The Prince's Trust was started by Prince Charles in 1976 "to help vulnerable young people get their lives on track. It supports 11 to 30-year-olds who are unemployed and those struggling at school and at risk of exclusion." They have various programmes to assist young people to get back into the work force, start their own businesses or just get their lives back on track!
One of the young men helped by The Prince's Trust was a young man from Birmingham named Hezron Brown. When he was just five years old he fell into a bath of boiling water, burning himself badly. In her panic his mother ripped his T-shirt off him and ended up stripping the right side of his torso of most of his skin. This was the trigger for bullying to start at school, which he "dealt with" with outbursts of violence and anger. He fought constantly with his mom, she would kick him out and then take him back, until eventually, at the age of 13, she kicked him out for good. He stayed with his sister for a while and then ended up homeless, before falling in with local gangs where he "experienced the camaraderie and friendship which was missing in his life"! Things spiralled out of control, with him managing one time to outrun a group of about 30 armed gang members who wanted to "do him in" by virtue of the simple fact that he was in the wrong post code area!!! That was when he realized he was on the road to a life (and possibly death) of violence and crime! He was eventually arrested for robbery but, swayed by the encouraging report of his social worker, the judge decided to "give him a second chance".
Through The Prince's Trust he was able to get a job at Birmingham Repertory Theatre and then went on to work at the National Citizen Service as a youth worker and motivational speaker, encouraging kids to take a path in life other than that offered by gangs!
Earlier this year he was told that the media would like to interview him about his motivational speaker role, with the interview to take place at Prince Charles' home at Highgrove. While they were setting up the cameras there was a knock at the door and Prince Charles walked in - and informed Hezron that he had won the Young Achiever of the Year Award! Well to say he was shocked would be an understatement. He was stunned, shook Prince Charles' hand and had to keep wiping away the tears. He was later interviewed by Sky News and proved to be an articulate and eloquent young man - a real pleasure to listen to - and hopefully a motivation for other young people who maybe haven't had the best start in life to take the right path! It was a story that moved me greatly, and I just hope that he and his mother made up and are in each other's lives again! And kudos to the judge that gave him a second chance! What a lovely young man he turned into!
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| Hezron Brown and Prince Charles |
What a fine story. Little chances matter, and I hope he will be a role model and help others.
ReplyDeleteHe's certainly doing his bit now. He was a VERY impressive speaker on TV. It just goes to show that a second chance can be worth it sometimes doesn't it!
DeleteThis is just lovely!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it just! That's why I wanted to write about him - because his story moved me so much! He turned into a lovely young man that his mom can be proud of!
DeleteWhat a lovely inspiring story. You do wonder sometimes what makes the difference. What does it take to make that shift in attitude. I used to work in a residential school for boys with behavioural issues and every one was there because of family background problems not of their doing and I often wonder where some of them are now. The head teacher at the time, although a bit of a tyrant at times, was very good with them and she enforced a strict regime of cleanliness of themselves, tables in the dining room were set with pure white linen tablecloths, knives, forks, spoons etc all in the right places, a little of vase of flowers on each table among other things and I remember asking her why, she said, these boys have no way of knowing this is how normal people eat and look after themselves and they have to go out into the world and be 'normal' when they leave here so we show them the best we can and hope at least some of it remains with them. I hope it did. I hope she managed to 'save' at least one or two of them. x
ReplyDeleteThat head teacher would have had to have been a tyrant wouldn't she - but what an inspired lady. And she was so right! On the other end of the scale, my sister worked as a cleaner in a private boys' boarding school (she wanted "school hours" to be with her girls). These kids wanted for nothing materially of course, BUT she said while some of them were complete jerks others were just sad. Mommy and daddy didn't bother with them all term and then would "fly them off to the Caribbean" or somewhere luxurious with their friends so that they didn't have to bother with them during holiday times either. She said the chauffeur would pick them up from the school and take them directly to the airport! More than once she found one sitting on his bed crying because he never saw his family. She wanted to take him home with her and to just have Sunday lunch with the family but she wasn't allowed to. I believe there are some truly "bad" people in the world but I don't think the majority are. They just get screwed up by their backgrounds/upbringing (or the lack of it)!
DeleteGood for him and the program.
ReplyDeleteI've never been a fan of Prince Charles but to see that young man clutching his hand and wiping away the tears was very moving!
DeleteHow inspiring, I love it when you hear this sort of thing.
ReplyDeleteI saw his interview on Sky News and he was SO articulate - for a lad who probably rarely went to school it was quite amazing.
DeleteWhat a cool story! Thanks for sharing, we never would have heard about it in Canada
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I don't know much about The Prince's Trust either but his story just stuck with me, so I wanted to write about it!
DeleteThat is so touching.
ReplyDeleteIt moved me too - as you can see! Good lad!
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