Chetan Thomas and Grayson Coffield
The 85th session of Boys State has begun and with it comes a new group of people that are eager to face this experience head-on. People from all 5 counties were interviewed on what they were looking forward to, and the answers varied greatly.
We first asked two city councilmen from Seitz County for their impressions of the experience. Luke M. said that he wanted to come to Boys State not only because he wanted to experience real-life government scenarios, but also because he thought that it would look good on his college record. Luke M. was also 1 of 8 people nominated by his school to go to Boys State. He also wished to have greater insight into what he wanted for his future. When Luke W. was asked, he said that he heard about it from a friend, and he thought it sounded like fun. He hopes to get more leadership experience, meet new friends, and have a fun week during the summer.
In Powell County, two city councilmen from the city of Thompson, Jackson, and Hayes were interviewed. When asked why he is attending Boys State, Jackson replied by saying “I was nominated with two others by my school” and “I hope to gain a better college resume and have a better vision on politics and government”. As for Hayes, when asked the same question, he said “ I would like to step out of my comfort zone, meet others, and learn anything I can.”
From Kennedy County, we talked to city council members Chase and Parker. When asked about why they wanted to come to Boys State, Chase said that he enjoyed applying problem-solving to situations, and hoped to really put that to the test as a city council member. As for Parker, he said that he wanted to improve his persuasion skills, and he wanted to practice influencing people in real-world scenarios. When they were both asked what they thought of Kendall Gammon’s speech on mindset, Chase and Parker both reflected on their own life and how they persevered through their toughest moments.
In Eisenhower County, we asked Councilmen Johnson and Matt about their thoughts. When asked about their overall thoughts, Johnson said he wanted to get a better understanding of how the government functions, and how he can go about solving problems. He resonated with mindset in his own personal life by reflecting on moments where he didn’t dwell on the past, and kept his mind in the present. Matt said that he wanted to go to Boys State because he wanted to learn about the way that counties and cities can interact with each other. When asked about what he thought about mindset, he really connected with the idea of persistence. He also thinks that it’s important to never give up and to always take risks.
Finally, in Dole County, another individual, Wilson Biles, was asked similar questions. When we asked Wilson why he was attending Boys State he simply said “ I wanted to see how the government works because I feel like I’ve only seen the bad things and other controversies”. When asked what he hoped to gain from this experience, he answered that he wished to become a better public speaker. He is also here because his father had gone in the past. He has a pretty good story so you’ll have to ask Wilson about it.
With the 85th session of Boys State now in full swing, hopefully, everyone will meet their expectations, and this will truly be the week that changed their lives.