MAPLE GROVE, Minn. — For one Maple Grove student, helping others is a two-way street.
"Seeing the kids I work with, seeing them be able to accept the help that they need and exceed because of it, and feel good about themselves because of it has shown me that I can do the same thing," said sophomore Lindsey Long.
Long is an A+ student at Maple Grove Senior High School, but said things haven't always been that way.
Long has ADHD and needed various things along the way to help her succeed.
She credits some of that success to perseverance she learned from her younger brother, who also struggled in school.
"My little brother, he's one of my best friends. He's one of my favorite people in the world," Long said. "He's in seventh grade. He's like 12, so he's like one of those annoying little 12-year-old brothers but he's also, like I said, like one of my best friends."
Long spends her free time tutoring other students, and while a private tutor can be expensive, she offers her services for free.
"I saw no reason to have it to cost anything - there was no reason why I needed to be paid for it, I just wanted to help people the way that people have helped people I care about," said Long.
As Long helps improve the grades of other students, she says she grows and changes as well.
To improve your community, as Long shows us, sometimes you need to believe in yourself to make other people believe in you, too.