My time at McCook High School is nearing an end, which also means my membership on McCook Community Foundation Fund’s Youth Change Reaction group will also come to a close. And to sum up my experience over the past few years, YCR has played a huge role in my personal growth and appreciation for our little community.

To say I’m proud of where my roots are would be an understatement.

Working alongside the MCFF committee members and with my YCR peers, I have accomplished a variety of different projects that not only strengthened McCook as a whole but also has guided me in more ways than I can count.

I am proud of many things we have done, from reading with elementary school children to hosting dances for junior high students.

But perhaps I am most grateful for my experience with the drive-in theater, Cars Under the Stars.

The fundraising, the planning and working with businesses - and then watching it all come together - have had a significant impact on me which I will never forget. Now that the screen is officially up at the Red Willow County Fairgrounds, I cannot wait to see the role the drive-in plays in the community.

Knowing that we - young people - really can do anything we set our minds to (of course with the help of some amazing mentors) was unbelievable to me before the process. While the drive-in project did take longer than we had planned, it happened thanks to persistence and support from the community.

When weather permits, we will finally be able to show off our project and host our first movie at the fairgrounds.

The theater has been the highlight of my YCR days, but I will always be grateful for the MCFF committee members who made it all possible. Not only did they guide us through the entire process, but they have also been personal life coaches along the way.

I think adults rub off on kids much more than they realize, and the members of the MCFF committee have shaped us all in so many ways. I will always be grateful to each of them for teaching me so many different skills and helping me find the confidence to make changes to the place I call home.

I also am very grateful to the Nebraska Community Foundation. NCF holds an annual training in different parts of Nebraska every year. While attending these events, I have met some of the most influential and inspirational people in our state. I’ve heard many remarkable stories and have even had opportunities to speak with some incredible and dynamic voices.

At the annual training, I was never seen as merely a child, but rather as another member of the community, with my views and my voice recognized. The adults are genuinely rooting for us and want to see us flourish and succeed.

I have had many opportunities that I am lucky to have had over the past few years. Through my YCR experience, I have given speeches, spoken on television, and now have written a newspaper column. If someone had told freshman-me what was in store over the next few years, I would not have believed it because it isn’t every day that kids get the chances I have had.

MCFF has given me one of the greatest gifts I will ever receive by simply being there, showing support, and providing leadership to all of us. But this doesn’t have to be something limited to just this group. Adults just need to take the time to stop and listen to the young people in their community because we have something to say and something to contribute.

I hope my time with MCFF is far from over. I have formed such an attachment to the committee, to our community, and even to Nebraska that I would like to continue.

I have always been that kid whose only dream was to grow up and get out of town but now that has all changed. I want to keep watching the community flourish and grow, and more importantly, I want to be a part of it.

We have a special community, a community that many people can only wish they had. I am proud of McCook and I am proud to call it my home. And I cannot wait to see what else happens in the future…and I cannot wait to help make it happen.