Last night we held the first Teen Court hearing of the year. What an awesome night! As many of you know, Teen Court is completely run by the gracious volunteers of the community. There are many things that I hear from those around the community that Granville County lacks (i.e. movie theaters, skating rinks, etc.). But there is one thing that I have found in Granville County that exceeds above other places and that is the genuine care that people have for others in the community. When I looked around Teen Court last night I could not help but to feel proud to be a part of something so great. Everyone in that room last night was there for the sole purpose of making a difference in the lives of the youth in our community. Over the next couple of blogs I am going to highlight some special volunteers within the program. But as a whole......Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!!

We are at the beginning of a new school year and a new year for Teen Court. We have already received some referrals from throughout the county. What would you guess would be the number one infraction right now? If you guessed fighting, you would be correct. Fighting occurs in many different places for many different reasons. Most of the time fights stem from misinterpretations and misunderstandings of another person's intentions. Other fights have definitive motives that include fighting over a boyfriend/girlfriend or over what someone has said. The truth is that most fights begin over what someone says that another person says! Already it is confusing as you try to maneuver through the twist and turns of the origin of a fight. The truth of the matter is that by the end of the day the two people who are fighting, don't even know why they are fighting. If you think that is crazy consider this...the person who has usually instigated the situation is somewhere on the sidelines watching the fight unfold! People make bad decisions when they decide to fight and because of that they can be held criminally responsible. Most fights don't even last a minute but the participants may have to endure months of court dates and inconveniences for their family and end the situation with a juvenile criminal record. But what can you do as a youth in the community? There are small steps you can take: don't participate in spreading gossip, don't associate with people who are constantly involved in drama and if a problem comes up try to handle it maturely. On September 17th, fifteen youth in the community took another step by pledging to do their part in helping their peers by becoming volunteers with the Teen Court program. What will be our contribution?

We are gearing up for a new year. There will be a new volunteer training on Saturday, September 17th from 9am-3pm. Please RSVP by calling the office at 919-603-1350

The new year is getting started! The first teen court hearing will be held on September 27th. I have already received numerous applications and I must say that it looks as if we have a great pool of volunteers this year.

Today is the first day of our website. Please check back often for updates. Trainings, hearings and activities will be posted here and on facebook for information. We are looking forward to a new year and are excited to have our returning volunteers in addition to new ones! Please feel free to post comments (make sure they are appropriate, no profanity).