Bowdoin Bound Alum Making a Difference

Ty Johnson was part of the first wave of kids to go through Bowdoin Bound. When he first traveled to Maine in the summer of 2003, he was a fourth grader at Brehms Lane Elementary School. Today, he is a junior at Bowdoin College, studying on the same campus that he’d spent so many summers on as a kid. Even twelve years later, Ty remembers the other kids from Bowdoin a fondness that only over a decade’s shared experience can produce. His favorite activities while on Bowdoin Bound were scavenger hunt across campus and swimming in pool. He even dared to leap off the pool’s high dive. In addition to his peers from Baltimore, Ty also spent time with kids from Maine. The Mainers struck Ty as almost completely different than himself and the other Baltimoreans. Nonetheless, they still played together and even if things didn’t always go smooth, it was an important experience in which both groups grew in appreciation for the other.

It wasn’t until high school however that he got to utilize Bowdoin Bound’s resources to explore different options for his college education. Traveling up and down the east coast with Bowdoin Bound. Ty visited many excellent schools. Additionally Bowdoin Bound assisted in preparing the college application. In the end however, he decided that Bowdoin was the place he wanted to be. Bringing the skills and knowledge that he has gained at Bowdoin back to Baltimore, Ty works hard to improve Baltimore communities through beautification, organization, and communication. This past summer he worked as a community organization specialist in with Belair-Edison Neighborhoods Inc. Bowdoin Bound for Ty was both a joy and a tool. It has been part of his life for a long time. It is a constant thread that is woven into the tapestry of his life, from childhood games to higher education.