Owl Orations June 2019 Volume 1 Issue 3

june

OWL ORATIONS Texas-Oklahoma Region 9, Division 2S Volume 1, Issue No. 3

THE OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF GARLAND HIGH SCHOOL

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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Monthly Review, Note from the President

Service Partner Promotions

Upcoming Events

Club and District Officers Information

Articles

Contact Us

Note from the Editor

Hey, Key Clubbers!

Can you believe we are already one month into our summer vacation? 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

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

Note from the President

I hope that you all have been enjoying your time in the pool and outside of school.

Although the sun’s out, Garland High School Key Club has been working diligently to continuously help within our community. An important development that occurred in this month of June was that we have tremendously bridged the gap between ourselves and other members of the K family. In previous years, we have not had the best connections with our local Kiwanis, but I’m happy to say that that will no longer be true. Recently, our officers have been attending Kiwanis meeting, and they have already created new relationships. The Kiwanians are an important part of our club since they support our projects through funding and networking. So... why not work together?

However, talking with the Kiwanians isn’t all that we have been doing so far. Even in this hot weather, Key Club will always strive to service others. Therefore, I hope that everyone has been keeping up with our social medias and updates. We have some very exciting events planned for the next school year, so be on the lookout!

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

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UPCOMING EVENTS Northeast Dallas Kiwanis (7/1, 7/15) Come join the Kiwanis Club at 7 pm at Life Message

Help sort out through school uniforms to give to low-income families within the community from 8 am to 12 pm

Garland Kiwanis (7/2, 7/16)

Divisional Council Meeting (7/23)

Bridge the gap between Key Club, Kiwanis, and Builders Club! The meeting will be at Fish N' Tails Oyster Bar at 12 pm

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Friendship House (7/12)

Join our LTG Katherine Bui in Garland to learn more about officer roles, LTG projects, and join community service projects with other schools in our region! Date and time is TBD

THE POWER OF SOCIALS

At first glance, Key Club Socials seem like just another excuse for a group of teenagers to get free food, gossip with their friends, and avoid doing a pile of homework waiting for them at home. However, in reality, the impact that the Club socials have goes much deeper than keeping the general members full and happy (although this is certainly not a negative side effect).

Socials have historically improved the general members' involvement in the club.

When we offer our Key Clubbers free food, the few members that seem to stray further and further away from the club as the year goes on will be drawn back in. They will come to the Club Socials for free food and an opportunity to socialize, but they will be much more likely to join in on volunteer events that we discuss during the social.

They will also get a chance to discuss plans to attend Key Club events with their more involved friends, further drawing them into the club. It is our chance to remind them what they are missing out on!

Key Club socials aid in recruiting new members for the next school year. When students see their Key Clubbers Friends attending socials, they will feel left out. This will make them more inclines to look into becoming a member of Key Club during the following school year. It increases the appeal of the club and shows the prospective

that Key Clubbers like to work hard AND play hard.

The motivating power of Club Socials isn't just limited to uninvolved general members and potential members. Some of our chapter's hardest workers need encouragement too! We are all too familiar with the slump that we all seem to face around February, at the height of the school year. Inundated with homework, extracurricular activities, and mounting responsibilities, it becomes incredibly easy for our general members to let their Key Club responsibilities fall to the wayside. At around this time, many dedicated Key Clubbers start to shift their focus. A social can bring them back, keep them involved, and remind them why they love Key Club.

The Garland High School Key Club board understands the true importance of socials and try to incorporate at least a couple into the club's schedule. At the end of the day, we know how hard our Key Clubbers work. We want them to know that we appreciate them, and their hard work isn't going unnoticed.

Tisha Gautam, Secretary

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SUMMER FUN

The first month of summer flew by so quickly and it’s July now! I can’t believe that soon enough we will be back to school and it’ll be my senior year. Although my summer has been pretty chill so far I’m starting to stress and worry about college applications and my summer assignments. I haven’t thought much about school and all my responsibilities but those thoughts are starting to creep up on me. I have to start thinking about applications and also doing some more SAT practice, basically the carefree days of summer are over for me.

Some fun things I’ve done so far however is go on hikes, watch movies, and swim.

We recently also had a key club meeting where we discussed more about our plans for the following school year. We thought more about what we would do with our point system since we also want to reward the members that help out with things that they can’t necessarily earn hours for . A problem that we ran into however is how we will organize the points because we want to find an efficient and easy way to record the points but it’s hard because most systems take a lot of work and time. I’m sure we will find a solution however but for now we are not sure how to go about that.

