Prepare Our Youth, Inc.

05/05/2025

Afrikan Nations pulling away from European colonization. Flex Ya’ll✊🏾

08/19/2023

If you’re in the DMV today (8/19/2023), come on through.

05/19/2022

This is especially for those of you who have young children and youth. We also need the hindsight of you parents who now look back on your parent methods with what you know now. Lets have a convo about hitting. It is a major form of “punishment,” and in one of our parent sessions I suggested “replacing punishment with pruning.”
This convo is not to judge any of you if you did hit or still hit your children. It’s important to understand the reason why by asking yourselves the right questions. It is possible to do the wrong thing for the right reason. Check out this quote by Dr. Patton. What do you think? Let’s talk, Parent Group.

“It’s unrealistic to expect that people whose brains have been wired to hit children and not see it as an act of violence will intuitively do the opposite. If you have children and hit them, you might feel discomforted by the fact that your actions are connected to the trauma of the whuppings you got as a child.
It might p**s you off to hear me say that you didn’t “turn out fine” because of the whuppings, but that you either turned out fine in spite of the pain or that you are a survivor of unrecognized trauma.” -Dr. Stacey Patton (Spare the Kids: Why Whipping Children Won’t Save Black America)

04/15/2022

Parenting has been a central emphasis for over 40 years of our existence at Prepare Our Youth. When we selected the name of our organization it was a no-brainer that much of the health and well-being of children and youth we service depended on how they are/were parented.
Times are much different than when we started in 1981. Traditional Black Parenting from “back in the day” must be critiqued and decolonized. Solid Principles must remain or be established, but punitive parenting practices need to be discarded. In short, it’s time to step up our Parenting Game. We’ve already started with The Parent Group. Next up, The Intentional Parent Group. You just have to commit.
Stay tuned.

03/20/2022

Greetings,
Those of you who Zoomed in to our first Parent Group session please do me a favor and briefly share with us your takeaway from the session. Thx.

03/12/2022

It’s here!! As promised. Click on the ad and register now. It’s starts March 19-April 16, Saturdays only at 3 PM EST. You must register to join. Spread the word. Share the link far and wide.

09/08/2021

Giving Praise and Thanks.
I am certain that many of you will be hearing this for the first time. The Executive Director of Prepare Our Youth, Stevan Vanderhorst had a devastating fall in October 2020 hitting his head and incurring serious brain trauma.
Steve was taken to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center with bleeding on his brain. After many tests his Neurologist and attending physician decided not to operate. After intensive care at the Shock Trauma Center Steve was transferred to their therapy center for physical, occupational, and speech therapies. Without going into all the details you can imagine how scary this was for our families.
Steve’s Neurologist recommended that he not work for a whole year. I took over some of his administration duties, as well as continuing my own work for POY. We did not know if he would make a full recovery or if he would have brain challenges for life. But Steve is “Youngstown Strong” and slowly but surely he began to recover. It’s been an arduous process for him, to say the least but guess what? Steve is driving again, and spending a few days per week back in the office!!! The truth is that it is nothing short of Divine Intervention, and we give praise and thanks to the Most High as Steve continues his road of recovery. Please keep Steve in your thoughts or prayers.
During this ordeal the work of POY continued. Since COVID began we suspended in-office services, and shifted to full time virtual counseling, trainings, presentations, supporting community uplift projects, etc. I’ll catch you up on what we have coming in my next post.

Blessings,

Ronnie Vanderhorst

01/29/2021

“Children are the reward of life.” -African proverb

01/18/2021

WWMS-N?
What Would Martin Say - Now? “Keep creating, resisting, writing, advocating, marching, building, opening businesses, protesting, envisioning, buying Black, inspiring, educating, sharing, speaking out, believing, protecting children, praying, supporting financially, planning, critiquing, singing, inventing, respecting, trusting the Creator, living on purpose, helping the poor, strengthening relationships, doing justice, being your best self, honoring elders, sacrificing, growing, loving.” “Greater love has no man/woman than this, that he/she lay down his/her life for a friend.” Thank you, and Happy Birthday Dr. King. ✊🏿❤️🖤💚

01/18/2021

Greetings to the Village! We have started a new year of promise and possibilities. Prepare Our Youth is entering our 40th year of service to children, youth, families, and communities, and we are excited about our new direction. Please visit our brand new website and see what we have committed to, and how we can help you. www.prepareouryouth.org

Prepare Our Youth was organized in 1981 to provide a comprehensive response to the educational, social, emotional, cultural, and spiritual needs of children, youth and families and communities.