1997-1998 Harry Singer Foundation National Essay Contest

Responsibility: Who Has It, Who Doesn't, And What That Means To The Nation 

Camden High School, Camden Tennessee

Teacher : Wanda Allen

1st Sara Peterson               2nd Morgan Hardy              3rd Sarah Sparks  

 3rd Chad Douglas

Alcohol
"People who drink and drive do not take any responsibility. They end up either causing harm or damage to themselves or they cause harm to someone else without even giving a care. It is very irresponsible to drink and even more irresponsible to drive drunk. In many instances after [a] drunk strikes someone in a vehicle [that] is innocent, the drunk does not even realize what he or she has done. Usually, innocent victims of drunk drivers end up dead or paralyzed for life while the intoxicated person stumbles off without a care in the world. This is a good example of how some people do not take responsibility and the damage it can cause to a person and the victim's family."
Chad Douglas, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Blame
"Today, I read an article about a group pushing for safer air bags. A man by the name of Alan Greer, during a rally, stood by a picture of his infant daughter who had been killed by an air bag. No, the seat was not strapped to the passenger seat as dictated by the manual. No, the child was not, as she should have been, placed in the back seat. But, yes, the company is responsible for her death."
Morgan Hardy, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Some people take very little responsibility…They are to blame for not keeping a job. They are to blame for being a drug addict. They are to blame for not raising their families. They are to blame for every action they take. Another road to take is to blame someone or something else for your situation. People in jail could blame their crimes on someone else, or someone else made them do what they [do]. People on drugs blame the drugs. Drunks blame alcohol. Health problems are often blamed for actions that we take. If we look hard enough, we could probably find something or someone else to blame for most everything that we do that has an outcome that we don't like.

People often look for someone or something else to blame when something positive comes from their actions. We all must remember that responsibility is a two-sided coin, one side being blame and the other being credit. To enjoy one, we must be willing to face the fact that the other side may show when we least expect it."
Sarah Elizabeth Sparks, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"It is much easier to blame something else instead of taking the consequences for yourself. We do not understand everything that happens and instead of trying to understand, we just blame the government, another person, a company or something that has happened in the past. How are we, as a society, ever going to…improve…if no one wants to stand up and take responsibility."
Jennifer Sharum, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Community
"If there was no one who was responsible, how would our families, communities, and our nation function? Who would feed and clothe us, who would make sure that we were kept safe? Who would build and make the products that we take for granted? Who would keep our streets and homes from becoming a war zone? If people were not responsible enough to work, vote and maintain some structure in their lives, we would all suffer. There is a certain amount of responsibility [connected with] almost everything we do. People who care for others who may be sick or helpless, mothers and fathers caring for children, teachers and educators who are responsible for the minds of children, employers, spouses and almost anyone else who interacts with others has to face certain responsibilities. Whether we are paid to do a service or volunteer to help others, we must act responsibly.

Some people take responsibility better than others [do]. Ask anyone who runs a day care facility, nurses, doctors, bus drivers, parents, or teachers and they will tell you that there is a lot of responsibility that goes with what they do. Ask the teenager who works after school to help ends meet at home and they will tell you that they have taken on part of the responsibility for the home. Ask an adult child who is caring for their elderly and maybe sick parent about what they are doing and responsibility will probably be a big part of the reason that they are doing what they are doing. Ask the person driving a new car about responsibility and they will tell you about making payments. Ask the family man about responsibility and he will probably respond with words like food, clothing, rent, medical bills and insurance. Ask people running for or elected to public office and they will tell you that responsibility is a very important part of their jobs."
Sarah Elizabeth Sparks, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"The leaders of this world are people with big responsibilities such as our President and our preachers...These people have to take full responsibility to reactions people take to what they do and the decisions they make. People who own businesses [entrepreneurs] and manage stores have to take lots of responsibility. The production of the store and the money it makes rests on the shoulders of these people. They help companies make money and help employ workers and let them make money. They help make products that will help customers or keep food on shelves that will end up on tables to feed families and children. These people have to put in long hours to ensure that there is work for the employed and that business is good.

