The Purple Crayon: Helping Local Teens and Adults Link Passion to Success

An Ardsley native, Sarah Hinawi knows Rivertowns teens are good at filling out applications and getting accepted into top-tier colleges. But she believes many of the area's high-achieving students lack an adequate understanding of why they are applying to those colleges and what they ultimately want to do with their degrees.

"There is too little emphasis on passion," Hinawi said. "My philosophy is that you need to have a dialogue about the path that you're on—and what you want for yourself."

Hinawi and her husband Adel (Hinawi) have started The Purple Crayon, a non-profit organization—based appropriately out of a purple church on Main Street in Hastings—that helps youth and adults actualize their potential.

The center's official grand opening party is slated for March 12, but programs are already underway.

"We have three flagship programs," Hinawi said.

The Inc. is a program that offers a shared workspace for adults who are self-employed or work on a freelance basis. For a monthly rate—which varies based on the number of hours an individual plans to spend—members have access to an individual workspace, printer, copier, phone line, mailbox and conference room space. 

There are also weekly meetings , in which members can reap the benefits of Hinawi's experience in non-profit management and marketing–though she stressed that members can come to her for advice at any time.

"We will also bring in high-level consultants to help members with their businesses," she said.

Draw Your Future is the second program Hinawi hopes to launch this spring. Designed for seventh through 12th-graders, Draw Your Future is a self-directed learning experience in which participants use the sanctuary space for discussion, sketching, practicing music or hanging out with friends.

Drop-in hours are Monday through Friday from 3 to 6 p.m.; and participants must commit to attending one weekly meeting, which will be peer-led. Once per month students will meet with a Purple Crayon advisor, who can help peruse college websites, organize term papers or even brainstorm students future goals.

"We have transformed what was the church's confessional into a personal recording booth with software that allows participants to record audio journals," Hinawi said. "And there will be a 'mutable mural' which kids can express themselves visually...and then other kids come in and paint new things over it."

The third program—which launched recennty—allows members of the community to partner with The Purple Crayon to host classes that have a self-improvement theme. The pilot program, called Warrior Rising, combines practicing yoga and other exercise with the support network people need to succeed. 

Hinawi is willing to work with anyone interested in running a "mission-related" program out of the space.

Though she knows recruiting participants will be the hardest part of getting the organization off the ground, Hinawi believes building one-on-one relationships with students will be key.

"It's not parents wanting their kids to come—it's about the kids themselves having the motivation to come themselves," she said, emphasizing that Draw Your Future is for both "A" students confused about which college to choose and "C" students looking to perform better. 

"There is a huge retention crisis in American colleges—40 to 50 percent of students don't finish, and many of those that do end up 10 years later in careers asking themselves, 'What am I doing here?'"

With the Purple Crayon, Hinawi's goal is for everyone who enters the space to ask what they want for themselves. "Even if nobody else is validating that desire, I say, "Trust your instincts,'" Hinawi said. "There is a way to connect what you love to a successful career." 

Find out more about The Purple Crayon here. 

Find out more about Sarah and Adel Hinawi here.