Gracelyn’s Story

Gracelyn Torres is a bright, talented East Side House student. In February 2026, she gave an inspirational speech to over 1,000 attendees at the founding assembly of a new Bronx power organization called Bronx First at Fordham University about how organizations like East Side House are needed to uplift communities. Below is a transcript of her powerful speech:

“Hello, My name is Gracelyn Torres and I’m going to be sharing my story with you today. With struggles comes opportunity. My family and I moved to New York In April of 2025 for a fresh start. I lived in Pennsylvania for almost a decade and while I lived there, there weren’t a lot of opportunities presented to prepare kids for their future. So when I came to Bronx Regional High School, I found it shocking to know that there were programs and internships to help set me up for the future that I deeply wanted. I came to school every day excited to talk and work with my advisors from East Side House. They listened when no one else could, which at the end ultimately helped me grow.

I was able to start an internship with East Side House because of the conversations we had, and they gave me a job as a swimming instructor in All City Aquatics. Being a swimming instructor, I’ve learned leadership, patience, and how to ensure my safety and others. Teaching students how to swim showed me the importance of trust and responsibility, and it helped me grow more confident in myself and my abilities. The internship has helped prepare me for what a grown-up job is. These experiences helped me confirm that the path I want to take is the right one because I want to help others and make a real difference even though it is not as easy as I thought it was going to be.

East Side House has played a huge role in helping me start my path toward my goals. East Side House has taught me that education isn’t just about what happens in a classroom, but also about the opportunities you’re given outside of the classroom and what you do with those opportunities. In school, they tell you that you need to pass your regents, you need an education, and you need to stay focused to get a good job, but they fail to teach us how to take what we learn in school and apply it to our lives after high school.

I want to work in a career where I am helping others and supporting people by making their aspirations come true. I know that in the future

I will appreciate a stable and supportive job. I grew up with eight people in a house at all times. Having a loving job will give me peace of mind because I want what I struggled getting growing up, stability. Living with so many people in one house, my mom had to work all the time. When I was leaving for school, she was coming home and when I was coming home from school she was leaving for work. She struggled paying bills while giving us what we needed and we wanted and I didn’t want her to think I was repaying her by not staying focused with my only job, school. I never got the opportunity to show her I was staying focused because I never got physical accolades for my achievements.

When I came to Bronx Regional, I received the opportunity to be vice president, student ambassador, an intern and I took those opportunities and used them wisely and got rewarded with 3 medals and 3 trophies for my hard work. Before I came to the Bronx I didn’t know how to cash a check, how to fill out a job application, or even how to count the hours I worked. I have gained skills like networking, presenting, and communicating, I’ve been set on an independent path that I can see myself striving in, not surviving in because of the opportunities the Bronx has given me. I am in front of you today because of those opportunities. So, hear me when I say, the next generation needs people who believe in us, trust us, and motivate us. Thank you for letting me share my story.”