Every year, our NN4Y National Youth Advisory Council (NYAC) convenes somewhere in the US for our annual strategic planning and training retreat. The 2019 NYAC Fall Retreat was held in San Francisco, CA! This retreat was undoubtedly one of my favorites in my four years serving as a member of the National Youth Advisory Council. I thoroughly enjoyed the emphasis placed on the importance of practicing self care and promoting self love all while working collaboratively with other young leaders to achieve one common goal; Ending Youth Homelessness. This retreat brought our team closer together then we have ever been.
We spent time discussing how, as young people, we aren’t always open to sharing our expertise, ideas, goals, and milestones because safe spaces aren’t often contrived for us to do so. This retreat provided just that for us! We relaxed with an unforgettable spa day at Kabuki Springs, where I discovered my new love for cucumber scented lotion! For a brief period of time in our busy lives, we were able to forget about any stressors we had and just focus on being one with ourselves.
The NYAC also attended the 2019 Children’s Rights Summit held at Facebook Headquarters. I learned about effective tools to use while advocating for my rights. We sat confidently in a room full of lawyers where we were affirmed that we are the true experts and our insight was valuable in the work being done to amplify youth voices.
For our retreat, we sat proudly at the largest law firm in the world, Baker & McKenzie; learning from the NN4Y team and each other about the power in policy advocacy, networking, youth partnerships, and wellness. It’s safe to say, this retreat was informative and transformative for every person involved. It’s tough to pick my favorite part of the entire retreat, but one memorable moment that I will forever value is when the NN4Y team and the NYAC went around the room sharing what we valued most about each other! I’m humbled and unquestionably thankful for the opportunity to serve on a council that has elevated and positively transformed me as a person and as a professional. I’m looking forward to many more opportunities to educate myself and productively advocate in the hopes of creating change in our nation.
