2018 YOUTH OF THE YEAR WINNER ANNOUNCED!
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County is proud to announce that Eric Lockwood from the Nan Knox Unit is the 2018 Youth of the Year! Eric is a Senior at Dillard High School. He is planning to attend Florida A&M University to study business and entrepreneurship. We are proud of all of the Youth who competed for the title including Tais Romero (Marti Huizenga Unit) who placed second and Tyler Bailey (Jim & Jan Moran Unit) who placed third.
The Youth of the Year is the highest honor that a Member can achieve. Each Boys & Girls Club names one teen Member the Club’s Youth of the Year and one Member the Alternate Youth of the Year. Each Youth of the Year then competes to become the Youth representative for Broward County.
BGCBC prepares each youth by providing three full-day Dale Carnegie workshops to improve their public speaking and interpersonal communication skills. Each YOY also completes a packet that includes three essays: (1) Club Experience (2) Personal Brand (3) Vision for America’s Youth. The Youth also submit three letters of recommendation highlighting their leadership, academic achievements and healthy lifestyles.
The judging event was held on Monday, February 19. The judges were Brian Quail, President/CEO of BGCBC; Michael Rodriguez, Vice President of New Projects for JAE Restaurant Group; Deborah Wendt, founder of Stress Less Yoga, LLC; Roderick Hagan, owner/operator of McHaig, Inc; and Dr. Marie DeSanctis, President of Broward College, Central Campus.
Each Youth shared a 2 – 3 minute speech in front of the judges. The judges asked questions based on the Member’s speech and essays. At the end of the judging period the top three winners were awarded with certificates and gift cards.
The Youth of the Year Members will now travel to Sarasota, FL from April 12 – April 14 to attend the State YOY competition. The State YOY competition is an opportunity for the YOY Members to participate in fun activities and cheer on Eric as he competes to become the State of Florida’s Youth of the Year!
BGCBC would like to thank the judges who worked tirelessly to evaluate each young person and hear their inspiring and empowering stories! We also would like to thank each youth for giving their time to participate in the screenings as well as share their life experiences and how BGCBC has positively impacted their lives.
