“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
As graduation approaches and summer stretches ahead, youth at Britannia Elementary are well equipped to follow their dreams into the future.
Taking part in youthLEADarts programs in January empowered them to believe in their creativity, to capture it in vivid community photographs, to share it in a successful public exhibition and now, finally, as young entrepreneurs and designers, to market and sell their photos with all proceeds going towards further youth initiatives.
This journey was marked by stepping stones, each one with its own lesson, each one adding colour, content and texture to their dreams. It gave these dreams a voice. It gave them a voice. They learned to be critical thinkers…what do I want to capture, how does this represent my community, who will it appeal to, what messages am I sending?
It allowed them to be problem solvers. How do I make this look right? How can I display and share it? How can I sell this? How do I figure out profit versus costs? How do I learn to work with challenging people? How can I show empathy for them? How do I relate to the public? How do I speak to my art?
Each step along the way provided opportunities for youth to be creators and designers, to enhance their entrepreneurial, artistic and communication skills, build confidence, drive business-oriented initiatives forward, and discover how they can be themselves and engage with their community. They were involved in decision making, promoting discussions and setting and followed through with long term goals.
As these LEAD graduates step into another phase of their lives, we wish them all bright and beautiful futures where they continue to apply what they have learned this year. May they, armed with so many skills, so much creativity and so much confidence, continue to believe in the beauty of their dreams.