You probably aren't aware of this, but on May 12 I am walking in the Rotary Clubs Walk-a-thon which will benefit Phoenix Youth at Risk (PYAR); a non-profit that I volunteer with. I just wanted to take a moment and tell you why I volunteer.
My friend Natasha was not your average 20 something. She was a few days away from receiving her Masters in Urban Planning, she was from Northern Ireland and she loved life. She wanted to change the world and knew that one individual person could make a difference. Her personality was bright, and you couldn't help but be drawn to her. A few days before her graduation she found out she received an internship which would allow her to stay in the US. She went out with a friend to have a few drinks to celebrate. While walking home a man approached them from behind and without warning slammed them in the head with a baseball bat. Natasha stood 5 feet tall, if that. The man took their purses and left them for dead. Natasha was in a coma for days, part of her skull was removed and the doctors were fearful that she would never wake up, much less walk or function again. She lived, but she will never be the same. She sits at her home in Northern Ireland where all she can do is stare out the window. She spends many days crying but she cannot communicate so whatever is going through her brain is a mystery. The light that burned so brightly within her has been reduced to a flicker and she will now never be able to better the world as she so passionalty wanted to do.
I am not telling you this story to tug at your heat strings but this is why I volunteer with PYAR. The man who attacked her was a known gang member and so far it seems that he is hardly remorseful for his actions. I hate him. This part of me wishes everything bad in the world come crashing down on him and that he will live a terrible existence forever full of pain. But, hate doesn't get anywhere, nothing can be changed now. So my way of honoring Natasha is to volunteer. PYAR is a program that pairs Phoenix kids of all ages with adult mentors. I don't need to tell you the benefits of mentoring you can google that yourself. I mentor because this man who I so despise was once just a kid. A kid who probably witnessed things I can't imagine, who may have had terrible role modles and never knew that he had the power to change the path his life was taking. Who knows, maybe if he had been in a program like this and had an adult who gave a shit, his life would have been different and Natasha would be out making a difference. It is too late for him now, but it is not too late for thousands of kids across the country who are living in unstable environments with undesirable role models.
One on one connections can make an unbelievable impact in a persons life, and that is what Phoenix Youth At Risk does. It makes an impact. One less gang member means a safer community for you, one more kid who realizes the potential in themselves means a more productive tomorrow for our country, todays kids are tomorrows adults. Let us take an interest in our youth today rather than complaining about what a selfish, worthless generation they are becoming.
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