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In today’s society, the government must make budget cuts, especially for schools. Schools in poor areas are impacted the most and they find themselves lacking supplies, resources, and other educational tools. However, to combat this deficiency in schools, the (organization) hosts a convention every year for teachers to come. This became known as Project Cicero, and its purpose is to provide books to teachers who need to populate their classrooms with books. It has gained widespread support over the years, and as a result, teachers can practically find any book among the massive collection of resources. However, such a project would not happen without volunteers, and that is where we come in. Over the course of three days, we the students of The Key Club of The Bronx High School Of Science participated in sorting books. We interacted with a lot of other people ranging from middle school students to actual teachers. We would even find ourselves maneuvering through people. Together, we were able to do an amazing job and we were glad that the lucky teachers would have a chance at further helping their students. Aside from that, we received food and beverages, and free unclaimed books! And as always, whenever we hear of  monthly or yearly events, we always try to come back next time, but with the ambition to do better. However, some people like Irena Chen said, “After this event I think I have seen enough books for a while…”

It began with a question. A small boy, begging on the streets of India. “What do you want most in the world?” I asked. “A pencil.”

These four sentences mark the beginning of Pencils of Promise (PoP). It is a non-profit that has blossomed into a revolution of people collaborating to build schools in developing countries and empower the youth to make positive changes both at home and abroad.

PoP was introduced to the entire division when the Director of Community Engagement, Jocelyn Kmet, made a presentation on PoP on who they are and how Key Club can get involved with them. During this February Divisional, the various Key Clubs which comprised of the division approached Jocelyn to learn how PoP could come to their schools. When the Bronx Science Key Club arrived at the February PoP Volunteer Night one week after the divisional, we saw Key Clubbers from Stuyvesant and HSMSE.

At this volunteer night, we wrapped beginning Spanish learning DVDs and nail polish. These items were extras from their Gala, which was held to raise money for PoP to reach their goal of building 100 schools by the end of 2012. Instead of letting these items go to waste, PoP decided to wrap them and donate them to others in need. Key Clubbers arranged themselves to prepare the DVDs and nail polishes for wrapping, cut the wrapping paper into sheets, and ultimately, wrap the gifts. After finishing this task and sitting among stacks of wrapped gifts, we sat down to have a discussion after we each introduced ourselves and where we would like to live or travel to.

PoP shared with us a project they were currently working on, where college students will compete to raise the most money for PoP. The winners will be chosen to come live in New York City to learn more about PoP. Afterwards, they will be sent on a bus to tour the country to give presentations on PoP. This was when PoP asked for our input, as the youth, on our advice for how they can gain attention to speak at schools, malls, and other venues. Ideas that emerged were to use a loudspeaker, speak at movie theaters, or even organize a flash mob at malls. Not only were we volunteering with PoP but we were also able to give our own inputs. Afterwards, we ended the Volunteer Night with laughter and pleasant memories through a game called “Wha!”

On occasion, our Key Club likes to do things on our own. In the past, we have participated in fundraiser events organized by people like us. The events were fun and quite successful. For this break from school, we decided to hold a fundraiser at Color Me Mine Studio, a place where many could paint their own ceramics. The fees were quite moderate, but a significant portion was going to be donated, AND we would each have something to take home as a memorandum. For most of us, this was a new experience. We all painted on various objects such as mugs, and sculptures. While we were painting, we were having fun talking, joking around, and looking at each others progress and creativity. Amanda proclaimed, “I LOVE painting pottery and haven’t done it in a while. It was also a great opportunity to spend time with friends!” Some of us, such as Roxanne, were relieved to have some fun despite the stresses from school. In the end, our creations turned out quite well, and we believed it was worth participating in this activity, so much that we look forward to doing this again. Aside from that, we raised $109, but that is only part of the real package in store for our community.

While many people were having an enjoyable, relaxing mid-winter break, Key Clubbers were restless, and decided to dedicate a day to help run puppet-themed activities at the Intrepid Museum for the purpose of putting a smile on children’s’ face. There were different activities that the children were able to participate in such as: making masks, spinning a wheel for a prize, face painting, making puppet paper bags, shooting a Star Wars Storm Trooper with darts, and watching a puppet show. We were able to work with other people such as members from Stuyvesant Key Club, people from 501st Legion, and enthusiastic and dedicated individuals.

We split up and managed different stations that the children were able to go to. The activities incorporated the artistic talent of the adolescents such as making masks and masquerades. Activities such as these, show how art can be used to express oneself. This event helped the children build their character such as creativity while having an immense amount of fun. There was also a fundraiser sponsored by the 501st Legion. For a $1 donation, children could participate in a dart-shooting activity with a Storm Trooper. Donations totaled $130 which made the people of Puppetry Arts extremely grateful. In the end, we were provided lunch which included sandwiches, potato chips, and cookies!

