Gathunguri to Represent Kansas at Southwest Region Youth of the Year
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Ruth Gathunguri will represent Kansas as one of the eight extraordinary Boys & Girls Clubs of America teens who will vie for the honor of being named the 2018 Southwest Region Youth of the Year, Monday, June 11, at the Hyatt Regency in Dallas.
Gathunguri will be joined by her fellow traditional Youth of the Year representatives who make up the Southwest Region: Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Wyoming and New Mexico. The winner of the Southwest Region Youth of the Year competition will advance to National Youth of the Year ceremony, September 25 in Washington, D.C.
“I feel so honored that I get to represent Kansas and all of the Boys & Girls Clubs in our state, but especially the Club here in Lawrence,” Gathunguri said. “I am very proud to represent Lawrence, because all of these kids mean so much to me. I just want to make them proud and do my best as I move on. To be able to represent all the Boys & Girls Club kids of Kansas – that’s amazing to me.”
Gathunguri joined the Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence in the second grade at Quail Run Elementary. She speaks highly of the Club’s impact on her self-esteem and body positivity. Especially the mentorship of her middle school group leader, Ms. Kit Kat, who once asked her and her Club mates to write down their favorite characteristic about themselves. Ruth has since transformed from a young girl who couldn’t think of anything to write to a bold soon-to-be-senior with a passion for helping everyone feel beautiful just the way they are.
She was named the Lawrence Youth of the Year in January and earned Kansas Youth of the Year honors in March, making her the fourth BGCLK teen to earn the state distinction in the last seven years. Since claiming the crown, Gathunguri has made numerous appearances throughout the community telling her story, practicing interviews and preparing to represent Kansas.
“Listening to her speak is nothing short of inspiring,” said Colby Wilson, Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence CEO. “Ruth shows passion for her anti-smoking work with RESIST, for her work with her student council and most certainly shows passion for her work with the kids in her Club. Her mentors have done a great job of getting her prepared, and she’s fully embraced the responsibilities that come with being a Youth of the Year.”
Her most notable speaking engagements revolve around the local RESIST Coalition, which she and her fellow Lawrence Youth of the Year candidates had a major role in starting. Together, they are trying to warn other young people of the dangers of tobacco in all forms. Ruth has given speeches at local elementary BGC sites, interviewed on KLWN with Hank Booth about the goals of the coalition, met with Lawrence city commissioners and even spoke to the Kansas Taxation Committee at the Capitol Building about raising the amount of taxes charged per pack of cigarettes.
“I was surprised that my voice had power,” Gathunguri said. “People started asking me to speak at events and meetings. I remember thinking, ‘You want a teenager to speak here?!’ I would walk into a room full of adults and they actually listened to me. I’ve never experienced that before. It was amazing to learn that my voice mattered, and knowing that it even matters to important people like lawmakers. It’s been a very cool experience.”
Gathunguri will travel to Dallas with Wilson and her BGCLK mentors, Laura Wagner and Monica Dittmer. Monday – competition day – begins bright and early at 7 a.m. The candidates are scheduled to give their speeches at an honoree breakfast and then move into the crucially important interview phase with the panel of judges in the afternoon. The day is capped with an evening banquet, where the Southwest Region Youth of the Year will be announced.
A national event, the Boys & Girls Clubs of America began the Youth of the Year program in 1947. Those who earn the Youth of the Year title embody the values of leadership service, academic excellence and healthy lifestyles.
Gathunguri embodies academic success and good character and citizenship every day. She has become a committed member of the Boys & Girls Club Sunset Hill staff since her first appearance as a Lawrence Youth of the Year candidate in 2017. Aside from her employment at the Club, Ruth is a member of the Student Council and ‘Can We Talk?’ at Free State High School. The daughter of Faith Gathunguri and Gilbert Karuga, Ruth has career aspirations in medicine and plans to major in biology. She is looking at Johnson County Community College for her first two years of school before moving on to Pitt State.