Julie Hershey, Founder and Executive Director of Live Free Abstinence Education, addressed the Greenville County Legislative Delegation, Monday, January 12 in Greenville.
Live Free’s Mission is to equip youth to live free from the damaging consequences of sexual activity outside marriage and to make choices consistent with their values.
Live Free utilizes trained abstinence educators to present an evidence based and medically accurate abstinence curricula to both boys and girls.
During 2014 Live Free served 2,935 students with direct abstinence education services using Choosing the Best curriculum. The non-profit organization served 77 parents with information workshops regarding Choosing the Best.
In addition, Live Free trained 7 Upstate Counties with HIS (Healthy Image of Sex)designed for African-American faith communities. So far, 150 students have received the HIS curriculum from church leaders.
Live Free is scheduled to serve more than 1,800 more students before the end of the school year.
Live Free collects statistics proving the effectiveness of the program.
Hershey reminded lawmakers that government funds have not always been spent wisely due to politics. She urged them to make contracts competitive and require an accounting of how the funds are spent.