Twenty-two high school juniors from Texarkana, Fouke, Hooks and New Boston along with three seniors and five adult leaders recently attended a Rotary leadership camp in Athens, Texas.
Participants included juniors Emily Atchison, Evin Burton, Joseph Cotton, Delayna Cobbins, Brayden Capps, Hanna Dudley, Nicolai Guzman, Perla Hernandez, Elizabeth Hocutt, Demonte Jamison, Karleigh McCraw, McCenzie Murphy, Chris Roberts, Emma Sanderson, Macy Sloan, Abby Powell, Brynn Schaz, Jenna Woodard and Kale Woodard; seniors Tyler Standridge, BJ Walton and Garrett Fowler; and adults Tonya Dunphy, Laila Miller, Jade Ruth and Andi Darby.
Rotary Leadership Youth Award camp is for high school juniors and is hosted each winter by Rotary District 5830. The camp focuses on building eight core leadership traits in the students who attend from across Northeast Texas and Southeast Oklahoma.
Hosted at Clements Scout Ranch in Athens, RYLA is filled with activities from sunrise to well past sunset. Students work within teams to complete challenges that push them to think outside the box, stretch their imaginations, grow as individuals and a team and recognize their own leadership abilities. The leadership traits focused on are integrity, trust, communication, teamwork, planning, problem solving, decision making and self-esteem.
The camp is planned by a board of directors made up of District 5830 Rotarians as well as RYLA alumni who have gone on to become Rotarians in their respective districts. Staffing is provided by Rotarian volunteers and RYLA alumni who showed leadership potential during their time as campers and exemplify leadership in their lives and at camp.