{"id":102016,"date":"2025-07-29T12:13:13","date_gmt":"2025-07-29T12:13:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/102016\/"},"modified":"2025-07-29T12:13:13","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T12:13:13","slug":"gemini-ink-program-gives-bexar-county-teens-a-creative-outlet-amid-summer-challenges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/102016\/","title":{"rendered":"Gemini Ink program gives Bexar County teens a creative outlet amid summer challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"

BEXAR COUNTY, Texas<\/strong> \u2013 With school out for the summer, many teenagers are free to relax, roam and sometimes get into trouble.<\/p>\n

Last year, between June and August, 264 teens were registered at the Bexar County Juvenile Detention Center. In 2023, that number was 331. <\/p>\n

Those teens were detained for offenses ranging from trespassing and drugs to more serious crimes, such as murder.<\/p>\n

Writing, however, could be a tool to help teens express some of the issues they\u2019re facing. <\/p>\n

Sofia Ball, a teenage writer, shares a poem she recently completed. She said she began her love affair with creative writing at 9 years old. <\/p>\n

\u201cI use writing personally as a way to channel a lot of the emotions that I feel,\u201d Ball said.<\/p>\n

Now a high school senior, Ball leads the \u201cTeen Writing Circle\u201d<\/a> at Gemini Ink.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI have teenagers at home, so I know about self-expression,\u201d Gemini Ink class coordinator Mandy Lynn Lara said. \u201cBut yes, giving them a structured way to express themselves is important.\u201d<\/p>\n

The free monthly Zoom class has been ongoing for seven months, providing teenagers a space to connect with like-minded peers and develop their voices.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of things that teens need to say, and sometimes getting on social media is like yelling into an echo chamber,\u201d Lara said. \u201cSo, just getting teens somewhere where they can talk to others and learn how to develop their own voice and use it on a platform later is powerful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gemini Ink also collaborates with local nonprofits, such as those serving women and teens in recovery. It has also taught creative expression to teens at the Krier Juvenile Correction Center located on the South Side for 20 years.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s cathartic,\u201d Lara said. \u201cWriting is therapeutic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Each year, the organization publishes selected writings by those in the program with whom they work. <\/p>\n

Copyright 2025 by KSAT – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BEXAR COUNTY, Texas \u2013 With school out for the summer, many teenagers are free to relax, roam and…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":102017,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5133],"tags":[5229,648,7288,407,23773,7202,7203,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-102016","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-antonio","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-arts","10":"tag-bexar-county","11":"tag-education","12":"tag-ksatkids","13":"tag-san-antonio","14":"tag-sanantonio","15":"tag-texas","16":"tag-tx","17":"tag-united-states","18":"tag-united-states-of-america","19":"tag-unitedstates","20":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","21":"tag-us","22":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114936466993011820","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=102016"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102016\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/102017"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=102016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=102016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=102016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}