Involvement in Youth in

Government doesn’t stop at

paying dues. For those in-

volved in the legislature, YiG

serves the purpose of taking

an idea and turning it into a

movement while also inspir-

ing thoughtful debate about

worthwhile topics relevant to

Florida.

During SLC, club leader-

ship was challenged to poll

students on the issues they

felt to be the most pressing.

As Derek Summerville, for-

mer President of the Sullivan

Senate relates, “…this poll

represents a chance for the

youth of Florida to have their

voices heard by their fellow

youth leaders who will repre-

sent them during State As-

sembly in Tallahassee.” The

results of the poll will be

available during October, so

what to do in its interim?

The Red Book offers sev-

eral helpful chapters, rang-

ing from deciding on a topic

to the minutiae of the details

required for State Assembly.

Veteran members should not

be overlooked in this critical

period of bringing pivotal

subjects to the forefront.

Community politics can also

bring to light the most con-

troversial of topics . (Continued on page 2)

Campo YIG volunteered at Opera-

tion Homefront’s 3rd Annual Freedom

Walk on September 11th, 2010. Op-

eration Homefront is a non-profit

business that works hard to assist

military families and wounded soldiers

with anything they might need. The

event took place on Bayshore Boule-

vard in Tampa. The Campo chapter

planted 3,000 American flags along

the sidewalk to pay tribute to those

that died.

We were the first ones on site as

the sun started to rise over the bay.

We set out in teams of two heading

out for our assigned quarter mile of

sidewalk. Devin Platt and I quickly

found out that the ground was too

dense to get our little plastic Ameri-

can flags in the ground easily. How-

ever, we got all 500 flags in the

ground before 8 am. It was beautiful

to see 2 miles of Tampa sidewalk

completely lined with American flags.

As people drove by we got honks

of approval, several people even

asked if they could have a flag for

their work place. Those passing by

saluted us and we received many a,

‘God Bless You’ and ‘Good job.’

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, Tampa

Police Chief Jane Castor, MacDill Air

Force Base Col. Donald Barnes, and

Hillsborough County Director of

Homeland Security Col. Ed Duncan

were all in attendance. It was amaz-

ing to see such a large number of

people come out to support this wor-

thy cause. One of the few benefits

we have seen come from September

11th is the bonding of our Nation.

This was evident as people from all

walks of life, every nationality, young

and old alike came out to re-

member the day forever en-

grained in our memories.

By ERIKA AMAYA

Program Director

Campo at 3rd Annual Freedom Walk

Check out Campo’s video of

this event at www.youtube.com/

watch?v=JxLsAwrhDWU

Photo of Trevor Brate and Matt Jones by Tammy Jones of the Campo Chapter.

Bills for the Next YiG eneration

By OLIVIA DENHOFF

Campo Delegation

The Florida Senate Chambers in Tallahasse, Florida.

Bill Topics for New Members

September 2010 The Page Note 2

Emma Joslyn Editor-in-Chief • Olivia Denhoff• Alexia M’Bark Erika Amaya Program Coord.

President Obama’s Back to School Speech

On Tuesday September 14th, Presi-dent Barack Obama gave his second annual back to school speech. This year’s speech was given at the Julia R. Master-man Laboratory and Demonstration School in Philadelphia, PA. Though the speech was directly intended for the students at Masterman, the mes-sage behind it can be applied to students eve-rywhere. In this speech, the President addressed many topics of worry that have been on the minds of Americans: the struggle to balance the economic hardships many families are going through and the school work that is piling up on many of students. Presi-dent Obama told the na-tions students to keep in

view their goals, not to drop them just because life gets harder. He en-couraged students to focus on their education and put effort into it be-cause if there is no drive, the results cannot be clearly seen. Toward the end of his speech, President

Obama said “what I want to say to you today – what I want all of you to take away from my speech – is that life is precious, and part of its beauty lies in its diver-sity.” The meaning of his words here is pretty clear, just because the lives of today’s students may not be perfect, does not mean that they

should give up on their education. School is one of the things that will take Americans far in life, and seriously influ-ences the options and the choices the future holds, so keep at it, and don’t give up.

By ALEXIA M’BARK

Lee County Delegation

contributors

View the full video at

http://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=8ZZ6GrzWkw0

Screen shot of President Obama’s Speech in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

fall district dates Nov. 6-7 District II

Nov. 11 District I

Nov. 12-13 District III

Dec. 4-5 District IV

Helpful interrogation will follow if a

bill is thoughtful and provocative, espe-

cially during the Fall District Confer-

ences scheduled in November and De-

cember. During FDC seasoned mem-

bers will help instruct and guide new

delegates and their bills through the

rigorous standards necessary prior to

State Assembly in Tallahassee.

(Continued from page 1)

Elected or appointed to lead their

respective program areas, Presiding

Officers lead all of the programs of

Youth In Government. Each Presiding Officer carries a

three-fold responsibility: to the State

Program, to their program area, and

to their local YMCA Delegation. Elected Presiding Officers include

the Governor and Lieutenant Gover-

nor, Commissioner of Agriculture,

Chief Financial Officer, and the leaders

of all four legislative chambers. Becoming a Presiding Officer is a

great responsibility, and the positions

should not be sought or entered into

lightly. For more information visit: http://www.floridayig.net/index.php?

pageid=BeAPO

Taking YiG to the Next Level—

Running for State Office