How a Temple University police officer inspired some Philadelphia high school students to go to college
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- It was an emotional reunion for Temple University student Avaeh Harrison and her mentor Leroy Wimberly.
The two came together on campus after meeting for the first time while Harrison was a senior in high school
"His message to me was just simple words to never give up," she said.
Harrison calls Wimberly her inspiration, crediting him as the primary reason she now attends Temple.
"I was on the brink of not going to college" before meeting Wimberly, she said. "So, when he kept telling me to never give up, I was in such a low place when he said that. When he told me that this place has a great future for you. He can see a future here for me. I tried for the first time in a long time to try as hard as I can to get here. That's why his words met so much me."
Wimberly, a Temple University police officer, met Harrison at George Washington Carver High School of Engineering and Science in his role in the department's engagement unit.
Wimberly quickly became a mentor for Harrison and dozens of other students. Not only did Wimberly inspire them with words of encouragement, but he also brought programs to the school that included teaching kids how to row.
Many of them, like Braylon Edmonson, said they wouldn't be in college without Wimberly.
"Officer Wimberly, I seen how he was [and] how Temple changed him. I was like if he can do it, so can I," Edmonson said.
Now, a record 42 Carver High School students are following in his path as part of Temple's freshman class.
"Every time I see them, it's a great feeling," Wimberly said.
Wimberly may be an officer, but he's also taken on the role of a father figure for many students. He said he couldn't be more proud.
"Sometimes that little push from an outsider can convince and change their thought process, so to see that and to know that I had a little something to do with it. It's a great feeling," Wimberly said.