By Alison McFerrin

The Selma Times-Journal

Children will throng the streets of Selma in a few days, but they’ll be gathered with a purpose — the third annual City of Selma Youth Conference.

“It’s important for our future,” conference coordinator Councilwoman Angela Benjamin said. “We are going to train them up whichever way they are going to go.”

The conference takes place July 28 through July 30, with a pre-conference in Columbiana at the 4-H Center July 27, and is for ages 12 to 21. Benjamin originally came up with the idea for the conference and immediately sought help — first from others in Ward 4, and then from the mayor and the city as a whole.

“The kids are bored during the summer. Everybody can’t have a summer vacation,” Benjamin said. “I wanted to give them a summer story that was going to be an exciting summer story.”

The conference will focus, Benjamin said, on building relationships — between young people and their parents, their peers, and the professionals who serve them.

“Our young people are important to us and represent our leadership of tomorrow, so we have to take care of them today,” Benjamin said.

The first year, the conference offered multiple workshops, and attendees chose which classes they were interested in. This year, every attendee will go to every workshop.

“They get workshops for free that these professionals go around and charge top dollar for,” Benjamin said. “Everything is provided for free.”

The conference is sponsored by public leaders as well as private donors.

“Because of them, we can provide a four-day conference for 100 young people,” Benjamin said. “Otherwise, some of (the youth) may not be able to make it to conference like this.”

Workshop topics will include leadership, self-confidence, civic responsibility, bullying, and academic endeavors — in addition lighter subjects, like Cooking with Sam and Susan.

“It’s just fun,” Councilwoman Susan Keith said. “I do pralines and I do a key lime pie.”

Keith runs the sweets class, and Councilman Sam Randolph teaches the ‘meat and potatoes’ cooking.

“I love being involved with the young people,” Keith said. “I love seeing that we have young people who are eager to learn.”

Classes will last about an hour, and will integrate activity as part of the “Let’s Move!” campaign, with attendees going from location to location in downtown Selma to each workshop and engaging in a martial arts class.

“It’s always so fun and so lively when the Youth Conference hits downtown,” Benjamin said.

And youths aren’t the only ones who can benefit from the three-day event.

“Even though this is a youth conference, we touch on a whole lot of things,” Benjamin said.

Some of the classes will be geared for parents of the youth attending or professionals who work with young people, and many of the classes will provide Continued Education Units, provided by the Alabama State Board of Social Work Examiners.

The last day of the conference will be Community Fun Day, featuring a variety of events from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Selma High School baseball field. It will be open to everyone.

“The giant waterslide is one of the most favorites,” Benjamin said.

There will also be food, sports, games, and a live DJ: Rod Jackson from Montgomery.

“He is a former gang member,” Benjamin said. “He turned his life around. He was rapping gangsta rap, and now he raps gospel rap.”

Another facet of the conference open to the public will be the Town Hall Meeting about youth violence July 28 at 5:30 p.m. at the Convention Center.

For more information or to sign up for the conference — there are still a few slots left — call Angela Benjamin at 874-1234.