Western HS Key Club May 2016-2017 Newsletter

Division 30 South | Region 3 |CNH Volume: 5, Issue 3 The Official Western High School Key Club Newsletter | May 2015

THE KEY CLUB

TIMES

a letter from the editor Good morning, afternoon, evening, or night, Key-Clubbers! that’s a mouthful…

I type this letter as the late day’s heat ravages through the window into my room, and as my little work fan blows the life out of my face.

It’s been just a couple weeks after the end of the 2015-2016 school year for Western High School, and I already get the sense that I’m going to be the busier this summer than I have ever been. With incoming classes and SATs to prepare for and event after Key Club event to attend at, all of it adding on top of the usual summer laziness, it may seem a bit difficult to balance all of these things as to not be completely overwhelmed by the beginning of next year’s school year. But don’t fret, there’s still a couple more months, there’s nothing to worry about… right?

On a side note, congratulations to all the juniors-now-incomingseniors who have survived the SATs and the ACTs these past weeks! I’m sure all those sleepless nights and restless study sessions will bear fruit through the results you will receive. Learn from the study, the exam, and the result. No matter how bad your score may (or may not!) be, just keep in mind that I’m still beautiful, and that’s all that matters.

That aside, just remember that Key Club is a club that’s active year-long. Help us, the community, and yourself out by checking out some of the volunteering events and opportunities we have for you! It’s fun, productive, and you might get to see my dashingly handsome face (IN PERSON, no less), so what’s there to lose?

Speaking of volunteering, it’s barely been a month into the 2016-2017 term, and we’ve already reached the 25% mark of our service hours goal—500 hours out of 2500 hours—this term! HOW AMAZING IS THAT!?

It’s possible all thanks to you guys, Western Key Club-bers! The cumulative effort of all of us is what makes these goals even plausible, so thank you all for dragging that goal into reach. Our board is powerless without you.

And that’s not to discredit my own Key Club board. To my beloved Key Club board: thank you too, I guess.

AND WITH THAT, I present to you the latest addition to the Key Club Times! MAY EDITION!! I completely broke down my newsletter and reshaped it to give it a new look. I hope it’s for the better. Enjoy, sunshine-y suns!

Much much love from your shockingly fantabulous bulletin editor, Jerry Castillo

TABLE OF CONTENTS 2 May Collage 4 Western HS Key Club Goal Progress 5 The President’s Thoughts 6 WHS Kaleidoscope Dance Show 7 Discovery Cube’s 8th Annual Rocket Launch

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8 Mother Daughter Tea

9 Tinker Bell Half Marathon

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10 Twila Reid Carnival 12 W.A.N.D. BBQ 13 May DCM | Division Dog Toys 14 Eliminate & Teacher Appreciation Week 16 Children’s Art Festival

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17 Room 23 Pack-up 18 Club Banquet | Alice in Wonderland 20 May Service Hours Leaderboard

21 Board Member Spotlight/Questionnaire 22 Monthly Calendar 23 INSPIRATION!!

24 Contacts Page

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MAY...

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THE PRESIDENT’S

Delving into the mind of a maniac…!

THOUGHTS Howdy everyone!

I hope your summer has been going wonderfully so far!

May was quite a month, a month for transitions and for growth. We sent off our seniors with candy leis and said thank you to one of the biggest influences in our lives, our teachers. We made a small but still important start on fundraising, $26.23 for Project Eliminate as Key Club nears the end of its rewarding and meaningful collaboration with this organization.

We wrapped up the school year and opened to the summer days, the summer daze (trying to be poetic here).

I’m quite thankful for this school year and for its people. We’ll miss you loads, seniors, or rather, freshmen (now).

Summer is always open for you and Key Club will always open our arms to you, so always remember your family is here for you to come back to whenever you feel stressed or worried.

Stay hydrated this summer, loves, and keep serving with those always lovely smiles. Wishing everyone the best of luck for the future and welcoming the heat! Thank you to the May flowers and hello there June bugs!

Always shinin’ with service and personality, Your lovely president Nhi Truong

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Western High School’s

KALEIDOSCOPE

DANCE SHOW!!

Western High School held their dance show and I personally attended the Friday afternoon shift. This was the last show of the school year and it was a lot of fun helping. We sold tickets as well as dance grams at the beginning of the show. During the performance, we delivered the grams to the dancers and it was nice to experience everyone’s joy.

We did not sell refreshments like the later shift but it was nice nonetheless. During the shift, we even got to see a few performances once we delivered all the grams and the dancers absolutely killed it. At the intermission, we got more grams to deliver and it was lovely seeing the dancers smile at their gifts. Ms. Leonard seemed a bit anxious at the beginning but she was grateful for our help. I enjoyed giving back and supporting my school’s dance program.

