CHARLOTTE — Nyla Martin is one of 50 students trading the first days of summer break for a trip to Belize and a chance to change someone’s life.
The trip is made possible through the Young Black Leadership Alliance, a Charlotte-based organization celebrating 20 years of developing young leaders through service, education and mentorship. The cohort will help build a home for a family in need.
“This is my first time going somewhere abroad,” Martin told Channel 9’s Miana Massey. “Knowing that it’s going to be not for me but for the good of others makes it much more meaningful.”
Jayden Petrus, a YBLA alum, says the long days and hard work will be worth it. After taking part in back-to-back service trips, he says the experience changed the way he thinks about leadership.
“I didn’t think that you could lead people by serving them,” he said. “YBLA showed me that I can love and serve people and be a leader in that way, and that’s how I can guide and help to build other people up.”
The impact doesn’t end when the trip is over. Petrus says the lessons he learned continue to shape his future.
“It showed me how to network, build my career how to be a professional and literally turned the trajectory of my college experience and even my life could have been from there,” Petrus said.
As for Nyla, she may be helping build a home for someone else, but she says she’s already found something of her own — a community committed to serving others.
“It feels like I’m a part of something bigger,” she said. “It feels like I’m part of a real community.”
YBLA students will spend the next several days in Belize. Organizers say the goal isn’t just to build a house, but to help shape the next generation of leaders through service.