Do you have a great idea for a club within your school but have had troubles getting it started?
For many people, starting a club at the school seems like an extremely difficult feat, however to break this notion and prove that everyone can make a difference I interviewed youth within Calgary. I plan on doing a series called Making a Difference to share the experiences of youth who have taken initiative within their school community to start a school club, thus making a difference. This is my first story of a three story series, featuring an amazing club for an amazing cause, started by a youth not that much different from you and me.
Knights For Sight
The group below are called Knights For Sight, a school club at Queen Elizabeth’s High School. Their goals is to help Operation Eyesight, a Calgary-based organization whose goal is to raise awareness about avoidable blindness and providing eye care and treatment in developing countries. The youth who started this club is Sonya Soh, and along with her friends their club is making a difference one step at a time.
What motivated you to start a club at your school?
Sonya: I wanted to start a school club because I thought it would be a great opportunity for me to develop my leadership skills as well as help Operation Eyesight in their cause.
What were some challenges you encountered when starting this school club?
Sonya: Some issues I had starting a club was gathering enough people to actually call it a club. From the beginning, I only had 6 people and I wondered if we could do anything with such small manpower. However, after a while those 6 people brought their own friends and my club eventually expanded.
What are 3 tips you would give people who are trying to plan an event or start a club?
Sonya: Three tips:
1). Be optimistic. No event/club is too insignificant or too difficult to create, everything we do can make a difference.
2). Be persistent. Ask everyone you know for help, even if you don’t think they would. Don’t be discouraged because something doesn’t work out.
3). Have fun. You can’t achieve success or motivate your peers if you yourself are not enjoying the process.
Above is a picture from their very first bake sale event which was a HUGE hit where they managed to raise over a hundred dollars.
“We had eyeball and glasses cookies. We also did a cataract simulator event where we had people guess an item inside a box while they looked through the cataract simulator glasses. We also did other food sales like hot chocolate and candy bags.” – Sonya
These youths are truly an inspiration. They have gathered together and used their creativity and hard work to contribute to a meaningful cause. Through planning events such as eyesight themed bake sales, they not only raised money to help give the gift of sight, but have also raised awareness for this issue of avoidable blindness.
As you can see, starting a club may not be that difficult as it seems. The first step is to take initiative. You’ll definitely be surprised by where this first step can take you!
