Hey everyone! I'm Sarah, a sophomore at Mason High School.
Today, the world's youth are more involved in politics than ever. From university protests in the news to local activism in our city, it’s clear that young people nowadays have come to realize the issues and injustices in their community and are willing to take strides to resolve them. However, youth have limited access to a reliable vessel to aid in dispersing their ideas. This problem is what fueled me to found the Mason City Youth Council.
In partnership with MasonVotes and Mayor Diana Nelson, the Mason City Youth Council gives the youth in our city the influence in their community that’s vital to upholding the policies of inclusion and equity that Mason runs on. This organization strives to bridge the gap between our youth and local government, ultimately allowing the unique voices and perspectives of Mason’s youth to be heard.
The idea for the Youth Council started from a rather trivial conversation with my friend about the sprinkler systems in our neighborhoods. We noticed the sprinklers were constantly on; through rain, fog, and wind, the sprinklers sprinkled. Besides the apparent water wastage, the sprinklers sprayed water onto the sidewalk, forming puddles and making it extremely prone to slippage. My elderly grandparents go on a stroll around my neighborhood every night and the thought of them severely hurting themselves due to the ignorance of the HOA disturbed me. I began to realize more issues around the community affecting the safety and comfort of our citizens that I had subconsciously ignored before. Many of these problems affected demographics that don’t have a way to express these concerns. I wanted to give them a direct connection with the government allowing them to make the impact they want to see in the community. Thus, the Mason City Youth Council was born.
On September 26th, the Youth Council had its first-ever meeting. We were honored to have Mason’s Mayor Diana Nelson speak about her experience as an avid member of the Mason City Council and set an example for the members. We had the privilege of meeting some of the most ambitious and well-spoken students in Mason and hearing the ideas they want to implement to make Mason the best city it can be. What started as a conversation has blossomed into an organization of diligent and headstrong students looking to make a difference in their city. I am incredibly proud of everybody who has made the council what it has become and I cannot wait to see the impact we can create.
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