The following blog is written by our outgoing Board of Directors President, Maxx Labrie (they/he).
As of September 18th, I have officially left my role as President of the Board of Youth MOVE National. This is an incredibly bittersweet moment for me, and I wanted to share a little about my decision, and a bit of wisdom I have gained in the last ten or so years being a part of YMN.
This was not my original plan. I wanted to wait it out until the next officer election in February. However, plans changed and I needed to put myself first. I have had a harrowing year, including having COVID and now continuing to deal with Long COVID (friendly reminder the pandemic is very much not over), familial loss and conflict, paired with the current state of the world. I have come to realize my disabilities are worsening at a degree I frankly was not prepared for, and in order to prioritize my emotional and physical wellness, I had to take something off of my plate, and this was the biggest thing on it at the time. This was not a decision I made lightly.
I have spent my entire adulthood with Youth MOVE in one capacity or another, and I have a lot of love and thankfulness for their belief in me and the real kick start of my peer support journey. From chapter lead to consultant to Board member to VP to President. If you had told me this would’ve been my trajectory at 18, I would’ve laughed in your face.
Youth MOVE and the wonderful people involved saw something in me, and placed their trust in my ability, knowledge and expertise, and I can now confidently say that I am good at what I do and they did not misplace their trust. As someone who had little to no self esteem when I started this journey, this has been a huge change in my life that I welcome with open arms. Part of that faith in myself is also letting myself let go of things if I cannot do them any longer.
I have had the honor of meeting some of the most incredible youth in my near decade of work, and I am certain that Youth MOVE is in good hands with them. I will be cheering them on from the sidelines, and I am sure I will be around in some capacity again.
If there is one major thing I can leave you with, it is that youth are capable, strong, smart and determined, and we are in such good hands for our future. Youth deserve autonomy, respect and choice, and I am happy to see more and more youth recognize the ways they are being silenced and disregarded and speaking up and not backing down.
Thank you to the National Leadership Team, Tay, the Board, and our wonderful chapter network for being a part of my life for the last ten years. You have all changed my life and I am forever grateful for all of you.
I would love to keep in touch with anyone in our chapter network or professional network who would like to. Folks are welcome to get in touch via LinkedIn or via email at [email protected]