On March 17th Fresh Start for Women was honored to have Mrs. Camille Peay from Columbia, S.C. and author of ‘Brittani Acts of Trust and Betrayal’ as a presenter at this year’s first teen workshop. Mrs. Peay used chapter 5 of the book as the backdrop from which a lively discussion ensued. Chapter 5 deals with a teen that discovers she’s pregnant and later learns that one of her friends is also pregnant by the same guy. Talk a bout drama! The group of girls had a lot to say on the subject both regarding the girls and the young man in the story.This encouraged the girls to be very open and honest about such teen issues as trust and friendship as well as the need to fit in. Mrs. Peay offered sound advice and words of wisdom about the character of an individual and how to maintain integrity while maneuvering through the maze of adolescence and teen pressures. When asked how do they go about choosing friends, one young lady responded, “I decide based on whether we have things in common and if I’m comfortable trusting a person.’ It was obvious that the issues faced by teens today are much more complex than 20 years ago.
Even so as Mrs. Peay and Mrs. Pettigrew reminded the teens that they are precious jewels and deserve to be loved and respected but that it must first start with them. A frank discussion regarding pre-marital sex and its consequences brought the point home by reminding the girls the importance of getting an education and being all that they can be. Mixed in was an issue that has been in the news a lot when it comes to teen girls… violence. Mrs. Peay played a video of some very graphic instances of violence and asked for comments as to why it happens. The answers ranged from anger to peer pressure to low self-esteem. Mrs. Peay promised a more in-depth discussion on this subject for the September workshop.
After a short break Mrs. Pettigrew shared with the teens her experiences upon first entering high school. This included being brutally honest about an incident in which she found herself at the home of girl she wanted to consider a friend and found herself being gang-raped by the girl’s brother and his friends. Said Mrs. Pettigrew, “I carried that horrible secret with me for many years, as a matter of fact it wasn’t until I was 42 years old that I told my mother.” She went on to explain that the violent introduction to what was suppose to one day be something beautiful colored her relationships with both males and females. “I didn’t trust females and so deprived myself of developing close friendships with other women and I became wary of males”. She told the girls, “I don’t want you to have to suffer needlessly so please choose your friends carefully and love yourself above all else. Being a part of the in-crowd is not necessarily a good thing.” After the session there were questions by individual girls that Mrs. Pettigrew was happy to answer.
Closing out the workshop Mrs. Pettigrew invited the girls to join her in a circle as they discussed positive affirmations. What is it and what does it mean for each of the girls. Even Mrs. Peay and a couple of parents in attendance joined in and discovered some wonderful truths about themselves. Thanking the girls for their attendance and honesty Mrs. Pettigrew and Mrs. Peay invited the girls to return in September. Together Mrs. Pettigrew and Mrs. Peay made a dynamic team both with the ultimate goal of seeing girls reach their highest potential with their self-esteem in tack.
