Watkins Mill’s Youth Summit program participated in an event to help the homeless in Montgomery County on November 19 by preparing bag lunches for those in need.

The students assembled over 200 bag lunches that were donated to a local homeless shelter. They also made inspirational notes to put on the lunches and made posters to promote awareness, while learning about what it’s like to be homeless. The students who participated in the event were treated to a fun night of bowling at Bowlmor with endless pizza.

“It really gave me a sense of community,” freshman and youth summit participant Grace Edwards said. “The sense of community outside school is really important I think.”

Science teacher Matt Johnson said, “Who knows?  For maybe one of these people, [the lunch] was the extra boost or love they needed to get more help, get a job, take a next step to get out of homelessness.”

The Youth Summit program is a way for underclassmen to get involved in the community and have fun. “Each program we do has a theme,” program sponsor Lola Rogers said. “This theme was community support. It is important to everyone to know that there are people in [Montgomery County] that are homeless and the reasons behind this.”

Not only does this activity benefit the local community, but it also helps the participants create lasting relationships with peer leaders and classmates,”They’re not even just my peer leaders, they’re my friends and my family,” Edwards said. “I’m going to be spending the next four years with these people, it’s good to make those relationships so that you can go to them for anything.”

“I really enjoyed seeing how dedicated these students were to making these lunches for other people that we have never even met,” Johnson added. As one of the school’s focus points is on instilling IB learner traits, this activity help to created open-minded caring students.

The Youth Summit will hold its next event on February 23 and March 9. It will be about goal setting and will include wall climbing, where trained upperclassmen will belay students up the wall.