Posted on May 30, 2019

“The Rotary Club of Weston and Wayland is tremendously impressed with the sophomores who live and study in our two towns,” said Jan Luchetti, club president.

Over the past two years, teachers, administrators and mentors have nominated more than 40 students for the Rotary Rising Youth Leadership Award (RYLA). According to John Marchiony, RYLA chair, “The contributions these 15- and 16-year-olds have made to our communities are spectacular. They are passionate, articulate champions for causes they care about. They have figured out how to incorporate service into their lives in substantial and fulfilling ways.”

On May 16, the Rotary Club recognized a large, diverse collection of community contributors from Wayland High School, Weston High School, and, for the first time, The Rivers School. Any sophomore who lives or studies in Wayland or Weston can be nominated for the award when the 2019-20 nominations campaign opens in September.

    (Read the article on WickedLocal.com)

 

“The Rotary Club of Weston and Wayland is tremendously impressed with the sophomores who live and study in our two towns,” said Jan Luchetti, club president.

Over the past two years, teachers, administrators and mentors have nominated more than 40 students for the Rotary Rising Youth Leadership Award (RYLA). According to John Marchiony, RYLA chair, “The contributions these 15- and 16-year-olds have made to our communities are spectacular. They are passionate, articulate champions for causes they care about. They have figured out how to incorporate service into their lives in substantial and fulfilling ways.”

On May 16, the Rotary Club recognized a large, diverse collection of community contributors from Wayland High School, Weston High School, and, for the first time, The Rivers School. Any sophomore who lives or studies in Wayland or Weston can be nominated for the award when the 2019-20 nominations campaign opens in September.

The 10 students, along with 40 Rotarians, nominators, friends and family members, discussed service and their causes over dinner and the award presentation at the Weston Golf Club. All the students described the causes they support, as well as how anyone can join them in “one measurable action” that would benefit the cause.

Boys and Girls Club

Allison Kirk volunteers with the Boys and Girls Club in Waltham “because the impact of your work is so visible. Even doing small acts, such as helping a child with homework, can make a massive change to their life. I have been working with the kids for almost a year and to see their interest and involvement in the club grow is spectacular.

“If you have a spare hour or two over the weekend, come and lend a hand! You never know what could strike inspiration in a child and lead them to great opportunities and a lifelong interest. Whatever small skill you think you may have, come and share it! Whether you can tutor, swim, do crafts, decorate cookies, anything at all, you will be welcomed.”

Wonderbikes

Cameron Sins is the founder of Wonderbikes, which “is a charity that repairs used bikes and donates them to less fortunate kids. Biking is my passion, and seeing the smile on the kids’ faces when they receive a new bike is an amazing feeling. The work I do in order to make those smiles happen is such a small contribution for the positive impact it makes.”

To get involved, Sins said, “Just simply donate a bike you have laying around in your garage. Send us an email – to ino@wonderbikes.org – and we will pick it up within a few days.”

Trip to Peru

Charlotte Salitsky traveled to Peru last summer “to hand deliver school supplies to underprivileged students in the Northern Andes. Mr. Daniel Fernandez leads a group of Wayland students on this trip nearly every summer, and the supplies the Peruvian students receive greatly impact their academic experiences. Books, pencils and other engaging activities are purchased with the money collected by the students about to embark on the trip.

“Going to Peru opened my eyes to the reality of students across the globe and inspired me to be more aware of my fellow students and their situation.”

Salitsky said the easiest way to “make a real difference in these children’s lives is to look for the Loose Change fundraiser around Wayland. Loose Change baggies are sent out to the Wayland elementary schools, and students bring them home to scavenge for loose change around their house. Mr. Fernandez, the leader of the trip, is a teacher at Wayland Middle School and is always accepting donations.”

Green Team

Elizabeth Micolisin, Porter Moody and Valentina Micolisin are all highly engaged members of Wayland High School’s Green Team, a group of students who work together to increase awareness of how human actions impact the environment and make their school more sustainable. The Green Team gives students a voice to act and make a difference.

For Elizabeth Micolisin, “The Green Team provides students with a platform to make a change, no matter how small it may be.

