ACAY France

I was kicked out. I lived on the streets for three months when I was 15, and I had to make choices I regret. My actions caught up with me, and I ended up in prison. I was completely lost. Despite everything, a small flame of hope remained within me, and that’s when I met ACAY. One day, a young man from the Philippines shared his story with me, and it had a profound impact on me. I realized that change was possible. Today, I have a stable life. I’ve gotten my driver’s license, my diplomas, a job, and a place to live. I’ve become an ambassador for ACAY, the organization that gave me back my hope and offered me the chance to, in return, give hope to others.

Yesterday, I wasn't at peace with my past. Today, I understand my life story and I have made peace with my experiences and my family. Yesterday, I was using cannabis and hanging out with the wrong people… Today, I have quit smoking and built relationships with people I can trust. Yesterday, I had a motorcycle accident in which I almost lost my legs and which kept me in the hospital for nearly two years. Today, I am back on my feet and proud to have completed a 7-kilometer trail run in Gap with ACAY. Yesterday, I wasn't in control of my choices, and today I am the leader of my own life.

What moved me was seeing a young person just like us who fought to get ahead despite the challenges. What I’ve taken away from this is to persevere and never give up. […] I liked the advice you gave us. Keep up the good work—we don’t show it, but it helps us to know that someone is listening. Thank you so much!

It's an organization that's all about the positive. I love preparing the weekends, the organization, the solidarity within the team, the joy of living, the joy of helping people. Always there to pick me back up—at ACAY, they're the only ones who tell me "we still believe in you," even when I fall back.

ACAY's strength, alongside the PJJ, is that it can carry out work that is not subject to a judicial mandate, which allows ACAY to play a complementary role. ACAY initiates work inside detention that it has the strength to continue on the outside, hence this powerful inside-outside approach, a kind of bridge that marks out the educational journey of these minors. ACAY works over the long term, whereas the PJJ's action is limited by the judicial timeframe and represents a judicial constraint.

ACAY works with class 3C every week. Through many activities, the facilitators help the students get to know themselves better, manage their emotions and take action in the service of others. On the prevention side, thanks to ACAY, our students have been made aware of the dangers of drug trafficking in Marseille. A huge thank-you to the facilitators who carry out these activities all year long with professionalism and tremendous kindness.

ACAY isn't just an organization that supports young people for a set period of time. It's a place where you feel at home. A place where you know you will always be welcome. For me, that is the strength of this support. Because many of these young people need to feel this bond before they can go on to build their own future.

I have known ACAY since they first began working at the Marseille Juvenile Detention Center (EPM). Over all these years, ACAY has met many young people in detention, some of whom have become ambassadors. This gives value to their journey in detention and to all the educational work carried out together with ACAY, the detention educators and the community-based educators. I am still enthusiastic about continuing our partnership with ACAY and remain confident in their commitment to the young people we support in detention.