, fail again, fail better”
• “It is sometimes hard to distinguish between second chances and last chances.”
In his “call to action”, a response to Wes’ book, Dr. Cornel West wrote that “our roots help to determine our routes.” He explained how many of us were granted “unmerited favor” by our Maker – some take advantage of that favor, others do not.
As I read this incredible story of the two Wes Moores, only two factors seemed to separate the trajectories of these two boys – one was the absence of the right mentors and the family support of one and the heart and will of the mother of the other, who found a way to change the roots of her son by surrounding him with mentors, role models, and responsibility. Notwithstanding the financial burden (she had no money), she found a way to enroll him in a military academy, which changed his life’s trajectory.
Through extended family (grandparents mortgaged their home), friends, and two jobs, Wes’ mother enrolled him in Valley Forge Military Academy in Wayne, PA. Wes went AWOL four times before he accepted the fact that this structured and mentored life would be his high school destiny. He gradually began to look up to his cadet leaders. He began to realize that something was different at Valley Forge – his normal expectations were inverted. Leadership opportunities were cherished and class clowns and low achievers were ostracized.
The book, “The Other Wes Moore” – one name two fates, can be found at Barnes & Noble in Atlanta, and I assume on-line. I commend it. Wes Moore spent months visiting in counterpart in prison as he attempted to discern why their lives had such opposite trajectories.
Of course, I cannot help but see the parallels here with some of our cadets who are yet to realize their opportunity at Riverside. I feel the pangs of failure after reading a letter from a heart-broken grandparent yesterday whose grandson we dismissed last fall. I quote, “He returned to his public high school for a few months and then dropped out. His father, tired and strained from years of dealing with the young man’s difficulties had little energy or resources to search for help. He (presently) has some part-time employment and so far has had several minor ‘brushes’ with the law. But he is a prime candidate for real problems of drugs, crime, and trouble. I hope in the future your school may be able to offer counseling for distraught parents.”
Col Jim Benson
USMC (Ret)