Bryesha | Something Good In Englewood

We have an amazing nonprofit organization on the show! Whose mission is to support, uplift and invest in Englewood by creating safe spaces, meaningful programs, and opportunities for growth.  I'm joined by such an inspiring group of young leaders who believe that real change begins within the community. Gaining recognition of former Mayor Rahm Emanuel, June 5th is proclaimed by the city of Chicago as 'Something Good In Englewood Day'.  This year is their 12th celebration of greatness. Welcome, Something Good In Englewood!!

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:12

Hey everyone, we have an amazing nonprofit organization in the studio today whose mission is to support, uplift, and invest in Englewood by creating safe spaces, meaningful programs, and opportunities for growth. I'm here with such an inspiring group of young leaders who believe that real change begins within the community. Here with me today, let's welcome something good in Inglewood. Welcome, welcome. Okay. Hi guys. Thank you guys so much for being here. So, disclaimer, I am co-founder at GIE, but it's not about me today. It's about you guys. Because we're in the program. Right. So don't embarrass me. Stick to the script. No, I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. This is a safe space. Feel free to share as you like. So let's start things off. Let's introduce ourselves. Name and age. Whoever wanna go first.

SPEAKER_02 1:10

Hi, I'm Akila Evans and I am 18. Hi, I'm Carnish Lynn, and I am 16.

SPEAKER_01 1:17

Hello, my name is Damien Blue, and I'm 18. Big Dog.

SPEAKER_03 1:21

All right now. Yes. So you guys are something good at Inglewood youth leaders. Yes. So my first question is what made you want to be involved with something good?

SPEAKER_02 1:34

My reason for wanting to be involved is because we give so much back to the community. Whether we have it or we don't have it, like it's so many opportunity knocks there. It's so many things you can learn. Like as a kid, as a grown up, you know, it's just a very good experience and like a way to maneuver through life. Cause I'm gonna always have SGIE and Little Angels a part of my life. So I know I'm gonna be good. I'm gonna be good hands. Yeah. Um my response is honestly the same. I feel like I wanted to be a part of something good because of what we do for the community. I feel like we give back, um, we bring resources to our community. Um, even to those who don't quote unquote need them, but they still, you know, really need.

SPEAKER_03 2:23

So absolutely, I love that.

SPEAKER_01 2:26

Well, I joined for the community service I was at first. So as I participated more and more, it made me want to stay because of the good things that we're doing for the community, and basically like the experience that you get and the skills that you get, whether that's you learning how to communicate more or being able to empathize with other people that's not as fortunate as you.

SPEAKER_03 2:49

I love it. Great answer. Okay, so Something Good offers many, many, many community resources, as you guys have just said. Some supportive services, such as job and housing resources, um, leaf, financial literacy classes, learning everything about finance, uh, Cultural Explorer Summer Camp, Ingle is Fine as Christmas, Higher Learning Initiative, which um takes students to on college tours and help with college application process. So, can you tell us a little bit more about some of those programs?

SPEAKER_02 3:20

Um, so I would say, well, I would like to talk about the college program. Um, it just, well, it it gives us the opportunity to learn about college and what also we can do outside and like the different type of networks we can learn about, and also just like the different experiences that people have while being in college. It opens our eyes to what we really want to do in life and like where we want to go and what like piques our interest and what you know excites us and stuff like that.

SPEAKER_03 3:52

How colleges did you guys go to?

SPEAKER_02 3:53

Um we've been to Howard, we've been to Spelman, Atlanta, okay. We've been to um Clark, we've been to Um It's in Urbana.

SPEAKER_01 4:06

We've been to Morris Brown. Um It was Urbana. UIC. UIC. Yeah, UIC, yes. Can't forget Emory. We went to Emory.

SPEAKER_02 4:14

Yep, Big M in the building. Big M. That's my favorite.

SPEAKER_03 4:18

What was your favorite school so far that you got to visit? Emory. Emery you liked? Okay.