The teachers of America and all around the world have tons of responsibility. They have to keep order in the classroom and keep an eye on all the students in the class. They are responsible for the students and usually get the blame for the actions of the students. Teachers have to grade papers, keep a file of the students' records, and keep an update of student grades. It takes lots of time and commitment to keep a grade book and keep every single student's grades separate. The fact that a student will pass or fail rests with the teachers. Sometimes teachers create a close bond with a student who is in danger of failing and the teacher knows the student does not deserve to pass, but the teacher has to endure a mental problem. Either allow the student to pass undeservingly, or give the failing grade to the student honestly. This is only one of the problems a teacher endures and also why a teacher must have a good sense of responsibility."
Chad Doulgas, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Many times people are late for appointments or engagements because they 'just couldn't get away.' Do these people not realize that they are throwing everyone else's schedule off when they are late? For example, when a person is late to a doctor's appointment, the doctor's schedule is thrown off and he is made late for the parent-teacher conference he had in the afternoon. Then the teacher is late, and so on."
Jennifer Nicole Wilhelm, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Companies are even putting an effort into helping the nation. One of the most famous efforts is by the restaurant chain, McDonalds. McDonalds runs an organization called the Ronald McDonald House. The home helps the parents of seriously ill children stay close to the hospital where their child is. Patrons of the restaurant give their change to the restaurant to support the houses. Without the help of each other, neither the patrons nor the restaurant alone could run the houses but, together, it is one of the most successful programs."
Jennifer Nicole Wilhelm, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"We are all in this world together trying to live a happy, normal life. We all want better neighborhoods, more kids to finish school and crime rates to go down, but we cannot just keep blaming others and not take any of the blame for ourselves…The next generation is going to have to grow up in this world. We need to stand up and start setting an example now for the [next] generation."
Jennifer Sharum, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Definitions
"It would seem, today, that we are attempting to redefine responsibility. This 'new and improved' definition would look something like this when put in writing: 'Responsibility: What everyone else owes to you.' However, the New Webster's Dictionary has a definition quite different from this: 'Responsibility: A trust, obligation, or duty; trustworthiness." Unlike the modern one, this definition implies a bond between people rather than a debt owed by one to another. This bond is the primary bond holding society together. Could civilization exist without contracts, both [oral and written]? There must always be a superstructure to life, a [canvas] on which our lives are painted. This superstructure is responsibility, the building blocks of society. And slowly, these blocks are beginning to tumble and the superstructure is beginning to tremble with the first shudders of collapse."
Morgan Hardy, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Responsibility is defined as the ability to meet obligations or to act without superior authority or guidance."
Christina M. Nicholas, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Responsibility. It is a word that can be used in many ways. We are responsible for the actions we take and the outcomes or results of those actions. There is a difference between being responsible for our actions and taking responsibility for them. When we take responsibility for the things we do, we admit to others and ourselves that we are responsible individuals. There are many examples everyday of the way people do not take responsibility for their actions."
Neysa Baker, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Drugs
"Most of the time drugs are dangerous substances you encounter when you run with the fast crowd. Not all of the time, though. A girl who was looking for a necklace of her mother's found marijuana seeds in her mother's room. When confronted, her mother claimed that they belonged to the girl's father and that was the reason they separated. The drugs truthfully belonged to both of the parents…I think that the mother with the drug problem should have told her daughter the truth about the drugs in the first place. I think it would have caused a lot less problems and mistrust…Her father should have come forward also. They both should attend a rehabilitation program together to get rid of their drug problem. They should respect their daughter and take responsibility for their actions. This would, in turn, be taking responsibility and being responsible for their family. They should have started that before they started a family. Later is better than never in some cases. Many of these heartaches could be mended with the acceptance of responsibility."
Neysa Baker, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Club members and athletes of Georgetown High in Georgetown, Texas, must sign a behavior contract, swearing off drugs, alcohol and tobacco at all times, including weekends and summers. Officials say they want to hold kids involved in extracurricular activities to a "higher standard." Two-time contract breakers get banned from all activities for the year. A girl whose parents were on drugs got help and got off drugs. They took responsibility for their actions and joined Narcotics Anonymous. She now has a good relationship with her daughter.