I'm excited to implant new things to our club such as builders club because that would highlight what our club is for and it expresses how much we are all dedicated to make our club and community better. Overall I’m excited for the future of key club and also my future going into senior year because this

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last year will be full of many lasts and I’m sad but happy for the things I will do after graduation. I’m getting ahead of myself but I know senior year will fly by and soon enough I will be attending my last key club meeting, volunteering for the last time as a key club member and writing my last article.

I’m not sure where I will end up but I’m grateful that I have great people in my life that will guide and help me find out what to do. appreciate all the blessings you have in your life and make new memories with the people you love because before you know it, everything will come to an end.

Nallely Maciel, Historian

KEY CLUB through the years

general meeting

trash pick up

During my first year of being a member of Key Club I wasn’t exactly what you would call an active member. On rare occasions I would volunteer for events, but surprisingly enough I was still considered active for a freshman: this really helped me win the freshman rep position. The only real events that I participated in, were runs or events of this sort (I really liked the benefits of getting the free stuff at those events). This really doesn’t count as serving our community, one of the most important factors of being in Key Club.

Not until this year when I obtained the board position of historian, I’ve never been an amazing member. Finally this year I’ve become more involved, as well as excited with the upcoming events in the future. One in particular is DCON, or simply our district convention. During this event I’ve become more open with the other members in our Texas-Oklahoma District. This will especially come in handy, as I approach the next year as the treasurer for the club. As I’ll get training during this period, as well as learn from former vice-presidents.

I’ve always heard stories of what happens at DCON, and this only gets me excited. One of the craziest things I’ve heard is that people have said that going to DCON made joining Key Club worth it. But also, I have heard of

tri city clean up

personal stories from both of my sisters that attended DCON during their respective years, and all they could say was “YOU HAVE TO GO!”. This really influenced my idea of what really happens during DCON, and the only way to find out is from personal experience.

The memories created from this few day convention, and the different people that I meet that share the love I have for this organization is something I look forward too, immensely. In addition to that, next year I plan to up my game. I plan on using most of my spare time to support the club any way possible.

I know that this year I’ve procrastinated for some assignments, and hopefully next year I will stop this problem that affects every other officer. I plan on making my senior year one of the most productive years for not only myself, but also the clubs that I’ve begun to care about. I’m super excited for what’s to come next year! I will remember this club as something that has made an impact on my life.

Albert Yang, Treasurer

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what volunteer events and service projects are doing this summer?

YOU

This summer Garland High School Key Club has been focusing its time and effort within the community. Rather than attending runs or concessions, events that are done during the school year, we decided that it would be best to improve the lives of Garland citizens in a more profound way. Therefore, we decided to undertake projects concerning veterans, low-income families as well as environment beautification.

When our Key Club attended the 20182019 DCON in April, one of the main projects that they endorsed was one for the homeless people. We learned that Texas has one of the highest homeless populations in the country, and Garland is no exception due to its proximity to Dallas. Fortunately, there are many organizations working to reduce these numbers; one of them is located near us in Rowlett. Recently, Rowlett opened its Veterans Resource & Outreach Center (VROC) where it helps with the needs of veterans and their families. Since veterans make up a large portion of homeless people, it’s important to get them back on their feet and away from the streets. Garland High School Key Club has already helped with the landscaping at the VROC, but we will also be helping with the veterans backpack program similar to the one found at DCON. Additionally, we have partnered with Friendship House, an organization that provides over a hundred families each week with food, clothing, and other basic necessities. Since Friendship House is within walking distance of Garland High School, we will be volunteering at this place many times over the year. Services will vary from helping with distribution of items to collecting supplies for the low-income families.

Throughout the summer, there will also be volunteer events offered by Life Message and the Kiwanis Clothing Closet. Life Message primarily operates as a food pantry, and volunteers will come in to help organize the food items before families come in and shop.

On the other hand, the Kiwanis Clothing

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Closet rolls up and labels clothes for those in need to come in and take when necessary.

Lastly, we will be working on environment beautification during this summer. We have already done one such project at the VROC when we pulled out weeds and planted new bushes and flowers. However, we have much more planned to improve the appearance of Garland. Our dedicated advisor Ms. Shaeffer is getting in contact with Garland Parks and Recreation in an effort to possibly organize an event where people can attend and clean up a park or lake in the community. Therefore, always keep an eye out for updates!

