By Ron Stodghill

It was one of those moments that rarely makes CNN, the blogosphere or Tweet-land. But sometimes it's the small events that matter most - and by that measure, something huge happened last week in a Charlotte diner.

There was Ron Leeper, one of Charlotte's most successful builders, waxing worldly to 15-year-old Twarn "T.J." Mixson as the boy wolfed down a Philly cheese steak.

"If I were a young man today, I think I'd learn to speak Chinese," the 65-year-old Leeper (below) was saying quietly. "China, they're a major player in the U.S. economy and that's not likely to change."

T.J. kept on chomping, but his eyes were riveted on his mentor, who three years ago pledged to help T.J. and hundreds of other kids cross the bridge that so tenuously connects West Charlotte High School to the rest of the world.

Once a proud beacon of black academic achievement, West Charlotte has come to symbolize the community's lagging competitiveness.

Here's one measure: A dismal 55 percent of its students graduate, compared with roughly 80 percent of whites and Asians enrolled in Charlotte-Mecklenburg's public schools.

"That's just unacceptable," says Leeper, a former City Council member. "We can't allow our kids to just self-destruct. A lot of people become successful and then get it twisted that they did it themselves. They forget they are standing on someone else's shoulders."

Nodding across the table to his grateful mentee, Leeper goes on: "We need this young man to become one of our next group of leaders."

Back in 2006, alarmed by reports of the achievement gap between West Charlotte students and its counterparts, Leeper hatched the Emerging Leaders Institute to boost graduation rates, inspire kids toward college, and become more solid citizens overall under the guidance of business and political leaders.

Since its inception, some 250 students have participated in the mentorship program, which Leeper hopes to expand this school year by inviting churches and others in the community to serve as mentors.

He admits, though, that his brainchild has been challenged by a revolving door in leadership at the school. Despite the obstacles, he says, the struggle to rescue West Charlotte's kids from vices that plague the community will pay dividends for all.

"Why help?" Leeper asks rhetorically. "Well, because I'm less likely to be carjacked, for my house to be broken into .... I'll have a bigger pool of potential employees to pull from when I'm hiring for my business, and it will help this country better compete in the world market."

To that end, earlier this summer Leeper helped T.J. - a West Charlotte football and basketball player with a 3.5 grade point average - visit Japan as part of the People to People International program.

T.J. and his 11-year-old brother are being raised by their mother and grandmother. While the women work four jobs between them, they could hardly afford the $6,000 cost.

Under Leeper's guidance, T.J. raised $3,000 by raffling a Nintendo Wii and a laptop computer, and having a backyard fish fry (plates were $3 and $5). Leeper chipped in the rest.

"Japan was awesome," says T.J., "We went everywhere, to Tokyo, Hiroshima, Kyoto. It really inspired me to explore other places."

Says Leeper, proudly: "Had I not been involved in his life, that may not have been achievable. Who knows where this experience will take him? But in the end, I think I'm getting as much out of his achievement as he is.
***
Ron Stodghill is a business columnist at the Charlotte Observer: 704 358-5928; rstodghill@charlotteobserver.com; blogging at rstodghill.blogspot.com

Sign up for our Weekly Email Newsletter Email: For Email Marketing you can trust

Other Ways to Share Twitter Del.icio.us MySpace

Discussions and Submission Agreement