Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth

By Sgt. Shantelle CampbellApril 9, 2014

Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
1 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Angela Robinson, right, a teacher North Springs Elementary School in Columbia, S.C., speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, left, a supply speciali... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
2 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Staff Sgt. CiAndra Na'eem with the 7/108th Personnel Support Battalion and a health services case manager with the 81st Regional Support Command at Fort Jackson, S.C., speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk Abo... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
3 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Staff Sgt. CiAndra Na'eem with the 7/108th Personnel Support Battalion and a health services case manager with the 81st Regional Support Command at Fort Jackson, S.C., speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk Abo... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
4 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Staff Sgt. CiAndra Na'eem with the 7/108th Personnel Support Battalion and a health services case manager with the 81st Regional Support Command at Fort Jackson, S.C., speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk Abo... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
5 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Staff Sgt. Sophia Ellis, a human resources NCO with the 416th Engineer Command stationed in Denver, Colo., speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
6 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Spc. Stacy Georgia, a supply specialist with the 81st Regional Support Command at Fort Jackson, S.C., speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Georgia proactively organ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
7 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Angela Robinson, right, a teacher North Springs Elementary School in Columbia, S.C., role-plays a mother for local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, left, a s... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
8 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Angela Robinson, left, a teacher North Springs Elementary School in Columbia, S.C., and Spc. Stacy Georgia, right, a supply specialist with the 81st Regional Support Command, role play a mother and daughter for local teens in Summerton, S.C. during ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
9 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Yushika Cantey, an analyst at Verizon Wireless Atlanta, Ga., speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, a supply specialist with the 81st proactively o... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
10 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Alexis Benn talks to a varied panel of adults and local teens during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, a supply specialist with the 81st Regional Support Command at Fort Jackson, S.C., proac... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
11 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Ms. Tammy Tooley, center, a member of a varied panel of adults, listens to her daughter, Alexis Benn, speak to the audience during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, a supply specialist with ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
12 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Bryant Lawson, an accountant and Founder of The Lost Angels Foundation, speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, a supply specialist with the 81st RS... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
13 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Staff Sgt. CiAndra Na'eem with the 7/108th Personnel Support Battalion and a health services case manager with the 81st Regional Support Command at Fort Jackson, S.C., speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk Abo... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
14 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Staff Sgt. Sophia Ellis, a human resources NCO with the 416th Engineer Command stationed in Denver, Colo., speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
15 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – A local Summerton, S.C. teen asks a question of a varied panel of adults during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, a supply specialist with the 81st Regional Support Command at Fort Jackson, ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
16 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Children from the Summerton, S.C. area participate is a cooperation exercise during a Youth Expo called Let's Talk About You coordinated and held in Summerton by Army Reserve Spc. Stacy Georgia, a supply specialist with the 81st Regional Support Comm... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
17 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Mr. A.J. Franklin, Suicide Prevention program manager at the 81st Regional Support Command at Fort Jackson, speaks to local teens in Summerton, S.C. during a youth expo called Let's Talk About You aimed at area youth, ages 13-18. Spc. Stacy Georgia, ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth
18 / 18 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Children from the Summerton, S.C. area participate is a cooperation exercise during a Youth Expo called Let's Talk About You coordinated and held in Summerton by Army Reserve Spc. Stacy Georgia, a supply specialist with the 81st Regional Support Comm... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT JACKSON, S.C. -- Inside of the Taw Caw Community Outreach Center in Summerton, S.C., many young people and parents gathered together to participate in the first Lets Talk About You Youth Expo, March 29.

Spc. Stacy Georgia, a supply specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 81st Regional Support Command at Fort Jackson, S.C., created and coordinated the youth expo to give young people a safe place to open up about their issues.

"It's not enough that we're losing (young people) to violence," said Georgia, "but how many parents even realize that their child hates school because of their peers and not because of academics Therefore, we have to do something because if we don't, we're going to lose more than what we think."

Furthermore, Georgia says providing a place for young people to express themselves freely is her mission because it's something she didn't have when she was a teenager.

"It doesn't matter what you go through, you always have to find someone (who) you can trust and go to, to help empower you to do what you're supposed to," Georgia said.

"So for me," Georgia added, "if I had of known that I had this I wouldn't have had all of the issues that I had. It would have helped tremendously to just have had someone to talk to back then."

In addition to discussing topics that ranged from self-esteem, attitude to trust, Georgia and a panel of volunteers from her community performed various scenarios of everyday situations and how to handle them.

"I want (these young people) to have hope for their future and learn from their past," said Sophia Ellis, founder of Youth With Ambition. " … I want them to be eagles and have hope to soar and reach higher heights beyond what their life has presented to them already."

After concluding the discussion, the group ate lunch and the males and females were later separated in order to talk about more personal issues.

"Something like this is important because it gives people our age a place to express (ourselves)," said Faithe Oliver, a junior at Scott's Branch High School, "(We) don't have to worry about being judged when (we) come here."

The next Let's Talk About You Youth Expo is scheduled for May 31 at noon inside the Taw Caw Community Outreach Center.

For more information about the youth expo or how to get involved, please email Georgia at letstalkaboutyou2014@gmail.com.

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Wildcat Soldier starts program that inspires youth