It’s Youth Week in Whitecourt until Friday

By Serena Lapointe

For the second year in a row, youth in Whitecourt have a week to be
celebrated with fun events, prizes and camaraderie with their peers through
the Town of Whitecourt’s Youth Week initiative. From Thursday, May 1 to
Friday, May 9, youth can ride transit for free, attend free drop-in sports at
the Allan & Jean Millar Centre and attend a whole host of events.
The fun kicked off at McDonalds on May 1 with a free drop-in event where
Emma Harper, Youth Development Coordinator for the Town of Whitecourt,
had a wheel set up for kids to spin and win prizes. “It’s been great. The
engagement has been fun. Every youth through the door has been
interested in spinning our wheel. I think the wheel has been a big hit,” she
explained.
The wheel featured prizes like free ice cream coupons donated from
McDonalds, Whitecourt Jibbitz (shoe charms for Crocs), lip balm and bags
of candy. “I think this is something we would definitely look at doing again
or more often, maybe even for other things to help promote things to the
youth. It has been a great partnership with McDonald’s.”
One of the most popular events from last year’s week was a teen pool
party, which incorporated fun games, prizes and a free swim. This year’s
event took place on Friday last week. “The Youth Advisory Committee was
highly involved. They run the pool party, which they also did last year,
which was part of their initiative to increase youth events in our community,”
explained Harper.
The Youth Advisory Committee consists of ten youth between grades eight
and twelve, vetted through an application and interview process and
approved by the Town Council. “They get a bursary of $500 for completing
certain activities such as volunteering, attending a Town Council meeting,
taking part in our committee meetings and depending on how involved they
want to be, there is a whole bunch of stuff they can do, which has been the
case this year,” said Harper. “There’s a lot of opportunities for leadership

and volunteerism, getting outside of your comfort zone and exploring what
you’re capable of doing,” she added.
Members of the Youth Advisory Committee have been advertising the
week-long activities at their schools with their peers and volunteering at
various events, including a basketball clinic on Wednesday, May 7. “We
have some talented basketball players on the committee who are really into
it.” The clinic runs from 4-5 pm and is free.
Also, on May 7, there is a Cookie Bake-Off at the Seniors Circle from 6:30
to 8:30 pm, where youth can register individually or as a team and bake
their best cookies, which will be judged on-site. The last event of the week
is a free drop-in Video Game Party at Ecole St. Joseph School from 3:30 to
5:30 pm, complete with prizes and pizza.
“We changed a few things based on attendance from our events last year
and got more input from the youth. We are really excited about this year
and what it will bring. We’ve been popping into the schools with the same
setup as here today, with lots of freebies to give out and lots of fun prizes,
while we promote the week’s activities and promote youth,” explained
Harper.
“I think it’s important to recognize youth. I think sometimes they get
overlooked, just generally in society. It’s nice to have something that
showcases them and also focuses on what activities they want to do and
what they want to see,” said Harper. She added that it’s also a way for
them to connect in a fun way outside of school and without
competitiveness.
The event is billed as for teens, by teens, thanks to insight from the age
groups taking part. Harper said the Youth Advisory Committee members
have been deeply involved and that seeing them be keen to volunteer and
take on roles in the community is amazing.
“They are always eager to be involved in the activities, including helping me
at the schools. It was absolutely fantastic. I’m excited to see where the
committee goes over the next few years. I think we’ve done a lot of really

cool stuff. They’ve taken on a leadership role with this event, and I think
that’s something that’s only going to grow,” she said.
For Harper, seeing the youthful enthusiasm has been rewarding. “This is
my second year with this committee, and seeing how involved they want to
be from a young age is amazing. From volunteering at events that are
already happening to organizing their own events like the pool party or the
Anti-Vaping Awareness Campaign this year, which has been completely
youth-led. It’s an amazing initiative for me to see them take on and want to
do.”
Parents can sign their grade 6-12 children up for events by contacting the
Allan & Jean Millar Centre. Though all the events are free, some require
registration (basketball clinic/cookie bake-off) so that volunteers know how
many attendees to expect. Transit is free for youth until May 9.