Meet Our 2014 Spring Interns

My name is April Stewart.  I am 21 years old and I have a 6^th month old daughter. I can sing, act, dance, and draw. I currently attend Blue Cliff College to become a clinical medical assistant. I am in a youth group called Fyre Youth Squad. I joined AFSC because I was in Peace by Piece before and I would like to continue learning all the ways I can create peace in my community and my life.

 

 

 My name is Glenn Sullivan and I am 18 years old. I am originally from New Orleans East. I have a few years of performing and recording experience both in and out of Louisiana. I am also very interested in music, history, and business. I am currently in the 12^th grade, and have plans to go to college while working to create and own 2 businesses.

 

My name is Maurice Dexter Deandre Hammond. I am 24 years old and I’m from New Orleans, Louisiana. I’m an artist, poet, rapper, singer and songwriter. I’ve performed with Rebirth and the New Orleans Mystics. I would like to get my Associates Degree in Business Administration. I would ultimately like to become an international recording artist and entrepreneur.

 

My name is Brandon Bigard, I’m a twenty year old Aries, I have a passion for the arts and a stubborn protective streak for her city ever since she was little. Running around in the advocacy world for over a decade and coming from a family deeply rooted in the arts, New Orleans, and the history that it contains. This young woman has tricks up her sleeve like the secrets contained in the streets she walks. I am currently an intern for AFSC, once again jumping back into the fray of learning, teaching, showing, and protecting the path for the perfect life.

 

 My name is Isaiah Jones and I’m here for my third go as a Peace by Piece Intern. I am a soon to be graduating Political Science major with a dual concentration in Women’s' Studies and Communications Studies at Xavier University of Louisiana. During my past times participating in this internship i learned a lot of valuable lessons about myself and the world that we live in so i look forward to what this round will bring. I'm still working for that 4.0 in life and hopefully will soon be engaging with graduate schools and job opportunities that will propel me even further into ever more interesting situations and connection with the community.

 

 Hi All!  My name is Breial Kennedy and I am currently a freshman at Dillard University. A couple things to know about me are I am a very compatible person, my favorite color is green, and I’m actually a returning intern from the spring 2013 semester.

Hey my name is Donald Mitchell. I’m a student, a son, and a brother. I’m independent and I’m striving for success in New Orleans, LA. Come follow me as I turn my struggles into my success.



An Inside Look at FOF in B-More

Briana O'Neal

I recently attended a Friend of a Friend (FOF) experience, a mentorship training project that operates inside of the criminal justice system in Maryland.  Friend of a Friend is a program of the AFSC office in Baltimore, MD.  My experience in B-More was very enlightening.  The training teaches how to build healthy relationships, create support, develop communication skills, and teach positive ways to handle conflict.

Participants work with mentors on their attitudes, strengths, weaknesses, and values. It’s important that the men leading this program have been through the criminal justice system and share similar experiences.  This helps them relate and connect to the new participants. They use interactive games, skits, and scenarios that cover real life situations. My favorites include: Mentor Money, an icebreaker that allows people to introduce themselves to each other; We Wear the Mask, an activity that acknowledges we all have mask that we hide behind to make life a little easier to deal with but we must not lose the real us behind the mask; and The Debate Game, participants debate on a topic and see who wins. Before we left we was asked, “Where do we go from here?”

I feel B-More, NOLA, and New Mexico has a lot in common.  We’re working on some of the same issues to change our communities.  It makes sense that we work together.  I think it would be great if we all could go to each other’s cities and attend trainings on what we do, how we do it, and what are the outcomes. We can help each other reach our goals of ending violence if we have multiple strategies and many people. There is strength and power in numbers.