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Transforming lives at Pace Center for Girls for nearly a decade

By Bryan Gray
Published  February 17, 2025 7:00pm EST
What's Right with Tampa Bay
FOX 13 News

17 years of uplifting Tampa's at-risk female youth

Mark Wilson reports.

The Brief

    • For 17 years, one woman has been making a difference in the lives of young girls, one student at a time.
    • Davia Lerebours has been uplifting at-risk youth, offering them education, counseling, and a path to success.
    • Davia has served over 2,500 girls in the Tampa Bay community.

TAMPA, Fla. - For 17 years, one woman has been making a difference in the lives of young girls, one student at a time.

Davia Lerebours has been a force at Pace Center for Girls, serving as Executive Director for the past five years.

Pace Center for Girls.

"Pace has been such a blessing to me," said Lerebours. "To have the opportunity to have a direct hand in changing the lives of girls every single day. It's been a wonderful experience."

The backstory:

Born in Jamaica and raised in the Bronx, her personal journey has shaped her passion for helping young women reach their full potential.

"It was difficult," said Lerebours. "It was difficult to see the lack of resources around us. It was a difficult life. I knew that I wanted something more."

From the streets of the Bronx to the halls of leadership, Davia has dedicated her life to transforming the future of young girls.

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She’s spent nearly two decades uplifting at-risk youth, offering them education, counseling, and a path to success.

"Many of our girls are going through probably the most challenging times of their life, and there are not a lot of spaces that allow them to work through those," said Lerebours. "And so, Pace provides a safe space for our girls to work through their problems."

Pace Center for Girls.

Her passion is personal. Born in Jamaica, she moved to the U.S. at just 11 years old, navigating life in the inner city before pursuing higher education at the University at Albany. 

"Where I earned my bachelor's degree in social work, went on to do my master's degree in social work, and then became a licensed clinical social worker," Lerebours explains. 

That journey instilled in her a deep understanding of the challenges young girls face, especially those from underserved communities. 

"I think one of the things that Pace is really good at is working to break generational cycles as we empower each girl," said Lerebours. "We're also changing the generation that comes behind her." 

And for Lerebours, the reward of seeing these girls later in life is priceless.

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"The most rewarding thing for me is when our girls come back, when they're 20, 25 years old, they have a family, they're gainfully employed," said Lerebours. "That gives me the assurance that our services work." 

Lerebours has served over 2,500 girls in the Tampa Bay community.

"It's not about where you start, but where you want to be. And what are those steps in getting to where you want to be," she said.

Pace Center for Girls.

What's next:

Pace is looking to move into a bigger building so that they can serve more girls.

If you're interested in getting involved, you can head to the Pace Center website for more information.

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The Source: Information for this story was gathered by FOX 13's Bryan Gray.

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