SPEAKER_02 4:24

Yeah, well, my another one of my favorites is Morris Brown because they don't get a lot of recognition, but it's so many different things you can get to learn and stuff up in there, and plus they still expanding, so just get them time. They're gonna get up the next to Clark and stuff like that.

SPEAKER_03 4:38

So you guys think the college tours are a good thing to have. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 4:42

So educational. Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 4:44

Put the college idea in your head.

SPEAKER_02 4:46

Yeah, even if you don't want to go, it yeah, it opens your eyes a lot.

SPEAKER_01 4:52

All right.

SPEAKER_03 4:53

Fantastic. Okay, any other other programs? The one I want to focus on was the summer camp.

unknown 5:00

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 5:01

Um, our summer camp, it opens up, I believe, June 15th through the July 31st. And we um do weekly field trips, we have different activities for the kids like sports, art, swimming, swimming, yep, things like that. So it's just a way for the kids to get out of the streets and more into a safe, fun environment.

SPEAKER_03 5:25

Be more productive all the summer. That's amazing.

SPEAKER_01 5:28

To piggyback on her, we got juicing classes, yoga classes, biking lessons. Instead, we go swimming, we got um boxing now. The kids are getting into. Hopefully, we'll be with in a dojo closer to us that offers more, but that's on the way.

unknown 5:44

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 5:44

Also, with the cultural program, it's just a good idea to allow kids to know the different cultures and see how they relate to each other and how they grow with each other based off what each other does. Um, another program is What about finest Christmas? I was just like, that is a blessing on each other. That's a blessing. The biggest blessing to just like the smiles on their faces. See the kids smile and to dress up and deliver presents to those that's not like able to get what they want for Christmas, even if we don't give it, get what they want on their list to a tea. We try our best, and we it's just a blessing to see the kids smile. Yeah, and it's also just a blessing to go out there and carol and be in our elf suits and just dance.

SPEAKER_03 6:27

Right. So, for clarity, you guys select families before the holiday season comes up, and then the selected families they get presents, trees, clothes, gift cards, gift cards, ornaments, the whole thing. So we go off their wish list, kind of. Yes. Wow. And you guys dress up as reindeers. Yes. Reindeers. That is so awesome. And we do our jingle bell rock. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 6:51

I think we might switch a song this year.

SPEAKER_03 6:53

We need to switch the song. Yeah. I know we heard that all the time. I think last year it was Felice Navida.

SPEAKER_01 6:59

And they couldn't get it.

SPEAKER_03 7:02

That's a lot of different programming. So many more coming. So many, so many more. Big toon chat. Okay now. So to learn a little bit more about you guys, tell us what are some of your life aspirations and goals personally. Because I know we've got seniors here and high schoolers. So, what are your some of your life aspirations and goals?

SPEAKER_02 7:22

Some of my life aspirations and goals is just to be successful, I would say, but to do it in a way that makes me feel like I'm I'm doing what I want to do. And I would say another goal for me is to give back. Yeah. And to learn my community more and to expand it and just to help others grow while I'm also growing myself. I don't know. I like I like a teach one wait, what's it called? I'm sorry. No, you can't do that. Teach one teach one moment. Yes, I love those type of moments. Yeah, I don't know. I'm still figuring out my goals.

SPEAKER_03 8:00

So we were talking a little bit about that earlier. What school? You like what school school plans for you?

SPEAKER_02 8:06

Oh, yeah. So I'm going to SIUC Sluiki here. Okay. I'm going there for business and finance. And then when I get out of there, when I graduate, I'm going to come to Harry Truman and get my cosmetology degree, and I'm going to be an entrepreneur and base that off of there. So y'all come to my shop. You know, come book, you know, come let me teach you a little something.

SPEAKER_03 8:27

Are you gonna do like hair, makeup, whatever?

