Reaching Up’s (RU) mission is to equip the youth in Columbus County to become active citizens while helping them with character, leadership and academic skills. RU serves middle school and high school youth aged youth. RU strives to push these young people to exceed their self-expectations and become passionate about their community. To develop passionate community leaders, a variety of team-building activities, sessions, events and resources, including mentors, will be offered. Allowing youth to conduct community service is a win-win: the youth become involved while the community benefits from their service. Over time, RU hopes to expand to other rural North Carolina counties.