Lowcountry Youth Services, formerly Connections and You, Inc., was founded in October 2008 by Ricardo Perry in Hanahan. The initial idea of the organization was to establish the Bennie Warren home for boys in the Charleston area. This home would house young men considered runaways or part of the DSS or DJJ system. These young men would be surrounded by positive and influential adults who would consistently impact their lives daily. Due to the many challenges in bringing them home to reality and the immediate need for a positive impact on the community’s young men, the Distinguished Gentlemen’s Club (DGC) was born. DGC would share the concept as the Bennie Warren Home for boys, except this would be done in communities.
On April 10, 2010, the DGC met with only 12 young men from the Tri-County area at the Danny Jones gym in North Charleston, SC. In April of 2013, the DGC branched off into two chapters, DGC Hanahan and DGC North Charleston, because of the extreme growth the program had gone through in just a few years. Over the next few years, the DGC continued to experience massive growth as the need for young men to be mentored grew. In May 2016, DGC Summerville began as another program chapter. In July 2017, the Distinguished Gentlemen’s Club became its non-profit, tax-exempt organization. All three branches merged into one program in May of 2017. DGC has served over 350 boys since its inception.
In 2019, the non-profit name changed from Distinguished Gentlemen’s Club to Lowcountry Youth Services to pave the way for community workshops and programs that would include young ladies and in-school programs.
In 2020, Lowcountry Youth Services introduced the Young Men Rise In-School Youth cohort program. It had its first cohort at Oakbrook Middle School and is scheduled to be implemented in at least eight schools, with 24 cohorts serving 480 young men in new schools in 2022-2023.
In 2021, Lowcountry Youth Services introduced “Queens Being,”; a community-based mentoring program to teach and build young women of color how to find their voices by providing a positive community of belonging.
In 2022, Lowcountry Youth Services introduced the Girls On The Rise In-School Youth cohort program. They completed their full year supporting five schools across the tri-county in 2022-2023.
Over the years, we have had different names and programs, but the one consistent thing is that Lowcountry Youth Services has been determined to ensure that “Every child wins.”
5 Important Reasons Why We Are Passionate About Mentorship
MENTORSHIP IMPACTS YOUTH IN SCHOOL
Students who meet regularly with their mentors are 52% less likely than their peers to skip a day of school and 37% less likely to skip a class.
(Public/Private Ventures Study of Big Brothers Big Sisters)
MENTORSHIP REDUCES DRUG/ALCOHOL ABUSE
Youth who meet regularly with their mentors are 46% less likely than their peers to start using illegal drugs and 27% less likely to start drinking. (Public/Private Ventures study of Big Brothers Big Sisters)
MENTORING PROMOTES POSITIVE SOCIAL ATTITUDES AND RELATIONSHIPS
Mentored youth tend to trust their parents more and communicate better with them. (The Role of Risk, 2013)
MENTORSHIP HELPS TO PREVENT DEPRESSION IN YOUTH
Studies show that the strongest benefit from mentoring, and most consistent across risk groups, was a reduction in depressive symptoms — particularly noteworthy given that almost one in four youth reported worrisome levels of these symptoms at baseline. (The Role of Risk, 2013)
MENTORSHIP INCREASES COLLEGE ENROLLMENT
Young adults who face an opportunity gap but have a mentor are 55% more likely to be enrolled in college than those who did not have a mentor. (The Mentoring Effect, 2014)
FROM 2008 - 2023
We have served over 1200 youths dedicating over 6000 mentor - mentee engagement hours!
OUR LEADERSHIP
Jerome Colden
Program Director
Distinguished Gentlemen's Club
Monica Scott
Program Director
Queens' Being
Ilona King-Wilson
Program Director/Training Coordinator
Girls on the Rise
Charvis Wood
Elementary School
Grade Level Coordinator
Distinguished Gentlemen's Club
Raphael James
Middle School
Grade Level Coordinator
Distinguished Gentlemen's Club
Richard Gibson
High School
Grade Level Coordinator
Distinguished Gentlemen's Club
Tenesia Slempa
Grade Level Coordinator
Queens' Being
Vanisa Siler
Grade Level Coordinator
Queens' Being
LYS Board of Directors
Danielle Hardee
Chairwoman
Candace McDaniel
Trustee
Jamie Bierdz
Treasurer
Clinton McPherson
Trustee
Jennifer Swanton
Secretary
Ben Pogue
Trustee
Radia Baxter
Trustee
Shayla Toliver
Trustee