SPEAKER_02 8:28

Yeah, I'm gonna do the whole now. The whole now.

SPEAKER_03 8:31

You want me to cut your hair? I got you.

SPEAKER_02 8:33

Want me lock your hair up? I got you. Come check me out, chat.

SPEAKER_01 8:37

Coming soon. Coming soon. When you say cut hair, you mean like snip or ham? No, barber, barber, cut, all of that.

SPEAKER_02 8:44

I'm gonna learn her to do all of that. And if y'all wanna come work, yeah, if y'all want to come work for the queen. Y'all can come back.

SPEAKER_03 8:50

But then you gotta come back to something good too. You can't just of course you know that the family's gonna be in a family program. Yes, that's right. That's gonna be the next resource. Yes, y'all.

SPEAKER_02 8:59

We're gonna see Miss Grit in my shop getting her hair nice and pressed. Okay. Y'all never give her a nice press.

SPEAKER_01 9:05

She's gonna cheat on menace.

SPEAKER_03 9:07

Okay, Carnesha, what are some of your goals?

SPEAKER_02 9:09

Um, some of my life aspirations and goals is I definitely want to do psychology when I get older. And yes, I want to be a mental health consultant and uh hopefully just come back to Inglewood and just give back to my community because it's a lot of things that go on in like people's uh areas and environments that um kind of puts uh brings a toll onto people and I wanna bring a resource to the community they can come to and you know allow them to be.

SPEAKER_03 9:39

Yeah. That's amazing. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 9:44

My life goal is to be successful and to build, either build a business or take over a business to better myself or better the neighborhood to ultimately come back to Inglewood and support the youth. Um, I'm going to school for business administration and accounting. And also, I am going to the Alabama AM Go Bull Docs.

SPEAKER_03 10:06

Uh oh Bull Docs.

SPEAKER_01 10:09

Yeah.

unknown 10:10

Man.

SPEAKER_03 10:10

Everybody wanna leave Chicago? Yes, we'll be back.

SPEAKER_01 10:14

They always come back. They always come back. Right after college, you know, it's internships at business firms, accounting firms, all that stuff.

SPEAKER_02 10:21

So why not network in Chicago? Yeah. Why not? It's so many things we could do up in Chicago, like so many areas in like it's very diverse here.

SPEAKER_01 10:31

Yeah, I think I want to take a year off, gather, gather some resources just to bring them back.

SPEAKER_03 10:36

Yeah. Okay. Well, I'm all for it, you know. If you want to go, you know, away for a little bit. I totally get it. I'm just joking with you guys. Okay, so I'm glad I have you guys here because I do want to ask a different type of question here. So we all know summertime shy is approaching. Not to sound like an old lady, but back in my day. Summertime shy looked very different. You know, it was nothing wrong with hanging out with friends, you know, going to the lakefront or hanging at somebody's house. But I feel like social media kind of changed that in a way. Yeah. I feel like you guys have more access to more people and more just more overall, right at your fingertips.

unknown 11:19

Yes.

SPEAKER_03 11:20

So my question is with the teen takeovers, because you guys are teens. Yes. What are your thoughts on that? Because that those are ultimately your peers. So what are your thoughts on the teen takeovers?

SPEAKER_01 11:32

My thoughts are it's okay for us teens to gather and have like a space to express ourselves where to have fun or to have a little water fight. But when people call the police and the police begin to push us and shove us out of areas, use mace and stuff, not only is you making us move, but you're also making us angry, and then we're also bumping into each other. So, yes, somebody might get hit, or it's Chicago, people have weapons, somebody might bring it out, and then it might go off accidentally, or they see somebody, and it's it just be like that. But not all the time, the narrative is not to come outside and do that. Sometimes we just want to have fun. But when you get on Instagram and TikTok, and the people back from the old generation see, they say, Oh, you parents this, you parents that, it's not the parents. Maybe you should change your horizon and your view on how you look at things. Because if you're if all school year we've been in school, we've barely been outside now. This summertime, we have the opportunity to go outside. So, yes, every opportunity we're gonna get, we're gonna go outside and have fun. Because we only got one life. One life.

