8.18.2016

Georgia HOBY Newsletter:
Seventy-Fifth Edition, August 18, 2016

Featured Alumnus: Kevin Duckworth '13

     My name is Kevin Reid Duckworth and I attended GA HOBY in 2013. After I left HOBY in 2013, I was a different person. I was more outgoing, I participated more in my community through volunteering, and I even think that I was more kind on a daily basis. I loved HOBY and I promised myself that I would come back every single year and volunteer. I did in 2014 and 2015, but I couldn’t in 2016.
     On Memorial Day 2016, just a few days before HOBY 2016, I suffered 2nd and 3rd degree burns to both of my hands. While cooking, I managed to spill the entire pan of grease on my hands. I remember being in the hospital a day or two later and my friend from 2014 HOBY, Alexandria, messaged me to check on my healing. I hadn’t even thought that I was going to miss HOBY until I read that message. At this point I was feeling pretty miserable. I couldn’t even text her back without asking someone else to do it for me. I felt like giving up. Then I remembered my key note speaker from my first year on Junior Staff, Kelsey Tainsh. I thought back to how inspired I was by her story, and it gave me hope that eventually I would be able to use my hands again. Today I’m back in my normal routine, and I have Kelsey and HOBY to thank for that. 

HOBY Info:
Georgia HOBY Store
Amazon Smile
  • If you shop at Amazon, then switch to Amazon Smile (https://smile.amazon.com/ch/94-2861279). It is the exact same website, but 0.5% of purchases will be donated to a charity of your choice.
  • Choose HOBY Georgia (Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership) as your charity!
Social Networking!!!
  • Find us on Facebook: HOBY Georgia
  • Follow us on Twitter: @GA_HOBY  
  • Follow us on Instagram: hoby_georgia
  • Follow us on Vine: Georgia HOBY
  • Follow us on SnapChat: hobygeorgia
  • Check our the website: www.gahoby.org
  • Check out our YouTube channel: HOBY Georgia
  • Check out http://hobycheers.wikidot.com/list-of-hoby-cheers for awesome cheers
Hours
This Blog
  • If you would like post a "My Favorite HOBY Experience" in the future on this blog, then email gahobyfundraising@gmail.com also with your response!
  • Be on the lookout for the next Newsletter or My Favorite HOBY Experience Post
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8.08.2016

Georgia HOBY Newsletter:
Seventy-Fourth Edition, August 8, 2016

Featured Alumna: Julia Larimar '10
I remember standing up on the last night of HOBY in a semi-darkened room, eyes squeezed shut and mouth open wide, “I want people to take me seriously.” While I did not realize it at the time, I was voicing a request that grew out of continually being silenced and undervalued as a black woman, a symptom of institutional racism in America. In my rural community, I never saw many black people in “leadership positions”. Most of my educators were white women or white men. Most of the cafeteria and custodial workers at school were black women or black men. I grew up feeling that black people were still second-class citizens meant to serve and not capable of being leaders. With this understanding came unconscious self-hate and a desire to take on as many characteristics of white-middle class dominant culture as possible to erase the blackness. To help me feel more like the leader that almost every part of mainstream American society demanded I be. But then at HOBY I met Adetinpo Thomas. She had shoulder length black hair, skin dark as mine with sapphire undertones. She was one of the coolest parts of every sweltering day at HOBY. Having her as an example of leadership alongside the workshops and readings that we did made black female leadership a reality to me. She was confident. She was bold. She showed me that I too could be unapologetically black woman and leader.

 My Junior Staff leaders, John Murphy and Katie Moore, also encouraged me to be the best me that I could be. Their belief in me helped begin my thinking about what it meant to have allies outside of one’s racial in-group. I could never have had the courage to sing in the talent show without their support and that of my group at HOBY. It’s been six years since those formative days I spent as an ambassador on Georgia Southwestern University’s campus. I am now working in Tulsa, Oklahoma as an early childhood educator through Teach for America. In a country where cultural competency and high academic performance are markers of success, and schools are the mediums through which American children are socialized into their role as citizens, unequal education through racial segregation still maintains a racial and social hierarchy. Thus, teachers, as the facilitators of that socialization, have a huge responsibility to society. The school I am working in is over 90% black. As a black female educator, I consider my very presence as a leader in the classroom, and the high expectations I have for my students and myself, an act of resistance against systems of oppression working against my community.

