The Littlest Boss. Janet Lee Nye

the hall outside a classroom. “Henry Gardner,” he introduced himself as he shook Lena’s hand.

      “I remember you, Henry,” Lena said with a smile.

      “And I you. Your visits to the Cleaning Crew office were a source of awe and fear.”

      Her mouth fell open and the three men laughed. “What? Why?”

      “Ahem. Well, you do have a certain sense of...determination about you,” Malik said diplomatically.

      “Come on,” Henry said with a motion toward the door. “Let’s sit down.”

      As they pulled chairs into a small circle, Henry looked at Lena. “I’m surprised to see you here, Lena. Are you funding this?”

      She shot him a look. Quizzical with a touch of do-you-want-to-die. “I grew up in a trailer park. I am one of your students.”

      “Perfect,” Henry said smoothly. “We have a good percentage of Hispanic students so your input would be more than welcome.” He looked at DeShawn. “What’s the plan?”

      “The plan is to try to provide what you need,” DeShawn replied. “What do the kids need? Besides role models?”

      Henry’s laugh echoed around the small empty classroom. “Need? Books. Computers. Internet access.”

      “Wait,” Lena said. “The school doesn’t have internet?”

      Henry shook his head. “The public library does, usually. It’s slow, but it’s there. Most of my kids don’t have it at home at all.”

      DeShawn looked at Malik and shook his head. Same old story. Different generation. “I’d guess that the best way to start would be getting the kids’ trust,” he said. “I’m trying to recruit more people. We could start with a series of class visits for people to tell their stories.”

      “Definitely,” Henry said. “I can tell them they can do it all day long, but in the end, I’m just a white guy from suburbia. They like me, but they don’t identify with me. They need to hear it from people who’ve lived it.”

      “We can help you with that,” Malik said with a grin.

      They spent the next hour learning about the kids. As they spoke, DeShawn began to get a better idea of just how large the need was out here in the rural, almost forgotten places. The kids needed more than role models. They needed mentors. They needed to see the world outside this crossroads town.