I attended one of last year’s dance shows and volunteering this year was incredibly different. Even though I did not watch the show-only a few dance numbers actually- I really enjoyed it more than just watching because I got to see the dancers prepare for their next number and experience their joy and adrenaline. It felt more personal and exciting to see the behind the scenes. From what I saw, the performance was incredible and a definite success.

Isabel Almanza

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DISCOVERY CUBE’S & BOEING’S 8TH ANNUAL

ROCKET LAUNCH The Rocket Launch on May 7th started of by of course the usual, running late and to make it even better, getting lost. Thankfully I ended up arriving right on time. When I got there I quickly signed in and got my name tag and shirt. Our name tags were already printed which I found pretty impressive. The coordinator started assigning tasks and telling us the rules luckily I got put at the actual rocket launch. The event was open to the public and anybody could make their rockets and then go launch it.

I headed over to where I was assigned as well as a group of other volunteers, there we got told the instructions that we would have to be following throughout the day. There was a lot of responsibilities with this task because we were responsible for launching the rockets that the kids spent time on, and a simple mistake such as putting too much air in the bottle, or not putting the rocket in good and more could ruin these rockets. We also got to wear some rad Safety goggles which was uncomfortable at the beginning but I got used to it.

However it was a very fun event because I got to see the excitement on the kids faces as they saw their rockets go high. We got a 15 minute break and there was a spot for volunteers on their break and there they had snacks, which was very nice of them since not a lot of events give volunteers snacks. Once I went back to my shift there was about one hour left which went by pretty fast. Once it was time to clean up we brought all the equipment back and we helped with the clean up which went pretty smoothly and fast because there was a lot of volunteers.

Overall this event was an event that I really enjoyed because there was always something I was doing and there was such a happy environment, I would have to say that this was one of my favorite events.

I even told my mom to bring my siblings to the rocket launch next time they hold it because It was such a fun events for kids because there was an actual astronaut that could help you on your rocket it was a really great experience being able to share with the kids the joy of the launch of their rockets.

Elicia Hernandez The Rocket Launch held at The Boeing Company in Huntington Beach was a lovely event where the Discovery Cube provided fun activities for people in the community to participate. Basically, people constructed bottle rockets with the help of Boeing engineers and they shot the rockets at a launch pad where Key Club volunteers worked. We launched them and recorded the time the rocket stayed in the air so a family could win prizes for a successful rocket.

The event started at 9 AM but volunteers helped set up and learned how to launch the rockets at 8. This was a fairly long shift but we were given a fifteen minute break about halfway through and launching became more consistent as people started showing up. This was a lot of fun but we got soaked by the end of the day. I worked at the launch pad with Elicia and it was nice to volunteer and bond with her.

I definitely enjoyed helping the children and parents since they had so much joy and radiance. It was a little worrisome at the beginning since it started to sprinkle for a bit but the sun came through eventually.

I would definitely recommend this event to other volunteers since the people were lovely and it felt special seeing the kids excited.

Isabel Almanza

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On May 7, the city of La Mirada hosted their annual Mother Daughter Tea at the La Mirada Activity Center. Before attending the event, some volunteers and I completely were oblivious of the dress code. Having the title itself, Mother Daughter Tea appear fancy which meant fancy attire. During the meetings, there wasn’t a notice that required a strict dress code (Dress shirt or dress pants). Although some were dressed fancier than others, those in charge of the event were more than happy to accept our arrival.

After checking in, the organizers weren’t officially sure of what our main tasks were. We were assigned “boss” Kim who gave us individual jobs. At first, the volunteers and I were assigned to help set up the photo booth.

After accomplishing that task, we were sent to the crafts area; food catering was unfortunately occupied with other volunteers from La Mirada high school.

Surprisingly, everybody at the event was very friendly and welcomed the volunteers with opened arms. I thought it was very considerate of the organizers to care for our health and they often asked if we needed anything.

They provided us with Frozen Yogurt, lunch, as well as access to the photo booth. In return for their generous offerings, we actively took charge of the craft’s department. Volunteers were given the job to give assistance and demonstrations for coloring, decorating boxes, as well as, creating keychains. There wasn’t much guidance because the mothers were there to be a support for their child. It was absolutely adorable and pleasant to see the bond between mother and daughter.

Since this was my first time at this particular event, I was pleasantly surprised of how much I truly enjoyed this event. After being intimidated with the dress code, I feared for the event to be strict and picky. However, everyone was kind and wonderful to the volunteers. Maybe we were expecting to be catering delicious crumpets to mothers and daughters and serve tea from the finest china, but being in the art’s department had similar benefits.

