Hey! I’m Terrell.
I am a high school senior in St. Louis Public School District and an intern studying non-profit business structure at Story Stitchers this semester. I have been helping with setting up the social media to attract teenagers, reviewing and critiquing the website, studying the budgets and meeting lots of people that help with the organization.
We have a Pick the City UP Tour coming up! The Tour will visit community centers around the city. This Tour is so important for teens and young people like myself because it informs teens about gun violence and why you should not pick up a gun.
Kids are already saying this summer is going to be tragic and terrible because people are going to be losing their lives to gun violence this summer. Parents need to keep their kids busy by putting them in programs like sports or Boys and Girls Clubs to keep them out of trouble. Teens and families can come to tour events and relax, learn and have fun. For teens the shows are something to look forward to doing with your friends.
Sometimes teens will pick up an a gun because of anger and sometimes because of fear. Some teens might be going through something at home, or something they’ve seen or done might make them think a gun could help to keep them safe. The Tour can help because it informs teens about why you should not pick up a gun and helps them to think about the consequences if you do pick it up and pull that trigger. You could go to jail, lose your life, take someone’s else’s life. The songs and poems tell about how you don’t need a gun to be safe or cool. They say that you should have your own mind and think for yourself and don’t let nobody get in your head about carrying a gun.
Community organizers at the Tour can invite health care vendors. This is important to show teens how to take better care of themselves like better eating habits, how to get access to mental health care or doctors, or where to go for STD testing and other things.
I hope you will support the Tour. Visit storystitchers.org to make a donation. Thanks!
