‘I don’t have to cry no more.’ Columbus’ Youth of the Year turned pain into confidence
Lovely Foster, 18, admits not feeling so lovely when she started high school.
In fact, Lovely told the Ledger-Enquirer, she heard people say, “You need to act like your name.”
During her freshman year at Carver High School, she spent several days at an out-of-town treatment facility for teens who tried to kill themselves or struggled with suicidal thoughts, Lovely said.
“I had to really persevere to get out of that hole,” she said. “It was really deep, and I didn’t want to be like that.”
Now, she’s the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Chattahoochee Valley 2021 Youth of the Year.
‘Amazing’ progress
Antonio Pace, director of the BGCCV Teen Center, has known Lovely for 13 years. Asked to describe the progress she has made, Pace told the L-E, “Where she started from and where she’s at now is amazing.”
When she was younger, Lovely was more comfortable in the background.
“We had to search her out to do things,” Pace said. “Now, she’s got more confidence.”
Lovely too often was too emotional, Pace said, and vented her feelings in outbursts.
“Lord, temper tantrums at will,” he said. “Anytime, anyplace, you didn’t know what would set her off. … Not violent but just loud and aggressive.”
Lovely explained, “I really used to blow up, but now I just be like, ‘I don’t want no negativity; I just want peace.’ … I just had to learn how to handle certain situations. That’s really all it was.”
She credits the club for helping her learn those skills and channel her emotions into constructive behavior. The staff has earned her trust, so she confides in them.
“Whatever I get off my chest,” she said, “they’re like an outlet, and I know it’s not going to go beyond where we have the conversation.”
That caring and accepting environment allows her to “open up and be able to just relax,” she said, “not be so tense.”
No wonder Lovely said, when she returned to the Teen Center after her stay at the treatment facility, “it was just so much love.”
Her self-esteem increased as the club staff helped Lovely get in shape to become a cheerleader.
“When she made the team,” Pace said, “we celebrated here like she won the Super Bowl herself.”
The club staff also lifted her outlook after her grandmother died.
“We’ve always tried to build her up because we see her potential,” Pace said. “She has a beautiful spirit. … We’re always going to be here for her.”
Lovely pays that support forward. She gives club members her phone number and encourages them to call if they need someone to listen.
“I had this whole experience that I’m so grateful for,” she said. “… I’m to the point where I don’t have to cry no more because I’m able to just talk about it and be comfortable to talk about it so I can help the next person.”
Now, she indeed feels lovely.
“I feel really, really at peace within myself,” she said. “I feel really, really happy. I have tough times, but that’s life, and I always get over them. But I feel really, really, really, really, really good. I feel great actually.”
After her name was announced as the winner during the virtual ceremony Feb. 4, “I was shocked, and I was really, really happy,” Lovely said, “because I worked really, really hard for this.”
Now, as the club’s teen spokeswoman for being the Youth of the Year, she wants more families to understand what the club can do for children.
Leadership and college
Lovely became a Keystone leader as a freshman. She motivated more teens to join the club and led it to a national award.
Keystone is the club’s leadership group for ages 13-18, focusing on community service, such as aiding nursing homes and preschools.
Lovely helped create Ladies of Integrity, a mentoring program for girls. She leads Lyricism 101, which encourages club members to write raps with wholesome lyrics. She organized a community food drive. She collaborated with club alumni to donate school supplies for the United Way Stuff the Bus campaign.
Pace praised Lovely for not only persevering but also teaching the younger kids what she has learned.
“That’s her main focus over the last two years: ‘Let me help out,’” he said.
Columbus Technical College awarded Lovely a full scholarship as the Youth of the Year winner. After attending Columbus Tech, she plans to earn a bachelor’s degree in psychology at Savannah State University then become a psychologist in the military to help soldiers struggling with suicidal thoughts and PTSD.
“I like challenges,” she said.
Lovely hopes other teens who are going through tough times remember, “It’s not forever. I used to feel like, ‘I’m never going to get out of this.’ … After every storm is a rainbow. You’ve just got to keep pushing, keep fighting. You have something to live for. You have purpose. People love you. Although it feels like they don’t, they really do.”
For being named Youth of the Year, Lovely also received $2,500 for college from the John B. Woodruff Jr. Scholarship Fund and a $1,000 cash prize from an anonymous donor.
Selection process
To become the BGCCV Youth of the Year, candidates submit an application and reference letters. They present a speech to a selection panel, which interviews them.
The judges this year were Tana McHale, Mary Maurice Young, Derreck Duncan and Rodney Close. They selected Lovely among the six applicants out of approximately 2,500 BGCCV members.
