 |
 Partners™ for Youth with Disabilities
Mentoring programs that assist young people to reach their full potential |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
|||||
|
|
Peer Leadership Success Story
At the age of 14, a young woman joined PYD's YIPI group. At first, she was unhappy that her parents were making her attend the group. She didn't really want to have contact with other teens who had disabilities. She was working hard at fitting in at school and trying to be just like everyone else. After a few weeks in the group, she began to really listen to the mentors and found out that having a disability is something you can take pride in. She made many new friends who had similar disabilities and shared stories of what it's like growing up with a disability. Her confidence and self-esteem grew and she felt much less isolated. As she went on to high school and graduated, she became one of the most active members of the youth group and convinced many other young people she met over the years to attend. After graduation from high school, she returned to the youth group as a volunteer and peer leader because she wanted to give back to the group by helping others. She volunteered over 500 hours of her time as a peer leader and gained valuable job skills. She received an award from United Way for her community service. After attending college, this young woman became employed at a local Independent Living Center working to help youth with disabilities. She got an apartment and began living on her own. She is now coordinating the PYD Peer Leadership Program and training new peer leaders about how to become active members of their community.
Peer Leadership Participant Quotes |
||||
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
|||||
|
||||||
|
||||||
|
||||||
|
Site Map | Apply | Donate | Volunteer | Related Resources | Website Credits Privacy Policy | © Copyright 2005 Partners™ for Youth with Disabilities 
|
|||||