From left to right: Rotarian Tom Furmanski with RYLA/Young RYLA students Hannah Block, Emma Henderickson, Hallie Fangman, TJ Berry, Julia Rieth, Vanessah Goze. On August 1 we celebrated our club’s involvement with the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA). The RYLA program (high school students) and Young RYLA (middle-school students) offer youth the opportunity to develop their leadership and communication skills. In our district this takes the form of week-long summer camps where the students experience a variety of team-building exercises. Six of the nine students sponsored by the Rotary Club of Parker, pictured above, were able to attend the meeting on August 1 to tell us of their experiences. The students enthusiastically described the growth that each had experienced at the camps. Family members who were present echoed the students’ glowing reports. It was wonderful to see such articulate youth who want to make a difference in the world! Our thanks to Tom Furmanski who coordinated the RYLA program for the club in 2018-2019, and to Dan O’Neill who assisted Tom with interviewing students last spring. For more information on the RYLA programs for Districts 5440 and 5450 (central and northern Colorado, western Nebraska, Wyoming and eastern Idaho), click here. |