Alateen is a free self-help program for kids who live with someone who drinks or uses drugs. It is a safe place where teens can talk to other kids about what living with this problem has been like. It teaches problem-solving skills for scenarios, such as what to do when your parent is under the influence and screaming at you or when you need a ride and don't have a driver's license, but don't trust your parents to drive.

A girl attends a party. Everyone there is drinking or doing drugs. She decided a long time ago that she wasn't going to be or get involved with any of those actions. She decides to leave the party and takes a few friends home."
Neysa Baker, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Education
"I feel that the solution to having a more responsible society must begin with learning when we are little children about responsibility and to continue to learn and live what we have learned all our lives. Responsibility should be taught and emphasized in all aspects of learning. From our Mother's knee to church and school, we should be taught responsibility. I feel that formal education will have to bear the biggest part of the burden for teaching responsibility. Children who do not have responsible parents cannot learn responsibility at home. Children who are orphaned or in foster care may not always have a responsible role model to teach them. I know that teachers already have a lot of work to be done, but teaching responsibility should be on the top of the list with other valuable lessons."
Sarah Elizabeth Sparks, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Guns
"Alonzo Mourning of the Miami Heat basketball team may be a millionaire, but he chooses to spend large portions of his NBA paycheck on charities. His self-managed Zo's Summer Groove in Miami, Florida, last year raised more than $200,000 for the Miami-based Children's Home Society and 100 Black Men of South Florida, a mentoring program for black youths in the area. Forty-nine thousand three hundred forty-seven dollars went to roof the gym repairs of a Washington D.C. elementary school, and $50,000 in scholarships went to his old high school. Mourning also frequently visits the MacLamore Center, a shelter for abused, neglected and abandoned children. He goes there alone and without publicity, so workers there know he's sincere."
Sara Robertson, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"The question on hand is, did the President ask Monica Lewinsky to lie for him in court. Did he? If not, law officials should let him be. If so -why, that is a whole new ballgame; he should 'fess up' and take his medicine like the President, role model and man he is. Just look at what effect this could have on children. They will think, 'Well, if the President of the United States can lie and get away with it, then why can't I?' I would have thought the same thing when I was younger and so would the reader of this essay. Now what kind of attitude is that for our younger generation to have? I know if I was raising a child, I sure would not want my son or daughter to have this outlook on life."
Jarred Sayles, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Jimmy Swaggart was really looked up to by many people (my grandmother, for one), but he let a lot of people down. What exactly did he do? …He had sexual situations with a prostitute. It seems that many people do this day and time, but that does not make it right. It is illegal. A minister of Christ, now what kind of image does that set up for not just our younger generation, but anybody that is on the verge of becoming a Christian? Mr. Swaggart should have realized the damage it could have caused before he performed the acts. It is bad enough to buy a prostitute in the first place, but to claim to be a man of God, that could really be devastating to many Christians' faiths."
Jarred Sayles, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"…Kids were able to get their hands on guns and take the lives of other children. Not blaming the parents of these children, but the kids [should] have been educated. Educated in the ways that would have taught them the right and the wrong…After the education process is over the only thing left to do is nurture. Nurture the people who hold the key to the future which happens to be the children. When [we go] out into the world, we will face many hard challenges and [will] be responsible for the outcome…We need to be ready."
Kyle Jordan, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Family
"All families, children and parents, need to realize and take responsibility for the things they do, especially if it is hurtful to the family or its members…Families can stick together better if they can trust the other members to accept responsibility. They will be more respectful if they know they are not constantly blamed for the actions of other [family] members and friends. The blame for what we do shouldn't be put upon someone else. Those who take responsibility for their actions tend to gain respect."
Neysa Baker, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Irresponsibility
"In the society we live in today, there are too many ways to get out of taking responsibility for our actions. Lawyers, parents, teachers, doctors, psychologists, and judges often allow us to get out from under our responsibilities. Some professionals make a good living by helping people avoid responsibility."
Sarah Elizabeth Sparks, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Infants and babies [have no responsibility]. Every need that they have in the world is fulfilled by the people who love them and live to care for them. Babies do not have to worry…about a single thing…Babies are taken care of by parents, grandparents, relatives and friends."
