BUDDIES: TRAINING, CAMPING, LEARNING

The Buddies training sleepover successfully shaped outstanding TCS High School participants because of the students’ commitment, guidance given by counselors, and ASOPAF’s financial support.                         

The training took place on Friday, October 21st at the Columbus School theater where  Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors were taught the ideal way to handle the middle school kids while still sharing valuable experiences with them.                      

“During the Buddies training sleepover we learn mainly techniques and skills to be able to control the middle school kids. For example, when they are interrupting us we now know that we should wait patiently until they stop talking,” Isabela Molina, junior at the training camp said.                                     

Buddies is a program established by the school’s counselors and directives 6 years ago, where high school students teach middle school classes for 45 minutes on tematics such as alcohol and internet safety using experiences of their own and creating marvelous friendships.              

“Buddies was amazing because through very entertaining ways, we were able to learn very important skills for our future coming from students that were older and had a lot more experience,” Maria Arango, 7th grade student said.

Buddies has certainly impacted students of all ages positively, but to make this program so successful, organizations such as ASOPAF donate financial resources that are crucial in the completion of the training.  

“For Buddies, ASOPAF’s most valuable help is financially. They grant us a sum of money that we invest in the food of that night and the paramedic that we are required to have during the training camp. We are immensely grateful for their assistance,” said Ana Garcia, High School counselor in charge of Buddies.

Additionally, both high school counselors Ana Garcia and Andres Rendon, have a major role on the program’s success. They thoughtfully plan activities for that night such as informational speeches and a blindfolded hike to provide the correct insight and expertise to the students that are being trained.

“The activities need compliment the training’s objective; they need to be fun, easy to do with a large group of students, and encourage interpersonal relationships,” Rendon said.

Together with ASOPAF and the counselors, the students that participate in buddies play the most valuable part of its success. Their commitment and passion is clearly exhibited with their will of sacrificing their friday night in order to become better examples for the middle school kids.

As assured by Eliana Lopez, who has been in Buddies previously, “I believe that the camping prepares us not only for Buddies, but also for life in general which makes it worth it completely; it is one of the best experiences of high school.”