The following is a guest blogpost written by PeerForward’s Manager of Corporate and Strategic Partnerships, Cornelius Williams:
I Am Free to Dream hosted their Brooklyn Dream Summit on Saturday, December 6 at the Brooklyn
Basketball Training Facility. PeerForward Peer Leaders attended from Brooklyn’s Leadership Academy. The space was incredible. Students were able to participate in a shoot around on the brand new courts at the Brooklyn Basketball Training Center, sponsored by the Brooklyn Nets and the New York Liberty, both before and during the event. They were also challenged with the idea of what it means to dream.
I served as a mentor and facilitator for the event, also known as a dream keeper. My specific session focused on dreamscaping. Dreamscaping is an intentional practice in which students expand their imagination and consider possibilities that stretch beyond traditional ideas of what a dream can be. The goal was to challenge them to think big about their dreams and the goals they hold.
The session was powerful. Every student had cards with guiding questions to ask their peers, which created a student driven conversation that helped them unlock what their dreams could be. One moment that stayed with me came from a student from Ukraine, newly arrived in America, who said her dreams were so big they scared her. Our Peer Leaders shared goals of becoming a nurse and becoming the greatest therapist the world had ever seen but they dreamed of impacting the world for the better. Hearing them inspired me. During our reflection with the other dream keepers I realized that I too had stopped dreaming. We all have to make space and time to dream no matter our age!
Our Peer Leaders embraced this as well. After dreamscaping, they moved into visualizing their dream, where they turned their vision into action. They used Pinterest to create vision boards so their dreams could take shape as something tangible. This flowed into the Dream Unlocking where they built community and explored the possibilities of their dreams together with mentors and dream keepers from across the event. It was beautiful.
There were special guests. Common was the headliner and his message centered on dreaming big and understanding that nothing great happens without beginning as a dream. He encouraged students to believe they could accomplish everything they envisioned. Jamila Mustafa was also present, and her message was that the number one duty of every dreamer is to believe. She spoke before Common came to the stage and freestyled for three minutes about the Dream Summit, energizing the entire room.
Peer Leaders received sweaters, shirts, notepads, satchels, suite tickets to the Brooklyn Nets game, a
courtside experience and free food. The highlight for many was the VIP game experience where they sat courtside during warmups and watched the players prepare. They moved up to the suites afterward for premier game seating. They appeared on the Jumbotron and were announced during the game. They had time to network and felt deeply appreciated throughout the day as people poured into them with support.
By the end of the experience, I became a dreamer myself. The event was truly inspiring, and I am grateful to have been in the room with so many like-minded individuals who support this work.
One of the questions asked during the reflection was who invited me and why I accepted. Gregg Bishop from the Joe and Clara Tsai Foundation Social Justice Fund invited me. We had met randomly after a fundraiser and started networking which grew into a conversation about expanding resources for our Peer Leaders. I am thankful to him for having us in the space and for creating opportunities like this for students in NYC. I am thankful to the I am Freedom Organization for creating workshops that push young people and dream keepers to continue dreaming. I am also grateful to organizations like the American Student Assistance who sponsored the event and recognize the importance of investing in young people.
Many people came together for one mission, and I appreciate having had the chance to facilitate part of the curriculum. It gave me a deeper understanding of and love for dreaming.
