“Call me Kameron ‘I’m Here to Help’ Norwood, because that’s the mantra I live by.
My parents divorced when I was young and because I was an only child my mom put all of her chips on my future.
She worked three jobs and would commute somewhere around 100 miles a day by train, bus, carpool, whatever it took to bring in as much as she could to support me, to make sure we could afford to live in a good school district, away from gang banging and things that might have taken me off the rails.
I wouldn’t be where I am in life today without her example and the education her sacrifice afforded me.
Eventually my mom got remarried, and that guy was from Tucson, which was much cheaper than Palo Alto where we were living at the time, so we ended up moving there. In Arizona, 250 grand got you a mansion instead of the shack it got you in California.
In Tucson I really found a community that built on the foundation my mother laid.
I love it here, and it’s neat that my kids get to go to the same school district that I grew up going to, that I met my wife in.
One thing I’ll mention is that in that district I was one of very few black kids that went to the school. My screen name growing up was actually ‘1of5atFootHills.’
But I embraced it and didn’t let it define my path one way or another.
I had people that believed in me no matter how much I was getting in trouble or talking out in class. I almost got kicked out of middle school multiple times, but a principal named Ms. Brazie would take me into her office and set me straight each and every time.
I saw her recently, gave her a big hug, and said, ‘It would have been so easy for you to be like, “He’s out,” but you never did. I’m so grateful for that.’
I want to be an active member in the community that helped me achieve my goals and believed in me to get me where I wanted to be.
I want people to be afforded the same opportunities I was, and if I see any sort of underdog doing what it takes, I’m like, “Man, that’s bada**.” When those types of people ask something of me, I’ll do anything to help them.
For example, I’m on the board of a small charter high school. 70% of the students are under the poverty line and the others that aren’t are just above it.
As a board member, I’ll do the camp trip once a year where we take these kids camping who have never camped before because they just haven’t had the opportunity.
Seeing how those kids can be impacted from a single two-night camp trip, building fires and roasting hot dogs and s’mores, telling stories, and getting to know each other?
That means the world to me, because I see a little bit of myself in how those kids are growing up.
There are not a lot of opportunities coming those kids’ ways, and I want to be to them one of the people like the ones in my life that helped me stay on track.”
Kam Norwood
Tucson, AZ
Kam is a commercial real estate broker, dedicated father, and retired chicken farmer dedicated to helping the city of Tucson where he’s been recognized by Our America as a “Hometown Hero.”
