Sharing Our Story
Enter 13
So I’ve decided to start a blog… Actually, this isn’t a whim, it’s something I’ve been talking about for quite a while now. I’ve always been a bit of a techie and an early adapter at heart, (despite what my kids might say!)
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The question in my mind was not whether or not I could actually put this together — but if I had enough expertise and passion about anything in particular that would be of interest to anyone else but me. So many things went through my head, but honestly, this exercise made me realize that my most impressive feat to date is having raised my two children to be the incredible young adults that they are today.
If you are reading this, you may already know my family personally in some way. Therefore, you know that I have been a single mom since my kids were very young, and you also know that I never played that card for sympathy. Being a single mom wasn’t the plan, it was just something that happened and we powered through it. The kids and I moved forward with the determination to be the best people we could be, and like everyone else, we are still a work in progress.
Our Mission
This site is going to focus on the question that I am so often asked when people meet me, “How did you do it?”, “How did you end up with not one, but two amazing kids?”, “How did you get by on a civil service salary?”, “How did you find the time to volunteer for so many organizations while your kids were young?”, “How did you pull off baking 1000 Christmas cookies, and hand deliver them all to friends all over the county yet again?!”…
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​The honest answer to all of those questions is… I actually don’t really know, but I was determined.
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Beyond those questions, there is one more that people keep asking with almost disbelief…
How did both of my kids finish college without any student loan debt?
I will admit, In today’s America, that is quite an accomplishment. The answer is that It was truly a group effort that couldn’t have been accomplished without both kids being 100% committed and putting in endless hours of hard work applying for scholarships to cover the tuition and fees that I just couldn’t. As the parent, I was able to assist with direction and support, but honestly it was going to be up to them to do the heavy lifting.
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I know it could have been a lot easier if there had been someone there to coach us through the confusing parts, and share their experiences to affirm that we weren’t alone as we struggled to achieve this goal. We learned a lot along the way and I am going to use this platform to help others also reach that glittering prize of a diploma without loans.
Our Vision
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This is a website mainly directed to students, but parents will also have an integral role in the process of making a debt-free college diploma become a reality.
In addition to this website, we also use the Enter13 Facebook page to share a lot of information, This is not a place to brag about your scores and achievements, as we believe that can create an unhealthy environment of comparisons. We want the social media spaces to be inspiring and encouraging, so as to lift up every student to their full potential and get them proudly across the finish line. Questions are always welcome and all responses will be monitored for positivity, accuracy and tolerance.
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What Enter13 will NEVER be, is one of those websites where you click on a video, watch it for 15 minutes with the promise of free valuable information, only to find out that the key bit of information is withheld unless you sign on for another program that costs you an additional $999.99. The information on this website will be shared freely with everyone in the community. Let's be real -- the people who need this information the most are the people who can least afford to pay for it! This is exactly why you are here, and we want to level the playing field.
That being said, the reality is that there are costs to creating and maintaining a website. The hope is that these costs will be funded by the use of users purchasing items through affiliate links, business sponsorships, speaking engagements and offerings of affordable group and one-on-one coaching to the students as they progress through their scholarship journeys. Please email me directly at Margaret@enter13.com if you are interested in supporting the site in any of these ways.
So… Here's to pushing the “launch” button. Thanks for coming along for the ride!
