Owl Orations July 2019 Volume 1 Issue 4 by Garland Key Club

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OWL ORATIONS Texas-Oklahoma Region 9, Division 2S Volume 1, Issue No. 4

THE OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF GARLAND HIGH SCHOOL

TABLE OF CONTENTS

3 4 5 12 14 16

Monthly Review, Note from the President

Service Partner Promotions

Upcoming Events

Club and District Officers Information

Articles

Note from the Editor

Hey, Key Clubbers! Can you believe we are already three weeks away from the first day of school? Time really does fly when you're serving the community. I hope everyone is enjoying their well-deserved break. It may be the time to relax at the pool or binge-watch your favorite shows, but don't forget that there are still opportunities to volunteer throughout the summer, and these hours will count towards the following school year. For the upperclassmen, I suggest that you get as many hours as you can before school comes. Homework and other extracurriculars will limit your availability to volunteer at certain times, especially during the spring. Some of y'all may have heard or read about some of the changes to Key Club, including the new point system and removal of individual hours. If not, remember to stay notified or ask any of the officers if you have any questions or concerns. Yours in Service,

Katelyn Tran

katelyntran818@gmail.com

WEIVER YLHTNOM ☀ Happy summer! (⌐■_■) ☀

Note from the President

Hi everyone! Summertime is quickly fleeting from the grips of our hands as school supply season begins to replace it. Personally, I haven’t begun shopping for supplies yet, but there’s definitely some things that I have my eyes on. Despite the fact that summer assignments may still be nagging all of us, I hope that everyone is excited for the first day of school. As for the plans that I have constantly been talking about in each newsletter, Garland High School Key Club is actually planning on having a car wash fundraiser with our local Kiwanians. This fundraiser will be supporting our effort towards chartering a Builder’s Club, and it’ll also serve as a fun opportunity for all of us to get to know each other. Lastly, make sure to make a note in y’all’s calendars for August 14th, our first meeting after summer. I can’t wait to meet all of the new faces that appear at this meeting so make sure to come and say hi! Additionally, officers will be bringing food, so you won’t regret it ;)

Tiffany Doan tiffanydoan12@gmail.co tiffanydoan12@gmail.com

August 2019 SUN.

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DID YOU KNOW...

The first Key Club formed in 1925 in Sacramento, California, with 11 charter members.

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UPCOMING EVENTS GHS KEY CLUB MEETINGS (8/14, 8/21, 8/28) Attend 2 meetings a month in the library after school from 3-3:30 pm where we will update you on upcoming events and plans (8/21 is the Freshman introduction meeting)

Northeast Dallas Kiwanis (8/5, 8/19) Meet up at Life Message from 7-8 pm as we talk about Builder's Club, the VROC, and other projects

Car Wash Fundraiser (8/17) Come out to help wash cars in support of chartering a Builder's Club at Austin Academy at 9 am (location is TBD)

Garland Kiwanis (8/6, 8/20) Meet up at Fish N' Tails Oyster Bar at 12-1 pm for an opportunity to discuss and plan relevant events in our community

Charter Banquet (8/19) Help advertise our Builder's Club and the Terrific Kids Program while eating and socializing with people within our community at VROC (time is TBD)

SUMMER FUN! Summer is almost over and I couldn’t be more sad. Actually I’m lying, I think I’m prepared to go back to school and finish my senior year. I am currently in Mexico right now and it’s always very humbling visiting my home state. I love learning about my own culture and interacting with people from my town. Visiting Mexico reminds me how fortunate I am for all the opportunities and things America brings to me. Although America has its issues, it’s by far a more developed country than Mexico is and it has a lot more to offer than the life in Mexico. School here is very different, organizations such as Key Club don’t exist here and there isn’t many programs offered except for the basic things. I am so thankful for everything my parents did to give me a better future but Mexico still has many beautiful aspects. Society here doesn’t seem as materialistic like in America and everyone here is so welcoming and friendly. I feel like I prefer the collective society than individualistic, it’s just more calm and a better way of living in my opinion. I feel like everyone should experience staying in another country with a completely different society because it’s very important to understand the situation of others in order to understand humans and ourselves even more. Other than that I’m ready to go back to school and appreciate the good education that I am receiving. I might hate it sometimes but I am truly thankful for everything that I have and all the opportunities. I’m excited to

give this year my all and work hard for my studies and my extracurriculars. I’m so glad that I am an officer this year because I love being able to be part of this great organization that stands for many great things.