Whether serving hot tea or sticking stickers on boxes, being in the atmosphere of love is so renewing. The children were adorable in their fancy and matching clothes with their mother. Honestly, out of the events I’ve gone to this year, this was my favorite. I strongly recommend more people volunteer for this event, it’s a great experience and the atmosphere is great!

Tiffany Nguyen

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The Tinkerbell Half Marathon on May 8th was really cool event. This event was a limited event since there was a certain amount of volunteers that could volunteer from the whole division, so I felt pretty special going to this event since the volunteers were picked randomly.

When I got there it was still pretty dark since the shift started at 3 am I believe, and the coordinators knew we had a long day ahead of us so they had coffee and this snack box that contained tons of snacks. It took a while for everyone to get there so we were just chilling for a while but once everyone got there, the volunteers started getting loaded on the bus and from there we went to our location. D30S got assigned to pass out snacks, water and Gatorade cups, so when we got to our destination we had to set up tables and get the Gatorade and water ready.

Setting up consisted of putting the tables out also some gates and banners which was pretty hard work but interesting because I don’t even think that I’ve carried that much. Western High school Key club got assigned to pass out the energy bars along with other clubs and we got separate shirts from the company that was passing out the energy bars.

We got done setting up pretty early so for a while we were just sitting but once the runners came in it was busy nonstop. It was cool seeing everyone’s costumes, from Tinkerbell to the Mad Hatter, there was a variety of different costumes that was pretty cool to see. Our task was to pass out some energy pars so our job was pretty handful since the runners did need a lot of energy to finish the 13 mile course. Almost all the runners wanted the energy bars so everybody was busy handing them out and by the end we ran out. Towards the end we were so exhausted but it was worth it because it was a fun and interesting event.

It was then time to clean up and we all worked together to get it done pretty quickly, even if the whole division was so tired looking like zombies. We then took a group picture and then headed to the trolleys to take us back to the drop off location.

Overall It was pretty cool event to see the behind the scenes of such big marathon like this especially for Disneyland. I really enjoyed cheering on the runners along with other members who were fun to be with.

Elicia Hernandez

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TWILA REID

CARNIVAL On May, Friday the 13th (oh no), I participated as a volunteer in the 2016 Twila Reid Carnival. In the time that I volunteered, I ran two game booths, and helped the Twila Reid kids and their families have a great, fun-filled day.

I say 'Twila Reid' kids very sparingly because the people that were going around and enjoying what the carnival had to offer weren't just current Twila Reid Elementary students. Their parents, their brothers and sisters, and former Twila Reid students from various age groups; they all came to Twila Reid to have some fun, whether that be to knock down some cans and win a prize, or to just spend some time with old childhood friends again. The community around Twila Reid Elementary, and the community in Anaheim in general, is so very close and dear, and it's days like the day of the Twila Reid carnival that really proves those levels of closeness exist in this community I live in.

I may be one of the only volunteers that haven't attended Twila Reid in the past. The sort of family that centers around the area, from Twila Reid Elementary to Orangeview Intermediate to Western High, is just so close, it's lovely! I get the same feeling with Western Key Club, but this is on a bigger scale: I haven't ever experienced this kind of closeness in any other group outside of family. As someone who has moved into the area fairly recently, I find this intimacy amazing, and I'm very grateful to be included in this family.

Admittedly, it was a little bit difficult to be as spirited as game host should be at first. Everyone was encouraged to be ecstatic and cheerful, for the sake of the children if anything. And though I want to consider myself as a cheerful person, it was tiring to push through a consistent gush of enthusiasm for four hours. It really ups my respect for those happy, sunshine-y people that have no problem being all joyful and merry for ten hours (Lesley Aguirreee). However, by my second shift, the enthusiasm stopped feeling plastic. All these ADORABLE children all wanting to play a game with me, their victorious faces when they received their little prizes... how could I not be a little bit cheery?

Shout out to Lesley Aguirre for being with me on my first shift, and Helen Luong for tolerating me on the second shift. I don't think I would've been able to manage a game stand all by myself, and you two helped me and my sanity out quite a bit. I sincerely thank you!

Overall, I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed this experience volunteering at the Twila Reid Carnival without a doubt. Thank you to all the awesome people that had made that day amazing for me and for everyone else!

~Jerry Castillo

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I loved how innocent and free spirited the kids were… I had a great time helping out the school! ~Lara Matty

… Twila Reid elementary school is blessed to have a great staff who work hard to make every year a success! ~Tiffany Nguyen

… It was really heartwarming to see how well the volunteers connected with the children and helped them have a great time… ~Brenda Lee

Ultimately, the event was a blast, full of wild and interactive games that embraces childhood and family bonding… ~Hadeel Al Baghdadi

I legit sprinted over to the cafeteria to pick up my pizza. I was STARVING. But overall, this event was really fun and enjoyable… ~Annie Nguyen

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On Saturday, May 14, a handful of my fellow Key Clubbers and I went to the Twila Reid Park to help with set-up and booths for a popular event that is put on annually: Wand BBQ. Once I arrived, I was given a staff badge and we all went to work immediately. The advisor was really kind and helpful, giving clear instructions to everyone and being welcoming for all of us to approach and consult her about any confusions or conflicts.

