Tester meets with Butte students to discuss ending youth violence

Students earned trip to nation’s capital through writing competition

(U.S. SENATE) – Senator Jon Tester today met with two Butte middle school students to discuss ending youth violence in Montana communities.

Deryn Ferguson and Nathan Steilman – both students at Butte’s East Middle School – were invited to Washington, D.C. as part of the Do the Write Thing Challenge. Do the Write Thing allows students to write about how violence affects them and their communities.

Tester and the students discussed the importance of getting involved in schools and communities to make a difference.

“Violence has many causes, and every community deals with it differently,” Tester said. “The first step to ending violence is having an open and honest conversation, and Deryn and Nathan helped start that conversation in Montana.”

Do the Write Thing Challenge is part of the National Campaign to Stop Violence, a non-partisan, not-for-profit group dedicated to reducing youth violence and its impacts.