Lady Mujaji Club bringing empowerment to youth

• Lady Mujaji Club bringing empowerment to youth

Dressed in their Sunday best, seven girls and two boys took to the stage at Frances Corprew Elementary school for the Youth Empowerment Showcase, presented by the Lady Mujaji Social and Civic Club.

Danielle Powell, a kindergarten teacher at Union Hill Elementary and a member of the Lady Mujaji Club, coordinated the showcase. She said, “Today was about empowering our youth, encouraging them. We don’t get a lot of chances on stage and show who we are, so we want them to get up there, get comfortable, maybe even dance. So if they go up in the world, they can talk in the presence of a lot of people and they’ll be prepared.”

The Lady Mujaji Club was started by teachers and educators who seek to uplift their community. They have been supporting the young men and women of Titus County with scholarships and banquets for high schoolers. Powell said they wanted to try encouraging even younger kids to help them grow into their confidence.

Throughout the showcase, the young ladies and gentlemen modeled their best dresses and suits, showed off traditional African clothing, took the mic with words of empowerment, and danced together.

“Start teaching them from a young age,” Powell said. “Help them develop their confidence, their self-esteem. Help them be successful in their community.”

It’s not just for the kids that this showcase was put on. The show was presented in April for Child Abuse Prevention month, to spread awareness for parents and families.

Powell emphasized how important it is to be involved in your child’s life, not just to help them grow, but also to be with them during hard times and notice if something is wrong, “We may often look at our children and don’t really see if there’s abuse or neglect, because it’s easy to hide. Being a teacher and working with kids, it’s important to acknowledge children and see how they’re really doing, how they may have changed. Abuse can come in many different facets and even things like sending them away to play on their phone can be a crucial moment to your child.”

Also being a mother, Powell added that being an example for your child is of utmost importance, “Some parents don’t know how much influence they have on their children, from what they say to what they do. They’re little sponges, they soak it all up. You are their parents, probably the most important people in their lives as they grow, and they learn everything from you.”

The Lady Mujaji Club is a nonprofit and accepts donations at any time, and they hope to continue to empower the youth of our communities.