DANVILLE, Va. – Five Danville teenagers have completed the first phase of the Project Imagine program. The group is the third class of graduates this year.

Project Imagine gives gang-affiliated teens a future off the streets by providing them with life skills instruction and work readiness training. In the first phase, the teens received strength-based assessments using the Casey Life Skills and Clifton Strengths tools that aim to set youth on their way toward developing healthy, productive lives. The teens also underwent goal-setting exercises. Outreach workers will continue working with each teen on the goals they established during this initial phase of the program.

Robert David, the youth services and gang violence prevention coordinator for the City of Danville, said the training gives the teens a base from which to build. The program, he added, teaches things that most people take for granted, and as the teens learn, they develop confidence. Confidence leads to developing self-value and staying off the streets, he said.

The teens were honored at a ceremony earlier this week.

L-R: Tayveon Harper; Rachel del Campo Gatewood of River District Consulting Group; Hollie Adams of River District Consulting Group; Tylia Gipson; Robert David, youth services and gang violence prevention coordinator for the City of Danville; Shakeva Frazier, youth services and gang violence prevention outreach worker for the City of Danville; Curtis Artis, youth services and gang violence prevention outreach worker for the City of Danville; Destiny Fuller; and Alvis Williams of Pathfinders Resources.