Deborah Crimes
Sourcing and Contracts Specialist, Freddie Mac
Founder and Owner, Lessons From Abroad
By day, education guru Deborah Crimes is a Sourcing and Contracts Specialist at Freddie Mac. By night, she runs her own company, Lessons From Abroad, LLC, an educational consulting firm that she founded nearly 18 years ago.
“My passion is education and training of young people, especially teaching foreign language and culture,” Crimes said. Lessons from Abroad introduces kids to world languages and cultures so that they become more engaged global citizens.
When Crimes discovered Junior Achievement while working in Detroit, Michigan over 30 years ago, she knew volunteering with the organization would align perfectly with her love of education, entrepreneurship and children.
The adventure really began when Crimes served as Principal for a Day (PFAD) at a school in her Maryland community eight years ago. To give back after the experience, she “adopted” the school and began recruiting JA Volunteers to teach in every classroom. The rest is history!
“The staff at JA and the liaison at the school are instrumental in making this happen year after year. They are there to help me recruit, train, get materials out to the volunteers, and they are there on the day of our program to make sure everything runs smoothly,” Crimes said. “This is what true partnership is all about.”
Crimes says that the students’ genuine interest in learning and engaging with professionals from outside the classroom makes her return year after year.
Her mother also serves as her inspiration to give. Crimes’ mom volunteers constantly, even at the age of 78, and was instrumental in changing the name of Fulton Street in Brooklyn, New York to Harriet Tubman Street. “She does this all because she has a burning desire to do whatever it takes to make this world a little bit brighter,” Crimes said.
Crimes’ education philosophy is simple: “Each one teach one.” Always reach back and pull someone up because one good deed can change a life.
She also recommends JA lessons because they teach hard skills in personal economics, as well as valuable soft skills like care, respect and understanding for others.
In her free time, Crimes loves to spend time with family and friends, visit D.C. museums and cultural festivals, and work out. She also runs a book club that she founded with her sister and friends 25 years ago. The club has hosted well-known authors such as congressman and past president of the NAACP, Kweisi Mfume.
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