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South Monterey County's first-ever Youth Summit triumphs
Local Youth Councils collaborate for the student-led event
The Youth Councils of Gonzales, Soledad and Greenfield recently hosted their first South County Youth Summit at Main Street Middle School in Soledad.
The theme of the May 11 event was "Lighting the Torch," and about 90 students attended the summit, plus adult allies from different organizations.
Jose Chavez, community engagement assistant for the City of Greenfield, was happy with the results and the collaborative efforts of the three Youth Councils.
"Overall, we are pleased with the results of this first-ever Youth Summit," Chavez said.
"2023 marked the inaugural year of the Greenfield Youth Council, which consisted of two youth commissioners and one youth ambassador," continued Chavez. "Although they were doing small projects, like a monthly podcast interviewing different departments in the city, they wanted to leave their mark and came up with the idea of collaborating with our neighbor Youth Councils in Soledad and Gonzales to host together the first Youth Summit."
Gonzales Youth Council member Aliyah Castillo was pleased with the success of the first Youth Summit in South Monterey County.
"Our youth members got active and creative with building this first-time historical event by bringing together three different communities," Castillo said. "We created activities, such as Adulting 101, a self-love self-care activity, creating change with community members and so much more. This event had not only fun activities, but good leadership skills, special guests, youth council alumni and the chance to free up any tardy for absences with each school's attendance. The events and goals we had with building this youth event went way beyond the goals we had. As my advisor Ms. Michelle says, 'Don't be a shooting star but a shining star,' and on that day we all were."
About City of Gonzales
The city of Gonzales, California is located in Monterey County. The quaint and culturally diverse community of approximately 9,000 people is in the heart of the Salinas Valley’s agricultural and wine region. Gonzales is an established regional leader in agricultural-technology and innovation, environmental awareness and sustainable practices. Gonzales is home to companies such as HealthySoil, which manufactures products to improve agricultural crop production; Converted Organics, a natural fertilizer company; Taylor Farms, a fresh vegetable production facility, Mann Packing/Del Monte Fresh, a leading supplier of fresh cut vegetables; Ramsay Highlander, an innovator, designer and manufacturer of technologically-advanced harvesting equipment; Papé Equipment Handling, Braga Fresh, Green Valley Farm Supply, Tessemae’s, American Bioscience, Caraccioli Cellars, and Constellation Brands, an international producer and marketer of beer, wine and spirits.