SPEAKER_03 12:34

Okay, okay, that's an interesting perspective. Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_02 12:39

Okay, so Dame, I see what you're saying, but I feel like it gets to the point where when we get outside, people just don't have any well, not empathy, but like consideration. Like, you know, you see us hopping on people's cars. We don't even know these people, you know, stuff like that. That's what puts a bad image on us. It's like when we we just don't know how to control ourselves in a certain way. And it it does make us look bad. And it's not, it's not particularly the parents' fault or the child's fault. It just, I feel like it's a gap in between somewhere that's not clicking with either side. And I also feel like, um, go home. Like it'd be five, y'all. We can stay out to 12, you know, one a little two. But y'all be outside the one. People gotta go to work in the morning, and it'd be a lot of crowds of people, and they just be crossing the streets without a.

SPEAKER_03 13:36

That was gonna be my next question. What's taking it like too far? Because hanging take. But what's taking it too far?

SPEAKER_02 13:41

Taking it too far is when they start shooting, fighting. Like, it's okay to be in your crowd. Like, most teen takeovers, everybody is just crowded up with their friends, and we just talking, you know, um networking, kind of networking in a way, because we see people that we haven't seen in a while. We see people that we may know off Instagram, things like that. So we can connect, but it starts to go off track when people start fighting. Like when they see somebody they don't like or see somebody they're beefing with, then they get to fighting, and then fighting leads to them shooting, and that's when the police have to step in and all the mace. And yeah. I definitely feel like it's a control thing. Yeah. It's like just control yourself. Yeah, because I I used to be outside with my sister when she was younger. And y'all used to be. When y'all was going outside, y'all, it'll be crowds of y'all, but y'all knew what to do and what not to do and how not to escalate a situation. Right. Like y'all was y'all was good on that, but but it also wasn't that many of us.

SPEAKER_03 14:40

I think it was a smaller group. Now it's like you I saw just last week some you guys took over the beach. 57 beats. It's like masses. It wasn't that many of them. Like a whole bunch of ants.

SPEAKER_02 14:52

Like, yeah, it was like a colony of a colony of ants.

SPEAKER_01 14:55

It was, but I feel like the fights and stuff is it gets promoted by peer pressure.

SPEAKER_03 15:00

Yes. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 15:01

Because if your friends see somebody they don't like, like, oh, we don't know them, and then people be all under the influence as well. So it'd be like, oh, we're finna get there.

SPEAKER_03 15:09

Go back together. Gotcha. Okay. So, you know, essentially you guys want to have a good time, have fun. But things escalate. Some things just escalate.

SPEAKER_02 15:20

Like, like Damien said, peer pressure. People put other things in people like that. People put batteries in people's back. Yeah, like, oh, you know that girl was talking about you. Go get her, go get her. And they'll be like, I just want to have fun. But no, she was saying it, like, stuff like that. That's right. Or like, or people try to influence people to jump people too. Like, they'd be like, oh, it's three of us, and it's only one of her. And you remember we were arguing with her the other day, so let's just go, let's just jump. When she swing, we swinging too. That's when it goes left. Yeah, because when one people one person fight, then the other person's gonna be like, we might as well get it on. Yeah. Oh man, that just like a chain reaction. Chain reaction effect. Because one person starts fighting, everybody's gonna start fighting.

SPEAKER_03 16:02

Oh, it's like one bad apple makes the whole thing. A whole bunch. A whole bunch. And then the police gets involved, and that's another story. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:12

The police don't play. One thing about it, oh, one thing about it, two things for sure. When anytime I go outside, I tell myself the end goal is to make it home safe, not end up in nobody's jailhouse or funeral home.