Throughout the majority of our shift, we helped put up canopies for food booths and other programs, place tables, and transport luggage from vehicle to specific booth locations. Many of our assigned duties required a lot of teamwork due to the fact that the objects carried heavy weight and had immense size. Although some conflicts arose in result of miscommunication and vague instructions, the volunteers were able to find solutions and cooperate through better communication and being responsible.

This event provided a full day of activities and attractions, such as a Ford Galaxies car show, craft faire, barbecue food, children’s games and activities, stages performances, pot belly pigs, Dog Show, Police and Fire Department displays, and many more. I had the chance to walk around and check out mini stores that sold unique items ranging from jewelry and accessories to flowers and home decor. Our advisors were wonderful and kind, offering us free donuts in case we were hungry.

Overall, the Wand BBQ was a successful turnout and was an enjoyable community event to participate in. ~Brenda Lee On May 14th, the annual Wand BBQ took place at the Twila Reid Park. I had previously volunteered at this event the year before but my experience this time around was quite different.

My shift started at 7:00 a.m. which was a mini regret for me since I had volunteered the night before and was tired from it. Despite that tiny regret when I got to the event I was pretty excited to be helping out since I hadn’t volunteered much in a while. When I first arrived I was probably one of the first people from our club to have arrived and was quite lost since they hadn’t set up completely yet. However, more members started to arrive and we were able to get checked in. Since it was the morning there was a lot of us to do that revolved around setting up around the park and helping out people who needed help putting up their stands.

Each of the volunteers was split in separate groups in order to help out more throughout the park. It also allowed for the volunteers to be able to set up more quickly. For the first part of our shift that was what we did until we set up all of the canopies.

For a while we didn’t know what to do due to the lack of jobs available since we had already finished the majority of set up. However, towards the second half of our shift we would ask around at each of the stands if they needed help. Many of them still needed help with miscellaneous jobs and were happy that we offered them help. Our jobs varied from helping get stuff from their car or moving their stuff to the correct location if they had initially set up in the wrong place.

Towards the end one of the event coordinators offered us donuts for helping out and even allowed us to wander around the park a bit before our shift ended since she didn’t have much for us to do. Compared to my experience last year I was able to physically help out more this year since last year I just served as a translator for those who need a Spanish speaking person. Also, I was able to bond more with the members I was in a group. Even though the event was not as a hectic as other events it was still enjoyable due to all the nice people who helped with the event.

It’s one of the events I look forward to each year because of the environment and people. ~Jennifer Hernandez

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Due to school work and a busy schedule, I was not able to attend the past two DCMs. But my schedule finally cleared up and I was able to attend the May DCM! The theme for this month is doggy toys in which we make homemade doggy toys out of unwanted t-shirts. Out of all the DCMs I’ve been to, this was the first that required an entrance fee which strangely made me a little nervous. I found myself repeatedly checking to see if I remembered to bring an old t-shirt with me in the car.

When I got dropped off at Loara, a group of people from Loara Key Club told me that I had to walk around the school. My legs were killing me during the walk but as soon as I saw my division friends it was all worth it. It felt amazing to watch my friend who is the Division Secretary for the first time at her meeting.

Division 30s May or May not

stop toying around...

May DCM

DIVISION DOG TOYS

While we were waiting for the DCM to start, Linda introduced Western to two people from Los Alamitos and Loara. I immediately bonded with the person from Loara because we had a mutual friend that is close to the both of us. For the first thirty minutes or so we did the usual division updates.

After the division updates we played an icebreaker where someone would yell out a number and whichever number they yelled, everyone would have to form a group that matched that number. This icebreaker was intense and fun at the same time. It really helped me get out of my bubble and meet new people from different schools.

When the icebreaker was over, we finally started on the doggy toys. It was a bit tedious making these toys because each table had only one scissor so we all had to share. I still really enjoyed making the toys because I was talking to my new friend that I made from Loara.

Overall, this DCM was relaxing and enjoyable. I made a lot of new friends and realized how much I love the DCMs. I cannot wait for the next one!

Annie Nguyen

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May 2nd—May 6th

ELIMINATE TEACHER APPRECIATION

WEEK

May 2nd – May 6th, 2016 was Teacher Week, and Western Key Club decided to show appreciation for the ones who set us up for success.