Chad Douglas, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Responsibility
"Responsibility is an important trait for kids to learn at a young age. Some, like the ones previously mentioned, have already learned it and others are still learning it. Some adults have shown that they don't have it. Whether small or large, everyone has a responsibility to himself and to those around him to be the best he can be and to work for the good of others. The more people that look this responsibility in the face, the better our nation will become."
Sara Robertson, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"I believe that I hold personal responsibility to improve our world. That is one reason I have joined the Advanced American History class at school. Our class takes on important civic responsibilities, including informing voters and publicizing patriotic events at school. On this day, around a hundred veterans and their wives entered our gymnasium to be honored for their sacrifices, for the fulfilling of their responsibility to our nation. It was our responsibility to ensure that the memory of those who served was never forgotten, and I believe we lived up to that responsibility on that day. The reason I know that I served my responsibility? The tears in the eyes of those veterans, tears not of grieving but of gratitude was the only proof that I required. Responsibility, whether it [is] civic, social, or religious, is a trait we must all share. From the rude caveman to the European technocrat, we have all been charged with the basic human duty of responsibility for others and ourselves. By practicing dutiful responsibility, we make life better for everyone else, as well as ourselves. This is why the concept of staying remote from the world, committing to nothing, is so alien to me. I see it as critical to the human body as the heart. And even as our hearts beat, our minds must commit to our fellow man, commit to the commonweal. By doing this, we glorify or communities, our nations and, last but not least, ourselves."
Morgan Hardy, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Responsibility means the state of being responsible and accountable for your own actions. This is, perhaps, one of the most important lessons to be learned in life. From the time that we are born until we die, we will be held responsible for decisions that we make, mistakes we make, and our choices along the way. Responsibility must be taught and learned. It is not a trait that we are born with. Taking responsibility is not always the easy or most popular thing to do. It is sometimes hard to own up to something that you have done to cause harm or trouble to another person."
Sarah Elizabeth Sparks, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Everyone has to take responsibility for themselves to become responsible. There is no one in this world who can give responsibility away; it has to be taught and learned by people. A person has to realize that he needs to be responsible to live a full and happy life."
Chad Douglas, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Parents teach children to be responsible for common everyday things…such as brushing their teeth, using the restroom, and putting on clothes. As people enter their teenage years, more [responsibilities] are piled on to the list like driving, getting homework done, and household chores…[An] employer expects [an employee] to be reliable and responsible. Showing up for work on time and getting your job done are two major aspects of maintaining a job, which all ties back into responsibility."
Christina M. Nicholas, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"No matter what is, I think everyone should take responsibility for their actions… in order to respect themselves."
Neysa Baker, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Not all of America is shirking its responsibility. In fact, a program called PREP (Personal Responsibility Education Partnership) is aimed at teaching responsibility to teens. Staff members work in conjunction with elective classes to teach moral development by addressing such problems as drug abuse, teen pregnancy, absenteeism, gang violence, and poor academic performance."
Sara Robertson, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"The recent tornadoes that devastated Nashville, Tennessee, left many people indigent and dependent. Yet many people stepped up to the task of supporting their fellow man. By doing so, they were supplying money to people they owed nothing to, and accepted that their generosity would never be repaid. In one day, over 700,000 dollars were raised to equip the Red Cross. They were living up to social and civic responsibility, the unsaid contracts between everyone one earth. This responsibility is perhaps the most important--the responsibility of helping one another survive and prosper."
Morgan Hardy, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"The following examples show how people take responsibility:    Heather Whitestone is completely deaf in one ear and has only five-percent hearing in the other. She lost her hearing at the age of eighteen months from a medication reaction combined with the H-influenza virus. She enlisted in special programs for the hearing impaired that helped her to read lips and use her voice. Heather attended regular high school and graduated with a 3.6 GPA. She went on to attend Jacksonville State University in Alabama. This took a great deal of responsibility for her to go through all that in order to graduate from regular high school.

