Bradley Hildreth

By Ericka Gordon

Growing up having one aunt who suffers from alcoholism and another addicted to drugs could have easily kept Bradley Hildreth, 21, from becoming the influential man he is today. “I am a product of my environment, so it’s a good thing,” said Hildreth, “sometimes people can push you to be better, or you can choose to stay the same…my streets pushed me to be better.”

Hildreth is a prime example of someone who “made it out the hood.” He is currently enrolled at SFA and very active in his community. He volunteers with Gamma Sigma Sigma Sorority at The Boys Home. “We take their minds off of reality,” Hildreth explained while describing his purpose at The Boys Home.

He also volunteers at nursing homes around Nacogdoches and is an avid donator to his church, Nacogdoches Bible Fellowship.

Hildreth aspires to one day be a member of a brotherhood known as Men Of God, a fraternity that aims to honor Christ and everything they do in life is based around the word of God.

Unfortunately, Hildreth does not believe he is ready for such a commitment. He explained that, “Wearing those letters is making a very bold statement,” and he doesn’t want to make that statement and not live up to the expectations that come along with it. Hildreth also desires to be a revolutionary figure. Perhaps the Martin Luther King Jr. or Malcolm X of our generation and he is well on his way to doing so if he continues to make statements like this, “Everything depends on you and your ambitions. You determine how you turn out, you can have the same start but not everybody has the same finish.”