Event celebrates Rotary’s young people
For more information on any of the programmes, email Sonja at sonjashear@ssconsult.co.za
The Rotary Club of Benoni Aurora hosted its annual Youth Evening at Benoni Country Club on Wednesday, last week, with a turn-out of 160 guests.
VIP guests included past district governor and district chairperson for Non Profit Company programmes Greg Stathacopoulos, past district governor Ann Elaine Stathacopoulos, past district governor Ann Sylvia Knoop, district chairperson for Youth Exchange Terry Canon, district Youth Exchange committee member Jenny Canon and district chairperson for Rotary Youth Leadership Awards Cheryl Havenga.
Seven other Rotary clubs also attended – Benoni Van Ryn, Benoni, Boksburg, Boksburg Lake, Johannesburg South, Johannesburg and Springs.
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Interact clubs from St Francis College, Springs Boys High, Springs Girls High, Pinnacle College, Woodlands International College and ACUDEO College in Crystal Park were also at the event.
Since the evening celebrates the youth, they stole the limelight with many sharing stories of their experiences in Rotary youth programmes and encouraging others to grab these ‘life-changing’ opportunities.
Aurora president Sonja Shear welcomed guests before other members gave an overview of the main youth programmes Aurora runs or supports – Students Taking Renewed Interest in the Value of Education (STRIVE), Rotarkids, Interact and Rotaract, the Youth Exchange and the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA).
Thirteen Youth Exchange students were at the event, all wearing the brilliantly decorated green blazers which are synonymous with the programme.
Each had an opportunity to retell some of what they experienced overseas or what they have experienced in South Africa.
The main speaker was Marco Martins, a former teacher who has now thrown his passion into teaching young people communication, financial literacy and entrepreneurship skills.
His talk, entitled ‘Life is a Series of Games’ was well received and made for lively debate, with the youngsters in the room certainly leaving the older generations with food for thought.
Get involved
* STRIVE: The programme targets Grade 11 learners who are in the lower third of their class academically. It runs for 11 weeks, during which a mentor spends an hour a week with the learner. The programme welcomes new mentors.
* Rotarkids, Interact and Rotaract: Rotary programmes for pre-primary, primary and high school learners. These are an opportunity for youngsters to learn the objective of Rotary and develop leadership skills while discovering the power of service above self.
* Youth Exchange: Candidates are ages 15 to 19 who are leaders in their schools and communities. Students can do long- or short-term exchanges to other countries or local residents can host exchange students from overseas. The programme is an opportunity for young people to become global citizens through learning a new language and culture and developing lifelong leadership skills.
* RYLA: The Rotary Youth Leadership Awards is an intensive three-day leadership experience for Grade 11 and 12 learners. One of the venues for the programme is the Emseni Christian Centre, in Benoni. Participants must be sponsored by a Rotary Club.
