“Odyssey gave me a voice through writing, and for that I am thankful beyond words,” writes alumna René Robinson, Odyssey ’08. In her graduation poem, “My Journey,” René spoke of her discovery of the humanities and becoming a “Google queen,” anxious to find out more about literature, philosophy, and history. She ended her poem with the lines, “Thank you, Odyssey, for choosing me, / I’ve found knowledge, my greatest discovery.”
René, who now serves on the board of directors for Friends of the UW Odyssey Project, is currently working on her story of breaking out of poverty on Chicago’s south side as part of Onward Odyssey’s alumni writing class.
Every year since her graduation, René has shared her gift of singing and oratory with the new class, such as in this brief snippet of the spiritual Go Down Moses. She also was featured in a recent video about voting and in this Isthmus story. René writes:
“Odyssey is an unimaginable experience that bridges the gap between adults and education and also forms bridges between various cultures. Odyssey classes that focused on the history of the United States and the Civil Rights Movement provide the background that helps put into perspective how we arrived to the escalation in the injustices that we face today.”
Please help alumni like René continue to take more classes through Onward Odyssey by donating to our Odyssey Project fund below.