SPEAKER_01 16:24

Rule number one, once you see the whoop whoop, you hit the boop boop.

SPEAKER_02 16:29

I agree with that, actually. Because at the when because the police actually do let us have fun. But when they yeah, they'll be out there, you know, just monitoring. They'll just be making sure we're okay.

SPEAKER_00 16:40

Like that's how the area.

SPEAKER_02 16:42

But when they see it's like getting too crowded or it's like a lot of commotion going on, they that's when they like, you know, like to shut it down. But we having hard heads, we don't want to listen. Yeah, yeah, and we just want to do what we want to do. Go back to her saying, just go home. Like they people don't know how to go home, right? They want to dance on the buses, yeah. Like, now that's I don't I don't agree with that. And I go to the trends, but just to have fun. Like, I'm not here to get crazy, to yeah, ruin people's property, argue with the police. I'm not here to fight. I wish that was like with everything. Just listen to music, vibe out, talk to people I know, and just have a good time.

SPEAKER_01 17:16

How would you feel if you just bought a $2,000 car and you just parked it outside your house and then come out of the comes stomp.

SPEAKER_02 17:25

Just gone. Boom, boom, stomping.

SPEAKER_01 17:27

Yeah, maybe mad nightly upset.

SPEAKER_03 17:29

It's mad night for the word. Yeah. Yeah. And I think that's what some of the adults are saying, that they're upset. But like you said, it's those bad apples that make it worse for everybody.

SPEAKER_02 17:38

Okay, with the whole curfew thing, too. Like, it's because of the bad apples that we, the good apples, can't go out there.

SPEAKER_03 17:44

We can't have fun after eight. Like, do you guys encourage them to say, hey, you know, let's keep this peaceful.

SPEAKER_02 17:50

Let's you can't get to it.

SPEAKER_01 17:56

Oh, you're trying to check them and tell them what to do. And then we do.

SPEAKER_02 17:58

This generation, I feel like this generation does not know how to take advice or crush, yeah, constructive criticism. Or communicate in genuine. Yeah, ingenual. Like it always has to resolve to some type of tension. Yeah, physical. Or multiplication.

SPEAKER_03 18:13

Yeah. Wow. Maybe you guys should just hang out with your friends you know then. Yeah. That's what we know. That's what you do.

SPEAKER_02 18:18

I stick to my little crowd and I go about my way. That's so good to me. Everybody come together, though. Like at the end of the day, everybody's gonna be around each other. Like it's gonna be different. East side, the west side, the south side, north side, every it's like different people from different areas, even from the suburbs. Social media definitely plays. Social media is definitely friends.

SPEAKER_01 18:41

Somebody's gonna walk up and they're gonna try to be your friend too.

SPEAKER_03 18:43

Yeah. Okay, well, thank you guys. I just want to touch on that while I have you guys here because I know you guys are teens. Yes, of course. Okay, so let's talk about June 5th. Woo!

unknown 18:54

Woo!

SPEAKER_03 18:56

So, SGIE received a proclamation recognizing June 5th as SGIE Day in the city of Chicago because of a longtime dedication to serving the community, increasing socioeconomic opportunities through education and supportive services. So tell me more about SGIE Day, what the proclamation means to you, and what do you do to celebrate it?

SPEAKER_02 19:16

Well, what SGI Day means to me is just giving our program the flowers that we deserve. Because we work so hard. My Miss Adams be stressing so bad, like God bless her heart. Like she just Miss Adams. Like, we love her. We love the organization. Like, even being in the organization, you still get the chance to give and give back. Like, we she makes sure that everybody is seen, you know, known, heard, anything. Like, it's just a wonderful experience. And I feel like we deserve this day. Like, the Ingle Heart, like you said. Yes, the Inglewood love us. We love Inglewood. And yeah, come come join us, chat. Yeah, chills in. Um, S G I E Day is honestly like a pat on the back to me. It's we put in so much work and effort day in, day out, 365 days, like right after school. After school, before school, like weekends.

