Our Story

I Am Young Power, Inc. is a new tax-exempt nonprofit organization under Section 501(c)(3) which received its confirmed 501(c)(3) non profit status approval December of 2025.

I Am Young Power, Inc. was was born from something that has been building for over two decades. For more than 20 years, our Founder Erika McMillon served young people as a Boys & Girls Club Counselor, youth ministry leader, and Sunday School Teacher, watching gifted, purpose-filled young people walk into environments meant to serve them and leave with their voices silenced and their potential untouched. She decided that had to change.

What began as a small, intentional gathering of just 7–10 committed young people in 2024, quickly became something impossible to ignore. These young people kept showing up — hungry, engaged, and transformed — and it became clear this couldn't stay small.

I Am Young Power, Inc. was formally established to be the solution Erika had spent two decades wishing existed: a structured, faith-rooted organization dedicated to equipping young people ages 6–28 to discover their gifts, find their voice, and use it — building confident communicators, innovators, and community contributors who create lasting change from their neighborhood to the world.

The foundation is laid. The young people are here. What we need now are the resources, sponsors, and partners to expand this movement — so that every young person who needs this has access to it.

Read the full founding story to discover the moment everything changed — and the vision that's just getting started.

Erika McMillon

Erika McMillon has believed in young people her entire life. A lifelong entrepreneur who launched her first business at just six years old, she discovered early that age is never a barrier to building something real — and she has spent every season since proving it.

Over more than two decades, Erika has served youth as a Boys & Girls Club Counselor, youth ministry leader through Young Life and local church ministry, and Sunday School Teacher — walking alongside hundreds of young people across every kind of circumstance. In classrooms and community centers, in churches and neighborhoods, she has sat with young people in their doubt and cheered them through their breakthroughs. What she witnessed through it all fueled her fire: extraordinary young people, full of potential, consistently placed in environments that underestimated them. She knew something had to change.

As a faith-driven CEO, entrepreneur, and homeschool mother, Erika built her life around one unwavering conviction — that systems and the right environment can unlock what God already placed inside a person. That conviction doesn't stop at the boardroom. It extends to every young person aged 6 to 28 who has ever been told to wait, shrink, or settle.

I Am Young Power, Inc. is her answer — a 501(c)(3) nonprofit built at the intersection of faith, leadership, entrepreneurship, and real-world skills. It is not a program. It is a proving ground. Through initiatives like Wealth Builders, Business Bootcamp, Tech Wiz, Nourish & Thrive, and WE LEAD, young people are equipped with the tools, the language, and the belief system to step into their purpose long before the world says they're ready.

Erika founded I Am Young Power because she has seen firsthand what happens when a young person is placed in an environment that expects greatness from them — they rise to meet it. Every program, every mentor, every resource within this organization exists to create that environment, consistently and intentionally, for young people who deserve nothing less.

The name says everything: I Am Young Power.
Not "I will be." Not "someday."

Right now. As they are. Where they stand.
That is the foundation. That is the mission. And for Erika McMillon, it has never been optional — it has always been a calling.

Crystal Frazier is a Senior Accounting Manager with over 20 years of experience in financial accounting across multiple industries, bringing a level of fiscal expertise and oversight to the I Am Young Power Board of Directors that directly strengthens organizational credibility with funders and financial stakeholders. Her specialized background in construction accounting — a field where African American women are significantly underrepresented — has fueled a deliberate, passionate commitment to recruiting, developing, and placing young African American women into professional accounting roles, a mission that runs parallel to I Am Young Power's core work of opening doors for young people who are too often overlooked. In her dual role as YP Advisor and Wealth Strategist, Crystal brings her financial expertise directly into I Am Young Power's Wealth Builders programming, equipping young people ages 6–28 with the financial literacy, wealth-building strategies, and career pathways that create generational change. Her hands-on approach to mentorship translates into real opportunity — she doesn't just teach financial concepts, she actively opens doors. Her extensive service on nonprofit and church boards further demonstrates the governance experience and fiduciary responsibility that assures funding agencies of sound organizational leadership.

