Aspiring Youth began the After-School year with a wonderful turnout of involved parents. B.C. Elmore families attended an orientation session to learn about the fantastic opportunities being offered to the students through a collaboration of The Links of Missouri City, Aspiring Youth, and 21st Century. They were enticed with the details of the Arts Smarts, College for a Day, and Healthy Choices in exchange for passing grades, good attendance and good behavior.

It is hoped that this year will allow for more parental involvement in some of the Art Smarts events, which hopefully will spark family interest in the Arts.

Aspiring Youth students experienced the thrill of a professional soccer game on Saturday September 8th as the Houston Dynamos beat the Real Salt Lake with a 4 to 2 win. The kids were jumping out of their seats at every goal! There was excitement in every child’s face to see the home team taking over the game; and each child went home with a souvenir cap, thanks to the Dynamo Staff. Special thanks go out to Sergio Y Maria Guzman of Remax Top Realty for donating 100 tickets, and Lindsay Thrasher of the Dynamos for reaching out to our kids!

The HYLA Aspiring Youth Committee is made up of young lawyers and other volunteers who want to make a positive difference in the lives of at-risk youth. This year HYLA is pleased to announce two new Co-Chairs: Lisa Massey and Donna Tomlinson. Lisa Massey is an associate in the Houston office of Powers & Frost, L.L.P. and is a member of the firm’s Product Liability Litigation section. Donna Tomlinson is an associate of Bracewell & Giuliani L.L.P., a prominent international law firm, and has experience as an international tax attorney.

The outgoing chairs, Emily Pipkin and Erin O’Driscoll, have done an incredible job during their tenure with Aspiring Youth. Thank you Emily and Erin! HYLA has played a major role in the Aspiring Youth After-School Programs for more than 10 years.

Aspiring Youth and the National Junior Honor Society hosted events that celebrated Homecoming in a big way. The celebrations began on Friday Sept. 28th with the Homecoming Dance where 300 students danced till they dropped to fantastic D.J. music. The dance was planned by the National Junior Honor Society students, not only as a service to the school, but also as a fund raiser for their end of year trip.

The festivities continued on Tuesday October 2nd as Aspiring Youth students attended the Homecoming Football Game at Grady Middle School. The excitement culminated at half time when the Homecoming Court was announced and honored.

A new American Humanics intern, LaShic Patterson, has joined our team at Aspiring Youth of Houston. LaShic is currently earning her major in Sociology and a minor in English at the University of Houston where she serves as the Historian of AHSA (the American Humanics Student Association) and as the editor of the association’s biannual newsletter and annual yearbook. At Aspiring Youth of Houston, LaShic is fulfilling her passions for education and youth as our Program/Development Coordinator.