PHOENIX — Before she ever thought of a career in medicine, before she graduated from Tennessee State University, before she was awarded Youth of the Year, Samia Reese was a regular club kid: A member of the Boys and Girls Club of the Valley.
“It taught me how to be a people person,” Reese said. “I would say the biggest thing is how to talk to people, how to articulate myself, and then just never give up and keep going for the next thing.”
More than a decade and a half after first stepping foot in the Boys and Girls Club, Reese still gives back to the organization that was such a big part of her childhood.
“I would have to say The Boys and Girls Club has been through every stage of my life,” said Reese. “Even post-secondary- after college. So, it's like they're always there for you to lean on. Don't think that because you aged out, or you had to move or something like that, you don't have the club to come back and count on.”
Academic success is a core principle of the Boys and Girls Club of the Valley, which aims to equip each member with a plan to graduate high school and achieve success in life.
“There are so many different things you can do here at the Club,” Reese said. “I was able to actually figure out what I do like and how I want to translate that into the rest of my life.”
That is something Reese wants to give back to her community, through volunteering with the club, to bring medicine to areas that are in need.
“Probably the middle of my junior year, second semester, I decided that I wanted to be a Physician Assistant, prioritizing diabetics or just family in general, and eventually I want to open up my own nonprofit clinic back here at home,” Reese stated.
An academic star, Samia Reese is a shining example of the difference the Boys and Girls Club of the Valley can make in a young life.
“It definitely instilled in me the desire to achieve better and set high academic expectations for myself.”
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