Angels Youth Organization 501 (C)

Life changing events often occur in the most unexpected places to the most unexpected people. During my experience at the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards, (RYLA) I met other teenagers my age from various ethnic groups, personalities, and interests. This camp taught me how to work with others and learn to be a team player, as well as utilize and strengthen my leadership skills to the max. It was an exciting wave of emotion for all of us, and luckily created a major influence in my life.

As a health outreach coordinator for the school, I sometimes had difficulty connecting with the students. Attendance of my programs was low and I could not understand why. This is when Mr. D challenged me to understand, connect with, and become the community. I began attending school events. I walked the halls more to become a familiar face. Rather than creating programs for the students, I began planning with the students. From then on I started receiving honest insight into how the students view their own health and of their community. They would open up and tell me the problems they were facing and how I could tailor my programs to address them properly. By connecting on a personal level with students, participation in the outreach programs skyrocketed. After discovering students weren’t eating breakfast, the wildly successful “Free Fresh Fruit Fridays” was created and I became known as the fruit man. Twice a week zumba classes were established when it was realized that some students didn’t believe they could be physically

When I started doing cheerleading in high school, I discovered the Leadership Council. It was a small of group of cheerleaders that participated in activities in order to provide service to our community. On a Monday, after school, we drove to a trailer park to participate in an organization. That was the start of my involvement with The Path Project. When I first got there, I realized that it was a community where kids were not worried about petty things, instead they were concerned about what they would eat the next day or how they would focus at school. Children in this situation are not able to enjoy being children because they are dealing with poverty, abuse, and neglect. This was a community full of at-risk children and teenagers who

In 2016, I interviewed to be a part of the Louisiana State Food and Fitness Board. Fortunately, I was awarded one of twenty spots. Each year, we plan many activities, but my personal favorite is an overnight camp that allows other teens to participate in exercises and gain information about health issues in today’s society. Even though I’m a group leader and organizer, I still learn new things just like the campers! My

When I started my freshman year of high school, I did not understand the importance of a strong community. A good community allows people to have a sense of belonging, safety, and friendship. To build this community you need a group of caring people who are willing to be involved, a purpose or cause, and good leadership. I had the opportunity through an organization called the Leadership Scholars Program to mentor 7th graders on high school and college readiness, as well as improving their mindfulness. I worked a full year with 3 boys who taught me a lot of patience and how to have fun when learning new things. I’m truly grateful for each boy and I hope that each of them will go on to be successful young men. At the Over the Rhine Soup Kitchen

Life is filled with different types of experiences that enhance the growth of an individual. One particular life experience that have impacted me both positively and negatively was the year when I was selected as Single Service Chair for University of Nevada Circle K International. It is my duty to planned and executed one single service project that would impact the club as well as the community. It was a challenging position, but the skills that I gained are crucial to my development as a leader and as an active citizen. Since service was the main element focus, I was able to build on the previous service events that I have participated and expand it to a more ‘civil engagement’ approach. For the service event, I wanted to give a chance

The EDF is a non-profit organization whose goal is to protect the environment. The organization have many projects that help them to raise fund for such goal. Their main stakeholders are the people who support them and push politicians to pass environmentalist laws. One of their main programs is called the “Climate Corps”; this programs creates a small network that only allows people who are strictly selected by the EDF. Moreover, the plans that their interns create for company affect some stakeholders inside the company they work for. Consequently, many other stakeholders are negatively affected by this. In order to avoid more negative effects instead of positive, the EDF should extend the Climate Corps program and modify some of the basis in which the program creates their plans, so direct and indirect problems can also be solve.

Although I was unsure as to what community I wanted to work with, it was important to me that I choose a project with the ability to positively affect the lives of young children and adolescents. In order to be as successful as possible, I also believed my working with a partner to be the best choice—someone I could discuss objectives with and bounce ideas off of. During my search for a group partner who was interested in this type of community-engaged project, one of my classmates made the suggestion that I speak with Catlin Harris, another student in our class. Catlin, a member of the Calvary Chapel, had been looking into working with a new youth group the church had recently established. After discussing with Catlin the Calvary Chapel and its new youth group, along with the possibilities available in engaging these young teens in fun and safe activities, I knew this was a project I wanted to be a part

The class as a whole chose to join with Firetree Place to promote the facility for adolescents to have a safe place to go after school, as well as to unite the community of Williamsport. Firetree Place is a community center for youth and has services such as mentoring. They are attempting to become a Big Brothers Big Sisters affiliate. They’re clients consist of youth in the Williamsport area. Most of these clients come from low-income families due to the services that they provide. Firetree Place holds activities like movie nights, as well as other events that are similar to the community day the class conducted.

I spent part of my summer in both 2014 and 2015, providing the children at Camp Impact, with an escape from their disadvantaged reality. The experience of working with these children, has provided me with a valuable perspective, and a new lens through which I see the world.

Youth United is a volunteer program through Habitat for Humanity. They encourage teamwork and collaboration, educate youth, and help to develop leadership skills. These ideals will develop a stronger connection with other youth that are part of this program. The program also helps to build and provide houses for those in need. This can help people who are part of the program understand and care for everyone that we help. Although at this age I can’t be part of the construction, I can still help with landscaping and painting. I can also raise funds and plan events. Through this program, I can help to create Martin Luther King Jr.’s ideal

I have joined a program that has helped me change my community into a better environment. I joined a program, Casa Che, during my junior year. This program seemed very interesting to me due to the fact that makes youth make changes in their own community. In Casa Che, we get to meet students from other schools who also want to change their environment into a better place. We meet once a week and talk about whatever comes to our mind. We respect each other and respect the environment we all share. In this program, we talk about violence and how we can work together to make our community a better place. We make events that makes each one of us come together and work with other adults and

Columbia Youth Adventurers will also be close to my heart. Mentoring low-income youth and providing them cultural access outside of their surroundings parallels my own experiences. I understand the importance of bringing the world into children’s lives and by volunteering with Youth Adventurers I can pay this importance forward. Due to my experience in similar programs; I understand first-hand the

During my scholastic career, I have learned how to get involved and how valuable volunteering truly is. Whether at home in Lawrence County or here in Indianapolis, giving back is an important, fulfilling, and a great way to meet new people and experience new things. I enjoy volunteering locally at Bertha’s Mission, a community kitchen that helps provide warm meals and fellowship to those in need. I started the youth board here, giving high school students a chance to be involved in service during my junior year of high school and continue to volunteer. It is my goal this summer to begin a collegiate board and reach out to people I have met at IUPUI and former high school youth board members. I also am blessed to experience many service opportunity

In this shift share, I would like to describe my participation in a project called the “Vulnerable Youths Project”. Since my preceptor, T.H., was a member of the Focus Youth Group meetings, I, as her student, was also participating in the bi-weekly group’s meetings. During these meetings, I assisted in the planning and implementation of promotional strategies intended to increase a supportive environment, and engagement of the vulnerable youth populations and community partners. In addition, I was involved in creating, updating, and presenting youth-tailored protocols, logic models, and reports, both independently and as part of a team.