This last year I want to create many memories that I can have forever. I plan on working hard but also on making myself a priority because I have tendencies with no sleeping as much as I should and not prioritizing my health first before school and other things. With that being said I’m going to try my best this year.

Nallely Maciel, Historian

The 4 F's of Socials Two months down and two more weeks left of summer. After realizing that, I made a pouty face and longed for more summer break. Like I say in almost every article, all good things must come to an end; however, let’s make the most of what we have left by volunteering, whether it be at GHS fish camp or with the Kiwanis! Although it may seem that socials only function as a location where students come, grab food, and leave, socials are way more than that! They may actually benefit our club and our club members in four ways, which I would like to nickname “The Four F’s of Socials”. Wow, such creativity. First and foremost, fun! (We love a good occurrence of alliteration.) The objective of hosting a social is to ensure that all members are having a groovy time. Whether it be through playing board games with friends, mingling with other members, or slurping on some juice, members are all bound to enjoy their experience. After a long day at school, it’s rewarding to have a little break from working so hard all day and coming to a social where your brain can relax and you can let loose and laugh. Forming meaningful friendships are another component of socials. Guess what you do at a social? Socialize! (Duh!) Might I remind you that socials don’t have to only be “inter-club”, or within your club, but also “intra-club”, or between clubs. Intra-club socials take place when two or more schools (or organizations) host a social together. In the near future, I hope to see more Intra-club socials within Division 2S, specifically between the Key Clubs in Garland ISD. Not only can we make new friends, but also join hands as we impact our communities. Fundraise money for our club! For interclub socials, we can charge a $1 or $2 admission fee, which would be deposited into our school

account to alleviate costs for our fees to attend DCON or charter a new service project. Since intra-club socials may be larger, we could host it at a local coffee shop and ask the manager if he/she would be willing to donate a portion of the sales to each of our clubs/organizations. Last but definitely not least, food. What doesn’t love some food, am I right? While socials definitely do not have to offer food and drinks, students’ hungry appetites after class encourage them to attend a social where there’s a bunch offood, especially junk food. (Food incentives are essential!) I’ve noticed that many more members tend to attend club meetings when there is food offered, so offering food at meetings have definitely increased our member attendance rates. Next year, as Vice President and the Chair of the Socials Committee, I aspire to host more socials for our club, funded by the money that our club has accumulated through school dues, fundraisers, and donations. So far, I have in mind 3 different social ideas for the first semester. To kick off the school year, perhaps a back to school social with popsicles as a treat. Halloween, where there will be Halloween-related activities, such as Halloween bingo, sudoku, and word search along with a Fanta Float (similar to a root beer float but with Fanta) and more. And finally, a holiday social! We can create busy books as a club while we watch a movie, maybe Hidden Figures, since our theme for this upcoming year is space, or the Polar Express, a classic movie for the holidays. I am so excited for the upcoming school year and I can’t wait to see y’all again!

Alina Dam, Vice President

Beginning a New Chapter

general meeting

trash pick up

My first year of adjusting to high school was anything but exciting. I was just starting to get into the routine of things, wake up, go to school, come home, eat, and sleep. What I was looking forward to the most was to finally come home and take a nap. I never stayed after school until I had to stay for tutorials or anything of the sort. My first thought at 2:30 was “FINALLY SCHOOL IS OVER!” I wasn’t involved with after school activities, because frankly I never cared for them. I only did what I considered necessary, which was school work. That was until I joined Key Club, my first club. The first time I went to a Key Club meeting I wasn’t exactly interested in the club, not to mention I didn’t have friends in this club either. My main reason for coming to the meeting was because of my sister. Two years prior when I was a seventh grader my sister was president of Key Club, in addition to that my eldest sister was president before that. In the past they always told me about their fondest memories of the Key Club, so this got me interested. After paying my dues to join, I still wasn’t particularly interested in the club.

