Eight kids compete for Youth of the Year cash prize

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Eight kids are in the running for Youth of the Year, and only one of them can take home the $20,000 scholarship.The road to get there has been long for the eight candidates, and Martez Favis, vice president of operations at Boys Girls Clubs of Greater Augusta, has been there since the beginning. He said all of them are already winners.Favis said the difference between July, when the kids turned in their paperwork, and now, in November, “is just leaps and bounds.”Favis said the exposure the kids get is invaluable.“The fact that our kids get this exposure early on is going to put them ahead of the game when it comes to college interviews, when it comes to being able to write essays for college, being able to speak in front of groups of people,” Favis said.Derek Dugan, vice president of development at Boys Girls Clubs of Greater Augusta, said the benefits go far beyond the eight kids.“We’re very proud to say we’ve impacted over 10,000 kids this year,” Dugan