RYLA Delegates Enthusiastically Share Experiences

Three of the four delegates our Sunup Rotary Club sponsored this year (2 from Chino Valley HS and 2 from Prescott HS) joined us for our meeting last Wednesday, along with their each bringing with them a parent. One the aspects of RYLA they said they most enjoyed was becoming a member of, and working with, a close-knit team with other teens they had never met before that weekend.  They especially enjoyed creating their team skits.  With each of the teams named after a different country, and one of our Rotary Youth Exchange students from that country on their team, they said they appreciated getting to know a person from another country, and learning about about that person's culture.  They all felt RYLA helped them to become more confident in themselves, and in being able to connect and work with others.

In addition to the RYLArians and their parents in this photo are Interact Advisor Cathleen Cherry and our A.J. Sheridan, who capably serves as the District RYLA Chair.  One of the parents asked if he could speak.  He expressed his gratitude to the club for providing a scholarship to RYLA, which resulted in increasing her self-confidence and her social skills.

 

 

RYLA represents Rotary Youth Leadership Award.  It is Rotary's unique leadership camp, which challenges and stretches youth beyond all previous limits they have placed on themselves.  Team-building, improving leadership skills, learning and applying Rotary's 4-Way Test in their decision-making, are all a part of the RYLA experience, which so impacts youth, that its lessons and memories literally last a lifetime,

 

In this country, RYLA is usually associated with high school age youth/  However, for most of the world, RYLA is for the post-secondary Rotaract age group.   In our district, our Prescott Sunup Rotary Club has been integrally involved in pioneering a JR RYLA , to help train and guide our most vulnerable adolescent age youth, in the  6th, 7th and 8th grades.  One of the other districts in our Rotary zones has also been pioneering a RYLA program for youth with disabilities,   

 

 

Dumping a bin of tagged ducks are Amelia Stauffer and Lisa Doherty.

 

As we move into the final week before our Prescott Sunup Rotary Duck Derby this Sunday, May 5, 3,000 ducks needed to be numbered (tagged) before the race/  Many hands helped to make light work at Matt Greenlee's business last Friday.  Thank to all who came and assisted with the process.

 

Cassidy Stauffer and Amelia make the Duck Tagging a mother-daughter affair.

 

PDG Don Schiller and Annette had their own Duck Tagging table.