This week was coincidentally Eliminate Week as well as AP testing week. That meant that most of the juniors would be extremely busy, including our president, Nhi. Nhi put me in charge of Teacher week, in which she planned to make cards for every teacher on campus. Of course, I’m the vice president and a sophomore (at the time) so it’s completely reasonable that I would be taking on this task.

I started planning with the Member Recognition Chair and treasurer. There was a slight issue with money, but Lara was kind enough to pay a bit out of her own pocket.

Now for my contributions! I planned out all of the little details, from the format of the cards, to the day of delivery. It didn’t seem too difficult when I envisioned it in my head, but actually executing it was pretty time-consuming. First of all, I had to contact the board to take into account who’s busy because of AP testing. Based on that, I went to the school directory with a listing of all of the teachers’ names and classrooms and assigned teachers to each board member. Unfortunately the listing didn’t list them in order of room number, and I wanted them to be chronological for easy delivery, so I re-organized all of the teachers’ names.

Lara created a lovely message for the teachers to have written in every card. Now it was time to wait. I realized that this was basically the first collaborative task we had as a new board. I was relying on them to get their jobs done. Although I had faith in them and I trusted they could finish on time, I couldn’t help but feel nervous. Looking back at it, I think it was because I was the one planning the whole thing, and if anything went wrong it would be my fault. In retrospect it really wasn’t too big of a task but y’know new term nerves can get to you.

I received the cards on Thursday and Friday, and I was so extremely happy to find that they were all so cute! Every single board member put so much effort into making them look nice, and they exceeded my expectations. I knew they were going to do a great job, but I didn’t know that they would turn out so adorable!

It was Friday, the day of delivery. A few people were available to help distribute them during 6 th period, and luckily Jerry and I were able to get out of SSR to check on progress. There were quite a few cards left because many of the teachers were not in their classrooms. After I went into a bit of a panic, I came to my senses and asked Jerry to help me put the rest of the cards in the teachers’ mailboxes. In retrospect this would have been way easier than delivering them all by hand, but it wouldn’t have been as personal anyhow. I didn’t get to see anyone’s reactions to the cards, but hopefully Western Key Club made at least one teacher’s day.

Crystal Ly

To the dearest teachers of Western High School Very rarely do we acknowledge the role of the people that shape and mold us but today will be different. Today, we thank you for giving our lives direction. We would like to sincerely thank you for all the patience you have shown in efforts of transforming us from aimless teenagers into responsible and focused people. We understand that there is nothing we can do in return for what you have given us but if there is, it would be a great honor. On behalf of all pioneers, we are grateful for all the things we have learned from you, be it the subject you taught or about life in general.

Once again, thank you

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~Western High School Key Club <3

THOUGHTS FROM THE

PRESIDENT

Regarding the events of Teacher Appreciation-andEliminate Week!

I’m very pleased with how Eliminate Week turned out, in terms of fundraising. Despite the fact that during the days of May 2nd to May 6th being that of AP testing, we were able to actually raise quite a bit. With a giant MNT baby bottle to pass around between classes throughout the week, alternating between non-testers and testers, we were able to raise a sum of $26.23, which isn’t too bad for a small fundraiser with no losses. On top of that, while we were passing around this giant baby bottle-which raised quite a few questions- we were able to spread awareness on not only maternal neonatal tetanus and the dollar-eighty donation, but the progress the Eliminate organization has made in these years.

From the time I was a freshman until now, little updates on the progress of the tetanus (MNT) through social media watched the gradual but powerful years, from the $110 million raised little notes on lollipops spouting babes—I’m glad to have seen ing its end goal and Key Club ganization in its success, I’m part of this huge family saved, and changed, those lives.

I’ve been able to see and hear of those “Elimination” of maternal neonatal and through word of mouth. I’ve elimination of MNT over these through Project Eliminate to little facts on MNT and lil’ it all. With the Project nearnow parting with this orproud to say that I was a that helped with that, that

As I had captioned one be able to save my own life test, but with $1.80, I can much more.” But it’s funny the time to appreciate those save our lives in their own To the teachers.

Although I was unable to the duties of managing both Eliminate say that both went well in their own ing, I delegated the task of Teacher whose jobs have and has been to Crystal Ly, yet IP member recognition chair,

of my posts, “I may not with the $92 per AP save two lives, and so how in this very week, who have been trying to special way dawned as well. actively submerge myself in and Teacher Week, I’m glad to little ways. Caught up in AP testAppreciation week to the two people appreciate—my current vice president and my current recognition chair, Lara Matty.

I have to say the two did an amazing job. From the organization of teacher appreciation cards to the actual deliverance to over 70 teachers— 78 to be exact—the two did a phenomenal job with this. Key Club, being a community organization, after all has its part in not only community service, but the small communities around. More specifically, the dear schools with the figures who have basically doubled as our parents all our lives, our teachers. Each board member taking on six teachers to write thank you cards to, these very cards recognizing these quiet heroes in our lives held years of thank yous.

