Alliance helps at-risk teens

Less than 250 miles separated the men, but it may as well have been a million.

In the spring of 1989, Hunter Bates had a large supportive family in Williamsburg, Kentucky.  The second Eastern Kentucky University graduate ever to go to Harvard Law School, he was eager to stake his claim on a bright future. 

Kenny Boyd, meanwhile, climbed down from his perch under a Nashville viaduct, bracing himself for another day on the street.  He was 24 and realized the drug business had “turned on him.”   While drugs had made him some money, they also earned him gunshot wounds, broken bones and innumerable nights behind bars.  He was alienated from his siblings, his mother, and the daughter he was too ashamed to face.

In fact, Kenny was sitting on a wall near a highway interchange in the middle of Nashville that summer, when he finally surrendered and begged God to set him free from his misery.  His deliverer took the form of a truck driver, who saw Kenny, offered him a ride up Interstate 65 and dropped him off in the city which would embrace him.  First, he sought wholeness through recovery at The Healing Place, in downtown Louisville, where he found victory over addiction.   Once he became clean, he was able to recreate a better life for himself.   A high school diploma led to an associate’s degree and along the way, his testimony took wing within the recovery community.  His charisma led an anonymous benefactor to give him $10,000 to begin Youth Alive.

In 1999, Kenny invited seven young  men to join what would be the first class of Youth Alive.  The boys struggled against the same demons Kenny had known well—gangs, violence, drugs.  Those seven taught Kenny his calling was not going to be easy --  He has attended funerals for two of the men, while two others are in prison.  Still, from the original band of brothers emerged three who would overcome their challenges and prove to Kenny he had, in deed, found his life’s work.  Those three men have gone to college; one has graduated and begun a career.

Approximately 2500 young people have been a part of Youth Alive. About 35% of the recent high school graduates are enrolled in college.  One Youth Alive alumnus has a degree in Criminal Justice from Western Kentucky University.  Another is a student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

The two men’s fate intertwined in 2005, when Hunter’s wife Jennifer spoke with Kenny at length at a party honoring Youth Alive, organized friends from their church.  Jennifer recognized Kenny's message would resonate with Hunter who later invited him to Windy Gap (a retreat in North Carolina).  At the end of their first meeting, Hunter was sold on Kenny’s vision.  “I wanted to run out the door and get involved,” he remembers.    “When you give or serve, you ask, ‘Can this be accomplished?’  And you look at Kenny. His transformation is living proof (that Youth Alive can achieve its goals).”

The Bateses, along with their network of friends, consider it an honor to be friends with Kenny and with his wife, LaTanya.Youth Alive welcomes family involvement,  another reason Hunter and Jennifer have been able to give of their time as well as their money.  In the autumn of 2007,  families spent a day transforming an old college building into a multipurpose space for the Youth Alive community.  At  that event, Jennifer corralled the smallest volunteers to a separate area and into age-appropriate activities and service.  Even four-year-olds were able to appreciate what  they had contributed to the day, in the form of crafts, songs or storytelling.

The Bates’ own children are young:   Hunter II is 8; Anna is 5 and Miller is 6 months.  Hunter travels several days per week and time for service is limited.  He and Jennifer are faithful to serve as they are able, participating in work days, the annual Christmas party and other Youth Alive events.   “We’ve only begun to glimpse what service means,” they say.

Now, less than twenty years later, Hunter and Kenny have a close friendship.  As executive director of Youth Alive, Kenny is aided by generous people like Hunter, now a partner with c2 group in Washington, DC -- a government relations consulting firm. 

“I wanted to run out the door and get involved,” Hunter Bates remembers.    “When you give or serve, you ask, ‘Can this be accomplished?’  And you look at Kenny. His transformation is living proof (that Youth Alive can achieve its goals).” 

When recounting all they have done as a couple for Youth Alive, Kenny says Hunter is part of the brotherhood which sustains him during his toughest days, and that he hopes he's in his life for a long time to come.

 

This article was written by Leigh Moore, a neighbor and friend of the Bates family.  Leigh can be reached at leighrobert@bellsouth.net

 

Youth Alive seeks prayer and financial assistance for their new academic program, HEAT (Higher Education  Academic Training).  Funding is needed for scholarships, academic supplies and tutoring expenses. 

Youth Alive may be reached at:  (502) 774-0212

 Their mailing address is:
                                                                  Youth Alive!
                                                                  1811 Dumesnil Street
                                                                  Louisville, KY  40210

Plus, they can be found on the web here. 

Approach a favorite non-profit organization in your area about bringing in some community members to meet clients and staff and celebrate a holiday or milestone together.  Work with staff to develop seating strategies and icebreaker activities so connections are made and new friendships are born.   (Hint:  People of all faiths are hungry for ways to involve their kids in missional activities during the holidays, especially events offering direct contact with a partner community.)