WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — The vibes inside the Wilkes-Barre THINK Center are positive, encouraging, and colorful—what some here would call Ava's Way.
This teen empowerment program organized by the Luzerne Foundation and the Fellerman family in Wilkes-Barre aims to lift people up.
"After they sadly and tragically lost their daughter Ava Fellerman in 2022, they set up a memorial fund through us, which is something that we do often. And they really wanted to create a program that spoke to her legacy and all of the good things that she put out into the community," said Jessica Saab, the Luzerne Foundation's philanthropic services coordinator.
The program is open to Wilkes-Barre Area high school seniors who enter an essay contest.
"Reading about Ava was kind of inspiring considering I was someone that's also been in a car accident, two of them. And so, I kind of related to her story," Haylee Fehrman said.
About a dozen students were selected in the program's inaugural year for a day of discussion, mindfulness, and empowerment.
First, the girls had open-form conversations with women who found success in business, nonprofits, criminal justice, and the media after overcoming personal struggles.
"Since we're all seniors, it was very hard trying to decide what we want to do for the rest of our lives. And that's a big decision that we have to make. So I felt very relaxed when all these women that spoke here today could relate to me, and I can relate to them," Erin Akuete said.
Then, the students did a mindfulness exercise, painting portraits of the woman sitting across from them.
"Maybe the person is giving the energy of nature or more relaxed or freeing or whatever, so anything that reminds them of that, they can put it on the canvas," said art instructor Gigi Perez.
After lunch, there was a conversation about healthy relationships with significant others and parents.
"I especially enjoyed the part where we were talking about mother and daughter relationships because I can relate to that the most," Akuete said.
"It turned into a whole therapy session. So that was kind of fun to know that and also kind of interesting to know that you're not alone in how you feel about things," Fehrman said.
The students also got a lesson in Brazilian jiu-jitsu to empower themselves with simple movements.
"It shows you that even with financial struggles, relationship struggles, and attack for all we know, you will grow from it, you can get through it. I think this like opened a lot of doors for how you view things," Brianna Aragones said.
At the end, the girls got a big surprise. Everyone was leaving with a gift card for a new prom dress and a ticket to prom, leaving them at the end of the day with new mental, emotional, and physical tools that Ava encouraged her friends and family to have every day, and a dress to match.
Watch more Check It Out segments on YouTube.