I genuinely look forward to expanding our reach in “service” to the community through small gestures and thank yous. In raising awareness to diseases to raising awareness to buried sentiments, I’m pleased to have seen it all and to have been a part of it. In these coming months, I wish for only the best, and I know that only the best will come from this lil’ world we live in. So looking back, here’s my little thank you and awareness bit, thank you for the hard work you have done 2016-2017 Key Club board, and 2016-2017 general members, in Western High and the world—thank you for being the change the world wants.

Nhi Truong

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CHILDREN’S

ART FESTIVAL With the sounds of children screaming of joy and laughter in par with the flying paint, these sounds and sights that had greeted me told me that the Children’s Art Festival was to be a fun and entertaining one.

During the time I was helping out the Kiwanis booth, I helped them prepare flags for Flag Day on June 14. However, they didn’t have enough volunteers as they thought they would which made it a challenging task for them. For 2 hours I helped them tie and While arriving to Person Park that Saturprepare the flags, which I enjoyed by meeting day at 9:00 am I was nervous, nervous as to some Kiwanis members and creating a bond this has been the first service event in which with them as before I didn’t really know I would be volunteering by myself this year. I many of the Kiwanis members in a name to didn’t expect to interact with other individuname basis. Instead I was known as one of als, as I forgot how to “socialize” with people the Key Clubbers, but as they acknowledged without having someone else introduce them me by calling me by my name it made me to me. This feeling was weird in a way. feel good inside, as dorky as it sounds I was happy because it made me feel good that I As I was stepping into the park, I was got to know more people and be lucky that I didn’t get lost this time around acknowledge as a person (that sound wrong (since I always get lost when volunteering), but when arriving I spotted one of the Kiwa- but bear with me). nis members and quickly ran over there as a So in the end, I was happy that I’d volunlost child who had found their parent would. teered that day because in that time period I I then met up with the rest of the Key Club was stressed out and feeling really down, but volunteers and then we were all told to help that day had made me happy as I met new set up the Kiwanis booth. As the army of people and was able to make a difference to volunteers were setting up the booth I decide the community but as well in the club that I to help the other organizations who needed love the most. As cliché as it sounds voluntheir booth set up as I thought, “Hey I need teering is my stress reliever and it makes me to make myself useful.”

When finishing happy. helping out the booth I found a familiar person that I knew as I thought to myself “Hey you’re not alone you found friends!!”, Abraham Vicente so by socializing with that one individual I thought to myself to have fun when volunteering, which I did. I later then offered my services to a booth in which they were painting clay hearts and ducks. While helping them for a long period of time, I met some interesting people and bonded with them. I later became friends with them on my own (that’s a first), so after I “finished” helping the booth I was sent to help the Kiwanis booth as they were in desperate need of help.

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It’s clean-up time!

ROOM 23 PACKUP

As the school year ends, many teachers find themselves packing away their textbooks and library books for next year, but due to the amount of books Mr. Leighton has, aid was required in order to effectively finish by the end of the year. Originally, the cleanup was going to last a week, from Monday of the last week of school, until Friday, but due to Mr. Leighton’s schedule, Key Clubbers could only participate in the cleanup on Wednesday and Friday. Even though it was a confusing arrangement of the event, it was successful in the end, as members were able to effectively help pack up many books.

I volunteered on Wednesday afterschool, with a handful of Key Clubbers. The event was very straightforward, as most of the volunteers had to only pack up textbooks and independent reading books that were important for usage for next year’s English Class, in cardboard boxes that were provided by Mr. Leighton. Some of the boxes and books that were organized into piles required to be moved towards the back of the library, which was slightly difficult due to the weights of the books, but through collaboration, we were able to accomplish the task effectively.

Throughout the cleanup, most of the time was spent on packing the books that were in Mr. Leighton’s shelfs and back room, neatly into the cardboard boxes. But as this task was wrapped up, the next task of moving the books to the storage of the library posed as an amusingly difficult task, as balancing the stack of books on a moving cart, and traveling downwards, through dents on the ground, towards the library was seemingly impossible. Even though many of the books repeatedly feel off the cart, it was taken light-heartedly which made the overall event full of smiles and honest amusement.

Although many perceive clean ups as boring events that require too much physical activity, I am pleased to clarify that packing up books for room 23 was very fun, especially since I was able to surround myself with other Key Clubbers. I feel as the event was successful because members were able to finish the pack up effectively and ultimately help Mr. Leighton.

Hadeel AlBaghdadi

The day before the last day of school was a day that I couldn’t have been better without volunteering.

