Lekisha was born and raised in San Diego, California. At the age of 16 Lekisha became a teen parent. Along with being a teen mother and attending high school, she was able to maintain a part time job with the City of San Diego in the Park & Recreation Department as a Recreation Leader for three years. In that position she serviced a large group of at-risk youth.
After successfully graduating from high school, & completing the teen parent stage, independently, Lekisha decided to do all that could be done to get young girls to understand, that being a teen parent is a very difficult task and is something that can be easily avoided. That idea inspired the birth of S.U.G.A.R.
Lekisha founded S.U.G.A.R. in 1999 in San Diego, California. The program started with 10 girls. The team traveled around San Diego performing step-dance routines. The girls were educated on several life skills. The team was called to rest to in March of 2001, when Lekisha decided to move to Las Vegas, Nevada.
After settling in her new hometown, Lekisha decided it was time to get back in the community and help young girls avoid the path in life that she had taken. In June 2003 Lekisha joined the Clark County Teen Pregnancy Prevention Coalition, and became a Resource Mother for the Courtney Children’s Foundation’s Baby Find Program.
Lekisha started S.U.G.A.R. again on September 11, 2003. The program was held at the Cambridge Community Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, which happens to be one of the high-risk areas for teen pregnancy. To date, The SUGAR program has serviced over 300 female participants between the ages of 12-18.
In 2004, Lekisha was hired by Dr. Eugene McGaugh as an Administrative Assistant with the UNLV College of Engineering MEP program. It was there that she was introduced to NSBE. Lekisha worked closely with the UNLV NSBE chapter to ensure that the students had all the needed resources to be successful. Lekisha attended a NSBE national convention, where she gained confidence that she too, could obtain a degree in higher education. She took advantage of any and all trainings and workshops that were available. Lekisha is currently certified in many areas
In spring of 2006, Lekisha Hayes began taking classes at UNLV to pursue a degree in Social Work. While taking classes Lekisha decided to get involved on campus and created a UNLV Student organization called S.T.A.R.S. (Striving To Achieve Real Success). The organization focuses on helping at risk individuals in the community.
On top of being a Mother of four, Lekisha is still very active in her community. She is the Co-Founder & CEO of the S.T.A.R.S. Community Development Corporation, here in Las Vegas. STARS CDC is a Non Profit 501C3 that provides charitable services to children youth and adults. Lekisha plans to establish STARS throughout the nation to assist with the everyday battle of enhancing our community.