By Kira Eberts
RYLE 2022 Chair
To set the scene, it’s April 28th, and all across District 5370, high school and junior high school students are getting ready to attend an in-person Rotary Youth Leadership Experience (RYLE) for the first time in three years! And the RYLE committee and volunteers are getting ready to host the best camp yet!
My name is Kira Eberts and I had the privilege to be the Chair for RYLE this year. RYLE is a Youth camp that focuses on building leadership, teamwork and interpersonal skills in youth between the ages of 14-18 within District 5370. Our camp took place April 28th-May 1st and it was an overwhelming success! The RYLE team has been busy planning camp since September 2021 and we were so excited to see so many amazing students, Interactors included, attend camp eager to learn and grow as leaders.
The students participated in many fun and educational sessions. Such as “Colours,” which demonstrates different leadership styles and their potential areas of conflict. “Lollipop Moments,” which focuses on appreciating small acts of kindness or service. And “Grant Applications” where students learned about managing conflict and teamwork! Many of the sessions included presentations by students that helped to build on and develop their public speaking skills!
Students also had the opportunity to experience the wonderful camp hosted activities. Including Ziplining, playing Human Foosball, riding the King Swing and more! We also made use of the gym, pool and bonfire areas— and the students had tons of fun playing volleyball, swimming, roasting marshmallows and getting to enjoy the warm weather we had!
One of my favourite sessions of RYLE is our Cohort presentations. In groups, students work all four days of camp to prepare a presentation, skit, or game, etc, that represents one of the 7 pillars of Rotary! The students did a Phenomenal job learning about the pillars, building their projects and subsequently presenting them to the group. Each one was unique and really demonstrates how strong these young leaders are!
After a busy and inspirational 4 days, the students have become fast friends and all had a difficult time saying goodbye. But they will take the skills, knowledge and new connections they formed at RYLE 2022 back to their schools, communities, and Interact clubs, and continue their hard work and service! As the Chair, I watched students exhibit incredible growth, maturity and creativity. I also got to watch the volunteers grow and adapt to challenges, and inspire the students to come back as volunteers for RYLE 2023! I feel immensely honored to be a part of RYLE, and I cannot describe how grateful I am to every Rotary club who sponsored students to attend! I firmly believe that every student who attends RYLE gains indispensable leadership skills and friendships— and for several students, they gain newfound confidence and self-assuredness that change their lives.
On behalf of the RYLE committee, thank you once again for your support
of youth programs like RYLE!
Yours in Rotary,
Kira Eberts, RYLE 2022 2023 Chair
Questions? Want to learn how to sponsor students to attend RYLE 2023 or how you can support RYLE in other ways? Want to hear more about RYLE?
Contact me at ryle530@gmail.com
