Be The Change Youth Initiative is a Chattanooga-based nonprofit centralized around empowering youth. But a closer look at the organization and the family behind it reveals so much more.
“We’re working to create spaces where young people don’t just sit at the table—they lead the conversation. Where their lived experience, their creativity, and their sense of justice inform the way we approach community change. We’re not ‘prepping the next generation.’ We’re equipping a generation already leading.”
Sydney Guerrette founded Be The Change at just 15 years old. With a focus on mental health advocacy and cultivating leadership spaces, the organization quickly became a staple of the Chattanooga community. Guerrette credits much of the core mission to wanting to give space to the youth right in front of them.
“A lot of them will commonly say, ‘we tried going to other people, and a lot of adults won’t give us the time of day because we’re really young.’ And I’m like, we’re here to give you those opportunities, because we believe you have something to contribute.”
This change doesn’t just come through events and partnerships, although the organization does many of these throughout the year; it also comes from song. Sydney and her brother Brayden are the musical force behind In The Company of Wolves, an indie band whose songs speak to the heart and promote further focus on mental health.
The story only begins there; early into their journey, the entire family moved into an RV and began traveling across the United States, hosting speaking engagements and live house shows across numerous states and cities. These performances opened up the door for them to hear and resonate with the candid stories of those present; from middle and high school students struggling with depression and suicidal ideation to those just wanting to engage in more difficult conversations, it quickly became clear that the mission was only expanding.
“We found that going into people’s homes, having live music, is an important catalyst for conversations,” says Deirdre Catlett, Sydney and Brayden’s mother.
“We equate house to family. Wherever you feel like your people are is where we will come.”
From intimate house shows to workshops with their high school students, from large scale fundraising events to messages of kindness on coffee sleeves, it’s difficult to quantify exactly how many initiatives Be The Change has dipped their toes into, no matter how big or small. But one thing is for certain: within Chattanooga, you won’t have to look very far to see the effects of their work or meet someone they’ve connected with along the way.
The organization needs your help to impact the community, especially for their event right around the corner. Empty Bowls is a dinner fundraiser tackling food insecurity in schools, similar to the Good Samaritan Center which we’ve highlighted before. Artists hand-craft the bowls, chefs prepare the food, and local businesses and volunteers come together to sponsor and facilitate the event. The proceeds go directly towards Hamilton County’s school food debt, which is already up to $14,000 in just the first month of school.
If you’d like to learn more about this specific event, click here for more information and to donate or buy a ticket. Or if you’d like to support the organization directly, click here for the ongoing Be The Change fundraiser. In order to support so many others throughout the community, the organization also needs direct help so that they can empower youth to reach their full potential.
“I have conversations with people where they’ll make comments about how our generation is ‘lazy,’ or how we ‘just don't care,’” Sydney says. “But if you actually get to know and sit with youth and hear their stories, they're experiencing some things that we never could have imagined.”
Written by Paul Zachos III