bgkc february 2014 newsletter

February was one of our fastest months to date. With 3 consecutive Saturdays of double events (February 8th, WADY and Tết Festival; February 15th, Project GO and Paws Fur Pink; February 22nd, Hit and Run 5K and Race on the Base), our club was certainly overbooked! And to top it all off, we successfully held elections for the upcoming executive board of the 2014-2015 Key Club term. With the Key Club year drawing to an end, there are many things we must finish in preparation for next year.

Looks like Carmie’s having a difficult time keeping a straight face.

More Tết Festival photos on page 3!

What’s Jackie doing with all these paper cups?

Turn the page and you’ll see!

Bolsa Grande Key Club NewsletterVolume 2| Issue 12|February 2014

1

It certainly seems that Jennifer had a good time at this event.

Read her article on page 6!

Surf City Half Marathonby Jennifer Hoang

Junior• • •

I attended the Surf City Half Marathon on

Sunday, February 2nd. For this particular event, our club receives money for every volunteer! Therefore,

not only was I serving and helping others, but I was

also benefiting my club, which is why I had even

more motivation to attend this event.

As the volunteers headed to our designated

check-in spot, I was quite confused. I remembered my exact thoughts: “This isn’t the beach! This is the

middle of a parking lot.” However, I soon found out

that there would be a bus taking us to the actual

station to volunteer- that made a lot more sense.

Our job was to hand out water to the

runners as they come our way. We were stretched along the road, prepared to quickly pass out cups of

water. Sounds easy enough, right? That was my first

impression as well… until the runners came pouring

in by dozens, which rapidly escalated to what felt

like hundreds. The volunteers worked as fast as they could. I held three cups at one time to have more

runners receive their water. There were times when

the runners passed by so quickly, their hands did

not fully grab onto the cups, so the water spilled on

me, which I thought it was quite funny.

The stress died down once the race started to draw to an end. What made everything worth

attending this event was the smiles on the runners’

faces as they thanked us with such gratitude for all

the hard work. Their appreciation for our efforts

and hard work made everything better.

Huntington BeachSunday, February 2, 2014

2

Tết Festivalby Jenny Nguyen

Vice PresidentPresident-Elect

Junior• • •

This year, the club I serve had another

wonderful opportunity to serve our community and connect with our Vietnamese culture. From Friday,

February 7th to Sunday, February 9th, members

were able to volunteer at the Tết Festival for many

different shifts. It was located at the OC Fair and

Event Center, but distance was no problem because

there was a shuttle bus that transported us there. I worked on Saturday the 8th, and what I did was

dress up in an áo dài, or a Vietnamese traditional

dress. The guests of the festivals could then walk

into the festival and enter the Vietnamese village

where all of the volunteers dressed up in assorted attire. The purpose of having the volunteers there

was to provide a cultural aura to the festival. I

usually like volunteering at the Tết Festival because I

can apply my Vietnamese-speaking skills and

connect with the Vietnamese community. My faith

in my culture revived after attending this event.

OC FairgroundsSaturday, February 8, 2014

3

WADYby Jen K. Nguyen

Junior• • •

On Saturday, February 8th, 2014, I

attended WADY, which stands for We Ain’t Dead Yet. At this monthly service event, we delivered

food boxes to the elderly. This event was an hour

longer than usual because we had a Valentine’s

Day party after handing out boxes. We decorated;

set up Bingo cards, cake, ice cream, and cupcakes; prepped goodie bags; and played Bingo with the

residents. Before the party, Bolsa Grande Key Club

was given an award for coming every month and

being a part of the WADY team. Other than the

award, we were given chocolate, pencils, and other treats. In return, we gave Judy Secor, the event

coordinator, a card with all of our signatures for

Valentine’s Day, wishing her a full recovery from

her surgery. Even though we volunteer and do not

expect anything in return, it was nice to be recognized. I hope that our club will continue to

work with WADY for many years to come.

Pacific Terrace Retirement Homes

Saturday, February 8, 2014

4

Project GOby Vivian Leduc

Class DirectorJunior

• • •

On Saturday, February 15th, I volunteered

with Bolsa Grande Key Club at an event called

Project GO. It was located at the park across our

school, and we were there to paint over graffiti. When everyone was there, we went looking for a

tent or a coordinator of the event but could not

find anything or anyone. Consequently, we

thought the event was cancelled and were about to

go home.

