RCHS student visits nation's capital

DAYTON — Rhea County High School student and Boys & Girls Clubs of the Ocoee Region’s Rhea County Unit member Brey Sauls represented her Club and the Rhea County community in Washington, D.C., as a part of an annual teen trip last week.

Teen members of Boys & Girls Clubs of the Ocoee Region traveled to the Nation’s Capital to attend The Summit for America’s Youth — Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s premier youth advocacy event.

While at the conference, Sauls and her group attended leadership courses, career expos, and learned about the importance and methods of interacting with one’s local, state, and federal government all before traveling to Capitol Hill where they spent a full day meeting with legislators to garner support for Boys & Girls Club programs. Additionally, Sauls and her peers were able to experience many D.C. highlights including the Capitol Building, all major national monuments, and most notably, received an exclusive invitation to tour the White House.

Sauls, who is a senior at Rhea County High School said, “The trip was an eye-opening experience” that provided her with insight to her future that she might not have ever received, had it not been for this opportunity through the Boys & Girls Club.

While participating in one of the trip’s career expos, Sauls was able to connect with a representative of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) who inspired Sauls to pursue a career in homeland security, specifically emergency management in under-resourced communities.

The Boys & Girls Club is a safe environment for K-12 students during out-of-school time that provides meaningful relationship, academic support, and life-changing opportunities. Boys & Girls Clubs of the Ocoee Region serves youth at 17 sites across Bradley, McMinn, Meigs, Monroe, Polk and Rhea counties.

For more information on enrollment or involvement with the Rhea County Unit, contact Rhea County Unit Director Nicki Bentley at nbentley@bgcocoee.org. For more information on teen programming and opportunities provided by Boys & Girls Clubs to middle and high school students, contact Director of Teen Services Jared Goins at jgoins@bgcocoee.org. To learn more about Boys & Girls Clubs of the Ocoee Region, please visit our website at bgcocoee.org.