I am thankful to HOBY for challenging me summer of 2010—in earnest—to be more service-oriented, outspoken, and to use my voice not just for myself but my whole community. I am happy that I got to come back the next year and be a junior staff member to help create a positive experience for all ambassadors to grow more into themselves. I am thankful for the places of leadership I’ve been able to inhabit since. I hope to continue being a leader in my community, using skills HOBY cultivated in me, in order to help others use their voice to make this country a better place—similarly to the way Adetinpo’s very presence influenced me. I am humbled to be doing the work of being a teacher to young people of color. I gladly “pay it forward”! #HOBY4LIFE

HOBY Info:
Georgia HOBY Store
Amazon Smile
  • If you shop at Amazon, then switch to Amazon Smile (https://smile.amazon.com/ch/94-2861279). It is the exact same website, but 0.5% of purchases will be donated to a charity of your choice.
  • Choose HOBY Georgia (Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership) as your charity!
Social Networking!!!
  • Find us on Facebook: HOBY Georgia
  • Follow us on Twitter: @GA_HOBY  
  • Follow us on Instagram: hoby_georgia
  • Follow us on Vine: Georgia HOBY
  • Follow us on SnapChat: hobygeorgia
  • Check our the website: www.gahoby.org
  • Check out our YouTube channel: HOBY Georgia
  • Check out http://hobycheers.wikidot.com/list-of-hoby-cheers for awesome cheers
Hours
This Blog
  • If you would like post a "My Favorite HOBY Experience" in the future on this blog, then email gahobyfundraising@gmail.com also with your response!
  • Be on the lookout for the next Newsletter or My Favorite HOBY Experience Post
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7.28.2016

Georgia HOBY Newsletter:
Seventy-Third Edition, July 28, 2016

Featured Alumna: Shelby Howard '12

Well y'all it is about that time, the HOBY withdraws have fully set in and the new school year is quickly approaching. I know many thoughts are running through your mind, the same thing happened to me back in 2012 when I attended HOBY as an ambassador: what is going to happen when I go back to school? Are people going to notice a difference in me? Are people going to understand what happened to me after just three days? In all honesty, most people will not understand. Nevertheless, that does not mean that what happened to you is not a great thing. HOBY has taught me numerous lessons over the years, the biggest being that just because people don't understand something doesn't make it any less important. HOBY is a very important organization to me, it has taught me life lessons, introduced me to some of my best friends and showed me who I truly was (which is a mixture of a whole slew of birds). However, when I tell people I am going to volunteer at a conference for 3 days, with minimal sleep and maximum energy, they do not understand. "Why would you give up that time?" is a question I have been asked on a few occasions. But none of this takes away from my experience that is HOBY. What you need to remember no matter what happens to you or what changes that live gives you, even though someone does not understand, there is someone out there that understands what you're going through and how special that even is.

Just know that each and every one of you is special and are here on this earth for a purpose, you have a light that shines bright and do not let people who cannot see it diminish it.

HOBY Info:
Georgia HOBY Store
Amazon Smile
  • If you shop at Amazon, then switch to Amazon Smile (https://smile.amazon.com/ch/94-2861279). It is the exact same website, but 0.5% of purchases will be donated to a charity of your choice.
  • Choose HOBY Georgia (Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership) as your charity!
Social Networking!!!
  • Find us on Facebook: HOBY Georgia
  • Follow us on Twitter: @GA_HOBY  
  • Follow us on Instagram: hoby_georgia
  • Follow us on Vine: Georgia HOBY
  • Follow us on SnapChat: hobygeorgia
  • Check our the website: www.gahoby.org
  • Check out our YouTube channel: HOBY Georgia
  • Check out http://hobycheers.wikidot.com/list-of-hoby-cheers for awesome cheers
Hours
This Blog
  • If you would like post a "My Favorite HOBY Experience" in the future on this blog, then email gahobyfundraising@gmail.com also with your response!
  • Be on the lookout for the next Newsletter or My Favorite HOBY Experience Post
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7.20.2016

Georgia HOBY Newsletter:
Seventy-Second Edition, July 20, 2016

Featured Alumna: Morgan Fermin '10

If you ask my parents, I have been outgoing since the moment they brought me home from the hospital, and I feel like going to HOBY in 2010 really made me grow into the person I am today. Chosen because of an essay I threw together in-between InterAct Meetings and Marching Band, I was more than excited to arrive on campus at 6:58AM in Americus, Georgia. I was the first car that arrived, and TWENTY Junior Staff came charging at my car. The two people that took my bags, Courtney and Hallie, introduced to me to this organization that would soon become a major part of my world.
How crazy is it that this was SIX years ago?! WOW have I changed from that girl that was incredibly nervous to be somewhere where I knew absolutely no-one--to now when I CANNOT live without speaking to a member of my HOBY family every.single.day. (I am pretty sure the 200 day snapchat streak really speaks for itself) The seminar taught me how to lead by example, how to serve my community, and how to make a lifelong friend over 5 hours of sleep in 72 hours. I love what HOBY did for me. I love that it brought out my confidence and brought out my skills. It has opened my eyes to so many new things, and that everyone has a story. It is incredible that so many people are brought together and changed through this experience. I am forever thankful for the friendships, the support, and the love I have gained from this organization. It is more than just a weekend a year to me, it is a part of my heart that I am so happy exists.
To think that I fell so in-love with this organization, and was not originally chosen to come back on Junior Staff is something I think about often. I knew from the moment that I saw the excitement of Junior Staff it was something I wanted to be apart of. When I was chosen originally as an alternate, I did not let my inner spirit die. Instead, I put more effort into helping my community. When Cameron called me just a week before the seminar in 2011, I jumped at the opportunity to come. After 3 years on junior staff, a year as a junior facilitator, an accidental facilitator (twice), and the director of junior staff, volunteering for HOBY has truly come full circle. I could not imagine a summer without HOBY, (or a day without HOBY honestly) and I am so grateful for everything this organization has brought me.