Fred and Joy Allen are Southern Baptist missionaries in Zambia. There are a great number of hungry people in Zambia, and the Allens have taken the responsibility of distributing food to ninety-three families in eight villages in the area.

A teenage girl has sex with her boyfriend. After he finds out she is pregnant, he leaves her, not wanting anything to do with the baby. Instead of having an abortion, she decides to face her parents and have the baby anyway.

A teenage girl gets her father's credit card without his knowledge. She spends more than she has in her savings. She tells her father what she has done and gets a job to pay the bill.

A boy neglects his homework for his football practice. Report cards come out; he fails two subjects. He tells his parents he has spent too much [time] on football and realizes he needs to study more."
Christina M. Nicholas, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Role Models
"Alonzo Mourning of the Miami Heat basketball team may be a millionaire, but he chooses to spend large portions of his NBA paycheck on charities. His self-managed Zo's Summer Groove in Miami, Florida, last year raised more than $200,000 for the Miami-based Children's Home Society and 100 Black Men of South Florida, a mentoring program for black youths in the area. Forty-nine thousand three hundred forty-seven dollars went to roof the gym repairs of a Washington D.C. elementary school, and $50,000 in scholarships went to his old high school. Mourning also frequently visits the MacLamore Center, a shelter for abused, neglected and abandoned children. He goes there alone and without publicity, so workers there know he's sincere."
Sara Robertson, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"The question on hand is, did the President ask Monica Lewinsky to lie for him in court. Did he? If not, law officials should let him be. If so -why, that is a whole new ballgame; he should 'fess up' and take his medicine like the President, role model and man he is. Just look at what effect this could have on children. They will think, 'Well, if the President of the United States can lie and get away with it, then why can't I?' I would have thought the same thing when I was younger and so would the reader of this essay. Now what kind of attitude is that for our younger generation to have? I know if I was raising a child, I sure would not want my son or daughter to have this outlook on life."
Jarred Sayles, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Jimmy Swaggart was really looked up to by many people (my grandmother, for one), but he let a lot of people down. What exactly did he do? …He had sexual situations with a prostitute. It seems that many people do this day and time, but that does not make it right. It is illegal. A minister of Christ, now what kind of image does that set up for not just our younger generation, but anybody that is on the verge of becoming a Christian? Mr. Swaggart should have realized the damage it could have caused before he performed the acts. It is bad enough to buy a prostitute in the first place, but to claim to be a man of God, that could really be devastating to many Christians' faiths."
Jarred Sayles, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"…Kids were able to get their hands on guns and take the lives of other children. Not blaming the parents of these children, but the kids [should] have been educated. Educated in the ways that would have taught them the right and the wrong…After the education process is over the only thing left to do is nurture. Nurture the people who hold the key to the future which happens to be the children. When [we go] out into the world, we will face many hard challenges and [will] be responsible for the outcome…We need to be ready."
Kyle Jordan, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Solutions
"For all these problems, there is a solution. It is simple. Take responsibility for your actions."
Kyle Jordan, Camden Central High School Camden, Tennessee

Student Opinions
"A series of recent lawsuits against such companies as Albertson's, Wal-Mart, PETsMART, and Dean Witter by disgruntled employees has grabbed the nation's attention. The employees claim they were expected to work off the clock for no overtime pay. Store managers had strict rules against having overtime but gave their employees so many tasks, it was impossible to complete them in regular workday. In fact, ex-Wal-Mart pharmacist Mike Fiorenzi says that his salary was based on a 45-hour week, but he didn't receive pay for working an average of sixty hours per week. The Wal-Mart response: 'Wal-Mart believes they [pharmacists] are exempt professionals. Therefore, there is no off the clock issue.' Whether hourly or salaried, employers have a responsibility to their workers to be fair and respectful of a worker's rights…

