ABOVE: Jeff Militello of Militello Motors leads students through what they can and can’t afford during the Game of Life event at GHEC in 2024. Real-life businesses and organizations participate and add to the simulation’s true-to-life mentality and intentions. Kinship of Martin County is planing to hold another event at GHEC later this month.

GRANADA – For the second year, Kinship of Martin County is working together with Granada-Huntley-East Chain (GHEC) School to bring a simulation of real life.

Kinship Associate Director Courtney Logwood said the simulation, called Game of Life and held for students in grades 10 to 12, is meant to give them an idea of their world outside of high school.

“They get a random education level, credit score, a number of dependents and ages of kids,” she said. “They had to go through little booths of area businesses and secure a year of housing, transportation, food, clothing and all that for that fake family. This showed them the real-life costs of these things or services.”

Social programs and services are also available to help students make ends meet during the simulation. Different booths are staffed by real businesses. Staffing booths this year include representatives from the Fairmont Police Department, Head Start, WIC-SNAP, Prairie Lakes Transit and Profinium Bank among others.

When Logwood joined Kinship as an Associate Director in 2022, she said this program was something she came in wanting to do.

“I struggled a lot in the beginning of life because I had no support or guidance,” Logwood said. “There was no one to show me anything. I had to learn by bumping my head. If we could get that information to kids before they become adults, they can make better choices. Sometimes you pick the lesser of two evils, not knowing there was a good option because you don’t have the time to assess.”

GHEC was the first to collaborate with Kinship on this idea. GHEC Secondary Principal Andy Walden said Logwood sold him on the idea and its merits right away.

“It’s going to help and benefit them when they get out of GHEC and they’re pursuing their careers or life after that,” he said. “It’s a perfect opportunity for our students to learn the way the world works. I think it’ll benefit them as they get older.”

After they first did it in 2024, Kinship Associate Director Katy Gonzalez said they received several takeaways. Among the standard realizations regarding credit cards and taxes, she said there was also something she didn’t expect.

“One of the trials was they were given a younger child relative they had to support,” Gonzalez said. “Some 10th-grade boys came back to Courtney and said, ‘We know there’s child support, why aren’t they paying us? We should only have to pay half of this.’ She said, ‘We’re gonna base it on county statistics, so 1 in 10 of you can have child support.’ They were so upset they didn’t know what to do.”

The simulation brings realities like these to light, dispelling assumptions or misconceptions that could derail them in the long run. To that effect, this year more details are being added. This includes their random profiles having a chance of being a smoker or drinker, as well as potential felon status.

“We’ll have MCSAP run our tobacco and alcohol booth,” Logwood said. “The [kids marked as smokers] will roll the dice and see what kind of drinker or smoker they are. It’s hard to show a kid $15 for cigarettes, it doesn’t sound like a lot of money to spend. After 12 months, it’s $2,500 or $5,000 and then it shows you can’t get that car that you wanted because you spent all of your excess money.”

If students are picked as a felon, they will have fines they owe to the police department. If they don’t pay them, there’s a chance the police find and arrest them. This will instantly mark down their job prospects while keeping all the same possibilities.

Logwood said both scenarios were ideas submitted by students from last year’s demonstration.

Moving forward, Logwood said they will run the program every two years, meaning the next simulation will be in 2027. In the meantime, they are looking to continue expanding the program with more businesses and schools participating. Truman is trying the Game of Life for the first time this year.

If everything goes smoothly, and analytical data shows marked changes due to the program, Logwood said she would like to get state grants based on empirical data and turn it into a detailed life skills course offered at high schools.

The event is being held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on March 27 at GHEC.