As Milwaukee heads into the summer months, city and community leaders are focusing on prevention by connecting young people with jobs, apprenticeships, and mentorships.
Hundreds of kids and teens gathered inside the Baird Center in downtown Milwaukee today for an event aimed at providing positive options and a clear path forward.
Alderwoman Sharlen Moore of the 10th District helped bring together dozens of organizations with one goal: getting young people engaged.
Watch: Milwaukee leaders connect youth with summer jobs and resources to prevent trouble and build futures
"Every young person should be able to be involved in an opportunity for the summer; there's no reason why any young person should be at home doing nothing," Moore said.
Students moved from table to table, signing up for jobs, exploring careers, and discovering their future possibilities.
“It looks like there's stuff for everyone, so I feel like they'll find opportunities for what they could do, or even if they don't know what they're interested in, to see what they probably could do,” student Amir Diaz said.
For others, the motivation to attend was simple.
“Uh, money, I wanna get a job,” student Lucas Rogerio Bonato said.
Large teen gatherings have raised concerns in Milwaukee during past summers. Young people at the event said the solution to keeping teens out of trouble is not complicated.
“Social media has kind of changed things, but, yeah, getting a job, something that puts their skills to something else other than trouble,” Rogerio Bonato said.
Parents are also taking a proactive approach to keep youth surrounded by positive influences and opportunities.
“We just wanted to get, you know, resources on, you know, helping the youth, you know, wanna be proactive this summer and get things going, you know, on a positive note,” parent Navarrio Lacy said.
“Just get them involved, you know, get them active in positive things and around positive people,” Lacy said.
Leaders emphasized that the effort extends beyond a single day, focusing on ensuring every young person knows they have options.
"We want them to be safe, and we want them to gather safely… and we wanna make sure that as adultS we're creating those spaces,” Moore said.
The teens themselves echoed that message.
"Use the skills you've been given, and find something that interests you," Rogerio Bonato said.
TO FIND OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUR YOUNG PERSON VISIT: https://city.milwaukee.gov/Hello-Summer
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