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December 1, 2008 | |||||||
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 Rukari Austin February 8, 2001 My name is Rukari Austin. I am a freshman at Blanchet High School. As Youth of the Year for North Seattle, I have been asked to tell you what the Boys & Girls Club means to me. The Boys & Girls Club is one of the most important factors in my life. I can't believe all of the great achievements that can come from inside this one building. As you enter through the small doors, you will see the greatest chance ever for success. Through those small doors, a great and giant world awaits, but not hidden from the people outside. A place that fits the status that it maintains in its entirety as “The Positive Place for Kids,” it is all that and more. It has created the greatest people that the world will see. The doors are open to all people, anyone who can show the potential to become something or someone great. At times, I've seen people that couldn't meet the standards of the club even after the club has tried countless amounts of times to open the windows of opportunity for them, and they weren't let back in. Once you are able to enter the doors, all of the goodness inside is available. The programs that they run promote ideas or skills that will be used forever in life. Sportsmanship, group cooperation, teamwork, and confidence are always on the list. The activities are run by the most helpful people around. The staff is always helping others with problems they have. They are always trying to ask the teens what activities they would like to run. This makes me really want to try my hardest to be the best I can be while I am here. I try my best to get along with all of the kids and the staff. The Boys & Girls Club is almost like a rewards program; do well and great things shall come to you. The reward that I have received is RESPECT among all the people that I meet. The kids and the staff all show their appreciation for what I have become. They tell me of how different I used to be and how much I have grown. These people remind me of the choices that I've made in the past. It reminds me that I haven't always been a person willing to cooperate with the ideas that others have. It reminds me of how much I've grown into a person who is now able to make non-biased judgments on the correct thing to do. I wasn't always able to agree with the little things that the staff asked me to do, whether it was not to bounce the ball in a specific room or not to run unless I was in the gym. I wasn't trying my hardest for the best possible outcome, one that would help me and everyone else. During the summer of 2000, I asked for a volunteer position. As I spent the summer with the younger kids, I started to grow in the sense that I would become more mature. I wouldn't always try to spend my time pleasing myself, but rather use it to help others. It is easier now for me to feel proud of what I have done. I have built up my confidence in the things I do. I have earned the respect of myself and others around me. So, I would just like to say, thanks to all of you. I appreciate what you have given me, and what is yet to come. Send your own stories about how the Boys & Girls Club changed your life or that of someone you know. |
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