HOBY Info:
Georgia HOBY Store
Amazon Smile
  • If you shop at Amazon, then switch to Amazon Smile (https://smile.amazon.com/ch/94-2861279). It is the exact same website, but 0.5% of purchases will be donated to a charity of your choice.
  • Choose HOBY Georgia (Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership) as your charity!
Social Networking!!!
  • Find us on Facebook: GA HOBY Alumni
  • Follow us on Twitter: @GA_HOBY  
  • Follow us on Instagram: hoby_georgia
  • Follow us on Vine: Georgia HOBY
  • Follow us on SnapChat: hobygeorgia
  • Check our the website: www.gahoby.org
  • Check out our YouTube channel: HOBY Georgia
  • Check out http://hobycheers.wikidot.com/list-of-hoby-cheers for awesome cheers
Hours
This Blog
  • If you would like post a "My Favorite HOBY Experience" in the future on this blog, then email gahobyfundraising@gmail.com also with your response!
  • Be on the lookout for the next Newsletter or My Favorite HOBY Experience Post
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7.11.2016

Georgia HOBY Newsletter:
Seventy-First Edition, July 11, 2016

Featured Alumnus: Khalil Newell '14
     What is the most memorable event that has ever happened in your life? Many people will say their high school or college graduation. Others will say their wedding or the proposal that preceded it. As of right now, mine is my weekend as an ambassador at HOBY. I know this because it's the only event that I have a perfect recollection of, besides my extremely recent graduation, but that doesn't count yet. I remember being with my mom and seeing all these crazy people yelling and cheering at our car, and I thought about asking her to turn around. Come the end of the weekend, I was one of those crazy people doing seemingly ridiculous cheers.
     There are three things that I took away from HOBY that I still use to this day. I learned to be confident in myself and not worry about fitting in or being too weird. I learned to genuinely care about others and be there for them during times of struggle and times of triumph. Finally, I learned to be a better leader by being accountable for my actions while also being confident in those actions. Those three things weren't necessarily taught from a speaker, but through the acts of the staff and the activities we participated in as well. There were plenty of other things I learned and took with me too. Those three just happened to stick with me through all these years and will continue to drive me for the rest of my life.
     I consider HOBY one of the reasons I am where I am today. I will be attending Georgia Tech this coming fall, and I have HOBY to thank for inspiring me to work even harder to achieve my goals. I have been a part of many clubs and organizations where I have been able to show off my leadership and service capabilities. I am a member of a 5 person ensemble with my closest friends making music, participating in and winning competitions, and performing around our city and state at events. I honestly feel like none of that would be possible if I had not spent that one weekend at HOBY, so I am forever grateful for what HOBY has done for me, what HOBY has done for others, and what HOBY will continue to do in the years to come.

HOBY Info:
Georgia HOBY Store
Amazon Smile
  • If you shop at Amazon, then switch to Amazon Smile (https://smile.amazon.com/ch/94-2861279). It is the exact same website, but 0.5% of purchases will be donated to a charity of your choice.
  • Choose HOBY Georgia (Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership) as your charity!
Social Networking!!!
  • Find us on Facebook: GA HOBY Alumni
  • Follow us on Twitter: @GA_HOBY  
  • Follow us on Instagram: hoby_georgia
  • Follow us on Vine: Georgia HOBY
  • Follow us on SnapChat: hobygeorgia
  • Check our the website: www.gahoby.org
  • Check out our YouTube channel: HOBY Georgia
  • Check out http://hobycheers.wikidot.com/list-of-hoby-cheers for awesome cheers
Hours
This Blog
  • If you would like post a "My Favorite HOBY Experience" in the future on this blog, then email gahobyfundraising@gmail.com also with your response!
  • Be on the lookout for the next Newsletter or My Favorite HOBY Experience Post
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