However, just when we were all about the

leave, a woman came and gave us directions to

paint over the graffiti. I spent most of my time

with Duyen Diep and Gianhu Nguyen; we painted

over the graffiti very quickly. The club was finished with the job quickly because there were so many

members and little graffiti. After about thirty

minutes, we were done. I was glad I could make

use of my Saturday morning and help my

community. Although it was a short event, a little help can go a long way.

Garden Grove Park


5

Race on the Baseby Jennifer Hoang

Junior• • •

Race on the Base was on Saturday, February

22nd, and call time was at 6 A.M. Luckily, I woke up and arrived on time. I was quite excited for this

event because members who had attended this event

said it was fun. In addition, the event was held at

the Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training Base, which

I was eager to see.

Before starting our job, volunteers had to

sign in, which is also where we received breakfast,

our choice of water or soda, and snacks for later on

in the day. Thank goodness for that because I came

to the event with an empty stomach. Afterwards, we headed to the finish line, where we needed to

remove medals from their packaging. These medals

were then handed out to the runners as they

finished their race. As I was giving out medals, I saw

Mrs. Preston, my old teacher from intermediate school, and her “Go the Distance” club completing

their run. I was so amazed at how these young kids

were so eager and determined to participate in this

race!

After the completion of handing out medals, our next job was to pick up trash. Unfortunately,

Jacquelyn had an upset stomach and felt sick, so

Michelle and I tended to her needs. (How lucky of

her to have such great friends.) Our shifts were done

by then, so we were free to roam around. I think it is safe to say everyone gravitated towards the activities

tent, for there was a photo booth. Everyone lined up

several times to take pictures as they waited for their

rides. Who doesn’t like taking pictures to capture

these moments?

Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training Base


6

Paws Fur Pinkby Thomas Nguyen

Class DirectorFreshman

• • •

O n Fe b r u a r y 15 , I

attended the event Paws Fur Pink. When I got to school it was

really cold, but it was nothing

compared to Irvine Park. I could

not stop shaking from the biting

winds. But it was all worth it because I got to see so many

dogs! There were so many

different kinds that I lost count.

My favorite was this one dog that

had the longest legs even though it had a tiny body and it was able

to jump very high. It was as if its

legs were made of springs. At the

event, I was stationed as a course

monitor most of the time, and a group of friends and I used

cheers from Bolsa’s cheer team to

motivate the runners. It felt great

to see the smiles it brought the

runners and I had a feel of what Key Club was all about.

Orange County Great Park (Irvine)Saturday, February 15, 2014

L.E.C.by Gianhu Nguyen

Class DirectorSophomore

• • •

I a t t e n d e d L i n c o l n

Education Center on Thursday, February 20th with my fellow Key

Clubbers. There were many

folders that needed to be graded

on that day, and everyone went

straight to work. There were a variety of subjects to choose

from, and I decided to grade the

life science folders. It was a great

refresher for my brain, as I had

forgotten some materials from biology last year. That is one

reason why I enjoy attending

L.E.C. on Thursday nights; I am

able to review lessons that I have

already learned, or improve my understanding of the subject by

helping and tutoring others. I

always feel content after L.E.C

services, knowing that I have

used my Thursday evening efficiently.

Lincoln Education CenterThursday, February 20, 2014

Hit and Run 5Kby Jenny Cao

Junior• • •

On February 22, 2014, I attended Hit and Run 5K. The

ride there was exceedingly long,

but the sight of the vast park was

wondrous. Init ia l ly, I was

disappointed to hear that I could not throw dodge balls at runners,

because I had to volunteer at the

s t a r t i n g l i n e . B u t t h e

disappointment faded as soon as

the runners began to assemble. My job was to hold up caution

tape with my partner so that we

could manage each wave of

runners. We had to wait after

each wave so that the obstacle courses could be cleared and

available for new runners. We

spent hours repeatedly doing

this, but I was not the least bit

bored. Afterward, the volunteers were free to play in the obstacle

courses. I look forward to

attending this event next year!

Orange County Great Park (Irvine)


Some more of our service events...

