The Boys and Girls Club of Lanier named Gainesville High School student Jaiyah Stringer as Youth of the Year for 2023.
Youth of the Year is the Boys and Girls Club’s most prestigious honor. The award is earned by a high school student of the club who has overcome personal challenges and made exceptional contributions to a member’s family, school, community, and Boys and Girls Club. The winner of the award receives a $2,500 college scholarship and moves on for a chance to claim the state and national title.
“It’s a pretty in-depth process,” Savannah Popham, the marketing and communications director at Boys and Girls Clubs of Lanier, said. “Our staff members pick out a few students that they think are really deserving of the award and then [students] end up having to go through an application process and program where they learn how to do public speaking, use their body languages, and go through interview processes,”
Three finalists from Gainesville High School were chosen to compete for the 2023 Youth of the Year title.
- Jaemy Quito Cruz – 9th grade
- Xavier Jackson – 10th grade
- Jaiyah Stringer – 12th grade
These students were chosen based on their personal stories and how well they shared their experiences at a judging event held Feb. 1. Judges are key community members and leaders chosen by the organization, Popham said.
Jaiyah Stringer, who has been a member of the Boys and Girls Club since second grade, was named the winner of 2023, but the teen was also named the 2022 winner last year.
“This year at the judging, [Stringer] was asked why she decided to return, and her answer was that she just had more to say. She knows that her words are impactful. She’s really passionate about becoming that influence on the younger generation, just like she had the influence on herself,” Popham said.
Stringer opened her speech with a quote from Michelle Obama Monday:
“There’s power in allowing yourself to be known and heard, in owning your unique story, in using your authentic voice. And there’s grace in being willing to know and hear others. This, for me, is how we become.” -Michelle Obama
She followed the quote with her own story, one that she described as disadvantageous.
“I was a premature baby born into a teen mom and drug-addicted dad. In elementary school, I was the only black person in my class for six years straight. That’s crazy, right? It’s not the 60s we’re talking about, it’s 2018,” Stringer said.
Stringer discovered the Boys and Girls Club in middle school, a time when she needed it the most, she said.
“I would explain it like I was a roly-poly. You know how a roly-poly curls up in a little ball? Well, I was in a little ball for a long time. I didn’t want to be myself. I didn’t want to express myself because I was getting bullied really bad in school and it just made me want to shut down. So, the Boys and Girls Club kind of helped me open back up and they helped me come into myself and be the person that I am today,” Stringer said.
Stringer was accepted into Fort Valley College and University. She will move on to compete for the state title Youth of the Year award and $20,000 college scholarship. If she moves past the state competition, she will compete for the national title and a chance to win a $50,000 college scholarship.
