[ad_1]
While his friends hung out and got into trouble, Justin Bowens grew up spending long hours alone shooting basketballs. “I dreamed there,” said Bowens. “I would shoot and figure out how I would be different.”
Bowen’s childhood was what some would consider high risk.
The 29-year-old can’t remember ever meeting his father. As his mother fought drug addiction, Bowens and his siblings (two brothers and one sister) were separated and taken in by relatives.
He grew up in Frederick, Maryland, with his grandparents. Although they took good care of Bowens, the drug and gang neighborhood was dangerous.
“Having been with certain people in the neighborhood and the drugs and gangs, I could easily have been swallowed up in all of this,” Bowens said.
But it wasn’t.
He knew from a young age that the drug and gang lifestyle was not for him. “I had friends who were gang members,” recalls Bowens. “I just didn’t want to follow their path and they all knew it.”
“I wanted to be different from my family’s career.”
Bowens received support and guidance in making his dream come true from his grandparents, several teachers, and from Robert Tuggle, whom Bowens calls Robbie.
Robbie entered Bowens’ life at the age of 4 when he began caring for Bowens through Big Brothers Big Sisters. The relationship promoted by the grandparents clicked right from the start.
“From a young age I couldn’t stop wanting to see Robbie. We did funny things, ”recalls Bowens. “As I got older, we went to places like the pumpkin patch, the YMCA, a baseball game, and we went to Pittsburg to attend a soccer game.
“I saw Robbie as a father figure. We had conversations about my dream of being different and many other topics, including drugs and gangs.
“He helped me with school projects and consistently emphasized the importance of education.
“He became my baseball coach but showed no favoritism. I had to earn it like everyone else. “
When Bowen’s high school basketball was played, Robbie was usually in the stands. Bowens recounts how he once got angry and kicked a chair when it was taken out of an important game. Robbie immediately came down from the stands and spoke to Bowens about controlling his anger.
“That conversation helps me to this day,” said Bowens.
When Bowens thought of getting a job after high school and leaving college, it was Robbie who got him back on the college path and dream. He helped Bowens apply for academic scholarships, which he eventually received.
Bowens followed the college path, becoming the family’s first college graduate.
Today, Bowens, who lives in North Park, is a senior financial analyst overseeing spending and forecasting for a San Diego biotech company.
Bowens and his fiancée Leah will be married in August. Robbie will officiate.
Robbie, whose career is in finance, has accompanied Bowens to this day during college and in his career choices and challenges.
“We love each other to death,” said Bowens.
Robbie, 50 years old, agrees. “Justin’s part of our family,” he said. “We are incredibly proud of him and love him as a son.”
Bowens’ life was shaped heavily by his 25-year relationship with Robbie.
“He’s helped me bet on myself,” said Bowens.
Bowens, who has raised money for Big Brothers Big Sisters and plans to become a Big Brother, advises disadvantaged young people who face their own obstacles.
“First of all, take education seriously. It’s one thing that society can’t take away from you. Second, find someone you trust and communicate openly. Third, dream and bet on yourself.
“And, work on it. It will not be easy. There will be times when you want to quit. But do you know that you can change yourself and future generations. So stay with your dream and follow it. “
For more information on the Big Brothers Big Sisters in San Diego, call (858) 536-4900.
About this series
Jan Goldsmith is a former member of the UT Community Advisory Board. He is an attorney and former legal associate, judge, state lawmaker, city attorney of San Diego, and mayor of Poway.
Someone San Diego Should Know is a weekly column written by members of the UT’s Community Advisory Board about local people who are interesting and noteworthy because of their experience, accomplishments, creativity, or references.
[ad_2]
Source link
