Slaton Jr. High Students making a U-Turn
Tim Wallach and Lesa Pepper (editor in chief)
Professional football player turned motivational speaker, Keith
Davis recently spoke at the Cultural Center on the Texas Tech
campus. Many students were invited from schools across the South
Plains. Slaton Jr. High School had 21 students in attendance. These
students spent the day with Mr. Davis and Devon Wyman learning
about such topics as the power of positive decision making,
personal academic success, and overcoming negative peer
pressure.
Keith Davis played for the Super Bowl champion NY Giants and held the title of Strongest Player in the NFL. Devon Wyman also played professional football for the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots. These two men both made it to the top through two very different and very distinct paths.
While working the cotton fields at an early age, Keith Davis one
day put down his bag and told his mother that he was going to get
her out of this lifestyle. The decision to change his life was very
real to him. Although a very poor reader in the sixth grade, he
began to read everything he could in order to reach his lofty
goals. Football was his catalyst for success, and as a senior in
high school he was highly recruited to play Division 1 football. He
chose to go to USC on a full scholarship and graduated with a
degree in finance as an academic all American with the highest GPA
in his graduating class.
Mr. Wyman was also a very highly sought out defensive player who
had always relied on his athletic ability to get through school. He
spoke of a time when he ditched school and went with some of his
gang banger friends down to the 7-11 to get some snacks. As they
left the store, shots rang out and bullets ricocheted all around
him; yet, he still was unaffected to change the life he was living.
He liked the nice shoes and clothes that selling drugs could buy,
and he refused to give up the income and focus on a very different
future. On national letter of intent day, the media was in his home
waiting for his signature to attend the college of his choice.
However, a different knock came at the door, as the police entered
his home and placed him under arrest for selling illegal drugs.
Later, he made the decision to change his life. One day from the
prison cafeteria, over an ice cream scoop of peanut butter, a stale
piece of bread, and a half cup of watered down Kool-aid, he decided
to make a U-turn, go to college, and change his life for good.
The testimonies of these two players were extremely effective in
capturing the audience at hand. Many of the students were
challenged to chart a different course than the one they are
currently on. The message justly conveyed the truth that one
doesn’t have to settle in life for anything. One can either choose
success or failure, but one’s choices will determine the
outcome.
Matthew, a student from SJH, said this about the conference: “These
men really challenged us to rise above adversity and get our lives
in order, ‘get a good job, get a good wife, get a good home, and
then start a family.’” Also, he says they “challenged us to make
our goals right and to plan for our future by making good
choices.”
Keith emphasizes that no matter where you are, if you find yourself
going the wrong direction, you can always make a U-turn and head
back up to the top. Each of these men had his own unique way to get
to the top, but both realize that it was smart choices that got
them there. You can be a winner, also, if you decide to make that
U-turn! One young man, Trevone, put it all in perspective. He
states: “It changed me because I know I have made mistakes, too; I
want to be a pro basketball player, and for me to reach my goal, I
will have to make a U-turn and change my old ways.” Thanks to the
Region 17 service center for bringing these men to the South Plains
to make a difference in our children’s lives.
