Reece congratulates Chattooga County YCA graduate
FORT GORDON, Ga., March 8, 2011 - State Rep. Barbara Massey Reece (right) poses with Matthew Humphrey, a Chattooga County constituent who graduated from the National Guard-sponsored Youth ChalleNGe Academy (YCA) on March 5, 2011. Humphrey is a member of the largest class ever to graduate from Georgia’s YCA – the same class which graduated the program’s 10,000th graduate.
The 13-year-old YCA program is an all volunteer, 22-week, military-styled youth program that emphasizes academic completion, life skills development and physical fitness. Reece, a retired teacher of 30 years, says that she strongly supports YCA because she has witnessed the progress the program makes in the lives of at-risk children in such a short period of time.
Humphrey said of his YCA experience, “It’s been a long five months, but it was worth it.” His future plans are to enlist in the Air Force following his 17th birthday.
(Photo by Spc. Denis Durbin-Carlton, Georgia Army National Guard)