7

Read what Thomas, Gianhu, and Jenny have to say about these fun events!

Presenting... DECEMBER’S

MEMBER OF THE MONTH

ABOUT HERName: Duyen Diep

Age: 16

Birthday: November 22

Grade: Junior

Service Hours: 14.5

Spirit Points: 6

Articles Written: 5

Total Hours: 20

Fun Facts: Duyen’s Key Club buddies are Jenny and Julie Cao. You are more than likely to see the three of them together at events. Also, Duyen’s favorite animal is a cow, and her favorite color is purple. Too bad our division’s mascot and color aren’t cows and purple!

Why she’s awesome: Duyen brings her bubbly personality to every service event she goes to. She can easily make any tedious job fun and is very enthusiastic about our division. She even attended Fall Rally back in November!

DUYEN DIEP

8

Presenting... JANUARY’S

MEMBER OF THE MONTH

9

DUY TRAN

ABOUT HIMName: Duy Tran

Age: 15

Birthday: November 1

Grade: Sophomore

Service Hours: 59.75

Spirit Points: 17

Articles Written: 2

Total Hours: 69.25

Fun Facts: Duy is well known for his “smizing” and habit of tilting his head to one side in photos. He also has an obsession for online-shopping. His catch phrase is “What’s Gucci?” and his closet is full of cardigans.

Why he’s awesome: Duy frequently attends events and currently has the most hours (both service and total) in our club. His quirky personality makes him fun to be around and he is always eager to replace any fellow members in need of a replacement. His sassy attitude and reliability has made him a unique member of our club!

UPDATES• • •

Our club’s first event of the month was Surf City Half Marathon. This was a very important event

for us because we received $15 for every volunteer! 45 people from our Key Club showed up that Sunday

morning to work the water station. Cynthia Do, who is not a member of our club, also generously

donated her time and efforts to volunteer with us. She contributed to Bolsa Grande Key Club’s total of

46 volunteers, giving us $690! Thank you to all the volunteers who helped us reach this whopping amount of profit!

February was the month of elections for us. Though our current term will not end until the last

day of DCON (April 13th), we must elect new officers ahead of time to in order to prepare, train, and

plan for the new year. Our club successfully held elections for the 2014-2015 executive board and nominations for the upcoming term’s appointed officers (class directors and K-Kids coordinator). These

appointed officers will be interviewed in March by the executive board elects, who are as follows:

•President - Jenny Nguyen

•Vice President - Jacquelyn Do

•Secretary - Gianhu Nguyen

•Treasurer - Joann Vuong

•Tech Editor - Quan Nguyen

In other news, our club has once again switched buddy clubs! We are now buddy clubs with none other than Pacifica High School, and we will remain buddy clubs until the end of the term. Our clubs are

collaborating in hosting Do-Re-Mi-Fa-Social, a karaoke fundraiser, at Cafeoke Ding Dong Dang and

exchanging pen pal letters. Although sign ups for pen pals are over, you can still meet fellow Key Clubbers

from Pacifica at the karaoke fundraiser on March 22nd and our last DCM of the year on March 29th.

Details for these two events are as follows:

•Do-Re-Mi-Fa-Social:

•Saturday, March 22, 2014

•2 P.M. - 7 P.M.

•The Last D-Sea-M

•Saturday, March 29, 2014

•11 A.M. - 2 P.M

Please remember that members in good standing should have a minimum of 50 service hours by

the end of the school year. We ask that you continue to serve your community by regularly volunteering for events. We have many events waiting for us this March!

10

Contact us!

11

Faculty Advisor: Mr. Tonthat

E-mail: [email protected]

President: Rachael Yi


Vice President: Jenny Nguyen


Secretary: Carmie Mach


Treasurer: Van Nguyen


Tech Editor: Jacquelyn Do


K-Kids Coordinator: Peter Nguyen


Senior Class Director: Tina Nguyen


Junior Class Director: Vivian Leduc


Junior Class Director: Jolyne Dang


Sophomore Class Director: Gianhu Nguyen


Freshman Class Director: Thomas Nguyen


Who says community service is boring?

These smiling faces beg to differ!

mailto:[email protected]


























bgkc february 2014 newsletter

Documents