“Anyone is able to make a change in their daily life to be more eco-friendly. This does not require substantial amounts of time, nor does it require a large amount of money. People just have to consider their actions: Do I really need to drive there or can I walk? Do I really need this extra plastic bag? None of these actions are too trivial, so adopting them into your daily life can really make a difference.”

For Porter Moody, “The Green Team works under the philosophy that a lot of people doing a little is better than a few people doing a lot, and I was inspired to join and do my share as well as encourage others to do the same.”

One simple thing Moody asks people to do is “use reusable water bottles. The more we can stay away from one-time use plastic bottles, the cleaner we can keep our oceans.”

Valentina Micolisin is “grateful for the earth that I live on and want to sustain this planet for future generations. One thing that you can do is change the light bulbs in your home to energy efficient light bulbs to reduce your greenhouse gas emissions. Also, don’t forget to turn off your lights when you leave a room. This not only helps the environment, but it also helps you electricity bill!”

Colors of Care

Jackie Liu’s service came from experience observing “the intimidation and trauma that hospital stays can entail for kids. Harnessing this experience and my passion for art, I started Colors of Care (colorsofcare.org), a nonprofit organization devoted to using art to deliver joy and positivity to pediatric patients.

“I create hand-drawn coloring pages and donate them to pediatric programs across the country. Colors of Care’s coloring pages are currently available to kids at 44 hospitals nationwide!”

Birthday Wishes

Jenna Brandaleone volunteers extensively with Birthday Wishes which, she said, “funds birthday parties for children in homeless shelters. I started contributing to this organization when I was 8 years old because I knew that birthdays were supposed to be something that everyone should be able to look forward to.

“I started by donating my own birthday presents and now I volunteer at the shelters. There is no greater feeling in the world than the kids begging you to stay longer and chanting your name once you return. I love making connections and memories at the shelter.”

Brandaleone sees that “time is more valuable than money. Every minute you spend playing, decorating and celebrating the birthdays has a bigger impact than money ever will. If you cannot spare an hour or two a month, then donating toys from the Birthday Wishes wish list on their website will go a long way.”

Family Promise Metrowest

Jessica Bargamian reflected that “growing up, I often saw homeless people standing on the sides of city streets in ragged clothes begging for money, but I never knew how to help. Through Family Promise Metrowest, I learned the truth about homelessness – not all homeless people are alcoholics or drug addicts who sit on streets begging for money. So many homeless people, with the tenacity and dream to escape homelessness, work multiple jobs and long hours to feed their families.”

To support Family Promise Metrowest, people can volunteer, according to Bargamina, “to make dinner for the families, be a dinner host, help set up the bedrooms where the families stay, or be an overnight host. The shelter is also constantly in need of different items, and they keep an updated list of the items on their website under the donate section.

“Most applicable to teenagers, however, is the opportunity to be a teen helper. Any teenager can sign up to just hang out with the homeless kids at whichever local church the families are staying at. It is a really fun activity that only takes an hour and a half.

“Whenever I have a free night, I love to sign up to be a teen volunteer because I know how much it means to the children in shelter to have someone other than an adult to spend time with.”

Progeria Research Foundation

Kimya Jalinous supports the Progeria Research Foundation “due to its sustainable efforts and goals to be ‘for the children’ and ‘for the cure.’ My family started by sponsoring two children diagnosed with progeria from the Philippines, and when they came to Boston Children’s Hospital, I had the opportunity to meet them and learn what it really means to create an individual impact for the two of them.

“What really motivates me to commit to this organization is because it has a long-lasting treatment program, which has been providing newfound experiences for kids affected with progeria while also progressing greatly in hopes for a cure.”

Jalinous echoed many of the students’ perspectives, saying, “Anyone committing can create a huge impact. It creates an environment that promotes individual engagement to spark change and holistic support towards getting more people involved. There is a domino effect – when one person helps others, the people who were helped now have the inspiration to further help others, and that cycle goes on.”

The Weston Wayland Rotary Club has numerous events in June and throughout the year, which are open to anyone as a volunteer or attendee. If you would like to learn more about the club, get involved, or join the club for any upcoming event or weekly club gathering, visit westonwaylandrotary.com.

The Rotary Club awards scholarships annually and, in September, will host its 25th Anniversary Antique and Classic Car Show. Visit WestonCarShow.com for information and pictures.

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