KS Youth Leadership Forum Seeking Delegates and Volunteers  

 

We continue to search for applicants for our Kansas Youth Leadership Forum... apply today! Remember, our application deadline is December 15. We are searching for high school juniors and seniors with disabilities who have leadership interest or potential. This is an experience that you don't want to miss!

Are you not quite sure if you want to apply? Would you like to know more about what you will get from this program? Well, you will gain:

• New leadership skills to take back to your community
• Information about resources that will help you reach your goals
• Experiences that will help you speak out and advocate more
• Successful adult mentors who will support you
• A large new set of friends from all over the state
• Memories gained from our barbecue, talent show, dance, and more
• Tools, opportunities, and experiences that will change your life forever!

So, why wouldn't you apply? But, don't wait! Again, delegate applications are due by December 15. 

 

We are also now accepting applications for volunteers for our 2020 KSYLF! We are searching for committed, enthusiastic people who are willing to devote a week to this great program. Do you have the skills and passion to facilitate groups and motivate youth with disabilities? Then consider serving as a volunteer at this year's KSYLF.

Past volunteers, KSYLF alumni, and new volunteers are encouraged to apply! Volunteer applicants must fill out our application form, as well as two background checks, and send to the KYEA office by February 14, 2020.

Print a delegate or volunteer application 

 

 

KYEA Searching for New Board Members   

 

The Kansas Youth Empowerment Academy is looking for a few good people! We have several board of director's positions open. These are not paid positions, but volunteer positions.  

 

Are you interested in supporting youth with disabilities in reaching their goals and become independent? Are you interested in helping an organization find stability through policies, fundraising, and organizational leadership? Are you a hard worker who is willing to attend periodic meetings, help with decision-making, and work on tasks when needed?  

 

These volunteer positions on our Board of Directors are open to Kansas residents and those who are 16 years of age and beyond. So, do you think you might be one of those few good people were looking for? For more information contact Julia Connellis at juliat@kyea.org. 

One of the most essential parts of achieving the KYEA mission... FUNDING!

 

Following in Roger's Footsteps 

Anthony Frischenmeyer shares how volunteering for the KSYLF has greatly impacted his life!

 

KYEA would not be what it is today without our amazing volunteers! We have people who volunteer for our programs, in our office, and even on our board. Not only do we appreciate our volunteers, but we hope that they get a lot out of volunteering for us! Anthony Frischenmeyer definitely has. Anthony is the nephew of long-time volunteer, who passed away about a year ago, Roger Frischenmeyer. Read all about Anthony's first KSYLF experience and get inspired to maybe volunteer yourself!    

 

Waking up the day I left for my first YLF experience was exciting. I didn't know what to expect or how the week would truly change my outlook on life.  I still needed to pack and get everything ready for the week.  I went over check lists in my head and double checked them as I put the items I thought I would need in my suitcase.  Finally, I was all packed and ready to go. As I said goodbye to my kids and fiance, I knew I was going to miss home and everything I knew for a week.  I loaded my stuff and hit the road. I kept thinking of all the times I drove my uncle to Topeka and how he always was so excited to attend the Kansas Youth Leadership Forum.  I thought about the times I would pick him up and the impact it seemed to have on him and wondered if it would have the same effect on me.

Being away from my everyday life was challenging, but that soon drifted away as the delegates arrived.  I got to stand at the door and greet them as they showed up with their families.  The looks on their faces were that of not knowing.  They didn't know what to expect, as I didn't.  My nerves started to calm.  

As the forum got underway, we started going to these sessions that were designed to teach the delegates to be proud of whom they were and to be proud of their disabilities. I started to see them blossom instantly; I myself felt I was becoming more proud of who I was and of my disabilities.  In our breakout groups, we got to know each other on a more personal level, learning the struggles that we each had in our personal lives.  They were not all that different, and, no matter the age difference, we shared some of the same struggles.  As the week continued, and the more we shared and the more goals me made, I started to feel what my uncle had felt.  This was feeling the power of the Youth Leadership Forum.  

The week was long, but felt like it was over too fast.  I watched the delegates come in as anxious teens not knowing what to expect and turning into young adults who didn't want the experience to end.  There were smiles and tears and a new sense of pride as we all gathered and had the end ceremony.  We had become more than friends; we had become family in the disability community.  These young adults were leaving with so much knowledge and energy to go out and make a change for themselves and their communities.  I felt the YLF power.  I too left feeling energized to keep making change in all aspects of my life.

READ THE FULL STORY

If you are interested in being a KSYLF volunteer this summer, visit our Upcoming KSYLF page.

Mallory Cyr








Emily Davison


For more bloggers and vloggers with disabilities, check out this article!

Each Day Brings Fresh Opportunities!

 

 

by Whit Downing, Faces of Change alumna   

   

Can you believe that it is already almost 2020? I can't! As a new year comes our way, we have an abundance amount of new opportunities to seize, new lessons to learn, and new victories to celebrate. However, what if I told you that you don't have to wait for a new year to come for these things to happen? Tomorrow is another day.

Whether today has been an exceptionally hard day, an extremely good day, or anything in between, there is something that we all have in common, and that is that tomorrow is a fresh start. When I think about tomorrow being a fresh start, a popular quote by Mary Radmacher comes to mind, and that is "courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying I will try again tomorrow." So, let's take a moment, count to ten, breathe, and remind ourselves that we can do better tomorrow, we can be better tomorrow, and we can have a better tomorrow. No matter how things were in your life today, tomorrow is a fresh opportunity for things to be better.

Maybe you are reading this right now and are in the midst of a really tough day. Maybe thinking about making tomorrow a better day is overwhelming for you. I would like to take the time to encourage you, to validate how you feel, and to remind you that there is hope. It is okay to not be okay, and we don't have to "fix" our lives... not today, and not even tomorrow. So please, take that pressure from yourself, and remember how awesome you truly are!

No matter what, tomorrow has the possibilities of being the best day of your life! Let's believe together, let's try our best together, and last, but certainly not least, let's hope together.

 

Community Power!