Youth commissioners keep active in community
At the end of the day
– after band and sports practices, school club meetings and
studying for the SATs – one group of high school students still
finds time to give back to the community. Gilroy’s youth commission
is a chance for local students to get involved in the city while
learning a little bit about local polit
ics.
”
It’s fun doing homecoming and school dances, but I thought,
‘what if we can do something more?’
”
said Carly Kennedy, a Gilroy High School junior.
”
I wanted more.
”
Youth commissioners keep active in community
At the end of the day – after band and sports practices, school club meetings and studying for the SATs – one group of high school students still finds time to give back to the community. Gilroy’s youth commission is a chance for local students to get involved in the city while learning a little bit about local politics.
“It’s fun doing homecoming and school dances, but I thought, ‘what if we can do something more?'” said Carly Kennedy, a Gilroy High School junior. “I wanted more.”
The high school student aspires to a life in politics or possibly as a reporter, a career where she can serve the greater good. But with her work on the commission she is already trying to make a difference.
“I wanted to reach out to other students who were in other high schools or in other schools,” Kennedy said. “I wanted to reach a broader audience.”
The 10 students on the commission are a mixed bag – some are into sports, some are into student government – but all of them echoed Kennedy’s sentiments about making a difference.
“I wanted to get involved in my community,” said Anthony Dragotto, a GHS senior. “I wanted to do something outside of school.”
Dragotto counts a city-wide dance the group hosted at the senior center for all of Gilroy’s middle schools as one of their big accomplishments last year.
“It was so successful,” he said. “More than 200 people showed up.”
When they aren’t planning events for other kids, the teens volunteer for local organizations and city events.
Jonny Lo and Spencer Silva, two GHS students who are currently applying for positions on the commission, have been attending meetings and volunteered at a breakfast with Santa hosted by the Gilroy Community Services Department in December.
“It’s great helping people and seeing how happy the kids are,” Lo said.
Silva served on the commission for two years before taking a hiatus for a summer job, but now that his schedule has opened up he wants to rejoin the group.
“I like giving back to the community,” Silva said.
The commission isn’t just about volunteering and planning events for other kids. The group also has a chance to influence the city council.
“Basically, it’s a city council for youth,” said Tania Reynolds, a junior. “We are pushing for a teen center and we’re hopefully getting closer to that.”
The commissioners meet once a month at the Willey Cultural Center, but twice a year they have a chance to sit down and meet with the Gilroy City Council.
“We know more about the city and what goes on,” Dragotto said. “We see how it runs.”
This year the group is gearing up for another big event that will take place in April. With the help of nine students on the Morgan Hill Youth Advisory committee, local Rotary clubs and city recreation staff the group is hosting a special kind of dance.
“It’s called building communities through generations,” Kennedy said. “We are going to put on a senior prom, but it’s really a senior citizen prom.”
The idea came from Gayle Glines, a recreation supervisor for Gilroy and the youth commission advisor, who read about a similar project undertaken in the Midwest. The goal is to put on a semi-formal dance for senior citizens and teens, where they will mingle with each other and take each other for spins around the dance floor.
“We have a few hurdles, one is transportation since a lot of senior [citizens] don’t drive themselves,” Glines said. “But we are not taking it on single-handedly.”
The commissioners have received grants from the Gilroy and Morgan Hill rotary clubs for the event, and the city of Morgan Hill has offered the use of their community center.
“We want teens to get involved,” Glines said. “We want the [groups] dancing with each other. We are hoping our teens will get as much out of it as our seniors.”
The dance has been dubbed, “Swing into Spring” since the music of the evening will be provided by a local swing band. Ladies will have dance cards and gentlemen of all ages can sign up for a whirl around the room. Seniors will relive their high school homecoming memories when four gentlemen and four ladies are voted king and queen for the night.
“We will elect two kings and queens from each community,” Glines said. “The dancers will be the ‘Belles of the Ball’ and the other set will be the ‘King and Queen of Spring.'”
Glines said planning for the event has been under way for more than a year, but they still have a few major hurdles, including transportation. They will be collecting donations of formal wear from local citizens to be loaned to the seniors for the gala. The students are also approaching clubs at the high schools about attending and volunteering at the event.
“We are ready to give out a good image of teenagers,” Kennedy said. “That can be lost with shows on television.”
To donate, volunteer or for more information on the senior citizen prom, call 408-846-0460.
