Miracle Adebanjo: The Gift of Giving
Miracle Adebanjo, weathered a challenging transition from his international upbringing moving from London to New Jersey, and Minnesota that was punctuated with homelessness, culture clash, and lack of structure. But business, social work, and internship opportunities introduced Miracle to friends and mentors at Augsburg and beyond who ignited his passionate drive to build a better tomorrow through activism, community engagement, and entrepreneurship. Miracle Adebanjo: I've had so many investments of love that I just feel obligated to give them back. I have no choice but to get them back. I'm really running over. My cup is full of love. I just want to do good. I just want to serve. That's what I want to do. Paul Pribbenow: Augsburg University educates students to be informed citizens, thoughtful stewards, critical thinkers, and responsible leaders. I'm Paul Pribbenow, the President of Augsburg University, and it's my great privilege to present The Augsburg Podcast. Catherine Day: I'm Catherine Reid Day, host of The Augsburg Podcast. Today we speak with Miracle Adebanjo, major in management and marketing, minor in international business and management information systems, class of 2020. He tells us his story of giving back, of having received gifts of generosity from many people in many ways, and his desire to share it back into the world. He celebrates the bright road ahead, but explains that things didn't always feel quite so certain. Miracle Adebanjo: My path to where I'm at currently to this day has not been an easy one, but I am very grateful. I started off born and raised in London, England. I was fortunate enough to have had a magnificent education from Saint Margaret's Church of England School, to Diagon Park Church of England School, to moving to America, the land of opportunity, in 2012. And from there things took a turn. I spent some time homeless. I was living with Mary Jo Copeland in her shelter, Downtown Minneapolis, for about nine months, and that was a very interesting time in my life because I went from having everything to now having nothing, and I didn't have a silver spoon. I didn't have any money. I didn't have consistency. I was going through a lot of change. I was getting $2 every week, and I was sleeping on the train and doing the most I could to support our family, but still feeling that my efforts were not enough. Those humble beginnings helped me to be more grateful. It humbled me really to not take things for granted. Catherine Day: Miracle's path forward began to take shape in high school. Miracle Adebanjo: My high school was South High School, Minneapolis. I was involved in a lot of things on campus, especially on my first year, due to the fact that I didn't want to spend a lot of time in the homeless shelter. I was a three season sport kind of kid. I was in track, basketball, and soccer. I was also involved in student council, and oftentimes you could catch me hanging out after school, talking to teachers. I would also spend some time talking to Sheri Harris, my social worker. She was always there to support me and give me advice, and just make me feel like I had a voice, and I had something worth sharing, something with listening to. And I just feel like when people empower you like that, it gives you hope. It makes you feel like you're destined for greatness, like you can do a lot more than what you're currently doing now. Catherine Day: And the next step in Miracle’s destiny, as it turned out, was Augsburg.
