Urban Underground's Impact

I am going to take you guys on an a quick adventure through my life because that is the best way I explain the impact that Urban Underground had on my life. Urban Underground completely changed my life. It is literally one of those situation where you get out of it what you put in. There is no experience in my life that had a greater impact on me than Urban Underground. 


Before Urban Underground I was that quiet shy girl that didn’t have any friends. I acted like I was okay with it for so long, I pretended like it didnt effect me. I went days without speaking I had a lot of anxiety and I was very nervous all the time. Before Urban Underground I had no idea what I was getting myself into. The summer before I started the program I went to a camp which also was a life changing experience. The camp is where I met the members of Urban Underground. During the camp I started to get more comfortable with my peers and I made some lifelong friendships with students from Urban. Not too long after camp they invited everyone to Urban Underground for a lock-in, which is the best sleepover you will ever experience. I got a chance to meet the staff. That night I was supposed to be at the lock-in with my sister and my cousin but something happened and they weren’t able to go. Usually I am too shy to go to outings by myself but I decided to step out of my comfort zone and try it out. Being at that lock-in was the beginning of my love for Urban Underground. Fast forward into the beginning of the school year, I started a new school and I happened to see someone from camp in my class at school who was a member of Urban. We became close friends and he told me all about the program. After school everyday I started taking the bus with him to Urban for their homework program, I loved it! I asked everyday, how can I get involved! He was like “just wait they are having interviews soon”, I was thinking in my head, what interview? There’s no way I am going to be able to make it through an interview. A couple of weeks later I went to an information session, I signed up for an interview, I made it all the way to a group interview and then when I found out I was a member of the program I was so excited! I called my mom and dad about the news! They were so happy for me. 


Now I don’t want to go into every little detail about how Urban Changed my life and how I am a better person because of the program, that would take at least 10 pages front and back to explain. So I will keep it simple. Urban taught me a lot, how to prepare for an interview, how to save money, how to apply for college, they taught me the importance of knowing my history, public speaking, facilitation, and most importantly they showed me love. Now don’t get me wrong, I have an extremely loving and caring family but my Urban Underground family was so different. It was something I couldn't quite explain. My parent did not understand why I wanted to be there every second of everyday. I wanted to be there so much because it literally made me who I am today. If I wouldn't have joined Urban Underground I would still be this quiet shy girl with no friends. Urban has provided me with so many experiences, more than I can name! They have provided me with life long friends. I won't even begin to go into how Urban Underground helped my family and supported us through hard times. Sharlen and Reggie Moore, Charmaine Harris, Jeremy Triblett, and David "DB" Bowen thank you. I am who I am because of you all. Because of your vision for Urban Underground, so many young people in the community have been able to achieve what they never thought they could.