A group of youngsters have joined forces in a video project they hope will help combat Bermuda's under-age drinking problem.
PRIDE Bermuda hosted the, Live Loud & Clear, youth leadership training experience for S1 - S4 high school students.
The teens went on a three-day retreat on Darrell's Island earlier this month to create a collaborative videos they hope will raise awareness and prevent alcohol abuse among their peers.
Judith Burgess, PRIDE executive director said the young people discussed at length what it means to be a leader for them and the kinds of things they must contend with.
The film is about under-age drinking and its effects followed by testimonials of the young people sharing their reasons for being involved in PRIDE and coming to the weekend training.
Samantha Smith, PRIDE programme co-ordinator, said: "I was very impressed with how the youth stayed engaged and focused for the entire training. Because their work time was so much fun, they continued working during their fun time."
Life changing
Altonio Roberts, 19, a graduate of CedarBridge Academy, said: "It was a life changing experience.
"To be able to come together and bring all our thoughts together and make a video was great."
He liked the fact that teens who worked on the project came from all over the island and from all walks of life so instead of working against one another, they worked together.
Mr. Roberts, who helped write and direct the video, said: "It was really hard work. The easiest part was taping it. The hardest part was everybody coming together to edit it."
Ms Smith said under-age drinking was the biggest substance abuse problem in Bermuda and that is why PRIDE focused on that for its video message.
"The teens learned about media messages and what works and what doesn't. The video addresses under-age drinking but at the end it also addresses what you can do instead and has testimonials about what the teens do to stay positive."
Mr. Roberts added: "Under-age drinking is a big problem. The people I hung out with went drinking every weekend. It was like second nature to go drink every weekend."
He said it is very easy for teens to get alcohol by either getting older friends or siblings to buy it or by raiding the stock parent's have at home.
The video will be used in presentations at schools and other youth gatherings and will also be used in 30-second clips for public service announcements.
Mr. Roberts said PRIDE has helped mentor him and now that he is older, he wants to give back to other teens.
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