In light of dead week at Arcadia High School, ACYC collaborated with the AHS Wellness Center to distribute free goodie bags to its students, allowing them to de-stress before finals week! Each goodie bag contained a mini pop-it, candy, notebooks, and encouraging notes.

ACYC also released the application for the 2021-2022 ACYC Mentorship, allowing students to gain experience in local advocacy, student leadership, and public speaking. Members will have the opportunity to contribute and engage in major ACYC campaigns on top of learning useful techniques of civic engagement. 

Due to the proximity of the holidays, Arcadia Civic Youth Council members participated in activities to give back to their community. After careful planning and research, ACYC packed healthy sack lunches and donated them to the Foothills Unity Center, where they were distributed to those in need. 

Along with the food donation, ACYC brainstormed for an upcoming wellness event. Since finals are coming up, it's important to encourage students to focus on their mental health while studying. To relieve the stress that many students end up feeling, ACYC decided to host a Pop-It distribution in December (more information about this event will follow in December's monthly update). 

In the month of October, ACYC joined in on the discussion to voice student perspectives on the Apache Designation and name in the Apache Name Information and Input Forum. Student Council Apache Commission also presented a brief slideshow on how Arcadia High School currently works in liaison with the White Mountain Apaches. 

To celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Arcadia's Gilb Museum, ACYC helped volunteer by setting up the area, accommodating the guests, and listening to guest speakers, including Council Members Sho Tay and Paul Cheng and Congresswoman Judy Chu. 

ACYC helped out at the Downtown Arcadia Halloween Harvest Festival as well! Our members pitched in by volunteering at the Arcadia Historical Society's arts and crafts booth and taught children how to make peacock fans and bookmarks. 

Do you see a problem in Arcadia that you believe should be addressed? This month, Arcadia Civic Youth Council launched a survey to get a better understanding of what we can improve on in our city. After thoroughly reviewing submitted responses, ACYC brainstormed and put together a long-term plan to confront topics ranging from teacher accountability to mental health awareness. In October, members from ACYC are planning to meet with Ms. Dillman, the principal of AHS, to discuss concerns and pitch potential solutions. 

In the month of August, members of ACYC helped out at the City of Arcadia's Community Forum on Homelessness, which offered a space for residents to discuss homelessness in Arcadia. Our members checked residents into the event and responded to questions. 

ACYC also hosted a blood stem cell registration drive in conjunction with Be The Match®, a nonprofit organization. To assist the thousands of people diagnosed each year with life-threatening cancers, Be The Match® made it their mission to save lives through cellular therapy. For more information, please visit Be The Match's official website at bethematch.org or see ACYC's informational video at bit.ly/acycdriveinfo.

​This month, ACYC supported the Arcadia City Council by participating in the Patriotic Reverse Parade and Food Drive, a socially-distanced drive-by event hosted by Downtown Arcadia.  Wearing eye-catching costumes, ACYC enthusiastically cheered and waved at passing cars! All donations from the canned food drive went to Foothill Unity Center, who will use the proceeds to help our neighbors. 

Following the Food Drive, ACYC also hosted their own Beyond STEM Career Day. Because of Arcadia having a primarily STEM-focused environment, students don't usually get the opportunity to explore fields outside of science and math. ACYC gave them the chance to learn from professionals in career fields relating to the arts, government, education, and more.

The end of a school year marks the beginning of a new term for ACYC, as new members and old gather onto a Zoom call to celebrate members of the 2021-2022 Board! Alongside the celebrations and joyous energy the members were met with, the new council discussed potential campaigns for the summer and upcoming school year, as well as possible fundraisers to help fund for future ACYC campaigns. To the new council, we welcome new members Claire Li, Euan Laru-an, Stephanie Li, Ashley Chen, Kaylee Kwan, Chloe Wong, Lilian Chong, Addison Kwan, Ashley Te, Aruna Anathanarayanan, Catherine Chan,  and David Basa. Welcome aboard to ACYC, new members, and thank you to everyone who expressed interest and applied to the organization!

Robinson Lee and Emma Chen, ACYC's Arcadia Historical Society Representatives, recently participated in a Murder Mystery Night hosted by Arcadia Historical Society.  Robinson portrayed Jason Wang, while Emma portrayed Vivian Lee. Both members represented their characters convincingly, making for an enjoyable and entertaining night. ACYC would like to thank the Historical Society for putting on this event and allowing are members to participate.

ACYC also partnered with the Arcadia Resource Hub to host a T-Shirt Drive at the Arcadia Public Library. By drive's end, ACYC was able to collect over 450 shirts, gathered in different sizes from members of the Arcadia community. These shirts were boxed up and delivered to the Resource Hub, where they distributed to the homeless. ACYC would like to give a big thank you to anyone who donated, the teachers who advertised, and Apache News and Arcadia National Historical Society for shouting us out and encouraging their members to attend.

In February, ACYC hosted its first ever raffle, with the total pot at $36! Participants earned entries into the raffle by performing different eco-friendly tasks, such as cooking vegan meals, upcycling, or hang drying clothes, and then posting it on social media with the tag #ArcadiaGoesGreen. ACYC hopes to remind the youth to take advantage of their time at home and maintain an eco-friendly lifestyle.

With the holiday season coming up, many of us are spending time with our loved ones. However, there are many kids who have no family to go to and grow up through the foster system. ACYC wanted to help bring some joy to these kids, by participating in the 2020 Sugar Plum Tree Charity Event, hosted by Friends of Foster Children. We bought several items on the children's wishlists and had it sent to them. ACYC hopes that these gifts can be a light during a year of darkness.