Derrick Santiago never had a problem getting people to follow him. It was knowing where to lead them that took some work.
"It was a very, very long process," said Santiago, the 2014 Adult Friends for Youth Young Person of the Year. "I think where we would have ended up is pretty obvious — maybe in prison, maybe dead — but instead we were able to come together and do something positive."
The "we" to which he constantly refers represents one of the precious few constants in Santiago’s life, a core group of friends who bonded through youth sports, closed ranks during aimless years of delinquency and violence, and emerged against all probability as a positive force in their Ewa Beach community.
Santiago gravitated to sports for the structure, supervision and attention he often lacked at home. Through sports Santiago forged friendships with teammates with similar backgrounds.
The group’s athletic accomplishments brought them prestige and admiration, but the friends — brothers, they call each other — slowly became each other’s "wrong crowd."
By the time they reached Campbell High School, Santiago and his friends had moved from childish misadventure to more serious trouble, drawing suspensions for gambling and terroristic threatening. Some group members were taking and dealing illegal drugs — even as they were drawing cheers for their performances on the football field.
The group’s off-field transgressions soon overtook them. In 2006, when Santiago was a sophomore, conflict with a group of students from Farrington High School led to a near riot and the arrest of 10 students.
AFY stepped in to mediate and in the process provided Santiago a chance to use his natural leadership abilities for something meaningful.
"It’s one thing for an adult to tell you what’s right and wrong, but it’s something else when it comes from a friend that you trust," Santiago said. "I felt accountable now, and it set off a chain reaction. We started holding each other accountable for the decisions we made."
With the guidance and support of AFY staff, the group was able to remain in school and graduate. Like most of his friends, Santiago made his way to college. He now works for the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel as a front desk relief manager.
Through AFY, Santiago and his friends have been able to leverage their experiences to connect with kids who find themselves at similar crossroads in their lives.
"I feel like it’s my calling to try and help other people now," Santiago said.
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AFY’s 28th Annual Celebration of Youth will be held Nov. 8 at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel. For more information, call 833-8775.
Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@staradvertiser.com.
