PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) – A local Native youth program called UNITY has been awarded $200,000 in a racial equity grant from Bank of America!
The executive director of UNITY said that Native youth are already making big strides across Indian Country and there are ways we can help boost their voices. Mary Kim Titla was the state’s first Native American television reporter working in Tucson and in Phoenix for more than 20 years. She worked at 3TV/CBS 5 as a news receptionist before becoming a production assistant! She now acts as a mentor for children as part of the executive director of United National Indian Tribal Youth, also known as UNITY!
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“We work with Native American youth all over the country, we work with 22 youth councils here in Arizona,” she said. “We’re focusing on personal development, leadership development, and citizenship.” Arizona’s Family met up with Titla while she was training leaders on how to film a public service announcement for the non-profit. She is from the San Carlos Apache Reservation. “UNITY changes lives. It changed my life, and I think the beauty of UNITY is that young people leave our activities, whether it be a youth conference or a training feeling inspired and empowered,” Titla said.
The grant UNITY received was a $200,000 award from the Bank of America for racial equity. “One of the things we’re going to be doing with this grant is offering healing circle trainings,” she said. “What this does is allow youth to come together to talk about issues that are important to them and to address those issues.”
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