Tuesday’s luncheon at Lion Hills Center could be viewed as a coming of age celebration for the Lowndes Young Leaders program.
The program turned 18 this year. A class of 21 high-school sophomores this year completed the nine-month program, which focuses on developing leadership skills and exposing students to opportunities both within and outside their communities at a formative time in their academic careers.
“The idea of having 10th graders is that by the time students are in the 11th grade, they’re already applying for scholarships and may have already decided on a career path they want to pursue,” said Bill Walker, who serves on the advisory board for the program. “We believe exposing them to the things in this program broadens their outlook and makes them aware of possibilities they might never have been aware of.”
The Columbus-Lowndes Chamber of Commerce started the Lowndes Young Leaders [program in 1999. In 2004, The Columbus Rotary Club became the program’s primary source of funding with Mississippi University for Women Office of Outreach and Innovation, which provides the leadership component that is a part of each monthly event.
Over the course of the nine-month program, which begins with a camping trip to Camp Pratt and team-building exercises at Plymouth Bluff, the students are exposed to a variety of businesses and industries in areas as diverse as government, private enterprise and the military. The students are also exposed to cultural opportunities with trips to museums and historical tours and community service (each December students help with local charities as they prepare Christmas packages for needy residents).
While the diversity of those experiences was valuable exposure to new opportunities, some students said one of the greatest benefits was simply being around each other.
“When I first met (the other students) at Camp Pratt, it scared me a little bit,” said Georgia Starr, who is enrolled in a “virtual school,” where she takes online classes and consults with her teachers via the internet. “No one likes getting out of their comfort zone. It’s not fun. I’m an introvert. But through the program, I got to know these people and I loved it. I can’t say that was more important than all the things we did as a group, but I think for a lot of us, just stepping out and getting to know other people is something really important.”
Commitment to the program
Hunter Perrigin of Heritage Academy said he most valued the opportunity to grow as a leader.
“From August to May, I learned so much that helped cultivate us as leaders,” Perrigin said. “We all have the capability to be a leader. Things may change, but something that will always been needed are leaders.”
Perrigin was chosen by his fellow Young Leaders for the Bill Walker Award for his commitment to the program.
Walker’s own commitment to the program proved pivotal at a time when the program was in jeopardy, urging the Columbus Rotary Club to take over funding.
“It was in 2004 and the Chamber had lost their funding,” Walker said. “My daughter had just come through the program and I realized what a good program it was. I urged the Rotary Club to get involved and sort of keep it going because I really felt it was such an important program.”
Walker said the program has grown appreciably since then.
“I think when we started, the budget was $3,000,” he said. “Now, it’s $15,000 because we’re doing so many more things with the students than we did at the start.”
Blaine Walters, who serves on the Chamber Board of Directors, knows firsthand the value of the Young Leaders Program.
“I went through it in 2003,” he said. “The thing I remember most is the same things that kids say today. You meet different kids; kids you probably wouldn’t get to know. Then you also meet adults in the community that can help you in later life, whether it’s college, work or whatever the next step might be.”
Fourteen years after he participated in the program, Walters, who owns Bride and Groom Bridal Boutique in downtown Columbus, said the most enduring aspect of the program was the sense of pride it fostered in his hometown.
“For me, getting to see people in my hometown doing great things was really exciting. It made me want to come back and be a part of it. Some of these kids will go off and pursue their careers other places, but we hope they will come back and make Columbus a better place. In my mind, that’s why Young Leaders is so important to us and why we’re happy to support it, along with the Rotary and The W.”
2016-17 Lowndes Young Leaders
Haley Barker, Heritage Academy
Alex Baumann, Heritage Academy
Graham Bray, New Hope High School
Cassidy Brown, Caledonia High School
Cassidy Budgins, New Hope High School
Brielle Bush, Golden Triangle Early College High School
Carson Dallas, Caledonia High School
Jackson DiCicco, Heritage Academy
Elizabeth Easterling, Columbus Christian Academy
Mary Virginia Fields, Heritage Academy
August Fort, Caledonia High School
Hunter Harris, Caledonia High School
Sara Grace Lowery, Golden Triangle Early College High School
Gracie McBrayer, Caledonia High School
Sophia Oswalt, Caledonia High School
Hunter Perrigin, Heritage Academy
Georgia Starr, Independent Virtual Academy
Jade Thomas, Columbus Christian Academy
Marian Turner, Columbus High School
Clay Walters, Heritage Academy
Sam Yarborough, Caledonia High School
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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