April 16, 2019
Poplar Bluff Junior High student named Boys & Girls Club Missouri Junior Youth of the Year
A Poplar Bluff Junior High student has returned home from Jefferson City with an award no other youth in the state of Missouri has had the distinction of receiving. Emma King was named Missouri Junior Youth of the Year by the Missouri Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs. She is the first ever to receive this award...
A Poplar Bluff Junior High student has returned home from Jefferson City with an award no other youth in the state of Missouri has had the distinction of receiving.
Emma King was named Missouri Junior Youth of the Year by the Missouri Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs. She is the first ever to receive this award.
The Junior Youth of the Year program recognizes the leadership achievements of younger club members, while providing them a foundation for advanced leadership development, academic excellence and postsecondary success.
“Being the very first Junior Youth of the Year for Missouri is a big accomplishment for me because it will attract more people to Boys & Girls Club and that’s what I want,” King said. “I want to see more kids coming to Boys & Girls Club. Even if we don’t have enough room, we will push them in!”
After being interviewed by seven judges, King was required to deliver a speech.
That evening, she was also able to hang out with other youth competing by playing laser tag, arcade games and bowling.
“It was interesting to learn about their experiences at Club,” King said. “Each Club is different, but similar at the same time.”
The next day, she was able to take a tour of the Capitol Building, meet Gov. Mike Parson and Senator Doug Libla, who presented her with a proclamation.
After the tour, King and Boys & Girls Club members from 39 Club sites in 21 cities throughout the state gathered for a luncheon where she received shocking news.
“They called my name as the winner and my reaction was stunned,” King said. “I was so stunned.”
Boys & Girls Clubs of Poplar Bluff Youth of the Year recognition program is sponsored by Bill and Carol Swafford and Swafford’s Service Station, who has supported youth advocacy for more than 40 years in the Poplar Bluff area.
Bill is a former Board of Trustees Member for Three Rivers College and Carol retired after serving 36 years as a teacher.
“Emma is an extremely talented young lady with an incredible future on her horizon,” said Boys & Girls Club of Poplar Bluff Executive Director Chris Rushin. “Watching Emma evolve and grow the last four years has been truly amazing.”
To recognize the accomplishment of their classmate, Poplar Bluff Junior High students gathered Tuesday morning before school to celebrate.
King, the daughter of Tim and Anna Robertson, read the same speech she delivered in Jefferson City last week, which earned her the title.
“The support from my classmates makes me feel important,” King said.
Normally, just feeling like another day at school, King said seeing how supportive everyone is was amazing.
“I see people who seem like they are not there for anyone, but seeing they are there for me and I’m sure other people will be supported by them as well is amazing,” she said.
The eighth grader stood before her peers explaining she joined the Boys & Girls Club of Poplar Bluff four years after moving to town.
“When we moved to Poplar Bluff my family was struggling,” she said. “My parents were going through a divorce and it was hard on me not seeing my dad and seeing my mom stressed about money.”
One day after school, King said she gave the Boys & Girls Club enrollment form to her mother.
“I thought we were just too poor to afford it, but my mother made it happen,” she said. “I have been coming to Club since then and I don’t regret it.”
By attending the after-school club, King said it has helped improve her life in many ways.
Boys & Girls Club has allowed her to meet new people, learn about potential careers and become more involved with her community.
Through Club, she has been able to work with students she hadn’t known before and build strong friendships.
By meeting business leaders from the community, King said she has been able to explore what career she would like to go into after high school graduation and college.
The programs, King said, have given her the personal goal of entering the medical field and becoming an allergist.
As an Honor Roll student, Boys & Girls Club has also helped King become a better student by allowing her the opportunity to get her homework assignments completed.
She has also found the time to get involved in service projects while at Club such as cleaning parks and preparing meals for the less fortunate.
During her speech, King said through her volunteer work it has made her notice Poplar Bluff doesn’t have a shelter large enough to help everyone in need. Her hope is some of the abandoned buildings around town could be renovated to help all those in need.
“Being involved in other service projects has given me hope for the kids at Boys & Girls Club,” she said. “It gives me hope that these kids have the opportunity to become future leaders.”
The staff at Boys & Girls Club of Poplar Bluff have also been very inspirational and helpful to King’s life.
“The staff has given me the confidence and courage to stand in front of you today,” King told her classmates during her speech.
Not only has Boys & Girls Club helped King meet new people and step out of her comfort zone, she said it has allowed her to see everyone is struggling at some part of their life and she wants to help.
“Boys & Girls Club has been a major part of my life and shaped me into the person I am today,” she said.
Also joining King in Jefferson City was Shelby Lutes, candidate for Poplar Bluff’s Youth of the Year for the second consecutive year.
Lutes has been a Boys & Girls Club member for 11 years and is in the 10th grade at Poplar Bluff High School. She is the active Keystone Club president where she leads a group of teens to be more involved in the community and has been an active junior staff for many years.
She is currently enrolled in her second college course through the College Kids program, a partnership with Three Rivers College, where she is receiving college credit.
While at Jefferson City, Lutes competed against other Clubs in the state of Missouri by writing three essays and filling out an application detailing healthy lifestyles, academic success, her personal brand and what Club means to her.
Although she did not take home the title for Missouri State Youth of the Year, everyone is extremely proud of how well she represented the Boys & Girls Club of Poplar Bluff, said Boys & Girls Club Unit Director Robbie Toth.
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