What was the message Lewis heard loudest?...

Arizona Republic

(Phoenix, Arizona)

November 14, 2004

The confrontation began as an argument over a seat. Soon racial slurs were flying, followed by fists.

By Daniel González

Not a way to teach teenagers about leadership and character.

Yet that is how the day started Saturday for hundreds of young people attending a regional conference of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America in Phoenix. Some kids gasped and others covered their mouths as security guards rushed in and hauled the two young men out of the room.
To their surprise, however, the fistfight turned out to be fake. The dramatic incident was just the opening scene of an hourlong performance by the theatrical troupe MWAH!, which stands for Messages Which Are Hopeful.

Through music and dance, the troupe from Aurora, Ill., tries to help teenagers cope with such real-life issues as drugs, violence, gangs, racism and abusive boyfriends.

"What we are trying to say is we need to be more tolerant and accepting of each other," Andrew Hull, a 17-year-old member of the troupe, told the audience.

A moment later, the two young men involved in the fight returned to the middle of the room and stared angrily at each other.

But instead of exchanging more blows, the two young men, who were part of the performance, shook hands and embraced. The crowd responded with cheers.

Joey Viera, 18, was attending the conference. He thought the fight was real.

"I jumped out of my seat and ran over and split them up," said Viera, a member of the Boys & Girls Clubs' Compadre branch in Chandler.

About 400 Boys & Girls Clubs members ages 14 to 18 are attending the three-day regional conference at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel at Metrocenter in Phoenix.

The Boys & Girls Clubs of America's mission is to inspire and enable young people, especially those from disadvantaged circumstances, to become productive, responsible and caring citizens.

The conference targeted members participating in the organization's Keystone leadership program. They spent the three days attending workshops and activities designed to help them develop character and leadership skills, said Anthony Ochoa, Jr. 25, the conference organizer and a teen leader at the Boys & Girls Clubs' Gila Indian Reservation branch.

There were workshops on a variety of topics ranging from nutritious eating to the effects of stereotyping on others.

The participants came from Arizona, Nevada, California and from as far as Alaska. All had to raise money on their own to get to the conference in Phoenix.

Besides attending workshops, some left the hotel to tour the Arizona State University campus in Tempe or help feed the homeless at a shelter in Phoenix.

"These are the kids that are the leaders in their clubs, the kids who are going to go to college" and come back to their communities and be contributing members, Ochoa said.

Alonzo Lewis, 16, a member of the Boys & Girls Clubs branch on the Salt River Reservation, said he found the performance by MWAH! inspirational.

That's because many young people from the reservation face stereotyping and discrimination when they attend school outside the community, said Patricia Walker, the club's teen director.

What was the message Lewis heard loudest? "Be yourself."

MWAH! Performing Arts Troupe members on stage immediately following their performance at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel in Phoenix on November 13, 2004, at the Pacific Regional TEENSupreme Keystone Conference of the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

Photo: Mayle Perez

Following their performance at the Pacific Regional TEENSupreme Keystone Conference in Phoenix, the seven MWAH! troupe members relaxed at the Surprise, Arizona home of Andre Perez, a former member of the Explosonic Rockers Street Jazz Theatrical Troupe, predecessor to the MWAH! troupe. Shown in front are Andre and troupe member Nastasha Prunty. Behind them are (from left) Chris Allison, Joshua Welton, Andrew Tamez Hull, Sam Pealstrom, Carlos Griffin, and Jemell Moore.

Photo: Mayle Perez