Youth Services Update

This has been an active and exciting year for Youth Services.  We have several areas that have gone well.  The Four Way Speech Contest had students reading their speeches and being judged by Rotarians.  Back in October we had a fun filled event with kids doing Halloween Window painting.  This is an activity that we’ve done for many years and is quite popular with the students.  It also seems to be a rewarding and popular activity for the Rotarians that participate in it, and in judging the artistic works created.

Interact is an area that we’re looking for help with.  This is guiding high school students in doing community service projects.  It is helping them organize and providing guidance to those bright young minds and keep them encouraged and excited about providing service to their community.  If this is an area you can help with please contact the Youth Service Director, Ken Myers.

LEAD is a leadership camp for middle school students.  We had a great experience this year we sending promising middle school students to a leadership camp.

RYLA is a leadership camp for high school juniors.  This is really an academy, where students have already proven their leadership and we take them to camp to enhance those skills and broaden their experiences.  We only pick the top students.  It is amazing to see the synergy and initiative when we bring the best of the best from the county together and put them in a ’family’ with 9 others, but all from different schools. They are great kids displaying the characteristics that renew faith in the excellent hands we’re turning this country over to.

Scouting is an area that we have members participate in, but it is not an active area beyond that.  We sponsor a scout troop, and provide a grant for them.  That has been a long standing relationship and it continues still.

Our work with the San Pasquel Academy helps foster kids that don’t have a good support network.  Remember, the only thing these kids did wrong is they picked their parents poorly.  Without a family to provide the support and guidance a teenager needs, they often have requirements both material and emotional.  We also help with their Serenity Garden and the general appearance of the school, by gardening/planting and weeding during Rotarians at Work day.

Ken Myers, New Generations Service Committee Director