By Precious Yamaguchi, 17, Bravo Medical Magnet

“I was hesitant to go to the Mar Vista Youth Leadership Conference. I didn’t know what it was really about and I didn’t know anybody. I figured it would be boring speakers telling you what to do, speakers who had no idea what teenagers really go through. Since it was my mom who suggested I go, I thought only uncool people would be there.
Yet on a cloudy Saturday morning, being the dutiful daughter, I went to the conference with my friend Jessica. As my grandmother drove us to the center, I saw people hanging around on the street doing nothing. My grandmother warned, “Don’t leave the building, even if it’s boring.”
First I noticed the sign outside: “By youth for youth.” My mom had told me that this place had been built by about 20 gang members. Inside, 15 or 20 teens were busy setting up. “Where’s the doughnuts? Where’s the napkins?” they were calling frantically.
Jessica and I had plenty of time to notice some fine guys. We spotted some that we decided to interview later on. (It can be a plus to be a journalist.)

The cloudy day became a bright one
Within minutes, the staff members had turned the cloudy day into a morning of vibrant colors with balloons, streamers and complimentary danishes. I was impressed by how friendly everyone was. It was one of the few times I’ve seen girls and boys who were possibly in gangs all together, not feeling threatened or staring each other down.
The conference was called “Choices.” The basic idea is that if you mess up in life, you try again and don’t give up. Gonzalo, 27, the conference coordinator, said the Mar Vista Youth Center really helps the youth. “We work a lot on communication skills. The support that we get from everybody is what [makes it] work.”
After everyone got acquainted and the staff members were introduced, the youth went to workshops instead of listening to boring speakers as I had feared. In my workshop, we had to create our own skits dealing with heavy, controversial topics like sex, drugs, peer pressure, dropping out of school or leaving home. I participated in a skit about leaving home. Our main character was a teenager who feels that he is capable of leaving home because all of his friends are moving out on their own. I played his girlfriend, convincing him that he shouldn’t go because he won’t be able to focus on his education. Though it may be difficult living with his parents at times, he doesn’t have what it takes to support himself.
Another skit was about a pregnant teen. The father leaves her and takes no responsibility for the baby. When this topic was discussed, one girl in the group talked about how she got pregnant. Another girl told how she got kicked out when she told her mom she was pregnant. Several guys talked about having been in gangs—many had seen friends shot in front of them. I had a lot of respect for these youth for being so motivated to get back on the right track. I saw that everyone was here not to judge people or be judged, but to be presented with guidance and choices by staff members who are trying to help, not change others.

Everyone was welcome
During lunch we ate Pollo Loco and listened to the Beat. As I was eating I watched how inhibitions, frustrations, and separations were being mended. Everyone there had some common ground of wanting to improve themselves or meet new people. Unlike where youth hang out at the mall or go to school, no one was isolated or unwelcome.
After lunch I attended a workshop about setting goals. First they handed out about $500 in Monopoly money. About 30 of us gripped our money tightly in our hands as if it were real. We were instructed to put down a month’s worth of money for gas, food, clothes, going out and so forth. Before we knew it, most of it was gone. We saw how much money we spend every month. Gonzalo said we shouldn’t just blow everything on things we want at the moment. We should think about future expenses—college, cars, maybe even buying a house someday. Yeah, he was right. Only one or two of us had a savings account. A lot of us got our parents to buy us things we didn’t really need, just because everyone else had them. It was a guilt trip, but it was effective. Now when I go to the store I ask myself, “Do I really need this?”
The day finally came to a close with a skit about a teenager who leaves home and becomes involved with all the temptations of drugs and sex. She is overwhelmed by it and ends up dying. It was very emotional to see that there is only so much one can take and that we are not immortal. At the end, when she died, the audience stared in silence. Some of them were serious and sympathized, but someone whispered, “Drugs and sex can’t really kill you.”
Going to the youth conference was definitely a Saturday well spent. Never before have I observed a center that does not try to mold others into what they should be, but instead helps them. I learned that no mistake is unfixable and we can always do things to improve ourselves.
To top it off, that night I turned on the news and saw a segment called Young People Doing Adult Things. It showed how the youth at the center organized the conference by themselves. After hard work and preparation, these staff members had significantly reached out to their community and peers, for the benefit of society.”