We are proud to announce the addition of two Part-Time Staff to Rhawnhurst Turning Point! Please join me in welcoming Andrew Smith, our new Weekend Program Manager, and Dawn Friederich, our new Hoffman Art Program Manager. A short bio from both Andrew and Dawn can be found below, and we look forward to the chance for all our youth, volunteers, parents, supporters, and friends to get to know them better in the coming months.
Andrew Smith: I was born and raised in Fayetteville, Ohio, a very small rural town roughly an hour outside of Cincinnati. My mother was a child care provider and my father is a retired firefighter and paramedic, and it is from them that myself and my 3 brothers and sister learned to be morally upright and also the meaning of sacrifice and hard work.
I received my BA in History from Marietta College, in Marietta Ohio. I initially wanted to become a teacher but between financial reasons and realizing that I wanted to be more involved in advocacy and social justice issues, I dropped that pursuit for a career working with non-profits to rebuild and heal broken communities. With that in mind I moved to Philadelphia in 2011 and began my year of service with City Year of Greater Philadelphia, where I volunteered full time as a mentor and tutor to at-risk youth at Overbook High School. As I worked in Philly, I realized that I loved it here, and that I was being called to do more, so I decided to stay and pursue employment in the non-profit area. I finally found a job at Target, where I still work part time. I am very excited and grateful for this chance to use my skills to make a difference in the world, and I pray with confidence that God will guide me and walk with me as I take on my role as Weekend Program Manager!
Dawn Friederich: I attended Catholic school for twelve years here in Philadelphia, receiving my high school degree from Archbishop Ryan. Throughout those years, I noticed I had a passion (and a knack) for the arts, especially drawing. During high school, I took three years of art classes and attended two summers of city-funded art programming in Fairmount Park. The day before my high school graduation, I began my two-season job at Sesame Place as a professional caricature artist, where I realized that I not only had a passion for art, but for bringing joy to people with my art as well.
I heard about Turning Point very early in its history and it quickly became clear to me that God was calling me to be involved. I became the youth representative for the Board of Directors in April of 2008, and have been active at the center in every way I could be. I have been a volunteer since RTP opened, and have led and assisted multiple art classes and clubs already. This new chapter in my life has (metaphorically of course) poured fuel to the fire in my heart that burns for this ministry and all who are involved in it. I look forward to serving and couldn’t be more excited about our future together!