With all of these events being set in motion, in addition to the Builder’s Club that the officers are working on, I hope that everyone can come out and help. Get these hours before you’re too busy during the school year!

Tiffany Doan, President

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 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 new events are posted all of 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, the new officer bios and this month’s newsletter have been posted, so be sure to check them out.

Thank you for listening to my update for this month. I know this year will be better than last year. 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

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DEFINING KEY CLUB HUMANS OF TEXAS-OKALHOMA

Key Club is more than just an organization. More than volunteering.

More than improving a statistic. Key Club is a haven for discovering one's self, unlocking opportunities. and most importantly finding and understanding purpose in everything that we do.

Yep, I definitely plagiarized my own House of Delegates speech when I ran for Texas-Oklahoma District Treasurer in April 2019. PS, this is pretty raw.

When I attended Share Night, which is like a fair of clubs and organizations that are offered at Garland High School, before entering my freshman year, I meandered through the displays until my eyes fell on Key Club. Actually, that's not true. Sabrina Palma, the TexasOklahoma District Governor from 20172018, grabbed my wrist and pulled me to the Key Club table and forced me to sign

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up. That was a bit of an exaggeration; it wasn't that violent. She encouraged me to join and when she uttered the words "community service", I was instantly hooked. In the 8th grade, I had the opportunity to join nation Junior Honor Society. Through my membership, I discovered my passion for serving and volunteering and I wanted to continue following that passion throughout my high school career.

When the school year rolled around, I was nominated to run for Freshman representative. Though it was very spontaneous and nerve-wracking (it was the first Key Club meeting of the school year and there were elections for freshmen), I landed the position, despite broadcasting a very unprepared speech and answering that I preferred pouring my cereal in first and then my milk. In my freshman year, I gained experience in

in terms of leadership and organization, especially since I was in charge of recording hours.

The next year, thanks to my involvement with the officers and background in Google Sheets and documenting hours, I attained the position of Secretary of Hours. In February 2019, I decided that I wanted to push myself outside my limits by running for District Treasurer, and boy was it an experience. I rapped my Old Town Road speech in front of at least 400 Key Clubbers and embarrassed myself by pulling out my "TI in the back". TO my surprise, I got into the next round.

Unfortunately, I did not acquire the position.

I lost. I lost it. I couldn't even stay back for the party because tears kept streaming down my eyes. To this day, I admit that I do get nightmares from my luncheon speech and of the interview questions I was asked. I was extremely sad from the results of the elections. I guess I would have to say that this was probably the first time that I lost, per se, an election when it came to leadership.

Ever since achieving the President position in NJHS to now, I had never really experienced this kind of pain or failure.

It was a humbling and grounding experience, to say the least. I've learned so much from it: how to deal with failure, how to deal with moving on, and how to deal with letting go of the past. I am also so happy that I experienced something like caucusing because I've concluded that I do not want to be a politician in the future.

Finally, I saw the light at the end of the tunnel: I still maintained the VP position at my school. I still have so many opportunities to serve my home, school , and community. The officers and I have

ideas that encompass chartering a Builders Club at Austin Academy for Excellence (my former middle school), assisting at Friendship House to distribute food, school supplies, clothes, etc. and more. As VP, I get to plan socials and oversee officers, which I enjoy.

I have to say that Key Club has been ups and downs for me, mostly ups, but it was taught me more than just volunteering.

IT HAS PREPARED ME FOR LOSS, FOR FAILURE, FOR SUCCESS, AND FOR LEADERSHIPÂ all of which come in handy in the future. I am so grateful for the leadership opportunities, the community service, and all of the experiences (no matter the result) that joining Key Club has provided me with and I'm so excited to continue my Key Club experience and enjoy every second of it.

Alina Dam, Vice President

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12 MAJOR EMPHASIS PROJECT PROMOTIONS

SERVICE PROJECT PROMOTION

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2019 2020 District Officers

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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

You are

WHAT WEBMASTER Jake Wendling wendljac000@students.garlandisd.net

CLUB ADVISOR Morgan Shaeffer mshaeffer@garlandisd.net

you do, not what you

SAY

you'll do. ~ Carl Gustav Jung

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CONTACT US @garlandkeyclub garlandhskeyclub@gmail.com Google Classroom Code: 6p2bcm

Text @garlandkey to 81010

issuu.com/garlandhskeyclub

garlandhskeyclub.com

CARING our way of life.