SPEAKER_01 20:17

Emphasize on that before school, 12 o'clock. 12 o'clock, one o'clock.

SPEAKER_02 20:22

Um, yeah, it's honestly uh like it it helps us feel recognized in a way because we put in so much and it's it's like getting poured back into. Like we pour out to our community and the people in it, and it's just them pouring back into us.

SPEAKER_03 20:39

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 20:39

They didn't say it at all. Like we didn't planted them seeds, and we just eating the fruits.

SPEAKER_03 20:44

So, what are you guys doing to celebrate? It's a big ceremony, right?

SPEAKER_01 20:47

Yeah, festival ceremony for sure.

SPEAKER_03 20:52

Yeah. And you pass out awards to recognize the night parents.

SPEAKER_01 20:58

Community members, community members, members, parents, members, yes, all of that. You get rewards. We also have food there. We have games for the kids, music, music. Oh, yeah, we had the food truck last time.

SPEAKER_02 21:13

And fireworks, remember?

SPEAKER_01 21:15

Yeah, yes, we did have fireworks. We're gonna have the infamous cornman there all the way.

SPEAKER_03 21:20

Gotta have it corn. Shout out to our cornman. So this is a big full day of celebration. Yes. It's just all about S G I E.

SPEAKER_02 21:28

S G I E. S G I E and celebrating the proclamation. Yes.

SPEAKER_03 21:32

You guys excited? Yes.

SPEAKER_01 21:34

Hopefully, this time we can get one as youth get over now. Yes. So hopefully we can get one more. If you're watching this noted, okay.

SPEAKER_03 21:43

Um, so I do want to thank you guys, of course, for being here, but I also want to shout out some of our other amazing youth leaders. So we've got Courtney, she's in school in Boston right now. Cameron and Carvin, twin brothers. Our Morehouse brothers. Morehouse men just graduated in Atlanta. Kaya, Damien, your sister. And we have Miss Tiana, Miss Davis, she's currently in law school. And that's just to name a few of our amazing scholars. You guys all do a big thing. As Miss Adams was saying, Black Excellence. Say it one more time, guys. Black excellence. I know that's right. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 22:17

As you leave excellence, you grow to create more excellence.

SPEAKER_03 22:20

Amen. Excellence. And on that note, I like to end things on a positive note. So if you guys could give the viewers one piece of advice or words of encouragement, what would that be?

SPEAKER_02 22:31

Um, something I would give you guys is I would just say be yourself no matter what. Like, do what you want to do in life, but do it in a good way. Not a not a bad way. We're gonna all make mistakes, of course, like we're human, but just make sure you're you at the end of the day, because that's all you have to count on. Like, that's all people are gonna see is you being you, period. Authentic, authentic, literally, organic. Organically, organically, though.

SPEAKER_03 22:59

Okay, is that a spray lump? Yeah, organically.

SPEAKER_02 23:03

Organically, though. Okay. Um, my piece of advice will honestly just be hard work pays off, guys. Like it does. So keep working hard. No matter how how challenging it may get, it's gonna pay off. Trust. I like that. I like that.

SPEAKER_01 23:18

If I had to say some words of encouragement, I'm gonna look at you in your face when I say this. God has a plan for everyone. And for everyone, it may be a different plan, but God will align you with the people that got the same plan as you, the same mindset as you, and y'all will grow together and be excellent. If them people do not have the same mindset or goals as you, it's okay to cut them out the frame because that picture is your picture. And even if you're not picture perfect, you can make that picture beautiful.

SPEAKER_03 23:47

That was amazing. Oh my goodness. And on that note, there you have it. These young people represent the future. They are creators, leaders, thinkers, and change makers. Their voices matter, their ideas matter, and their presence here remind us that our communities are filled with strength, resilience, and unlimited potential. Thanks for watching. Until next time, love you bye. Until next time.