tri city clean up

This was partly due to me not going to many events that year. What really changed my idea of Key Club was once “Freshman Rep” elections began. Hopeful to get this position I prepared a speech, and to my surprise I actually won! This gave me an opportunity to work with the years officers. Not only did I get to work with upperclassmen, but I also got to meet a lot of other people in the club too. This really opened my eyes to the diversity of the club, I talked to people that I would’ve never talked to beforehand. This made me look forward to staying after school on Tuesday for a meeting. To my surprise I actually cherished a club, that I was kinda forced into joining; especially because the requirement of the time needed in the club. Without the people I met or the friends I made that year, I would’ve never thought that Key Club was be my favorite club at Garland High School! Key Club has given me so many opportunities, now I look forward into fulfilling my role as this year’s treasurer!

Albert Yang, Treasurer

WEBSITE UPDATE Hello Key Clubbers! I hope you’re having a good summer! I have been working on the website a little here and there over the last month. I am slowly adding new things, and we are still having many events during the summer, so make sure you check the site and the remind often for more info. This year I plan to add many things to the website in addition to the many features that already exist. Right now, there is a calendar, our Key Club twitter feed, our monthly newsletters (thanks to our editor), and the powerpoints from general meetings. Make sure you check the website for these things often because they are updated all the time. In addition to the powerpoints, committee agendas and minutes (a transcript) from board meetings will be posted to keep all members updated on what happens behind the scenes. These will be a standard from now on for all meetings on the website. Many members have requested for an easier way to view their hours. Currently, volunteer hours are recorded on a large spreadsheet that shows all grade levels and all events for the

entire year that included every member’s name and ID number. This makes it difficult to look through and find all of the events that you have earned hours for and may lead to some confusion and a lack of privacy. In the near future, hours will be posted on the website where you can login and have a more specialized view of every event you have attended. Hours will be needed to be submitted on the website along with the usual prompts that follow. Lastly, member attendance will be posted on the website too, so make sure you attend all of the meetings! Speaking of meeting attendance, the schedule for next year’s meetings has been finalized and added to the calendar. We’ve changed the bylaws again and published them on the website. They are on the new handouts page along with all of the forms you might need for key club. A new meeting archive page has been added as well: it contains powerpoints, a transcript of all meetings, and the agendas for committee meetings. Check the page if you ever forget what happened during a meeting. Also, be sure to familiarize yourself with the new hour submission form for this school year. Thank you for listening to my update for this month. Don’t forget to check the website (garlandhskeyclub.com) and don't forget to take more pictures!

Jake Wendling, Webmaster

CHECK US OUT AT

garlandhskeyclub.com

A L k into DCMs Each month our lieutenant governor (LTG) Katherine Bui hosts a divisional council meeting (DCM) as a way to have a personal meeting with clubs. Since Key Club encompasses such a vast number of people, it’s important that it is able to establish effective communication with everyone. For our club to run smoothly, we are under the guidance of our LTG who relays information regarding new plans, projects, or goals. DCMs can occur in person or online depending on the circumstances; however, each one is filled with new lessons and experiences that I always look forward to. Recently, I attended a DCM at Mudleaf Cafe in Plano alongside Alina and representatives from Sachse Key Club and North Garland Key Club. At this meeting, we spoke about a large, collaborative project that our district will be taking on for this school year. As a continuation of last year’s project, we will be working toward Keeping T-O Beautiful, which I believe has a wonderful message and is especially prevalent during our current environmental awareness movement. As the name suggests, each club in our division will be helping throughout the community with the purpose of keeping our environment healthy and free of pollution. In the past, we have cleaned up lakes and parks, but I hope that we will be able to continue with these efforts with the help of other schools.

down, get comfy, and start talking. Although I’m not the most outgoing person when I’m with unfamiliar people, I find that everyone at these meetings are always easy to talk to. I’m not afraid to speak my mind and give advice to others which is such a nice feeling.

