GILROY
– Seven ambitious teenagers won positions Monday night on the
Gilroy Youth Commission, aiming to actively shape Gilroy’s youth
culture.
Wearing freshly pressed clothes and nervous expressions, the
teens answered a broad range of questions from the Gilroy City
Council and Mayor Al Pinheiro.
GILROY – Seven ambitious teenagers won positions Monday night on the Gilroy Youth Commission, aiming to actively shape Gilroy’s youth culture.
Wearing freshly pressed clothes and nervous expressions, the teens answered a broad range of questions from the Gilroy City Council and Mayor Al Pinheiro.
The chosen teens – Rachel Tenney Aptenar, David Bress, Graydon Carr-Ramos, Carly Kennedy, Cassandra Mane, Stephanie Orth and Tania Reynolds – will replace the seven outgoing commission members whose terms have expired.
Commission member David Bress, who already served a term on the commission, reapplied for a new term.
A total of 10 applicants competed for the positions, but three were unable to attend the interview.
The seven teens present at the group interview conveyed to the Council their dreams of becoming lawyers, reporters, politicians and doctors.
The applicants’ more immediate plans, however, concerned their visions for Gilroy’s youth culture, which many said could use a boost of renewed strength and energy.
When asked specifically what they might do to revive Gilroy’s youth programs, several applicants highlighted the need for an improved youth center that would provide teens with positive alternatives to otherwise unproductive or even dangerous behaviors.
Not a single hand was raised when Pinheiro asked the teens if they had ever visited the Gilroy Community Youth Center at 7400 Railroad St. The blank response caused Pinheiro to ask how they and the city should better market the center to Gilroy’s youth.
Several of the teens cited more prominent advertising and word-of-mouth as powerful tools.
Pinheiro also wondered how the issue of ethnicity might affect interaction among Gilroy’s youth. Several applicants said they believed location was a key factor in smoothly intermixing the city’s different races.
“I would move the teen center closer to the high school, because that’s a central place where all kinds of people come together and meet,” said Carly Kennedy. “Maybe we could offer a tutoring program or some other way to get kids together.”
Other suggestions included creating universally appealing organizations such as movie nights, various hobby clubs or field trips.
City Councilman Russ Valiquette raised the concern that Gilroy’s youth encompasses more than just teen-agers.
He asked applicants what they might do in order to also include Gilroy’s elementary and junior-high school youth.
Stephanie Orth suggested establishing teen-led camps and after-school programs for Gilroy’s younger children, which other applicants advocated would lead to positive, esteem-building relationships between children and teens.
A somber moment overshadowed the interviews when Councilman Craig Gartman asked applicants what they would do with a hypothetical $10,000 donation to the youth center.
One applicant, a friend of Erin Kinkel, was quieted with emotion when she said she would use the money to educate teens about potentially dangerous activities.
Kinkel, a 15-year-old Gilroy High School student, died early Sunday morning when she was thrown from the bed of a pick-up truck in which she was riding with three friends.
Pinheiro comforted the teen, conceding that accidents happen and grief is a part of life.
“All of us sitting here, we’ve all faced the same issues you’re facing today,” Pinheiro said. “We understand that it may be hard to be here right now.”
City Councilman Charles Morales echoed Pinheiro’s sentiment, asking applicants to help council members better understand how the City can address “the challenges in our community today facing youth.”
At the conclusion, Rachel Tenney Aptenar stated in a nutshell why she believes Gilroy needs an active, vibrant youth commission.
“There’s no better way to know and understand what teens need than to ask them and listen to them,” she said.
An Aug. 9 social will welcome the new teens to the commission and recognize those who are outgoing. The event will take place at 6 p.m. at the Willey Cultural Center, 140 Fifth St.
