There are people in this world whose qualities are limited because of their disabilities. There are others who are suffering emotionally because of bullying, divorce, depression or stress. Some go to bed without eating enough food to prevent the pain of hunger. Luckily, several organizations work to put an end to these problems, such as the Clearbrook Organization, the Family Service Center, and the Northfield Township Food Pantry. However, these groups would not be able to run as well as they do without help, some of which comes from GBS, known as the Glenview Giving Foundation’s Youth Board.
According to Kim Kiraly, the faculty moderator of the Glenview Giving Foundation, the Youth Board started because of the idea of Chris Krueger, the chairman of Glenview Giving Foundation, which was to hold an event, the Kid’s Heart of Glenview, for kids and run by kids. Kiraly and Natalie Igaunis, the other faculty moderator, selected students to plan and publicize the Kid’s Heart of Glenview held Nov. 26.
“The Youth Board is a two-year-old group of sixteen students,” Kiraly said. “Ms. Igaunis and I chose them by their leadership qualities and philanthropic hearts.”
According to senior Chloe Coletta, leader of the Interact volunteers at the Kid’s Heart of Glenview, the event had a good turnout, with an estimated 600 people in attendance. It was fun because in her free time, she was able to experience the event not only as a volunteer, but as an attendee as well.
“The [Kid’s Heart of Glenview] was in the Glen Movie Theater,” Coletta said. “Each charity would get their own theater. There would be movies playing in some of them, and in some of them there was entertainment. So, Purple Apple was playing, Zaramela, Orchesis, De la Cru, Poms, and stuff like that. There was also a lot of food […] from all over Glenview. And all of this money goes to these charities, including Glenkirk, Clearbrook, and a bunch of other charities around Glenview.”
According to senior Kiva Talty, one of the sixteen members on the Youth Board, her experience as a part of Youth Board was a good one. The difference between her participation on the Youth Board is unique because of the Youth Board’s focus on local problems in comparison to national or international charity groups.
“There’s a huge difference in participating in something international or even national, like Stand [for Peace, a group in GBS that helps promote peace in three war-torn areas around the world] or [the] Cure, [a club that raises money for cancer research and cancer awareness], and doing something more local,” Talty said. “[…] You see how a community can come together for something that means so [much] to different organizations. It’s quite a unique experience.”
According to senior Maggie Condon, another member of the Youth Board, planning for the Youth Board’s activities was not an easy task.
“This summer, [Kiraly and I] went on Habitat for Humanity together, and we had a meeting together just to talk about if I wanted to [be a part of the Youth Board],” Condon said. “[…] I was intrigued, and I decided that I should try it out, see how much work and time it would take up. Although there was a lot of work put into [the Kid’s Heart of Glenview], it was all worth it.”
According to Kiraly, the event was successful. Not according to the number of attendees or money raised, but rather how the members of the Youth Board reacted to the event.
“[The Youth Board members] walked away [from this event] saying, ‘That was fun’, ‘That wasn’t work’, ‘I really love doing that’, [and] ‘I can’t wait to do it again’.” Kiraly said. “Those are the things that tell us that we’ve been successful in holding [a great event].”
