New initiative from YEAH Philly helping West Philadelphia teens get job training, life lessons

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A new initiative in West Philadelphia has become a bright spot in more ways than one for its residents.

While the city works to improve street lighting in high crime neighborhoods, some of those helping assemble the lights are the city's most at-risk teens.

At 63rd and Arch Streets, thousands of street lights are being assembled to be installed at some of the city's most blighted and dangerous corners.

Daequan is one of the young people on the assembly line. It's a complete 180 from where the recent high school grad was a year ago.

"I was doing a lot of different stuff that I was not proud of, but here, this made me think of life. There are more opportunities for people like me," he said.

Youth Empowerment for Advanced Hangout, also known as YEAH Philly, is a nonprofit aimed at helping kids directly impacted by gun violence. They teamed up with American Power Electrical Supply, who has a contract to assemble 40,000 lights.

It's part of the city's push to convert all streetlights to LEDs over the next two years.

"Through this opportunity, a lot of young people are learning something that they did not even have the ability to even try," said James Aye from YEAH Philly.

"Street lighting is important. Everyone wants to be able to walk around and feel safe," said Seth Richards, VP of American Power Electrical Supply.

"The intention is to help bring down crime and to give these guys a chance to get some job experience that they might not normally have," said Aye.

But it's the opportunities and life lessons that are the brightest spot.

"Taught me discipline because I have to be up early to get to work - finish the day off," said Daequan. "Not really used to that, I follow my own rules normally."

If you'd like to be apart of this workforce training, click here.

For more information about this workforce training from YEAH Philly, visit: https://yeahphilly.org/