When Hard Work Succeeds

Six years after his first summer with Sowing Seeds Outside the Walls, Jyziah Herring is welding for a living.

FOLKSTON, Ga. — Jyziah Herring has started his first full-time job as a welder with Aerotek. It's the kind of moment Sowing Seeds Outside the Walls was built for. A young man picks up a trade, sticks with it, and turns it into a paycheck.

His story with Sowing Seeds goes back to the summer of 2020. Jyziah was an eighth grader about to start high school, the youngest in the group and the only participant who wasn't from Folkston. That didn't stop him. His dad drove him over from a neighboring county so he wouldn't miss a session.

That commitment ran both ways. A kid who shows up because someone in his family keeps making the drive tends to remember it.

The summer took. When Jyziah started ninth grade, he enrolled in his high school's welding program and quickly earned a reputation there. His instructor gave him rave reviews, and he moved up fast as his technique sharpened.

Now he's out of the classroom and on the job.

For Sowing Seeds, Jyziah's job is the clearest proof yet that the model works. The nonprofit teaches welding to young people in Folkston, Georgia (Charlton County), with support from local businesses like Wright's Welding. Electrical, HVAC, plumbing and carpentry training are planned next.

One participant, one trade, one steady job. That's a seed that took root.