Goodrich High School freshman Julia Kerwin’s role model has always been her Aunt Katy.
On May 20, Kerwin will get to tell her and her classmates why at 12:30 p.m. when Goodrich High School hosts a role model day in the cafeteria.
The class assignment requires students to select a role model and send that person a letter explaining why they were chosen and inviting them to role model day. At the program, ten students will read their letters aloud before reading their letter to their role model.
Freshmen like Kerwin think the letters were a worthwhile activity.
‘Now my aunt knows how much I’ve learned from her and how much she means to me,? she said. ‘I wrote my letter to Aunt Katy because she’s a very strong and independent person. She’s been through a lot, including health related issues and divorce. But through it all, she stayed determined and has a positive outlook on life.?
Mentors at the event will be receiving a small gift from the students to serve as a reminder that they have impacted a life.
GHS Principal David St. Aubin is pleased with how the freshman leadership classes have been going and is excited for the role model day.
‘I think it’s important to celebrate the relationships you have with people and let them know that they’re important in your life, kids pick the people that have influenced them over a lifetime. It’s a way of saying thank you and thanks for showing me the way. There’s such a variety of role models including parents, siblings, neighbors, uncles, family friends, et cetera. They’re not celebrities, they’re the people that have been there for these students and made a difference.?
The students have been learning character skills in their leadership classes every Tuesday and Thursday to help them choose who personifies the characteristics. Besides picking a role model, students have volunteered around the community. One class went to a cancer unit to visit patients and plant flowers, another cleaned around the Holly Recreation Area, and a few went to work at a soup kitchen.