On Monday, May 27 around the afternoon, our school was let out early and while the rest of the students were going off-campus and planning their summer vacations. Meanwhile, some individuals stayed and helped out a teacher move out of his classroom, as his class was getting renovated. This teacher always seems to be moving classrooms every year but anyways-- when delegated to his assignments we were told to carefully pack up all of his library books or “children,” ashe calls them, and pack them up, as his most prized collection would be his classroom library. Next, he instructed us to carry all of his class set books to the library. We were amazed on the amount of books he had but nonetheless we weren’t prepared on what we were about to see when entering the library’s “book vault” as he calls it. Entering the room, we were blown away on the different books they had in there as the teacher says “it looks like you guys haven’t seen a bunch a books in the library before,” we awkwardly laughed as we remembered the classics from Lord of the Flies to Of Mice and Men and The Scarlet Letter to Romeo and Juliet .

When we finished stacking the last of the books, the teacher was grateful for all of our help since he knew he couldn’t do it by himself. I was glad to know that teachers on campus find Key Club as much more than just a spirited bunch and rather as a group of individuals that love to serve others.

Abraham Vicente

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CLUB BANQUET

Let the wonder spread and the tears fall...

The long awaited day had finally came, our club banquet. On May 19th at Marie Callandar’s we had our end of the year banquet in which the theme was Alice in Wonderland. I had both dreaded but awaited this event because it would be bittersweet to say goodbye to the graduating board members after bonding with them for such a long time.

When I first arrived at the location I was already running late due to the fact I had been trying to learn how to use a projector but thankfully that issue was resolved.

Each member at the location helped out with decorating and making sure everything was perfect for when the general members and guests came. As we finished decorating I saw all the hard work the seniors along with other board members had put into making this banquet a success. The photo booth especially was amazing this year despite the difficulty the historians faced in trying to find a spot to set up.

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ALICE IN

WONDERLAND

As we waited for more members to arrive, the people who were already there mingled with one another. One of my favorite things about banquet would probably have to be the name plates Van Bui, our IP President, made along with a program and other cute decorations that her friend had helped her with. These decorations not only allowed people to choose where they wanted to sit, but also added to the Alice in Wonderland vibe.

We first ate, the awesome part of this was we were all able to choose from a selection what we wanted to eat and drink. Even though it was hard to be able to communicate with everyone while we ate, it was still nice how the tables were set up because it gave it more of a family feel. Also, some of us were able to interact with our guests: two Key Clubbers from Kennedy and Whitney, one of our usual chaperones, our Kiwanis advisor, and region advisor. It was an honor for us to have them there because they had helped us so

much throughout the term to better our club and we wanted to share this special moment with them.

Mid way through eating Van gave me the signal to set up the end of the year video that I had made for banquet to reminisce the memories. From there we moved on to the more serious stuff which included a variety of things such as presenting gifts to the old board.

This was also one of my favorite moments not because of the gifts but because of the speeches. Even though it’s is awkward and nervewracking to give a speech about someone in front of a group of people, the things said are genuine.

It made me happy to hear what everyone thought of one another and tell those people how much they mean to them which in some cases resulted in tears. When I went up there I felt awkward and was quite nervous to speak despite it was my second year presenting Kiara a present. I just wanted to thank her on how much of an im-

pact along with the rest of the board she had made in my life and encouraged me to try out for secretary. Words can’t explain the gratitude I have for her.

Towards the end of banquet things started to get more serious due to the speeches Van gave out when awarding rewards. Instead of just giving us our award she would give individual speeches of each and every one of us which made a lot of us cry. The fact that she told us what we really meant to her made me emotional because it was verification of how close we had all gotten throughout the year and we were sad to let go. She didn’t try to sugarcoat things and spoke of what she had truly thought of you which made it even better because we all knew her words were true. Banquet just made me realize on how much I would miss this group of individuals that changed my life and I hope the best for them. As for the rest of the members, I see a lot of potential in each of them. ~Jennifer Hernandez

Then came the awards, the part that ruined all of us because of how emotional we all got. Even our guests from other schools couldClub Banquet. It was a day that Western Key Clubbers have been n’t help but tear up. Van was giving out the awards that she and Nhi anticipating for a while, especially the board. You see, this was the day have pored over for who knows how long. This was basically her clowhen each board member was planning on getting all sappy and emosure for the term, and we all knew we were going to cry at this part. tional about the past term. Whenever anyone would get sentimental The awards at the beginning weren’t tearjerkers; it was the board towards the end of the year, we would say, “HEY, SAVE IT FOR recognition that did it. Van started talking about every single board BANQUET. NO CRYING TODAY.” Of course we didn’t hold that member. She told me how hard of a worker I am, and that she adpromise at DCON, but that’s another story. mires the amount of passion that I put into everything that I do.

