Pocono News Section

Spoken Word Helps Urban Kids Adjust

Spoken Word Helps Urban Kids Adjust - Friday, April 30, 2010 at 04:05AM EST

Reported by: Laurie Monteforte
Friday April 30 2010
EAST STROUDSBURG, MONROE COUNTY - The Pocono Region is well known for attracting families from big cities.

The move can be tough on young people.

But a spoken word organization is giving those kids a voice.

Urban Mountain Voices is an organization that gives students from the city a way to adapt to more rural pocono living. East Stroudsburg South Senior Chani Ford explained, "It gives you a safe space where no one judges anybody - nobody thinks anything of anyone else outside of who they are and what they represent."

She moved to the Poconos from New York. The adjustment was tough. She said, "In new york there's a whole bunch of stores and there's public transportation - where out here you basically need a car to get everywhere you have to go."

Sometimes the stress leads to negative feelings. But these kids found a way to turn negative feelings around. East Stroudsburg South Junior Kennard Wilson said, "With poetry it helps me put that negative vibe onto paper without acting out."

Tricia Mcgarvin-Fernandez founded Urban Mountain Voices. She now has about 15 students involved. She said, "They're getting to a level of truth in their lives and their ability to express it literally brought me to tears."

Tricia hopes her participants make it into a national poetry competition.

She alsohopes students who grew up in the poconos get involved too. She said, "I want to be clear that these programs aren't just about the urban influx it's also about - primarily about young adults in general."

She added, "For me. If one life is changed through the power of spoken word then this is all worth it."

You can see Urban Mountain Voices perform at slamfest 2010 tonight. It's a t the Pocono Community Theater in east stroudsburg at eight.