DC Baby!!!

I have the coolest job. Seriously. Being executive director of the Harlan County Boys & Girls Club is challenging and heartbreaking at times, but it is also incredibly rewarding and (if truth be told) a lot of FUN. Thanks to the incredible grant-writing skills of Miss Laura Adkisson, we were fortunate enough to receive a Taco Bell Teen Experience Grant which will allow us to take a group of teenagers from the Cawood Ledford Club to Washington DC! The excitement around the office is palpable. The group of kids we are taking are members of PLAN (Potential Leaders' Action Network) and have worked over the past year on developing leadership skills.

These kids are AMAZING. They've met with state legislators and local leaders to discuss the importance of Boys & Girls Clubs. They've learned to build their character, even when those around them are trying to tear it down. They've raised awareness in our community of the needs of our youth. And now, we get to take this amazing group to DC- the leadership 'hub' of our great nation. What an amazing opportunity for our kids! I know it's selfish, but what a great opportunity for the staff! I get to see these kids' faces when they see the White House for the first time or the Washington Monument. I get to hear them discuss the issues facing children in Harlan County with Representative Hal Rogers. What an honor! But taking these kids to DC will also prove to be an enormous responsibility. The staff will have to field questions about the civil rights movement when they see the section of the Lincoln Memorial devoted to Dr. Martin Luther King. We will have to console them when we visit the heartwrenching genocide exhibits in the Holocaust Museum. But I know we have the right people for the job. Laura, Sarah, and Kevin are some of the most intelligent and insightful people I know. They do amazing work with the kids at the Club and I know they will make this an unforgettable experience for the teens.

We put the finishing touches on our itinerary today, solidifying restaurant choices and making reservations. As with all of our teen programs, the teens had a great deal of input of what we would be doing on our trip. The only requirement (laid down by Club staff) was a visit to the Capitol. The teens were allowed to choose everything else. And they chose well. We'll be going to Arlington National Cemetary to see the changing of the guard at the tomb of the unknowns. We're going to see the monuments and the National Zoo. We will be visiting the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum as well as the International Spy Museum. And of course, you can't have a teen-field trip without visiting the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. Whew! It will be a whirlwind tour, but when you have a group of teens who are eager to learn you have to squeeze in all of the experiences you can. After all, opportunities like this are few and far between.

By the way, thanks for reading my first blog. I hope to update it at least weekly with all of the goings-on at the Boys & Girls Club as well as random bits and pieces from my (occasionally) interesting life. Blogging is new and quite foreign to me, but I think I'll find it enjoyable. Hopefully, you will too!