Club Banquet wasn’t just for the board. It was for the general Van went on pouring her heart out, holding absolutely nothing back members, advisors, and everyone else who contributed to the successin her expression of love and admiration for us. es of the term. We made sure that everyone would have a good time at the banquet, so we went all out with a photo booth, handmade decoAll the while, she didn’t mention a thing about her successes and her legacy. So we decided it was time to present her with an award of rations, and even personalized nametags! her own. We all planned this for quite a while. After the awards, I The past Key Club President, Van Bui, started the banquet with asked if I could present one last award. I went on to express how her usual quirkiness. We enjoyed the delicious food as the old board much of an amazing president she’s been, and how many people she’s read aloud some love notes. The notes ranged from funny insiders inspired simply by being her confident, passionate self. On behalf of that were slightly insulting, to heartfelt, lovely messages. Either way, the ’15-’16 board, I presented her with the “Legendary President” we all definitely started to reminisce about all the good times we had Award. We all joined in one big group hug, and at that point I hope this year.

Van realized that it has been truly an honor working alongside such a After dinner, we moved on to gifts! The board members from the great leader. ’16-’17 term each got a present for their predecessors. Each person Van gave her last farewell speech, and we had an open mind seswent up in front of everyone to talk a little bit about the person. Lara sion. Many of us had to leave soon, but not without recreating our gave me a gift, and in her speech she surprisingly said that I’m perfect. board picture from last year’s banquet!

I coiled back in confusion, but accepted the compliment and the gift with lots of love. I was giving a gift to Nhi, the past VP. I made her a Well, it’s over. I started this term as an ambitious, anxious fresh“Presidential Care Package,” fully equipped with little delightful surman just planning on doing my job without screwing up. I ended the prises for each problem she might face throughout the term. I’ve term being welcomed into the Western Key Club family, and having known Nhi for about four years now, so I had so much I wanted to the pleasure of working with 11 amazing people. It’s crazy how much say and so much I wanted to thank her for. I couldn’t even get Key Club has changed me for the better. I had my ups and downs, but through the first part of my speech before crying. Nhi rushed over and I wouldn’t give up these memories for the world. Many more to come. we were both a mess as she received her gift. Don’t worry though, I finished the speech privately after the banquet. ~Crystal Ly On Thursday May 19, 2016, I cried my eyes out.

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MAY SERVICE HOURS

LEADERBOARD

Thank you for all your hours of volunteering! Keep shining, suns of WHS Key Club! :D

Elicia Hernandez | 19.5 hours

Rafael Vasquez

| 16.3 hours

Abraham Vicente | 16.3 hours

Cecilia Dang | 14 hours

Linda Le | 13 hours

Isabel Almanza | 10.8 hours

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BOARD MEMBER SPOTLIGHT featuring… our Key Club Treasurer, Abraham Vicente! 

If you could choose ANYONE—fictional or nonfictional—to become the absolute ruler of the world, who would it be? Elaborate upon your choice.

Someone who I wouldn't mind being the ruler of the world is Beyonce because she's already Queen B.



Can money buy happiness?

On a slightly different note, what is money to you?

I absolutely believe that money can buy happiness because money makes the world go around and money equals power!!!



Any interesting plans for the summer? Can you take me on a romantic summer cruise with you?

I don't really have an plans this summer and I don't mind going to a romantic cruse with you since I get bored in the summer and am down to do anything.



What does Key Club mean to you?

Key Club means to me a place where individuals can come together and creating something great within themselves and their community, by that Key Club has been my happy place since it always bring a smile to my face when volunteering or at an event.



You’re special to me, but… what do YOU think is special about you? What sets you apart from everyone else?

What I believe makes me special is that my heart is as big as my mouth as I am one who is really ambitious and goes for things without considering what people may think of me.



What is your opinion of the branch of study that is called “mathematics”?

I really really really really dislike math ( I would use the word hate but hate is such a strong word )

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What motivates you to do things and improve yourself?

What motivates me is to make a change amongst the people we live with as I desire to make a difference in the world but yet acknowledge what attributes I can improve myself in order to help out others.



Your face and voice is broadcasted to every single person on earth for a set amount of time (thirty seconds? A minute? Honestly, however long you need… ). What do you say?

I would say: “YOU ARE ALL BASIC BUT BEING BASIC IS OK.”



On a scale of one to beautiful, how beautiful do you think you are?

I would consider myself to be a 10 because we SUNS ARE SO HAWT!!!

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MONTHLY CALENDAR May 15:

May 2nd—6th:

National Smile Power Day :)

Eliminate Week

Club Banquet

May 26th: Last Day of School

May 19th:

June 12th: Flag Day June 4th: World Refugee Day

June 17th: June DCM

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June 19th: Father’s Day

July 16th(?): Beach Boomba

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