YOU'VE GOTTA BE STRONG!

That's as true for sports as it is for life. You've got to be strong. 

The 'Strengths Training' program originated with a hard-working, team-oriented group of teenagers at Horton's Kids Community Center in SE DC. We took them to a gym one week and -- after putting them through an intense hour of lifting, cardio, calisthenics -- figured we wouldn't see them again. 

But the group kept showing up. And as we combined these workout sessions with life-skill exercises and value-driven discussions, our "group" started looking and acting a lot more like a "team." 

That group is still going strong today -- lifting and running and training, but also meeting and talking and going on group adventures. 

THE NEXT STEPS

What we've learned through this Horton's group is something we already knew: if you bring a group together, define a mission and set clear "Standards of Performance," the group will respond. 

As we move our Foundation work forward, programs like these represent a major opportunity. We're actively building out the best practices, community relations and leadership team necessary to see groups like this established in other community centers and schools throughout the city.