Students participate in Rotary camp

The Sisters Rotary Club sponsored Carolyn Mal, age 15, and Ceili Cornelius, 16, to attend a RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) camp last week.

The camp is five days long and is located near Dorena Lake near Cottage Grove in western Oregon. This camp provides an opportunity to learn leadership skills. Each day had a different theme, and the teenaged attendees did different challenge activities that applied to whatever the theme was. The campers were sorted into different "species groups." Mal was an Owl and Cornelius was a Lion.

"We would spend most of our time doing different activities and working on our group pitch throughout the week," Cornelius said. "Each species group presented some sort of service project about a hypothetical community to a panel of Rotarians and the panel would give feedback on the project. We are supposed to bring this project back to our communities. My group presented about volunteering at a youth shelter for abused kids and helping the kids further their education."

The camp was a profound experience, where participants met new people, pushed out of their comfort zones, and built new skills.

"I feel very lucky to have been able to attend this camp; I met friends that I think will last for a very long time," Cornelius said. "I gained a lot of knowledge in being a good leader - whether it be stepping up or stepping back and giving someone else the opportunity to step up. I wasn't expecting to get this much out of this camp, but it exceeded my expectations and I had a transcendent experience at Camp RYLA. I would like to thank the Sisters Rotary Club as well as the Bidasolo family for helping me get to RYLA and answering all the questions I had. Camp RYLA will always be with me."