A solution to the problem of Wal-Mart refusing to pay overtime for off the clock work would be to abide by the Fair Labor Standard law of paying time and a half for overtime hours. If this is not financially feasible to the company, an alternate solution would be to hire part-time workers to do the extra tasks. Part-timers can be hired at minimum wage, and the company doesn't have to pay benefits. If neither of these solutions is desirable, the company can look at redistributing the workload among full-timers and making them more efficient at their jobs. There is a solution to every problem, but each side has to give a little to get a little."
Sara Robertson, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"A powerful legal issue that questions personal responsibility is tobacco litigation. People are suing tobacco companies because they claim the cigarettes gave them lung cancer. They seem to neglect the fact that it was their choice to start smoking in the first place and, therefore, they would have to face the consequences of doing something harmful to their bodies. Instead, they shift responsibility to the "bad guy," the tobacco companies."
Sara Robertson, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Schools should not be so worried about competing with the schools in other nations as with the morals and the standards of the children of this country. Schools should concentrate on all subjects: math, science, reading, and especially the arts and ethics…As a nation, we need to help our own nation first before we help others."
Jennifer Nicole Wilhelm, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Drugs only hurt and they cause crime and death. I don't understand why persons don't look at themselves and see that they did it to themselves; no one made them do anything. They always try to blame it on parents or abuse. This single act of irresponsibility cost the hardworking taxpayers a bundle of money, time and effort to put a stop to the war on drugs. I think the people doing drugs should be held responsible and they should have to pay for their own rehabilitation after they are helped. I think if everyone would be responsible for their own actions, the government would have more important things to spend tax money on. They wouldn't have to pay for drug rehabilitation, extra prisons to hold drug offenders, HIV studies, or juvenile detention centers."
Rebecca Ann Pierce, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"I think we [should] rewrite the juvenile justice laws and show [juveniles]…can and will be held responsible for their actions. They [legislators] need to write stricter laws, enforce them, and make them stick. First I think [juveniles] should get probation; second, they should spend some time in a jail for only juveniles; and then if they do it again, keep them there. I think juvenile murderers should be executed. The death penalty should apply to all people no matter what age they are. If these laws and rules are enforced, I think it will deter them or others from committing more crimes. I think it would show them that they [would] get more than a slap on the wrist. I think we need to show them it is not okay to walk into a school (like Alabama or Kentucky) and shoot others; it is not okay to kill your baby because you don't want it and it is not okay to kill another human being. We need to show [juveniles] that it is time for them to take responsibility for their own actions instead of blaming…others. Over all, I think all people in this world [with the] exception of babies, should take responsibility for their own actions. Juveniles are getting away with murder and something needs to be done about it."
Rebecca Ann Pierce, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

Teens
"Fourteen-year-old Adam Chestnut, a newspaper delivery boy, put a handwritten note on each of his customers' porches asking for used [clothing] and household items to donate to Goodwill Industries for resale to the needy. His customers donated 50 large [bags full] of various items, and Adam's spirits were lifted at the thought of contributing to other people's happiness. Teenagers from Blissfield, Michigan, decided to make a difference in their community, too. Led by 13-year-old Christi Stoker, the Blissfield community pitched in to renovate a 45-room homeless shelter with new wallpaper and paint. Christi and her friends befriended a 13-year-old resident of the shelter, Mahalganie Wilson, and with the leftover donations, helped Mahalganie and her mother move into their own apartment."
Sara Robertson, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"Teenagers are becoming more active in the effort to help others…Many students donate hours of their time to community service. Kids participate in projects that they organize and plan themselves. Several students volunteer at the hospital and work in after-school programs to help younger kids. Teenagers spend their time, not at the arcade, but at the library reading to children who cannot read yet."
Jennifer Nicole Wilhelm, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

White Hats
"The lonely are often overlooked in today's fast-paced society. More and more, people are becoming aware of this fact. Many adults are donating their time to programs like the Big Brother program, so that kids might have chances that they might not have otherwise. Youths are donating their time to spend with the elderly of this nation. People who were not as appreciated before are becoming noticed by all and helped by all."
Jennifer Nicole Wilhelm, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee

"School clubs are a major help in small communities in the nation. Clubs such as BETA Club, HOSA, DECA, and BPA let their students organize activities to help their communities. Clubs in my school do everything imaginable: blood drives, food drives, helping the needy, serving the elderly, educating the public about elections, and even food drives for the local animal shelter."
Jennifer Nicole Wilhelm, Camden Central High School, Camden, Tennessee  

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