Charles Goldsmith is a seasoned entrepreneur and vision-driven strategist whose 20+ years of success across franchising, real estate development, family financial planning, and stocks and investments positions him as one of I Am Young Power's most powerful resources for young people ready to build wealth and lead with purpose. As YP Advisor and Vision Development Strategist, Charles brings the kind of real-world, multi-sector business experience that transforms how young people — particularly young men — see themselves and their economic potential, filling a critical mentorship gap that research consistently identifies as essential to long-term youth outcomes. His innovative thinking and cross-industry perspective directly strengthen I Am Young Power's Wealth Builders and Business Bootcamp programming, giving young leaders access to a proven entrepreneur who understands not just how to build a business, but how to build a legacy. For funding agencies and sponsors, Charles Goldsmith represents exactly the caliber of community-invested leadership that ensures I Am Young Power's programming produces measurable, lasting economic impact in the lives of the young people we serve.

Crystal Hinton is a U.S. military veteran, Licensed Practical Nurse, certified CPR instructor, and trauma-informed mentor coach (in certification) whose multidisciplinary background in healthcare, business, and leadership development makes her an exceptional asset to the I Am Young Power Board of Directors. Holding a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Performance Management from Strayer University and currently pursuing her Master's through the Jack Welch Management Institute, Crystal brings both academic rigor and real-world experience to her role as YP Advisor and Leadership Development Coordinator — where she directly shapes the programs and mentorship experiences that equip young people ages 6–28 with the clarity, confidence, and tools to lead. With a proven track record of mentoring college students and serving underserved communities, Crystal ensures that I Am Young Power's leadership development work is grounded in evidence-based, trauma-informed practice and delivered with the kind of intentionality that produces measurable outcomes for the young people we serve.

Samanda Marshall-Sawyer, known as The EntrePRAYneur®, is a faith-driven business strategist, ordained elder, and Youth Pastor whose passion for developing young leaders is both professional and deeply personal. As Founder and Managing Consultant of Motivus Momentum Agency, LLC, she brings hands-on expertise in business formation, strategic planning, and entrepreneurship directly into I Am Young Power's programming — giving young people ages 6–28 access to seasoned business mentorship that transforms aspiration into actionable strategy. Holding a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, an MBA in Marketing, and the Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) designation, Samanda models the disciplined pursuit of excellence she instills in every young leader she serves. Her additional roles as volunteer mentor with SCORE Mississippi, board president of A Village, Inc., and Youth Pastor at The Gathering of Believers Church confirm a lifelong, cross-sector commitment to community transformation and youth empowerment that makes her an invaluable asset to I Am Young Power's mission.

C'Ella Walker is a credentialed financial professional, educator, and lifelong youth developer whose expertise makes her an exceptional asset to the I Am Young Power Board of Directors. Holding a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Business Administration from Tougaloo College, a Paralegal Certification from Mississippi College, and membership in the National Association of Tax Professionals, C'Ella brings 20+ years of combined experience in tax preparation, payroll, contract administration, and bookkeeping — assisting with I Am Young Power's accounting and bookkeeping while assisting with the financial literacy programming for young people ages 6–28. As the 12-year owner of A-1 Bookkeeping & Tax Services, LLC, and co-founder of Alabaster Box Restoration Housing, she brings entrepreneurial credibility that strengthens organizational accountability for funders and sponsors. Most compellingly, her 20+ years as a licensed missionary and Purity Department President within the Church of God in Christ — a dedicated youth ministry — represents a proven, decades-long investment in hundreds of young lives, perfectly aligned with I Am Young Power's mission to develop the next generation of leaders

I Am Young Power, Inc. is a tax-exempt nonprofit organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. EIN # 99-4077292 Donations are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. No goods or services are provided in exchange for contributions.

The official registration and financial information of I Am Young Power, Inc. may be obtained from the Mississippi Secretary of State's office by calling 1-888-236-6167. Registration does not imply endorsement by the Secretary of State.

ABOUT

Our Story

Meet Our Founder

Erika McMillon

Our Board of Directors

Crystal Frazier

Charles Goldsmith

Crystal Hinton

Samanda
Marshall-Sawyer

C'Ella Walker

Mississippi's next generation is ready. Are you?