Carol Greetham, director of WEDI
ENERGY after school
program, is stepping down from her position because of her employment with
Windemere Elementary School.
The program has seen tremendous growth during her tenure. When
she took over in 2013, 14 students were enrolled. Today, the program serves 32
and provides an intimate one-to-one student-to-volunteer ratio.
“I love the kids and the volunteers that I work with,”
Greetham said. “It’s like a family, so it’s really hard to leave.”
When Greetham took over, the program lacked direction.
“There was no real specific goal other than to provide help
to students on the West Side,” Greetham said. “Now, we’re focused on providing
literacy for children who don’t have English as a first language.”
Although Greetham is sad about leavings, she sees big things
on the horizon for WEDI ENERGY. She hopes the program will eventually establish
satellite programs.
“There are so many kids that need help,” Greetham said. “The
Buffalo Public school system is overwhelmed by the amount of newcomers over the
last few years.”
Ben Bissell, executive director of WEDI, called Greetham’s
tenure “wildly successful.”
“She was able to work to improve the program significantly
over the past four years,” Bissell said. “It’s a difficult transition for her
and a difficult transition for the program.”
Bissell is in the early stages of hiring a new program director.
By Dan Almasi and Andrew Kuczkowski
