Far too many young Bahamians cannot see a bright future, said president of Bahamas Striping Group of Companies, Atario Mitchell in kicking off the ninth annual Building Youth is Better Than Mending Men Conference hosted by the Falcon Boys Club in Grand Bahama over the weekend.

President of Bahamas Striping Group of Companies, Atario Mitchell addressed the ninth annual Building Youth is Better Than Mending Men Conference hosted by the Falcon Boys Club in Grand Bahama over the weekend. 

During the half day retreat held Saturday, April 25, at Jubilee Cathedral, Mr Mitchell shared a message of choice, change and God to the roughly 400 boys and men in attendance.

"Choice is one of the most powerful tools in your life and as young people you must understand that for every choice you make there can be only two results – a consequence, or a reward," said Mr Mitchell.

"If you make the wrong choices as we are seeing too many of our young people doing, then we see them suffering the consequence."

As a 23-year-old, Mr Mitchell leveraged a $5,000 government grant to catapult a lucrative road striping business which, now five years later, includes airport maintenance, pavement rejuvenation and the sale of environmentally friendly asphalt repair products.

His message, the first presentation of the morning, was designed to ignite passion and build-up youths, helping them to make empowered decisions.

A few of the young attendants at the Building Youth is Better Than Mending Men Conference hosted by the Falcon Boys Club in Grand Bahama over the weekend. 

In his remarks, Mr Mitchell encouraged adolescents to embrace change. "Carrying a knife, or a gun don’t make you hard. Smoking dope, or doing drugs don’t make you cool.

Being in a gang doesn’t mean that you have protection," said the 28-year-old who rose from humble beginnings in Murphy Town, Abaco.

"In fact, if you consider what is going on in our country today, you will see that young people who carry guns and knives, smoke dope, or do drugs, or are involved in gangs are the ones being gunned down, or on the 'wanted list,' or being sentenced to Fox Hill prison."

Mr Mitchell confessed to having many "close calls with the law" in his younger days. "I made a choice as a young person that instead of picking up a gun, or a knife, or even joining a gang that I was going to fight to build a successful business," he said.

As a high school student young Mitchell did not fully understand, nor did he embrace the importance of obtaining a good education. "It was not until my last year in school that I began to focus on my education and listen to my teachers," he shared.

"I realized that if I didn’t make a change, I was not going to graduate."

Some friends, he cautioned, will apply negative peer pressure.

"I want to say to you that you have the power to make a choice to not follow the crowd and just be different," said Mr Mitchell.

"There is nothing wrong with being different.

It makes you stand out and shine as an individual."

He noted that wherever there is opportunity, one usually finds opposition.

"Today as I stand here I am not telling you what I think is possible, I am telling you what I know is possible and you can achieve your dreams if you are willing to work hard make a change and put God first in everything you do," he challenged attendees.

"Focus on your gifts and talents and allow God to give you direction you will find that success and victory will follow."

Mr Mitchell added: "When the army saw how big Goliath was, they said, 'He’s too big for us to defeat.'

When David saw Goliath he said, 'He’s too big to miss!' It’s all about changing the way you see yourself and your circumstances."

The goal of the conference, held under the theme "We Can Make a Difference," is to empower young boys to create a positive change within their lives and society at large, said event organizer and director of the Falcon Boys Club, Darron Rolle. "Mr Mitchell's story was inspirational.

In spite of obstacles he's been able to overcome. It's something our youths could identify with. I'm hoping it ignites a spark in our young men."

The award-winning club was born out of Tabernacle Baptist Christian Academy 18 years ago.

The Christian club runs from September to June and meets every Saturday from 10am to noon.

The club is free for boys ages eight to 18-years-old.