I was a three-sport athlete at Loyola Blakefield High with a huge national following. In my junior year, I broke my neck playing football. I was paralyzed from the neck down. The doctor said “Mr. Brooks, you’ll be in this state the rest of your life.” I was on a ventilator, couldn’t talk, couldn’t eat on my own. But I worked hard to recover. Because of my profile, the support was incredible. I became independent and graduated from college. It made me realize that everyone needs a back-up. When life takes its own course, it may not be as drastic as my change was, but not everyone has the support system that I did. How could I use that to benefit others?
The name “Safe Alternative Foundation for Education” came to me in a dream. Our mission is to show young people the importance of education and having a back-up plan for life. We do STEAM, art, wood shop, robotics, 3D printing, financial literacy. We set them up in businesses they run themselves. The kids will say, “I want to be an athlete.” I tell them 90% of black millionaires aren’t athletes, so where are they getting their money from?
My goal was to become a professional athlete. That’s all I focused on. But to break my neck at sixteen and have that all disappear, I had a lot of time to think about what success means. I saw a need to help others become successful. I saw a way to address that need, and I just did it. I fundraised to purchase and fix up a building in Franklin Square as our Safe Center. I started with no money, and from no money to now having a facility with paid staff, in a matter of four years … Just do it.
Van Brooks is the founder of SAFE Alternative Foundation for Education, Inc. (Photo by Colby Ware.)
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