
Wednesday's Child: 14-year-old Elyjah
WBZ/MARE
MARE - Elyjah is a resilient and compassionate child. He is thoughtful, protective of his siblings and animals, and cares deeply for others.
He enjoys basketball, board games, video games, and building with Legos. He thrives in one-on-one time with adults and is a bright, motivated learner.
Social and funny, Elyjah looks forward to after-school sports and sleepovers with friends. His curiosity and kindness make him a joy to be around.
For more information you can contact MARE: 617-964-MARE (6273) or visit www.mareinc.org.
Since its inception in 1981, Wednesday's Child has been a collaboration of the Massachusetts Adoption Resource Exchange (MARE), the Department of Children & Families and WBZ-TV/CBS Boston. Hosted by Jack Williams for 34 years, this weekly series has given a face and voice to the children who wait the longest for families. Wednesday's Child has helped find homes for hundreds of waiting children and continues to raise awareness about adoption from foster care.

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WBZ/MARE MARE - Leilani is an energetic and vibrant teenage girl with a big personality and an even bigger heart. Those who know her best describe her as bubbly, talkative, and full of life. She has contagious enthusiasm and is always ready for fun and adventure. Creative and expressive, Leilani enjoys arts and crafts, singing, dancing, and playing sports, especially soccer. She also shines on stage as a member of her school's drama club, where she channels her love for performing. One of her biggest dreams is to be the star of her own show someday, and with her passion and presence, she's well on her way. For more information you can contact MARE: 617-964-MARE (6273) or visit Since its inception in 1981, Wednesday's Child has been a collaboration of the Massachusetts Adoption Resource Exchange (MARE), the Department of Children & Families and WBZ-TV/CBS Boston. Hosted by Jack Williams for 34 years, this weekly series has given a face and voice to the children who wait the longest for families. Wednesday's Child has helped find homes for hundreds of waiting children and continues to raise awareness about adoption from foster care.


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30-05-2025
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Shepard High School senior earns $40K Amazon engineering scholarship
Playing computer games wasn't enough for Carlos Castillo. He wanted to be the one creating them — so that's just what he did, and that was when he was in middle school. Around that time, his mother was struck with cancer, making him even more determined to excel at computer design, so he could make her proud of him. His determination to succeed in the years since, along with emotional support from his sister Samantha Castillo and staff at Shepard High School in Palos Heights, helped him win the Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship, which comes with up to $40,000, as well as a paid internship at Amazon. He was one of 22 Illinois students to win out of the total 400 winners. 'Around middle school, I really wasn't good at a lot of things,' said Carlos, now a senior at Shepard. 'So I took an interest in trying to make things and the computer was a perfect recipient for all that.' But Carlos said he was surprised when he got the message that he had won the scholarship. Of course he had done the groundwork to be competitive in the competition. He took a semester of web site design and coding, as well as both AP computer and science classes. He's also been a member of the school's Gaming Club and Business Professionals of America. He participated in a 50-person Flowlab competition, where he developed a video game in two weeks and won honorable mention. 'My mother was very proud of that one,' recalled Carlos. When his mother got sick and subsequently died, he made that extra effort. 'I found myself hammering away trying to do something big,' said Carlos. 'I really wanted to have my name out there before she passed away.' He said the computer field required a strong foundation in math and he 'hit that one out of the park.' He mainly works with a computer language called C++, an 'object-oriented programming language.' He received national recognition for his C++ programming skills in a Business Professionals of America competition. But he also loves reading and writing. He plans to attend Illinois State University in the fall and major in engineering. Carlos has also found time to work part-time stocking shelves and bagging groceries at an area grocery store. And he's gotten more than book learning from his high school. 'One of the best things Shepard has provided me is just mainly resources of support,' he said. 'The counselors and teachers were great at helping me through the loss.' Samantha Castillo, Carlos' sister, a physical education teacher at Shepard, said she remembered her brother being creative since he was a child. 'Growing up, he was very creative in a natural sense, he loved to create things whether building with Legos or drawing,' she said. 'But once he was able to learn and hone in on computer development and game development skills, that is when my mother and I knew we had found a knack for him.' Castillo said she was proud of his resilience and dedication. 'We have been through a lot as a small family,' she said. 'It was always just me, him and my mom, so her loss was pretty profound in our lives. To us, it really is a demonstration of his character and ability to overcome these things.' She also said she knew their mom would be 'incredibly proud of him.' 'I know I am definitely very proud of him,' she said. That sense of pride is shared by Jane Turner, his counselor. 'I think he is a very kind, patient young man and he sets very high expectations of himself,' Turner said. 'I'm very excited for his future and very proud of him for overcoming very difficult circumstances during his high school years and still shining through some difficult times 'He's a real class act.'
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