I see myself in the teens I work with; there is a little bit of me in each one of them. I understand their struggles, their fears, their barriers because I’ve lived through them.

Growing up, it was hard for me to find my spark and lift my voice. Low income, first generation Mexican-American, parents spoke little to no English, where trying to make ends meet on a day-to-day basis was how we lived.  I didn’t find myself speaking up a lot of times. Very similar to some of the teens we work with in our Step Up groups.

It was destiny that brought one of our students at Northside High School to the Step Up program. My co-worker Connie and I were in the cafeteria recruiting for the program by telling the students all the fun activities we do. We mentioned going to the TCU women’s basketball game and at that very moment was when Camp Fire Step Up became part of her life (we later learned that sports are her spark). She overheard us talking about the game and showed up to our program that very day after school in the library with some of her friends. She walked in, we introduced ourselves – but we could see the uncertainty in her face. She wasn’t sure whether this was something she wanted to be a part of but decided to give it a try.

During our group sessions, she would talk occasionally but place her hand over her mouth making it hard to understand what she was saying. She would hardly share her thoughts or opinions during our discussions. Slowly, she became more comfortable and familiar with the other teens to where she could laugh and joke with them. She knew their names and they knew hers. In a teens life, for others to know your name means your cool. This boosted her confidence and she would participate more in group discussions.

Eventually, she stopped putting her hand over her mouth. If her friends didn’t go to group meeting she was still there. She slowly became more independent. One day, we were discussing the safe spaces in their lives. She said our Step Up group was her safe space. She said she didn’t talk in her classes, she kept more to herself and during our group meetings is when she felt she could be more open to others.  That brought joy to my heart knowing that in a matter of weeks we’d been able to make a difference in her life. With us, she could lift her voice and eventually be able to lift it in all aspects of her life. Today, she does the recruiting for us by telling her classmates about what we do and who we are. She walks and talks with confidence knowing that we are on her side and she can always count on us.

This isn’t a unique situation in this program, though. One of our teens at Meacham Middle School had been in the program for a couple of months. He always participated in group discussions. Was always talkative. One of the other girls in the group was surprised, saying she’d never heard him so talkative. When we started the summer program he was unsure whether he wanted to be part of it. He gave it a try and quickly became everyone’s favorite. Everyone in the group knew him, he was always so helpful and willing to work with others. He was the only one from his school and didn’t know anyone else in the group but that did not bother him at all.

Everything was going smoothly until his mother told us about their upcoming trip to Mexico. His faced dropped, we could see tears in his eyes as he was trying to soak up his last day before heading out. There was a group of our teens that wanted to say good bye to him at his home. His mother came out and spoke to us and asked if we’d ever noticed his stuttering. We all looked at each other in confusion. We couldn’t remember a single time when he’d stuttered. She was surprised and so were we. Out of the blue, during that conversation he began to stutter. This was a first for us. We discovered he felt so comfortable and peaceful during our Step Up group that he didn’t stutter. With Camp Fire, he learned how to lift his voice. He learned how to find peace within himself, and how to speak up for himself and be a role model to others.

So many times, our teens are misunderstood. Each day they are fighting a different battle, whether it be emotional abuse, lack of a stable home life, drugs and alcohol, or the violence in their neighborhood. They don’t often have a champion. It is important for teens to have a relationship with a caring adult but they often close themselves off to adults because of their past experiences. It’s hard for them to trust after they’ve been shut down so many times before. It is my job to break down those barriers and push them to their full potential. To help them lift their voice and discover who they are – I am their Champion in a world where few exist.