Besides the collaborative aspect of DCMs, these meetings also provide a way for me to hear varying points of view on different topics that I often try implementing into our own chapter. Since the location of each DCM is typically an aesthetic, comfortable café where we can relax with a cup of tea or coffee, everyone is able to speak in a welcoming environment. The process of each meeting is pretty simple: we order a drink, sit

Tiffany Doan, President

After attending sooo many DCMs (more l like 3), I think I’m pretty reliable with my information and experience. Going to a DCM is a great opportunity to meet with Key Clubbers from other schools in addition to seeing the more formal side of the organization. I hope that all of you will attend these meetings in the future and, hopefully, have similar thoughts to me :)

FROM FOLLOWER

TO LEADER To be completely honest, I never used to see myself as a leader. I was a little too soft-spoken, and I felt safer working hard in the background rather than pushing to be at the forefront of an organization. When faced with something I disagreed with, I all too often chose to take the path of least resistance and keep quiet, rather than speaking up. This quality in myself was something that I was deeply uncomfortable with, and rightly so. As a result, I walked through the doors of my high school on the first day of freshman year with a mission. I was going to make myself heard, I was going to get involved at school, and I was going to become a leader. No ands, ifs, and buts about it. Key Club beautifully guided me through my transition from a follower to a leader by providing an outlet for my desire to leave a mark on my community, develop my leadership skills, and meet new people. Soon after I walked into the first Key Club meeting of Freshmen year, I fell in love. The officers were so friendly and just wanted to make us comfortable in the club. Surrounded by friends, new and old, I immediately felt at home and threw myself into community service with enthusiasm. I could take a break from the intensity of my schoolwork, meet new friends, help my community, and work towards my mission of becoming a stronger leader! It was everything that I had been looking for. During my freshman year, found so many role models in the Key Club officers. They were relentlessly ambitious, assertive, and always seemed to be a few steps ahead of everyone else. In other words, they were everything that I wanted to be. Sophomore year didn’t exactly go as smoothly as freshmen year did. Simply put,

I was tired. I was ALWAYS tired. Even though I loved community service, my motivation to wake up early on Saturdays to volunteer (when I was already exhausted) waned. I started losing my grasp on the magic of Key Club. That is until I realized that elections were coming around and remembered the goal I set at the start of Freshman year. I started to gain momentum. I volunteered, I designed t-shirts, and I fell in love with Key Club again. After much thought, I decided to run for Secretary. I secured the position, and my excitement for the future of my chapter reached fever pitch. I dove head-first into the responsibilities of my role and never looked back. I am so honored to be an officer at a time when my chapter is rapidly improving and finding new ways to serve the community. I still have more work to do before I am fully content with my leadership skills, but I have come so, so far. I have gained confidence in the value of my voice, and I have Key Club to thank for this. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll be a role model for someone else, the same way the Key Club officers have been role models to me.

Tisha Gautam, Secretary

12 MAJOR EMPHASIS PROJECT PROMOTIONS

SERVICE PROJECT PROMOTION

2019 2020 District Officers

DISTRICT GOVERNOR Ashna Patel governor@tokeyclub.com

SECRETARY Kareena Patel secretary@tokeyclub.com

TREASURER Katherine Chao treasurer@tokeyclub.com

EDITOR Vivian Thai editor@tokeyclub.com

LTG DIVISION 2C Katherine Bui ltg2C@tokeyclub.com

CONVENTION LIAISON Dillion Grisham cl@tokeyclub.com

TECH PRODUCER Lacey Thomas techassistant@tokeyclub.com

REGION 9 ADVISOR Connor Rubrecht region9@tokeyclub.com

DISTRICT ADMINISTRATOR Kenyon Black administrator@tokeyclub.com

ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR Ryan Edmoundson AAFinance@tokeyclub.com

ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR Kelly Poland AAEvents@tokeyclub.com

2019 2020

Club Officers

PRESIDENT Tiffany Doan tiffanydoan12@gmail.com

VICE PRESIDENT Alina Dam alinalandam@gmail.com

SECRETARY Tisha Gautam tishagautam@gmail.com

TREASURER Albert Yang yangralbert@gmail.com

EDITOR Katelyn Tran katelyntran818@gmail.com

HISTORIAN Nallely Maciel Nallelymaciel75@gmail.com

WEBMASTER Jake Wendling wendljac000@students.garlandisd.net

CLUB ADVISOR Morgan Shaeffer mshaeffer@garlandisd.net

Only a life FOR OTHERS is a life WORTHWHILE ~Albert Einstein

Text @garlandkey to 81010

issuu.com/garlandhskeyclub

garlandhskeyclub.com

CARING our way of life.