photo: provided by Silas Beardslee

by Katie Achilli
edited by Nalina Shapiro

Silas Beardslee, a believer in doing whatever you want, spoke on Thursday, March 4th about the Youth Initiative Program, and also about personal growth.

“Move on in your heart,” “ultimately free,” “learn to love all that you see,” and “stand for what you think is true” were some of the song lyrics written and performed by Beardslee before he spoke to the Franklin Pierce audience.

He was born in Fitchburg, MA and went to schools in Keene and Waldorf, NH. Instead of college, he longed to travel. He has traveled to England, Scotland, Iceland, Sweden, Hawaii, and had a life-changing experience in Zimbabwe. Beardslee also worked in a youth center in Switzerland for five months. “I had a lot of socks,” he said.

Beardslee left Zimbabwe with a wish to return. He wanted to give something back; he wanted to create a community to develop relationships and to make people stronger. He traveled to India and Africa to pursue this organization. He started a community that supported a farm in the rural village Rimbi, Zimbabwe called the Rimbi Farm Project. “I connected with a lot of amazing people,” he said, “I was able to take that first step to what I was interested in.”

The Rimbi Farm Project later lead to Beardslee’s interest in the Youth Initiative Program (YIP). It’s for youth ages 18 to 25, and takes place in Järna, Sweden. Younger generations from all around the world can partake in YIP.

During Beardslee’s experience with YIP, he and 40 other kids lived in one big house in the forest by the sea. “We tried to create a space for everyone, no matter who you are, to find something interesting,” he said. They became a family and a community while they were there. They worked together and got to know one another. “It was powerful,” he said. “It creates a different relationship than just being in a classroom.”

YIP provides kids with many learning experiences to develop skills in leadership, inspire creativity, and to also understand yourself and the world. Some of the experiences that Beradslee mentioned were learning about nutrition, making personal resumes, painting portraits, mentoring, fundraising, theater and acting, and a mix of more art. “Practical things,” said Beardslee.  “They gave us tools and materials and said, ‘go nuts.’ We were always diving deeper into our conscience.”

The YIP program costs about $14,000, and it includes food, room and board, and transportation. Members of this program are also able to design their own 5-week internship.

The process of explaining YIP and the Rimbi Farm Project excited the University audience, which included students, professors and other faculty members. Beardslee was very pleased to announce that Franklin Pierce University donated $1,000 to the Rimbi Farm Project.