Amy Torres

former Professional Youth Development Worker
Burns Academy for Latino Studies

“I had the chance to speak at the 2009 Peace It Up Conference in Hartford. A few people asked me to speak to other groups of kids because of my story. I am really excited about this opportunity because I wouldn’t be where I am today had it not been for my role models in the COMPASS Peacebuilders program.

"I became involved with COMPASS and the Peacebuilders program specifically because I was having some trouble in my life. I decided to change my life because of Peacebuilders. Before, my mind was filled with negativity. If anybody said anything to me I was going to hit them and get them before they got me. As a result, I was getting suspended from school and my grades were failing. I didn’t care. The staff in the Peacebuilder’s program did care about me. They saw something in me that I wasn’t aware of yet. They kept calling me, reaching out to me and listening and talking to me. They weren’t going to accept ‘losing’ me. And because they didn’t give up on me, I wasn’t going to give up on myself. Because of their stories and their help, I said to myself; “If they got this far, I can too.”

"I started working twice as hard. I had made up my mind; I was going to pass the school year. And with the support of the Peacebuilders staff and Mr. ‘M’ at school, I went from an F in Biology to a B. I would no longer accept a 0. It was really cool. I started feeling better about myself and I started to have a different relationship with everyone in my life from my teachers to my mom and little brother. After completing the Peacebuilders program as a participant, I became a Junior Peacebuilder myself and worked at Burns Academy of Latino Studies shadowing a staff member. It was great. I loved working with the kids and giving back.

Now, I am a Professional Youth Development Worker at Burns and I get to give back more. Sometimes, when things aren’t going too great in our lives, we can push people away without even knowing it. People who stick around during that time are the people who really care. I want to stick around for others who may be going through the same things I have gone through. It really can make all the difference in the world."