We felt very proud to have helped make the adolescents happy. For example, Jae said “Although it was tiring, I still had fun and was glad to see how I made the children’s days awesome.” While the children were having fun,  we volunteers, were also quite happy. Overall, it was nice working with Puppetry Arts again, especially because of how they manage to organize amazing events that make all age groups have a fun time.

From time to time, we as Key Club members make exceptions to our academic lives. On some days, we volunteer after school, thus leaving less time for us to complete assignments with more priority. Although it is usually a hard decision, there exists a significant number of people who can handle these risks just for the benefits that others may think seem meaningless. Nevertheless, on the tenth day of January, ten members of Key Club went to Ripley’s Believe It or Not to help out Puppetry Arts, a quite prestigious foundation that aims to enlighten, educate, and inspire families through the arts and social service.

The event was the “Star Wars Sleepover” and children would come with their guardians to enjoy the wonders of Star Wars. Other volunteers and we prepared gift bags, set up arts and crafts stands, arranged food and beverages, and made sure everybody had fun. Puppetry Arts really showed great it is. The coordinator, Tim Young, showed an exceptionally outstanding amount of enthusiasm. For example, when a child cried because he did not win the costume contest, Mr. Young announced that no one was a loser because everybody will have stuff and memories to take home. Even Herman Li shared similar outlooks by stating, “I first thought the location of this event was interesting and far from the usual, but after the start of this event, I saw how much these small things meant to these children participating. Some activities were giving the gift bags with stickers or making pre-cut masks of Yoda. The aspect that made it all worth it was seeing how much fun the children had in their Star Wars costumes, and when they saw their favorite Star Wars characters up close.”

Although we did not understand the fun the children were having, we were glad to have been part of this event. There are always benefits to volunteering, but the outcome is what really matters. All of this would not have been possible without motivation and dedication. Some of us stayed past our curfews or even past midnight. Moreover, we look forward to working with Puppetry Arts again.

Every month, Key Clubs from different schools meet together to have fun and collaborate with each other. These meetings are known as Divisionals and there is usually at least one thing special for each of them. In particular, this was my first attendance at a Divisional and it was nice. The people there were nice, respectful, and showed promise in their abilities. Aside from that, this Divisional was aimed at electing a new Lieutenant Governor. The job is no easy feat and whoever runs for this position would have to be diligent, enthusiastic, cooperative, polite, and devoted. The candidates were our Herman Li, and Tina Lee from HSMSE. Both presented fabulous speeches involving clever ideas, and ambitious goals. It was to the point where it was difficult to decide who was more qualified or who was more able to carry out the great responsibility. In the end, Herman Li won the position by a close margin. In case you missed listenening to his speech, I advise you to prepare yourself for significant changes, especially those relating to inner District relations. That means you should be able to meet new people whom you can work together later on. Remember, community is something we cannot perfect, but it's still worth the results and advantages.

It was snowing beautifully that day. But instead of playing in the snow, members of Key Club decided to go volunteer after many weeks of inactivity. The event was called The Fight For Air Climb, and it involved people who would climb 55 flights of stairs to fight against lung cancer. Many die of lung cancer every year, but many try to contribute to the effort to find a cure or fund relief for those affected. Aside from that, it was our duty to make sure everything went smoothly and to make sure everybody was having fun. We cheered on the climbers, distributed water, and cleaned up any waste left behind.

In the end, every one of us were glad we helped out, and we enjoyed bonding with each other. People such as Amanda Tam, Roxanne Chu, and Victoria Li, said it was nice to see the enthusiasm the climbers showed. Victoria quoted, "Even though today was the first winter storm of the year, I was surprised by all of the people who came to the event, especially the firefighters who showed their fiery determination when making the climb." Similarly, Irena Chen said, "Even though it was cold outside, I think it was worth the fun, and I made a best friend!" Nonetheless, this event is an example of one of our many accomplishment, and it demonstrates how much of an impact can be made when people band together for a common cause.

"The first part of leadership is a ship." That saying was one of the many things our Board member candidates said during the elections. One of the key components of Key Club is leadership because only then can we make efficient progress and change. There were dozens of candidates running, each with their strengths, weaknesses, ideas, and motives. It was nice to hear what others had in mind for Key Club, especially how they plan to improve it. Even though many did not win the position that they wanted, some persisted and decided to run for lower positions. It was an intense yet friendly campaign.

I for one did not win the position of Editor. I had some ideas in mind and I thought a lot about how I would operate as Editor. At first, I was a little devastated, but honestly, it's not the end of the world now is it? Key Club is set up such that everybody can contribute in some way. For example, those with creativity can join the Scrapbook committee, those who like to write can join the Public Relations committee, but the most common Key Club member is the type who wants to make a difference in the world. Whether it's cleaning, organizing, distributing, cooking, or whatever activity that requires dedication, but still helps others, it is clear that anything is possible. Yes this article is not entirely about the election, but this is my way of contributing, my way of doing what I wanted to start, but couldn't. Whoever you are, please bear in mind you and the others around you have the ability to team up together to create a better world. It's like doing what the Kiwanis's logo says, "Serving the children of the world.