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Neighbors | Submitted.Boardman High School senior Joe McKinney tried on Boardman Fire Department gear with the help of YES Fest volunteer Alyssa Berardi on Oct. 19.
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Neighbors | Submitted.Kenny Reece, Kenzie Widrig and Payton Melia all signed up for information from the Butler Art Museum on Oct. 19 at Boardman High School's annual Yes Fest event.
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Neighbors | Submitted.Boardman senior Ashlee Semond signed up to volunteer with Whitney Winch of the United Way Oct. 19 at the schools annual Yes Fest event.
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Neighbors | Submitted.Boardman students gathered at the Rescue Missions table Oct. 19 during the schools annual Yes Fest event.
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Neighbors | Submitted.Boardman SRO supervisor Sgt. Mike Sweeney explained police protective gear to students gathered at Boardmans annual Yes Fest event on Oct. 19.
By JESSICA HARKER
Boardman Schools put a unique spin on anti drug programing with their annual YES Fest on Oct. 19.
“The impact of YES Fest has been profound. The week of the celebration, there is an energy, a feeling of kindness that pervades the building,” said Boardman High School Principal Cindy Fernback.
Amy Radinovic, Boardman communication coordinator, described Yes Fest as a program designed to teach students to say no to drugs, but yes to positive community engagement.
“The Anti-Drug Event was created to challenge students to go a step further than just saying ‘no to drugs,’” Radinovic said.
The theme of the event this year is “Care, Connect, Community,” according to vice principal Anne Bott.
“More and more students show that students who feel connected to their school and their community are more successful academically,” Bott said. “We believe in the power of volunteerism to change the lives of our students as well as the fabric of our school and our community.”
The event kicks off with an assembly in which a multitude of speaks from the community discussed their chosen careers with students.
High school students are joined by seventh- and eighth-graders from Glenwood Junior High School for the event which featured speakers from United Way, Second Harvest Food Bank, Animal Charity and more.
High school students then go to the gymnasium where various organizations have tables set up with volunteer opportunities for students.
Fernback said that all students who make a monetary donation to one of the three “adopted” organizations for the year received a Yes Fest T-shirt.
This year those organizations were the Rescue Mission, Second Harvest Food Bank and Animal Charities.
“After making a monetary donation, students are asked to commit to volunteering once a month, and taking some friends with them each month,” Fernback said. “If the students accept that challenge, then they sign the YES Fest banner which solidifies their commitment.”
Students are encouraged to go from table to table talking with more than 50 local organizations.
“What makes YES Fest unique is that is builds upon the familiar ‘Just Say No’ messaging that students have been getting since they were in elementary school,” Fernback said. “That is to answer the next obvious question, which is, ‘After I have said no, what am I supposed to do next?’ At Boardman High School, the answer to that question is our YES Fest.”
According to Bott, Yes Fest was created six years ago out of the loss of three Spartan graduates to drug related deaths.
“The deaths were in a matter of days of each other. It is partially in their honor each year that the YES Fest continues,” Bott said.
It is from this loss that Boardman has creates Yes Fest to encourage students not only to avoid drug use, but to instead spend their time giving back to the community.
“The ‘Just Say No’ messaging may be effective for young children, but as students mature, the message somehow seems incomplete. We take the ‘Just Say No’ message and move it to the next logical step,” Fernback said.