Empowering the Next Generation: Introducing the CVHS Youth Ambassador Program

Beloved Crescenta Valley community, we are excited to once again share with you the many facets of Impact Foundation LA. As the executive director of the foundation and the program director of the CV Cares Coalition, it is my honor to introduce the CVHS Youth Ambassador Program – a dynamic initiative driven by eight exceptional students dedicated to making a difference.

These young leaders will play a vital role in shaping and guiding student-led efforts to support our community. Over the next eight months, each of our youth ambassadors will share their unique perspectives and insights through this column, providing you with a firsthand look at the work we are doing together. We look forward to their voices, their vision and their impact as they help strengthen the fabric of our community.

Stay tuned for all of their stories and reflections – this is just the beginning!

Kicking off the articles is Denitsa Kamova a 10th grade student and CV Cares youth ambassador:

This month there have been many celebrations and events happening for us, the CV Cares Club. Whether those are birthdays, Black History Month recognitions, etc. one important event to take a deeper dive into is Kindness Week. 

Kindness is the most important aspect of the world we live in. Being kind can make a huge difference. From personal experience, acts of kindness have improved my social life including relationships with family and friends and enhanced my well-being by reducing stress and conflicts. CV Cares Club strives toward positivity and kindness. Our goal as high school youth ambassadors of the CV Cares Coalition, a project of the Impact Foundation LA, is to help others struggling with mental health and substance misuse by offering resources to get help. People can also talk to us if they just want someone to hear them out and be supportive. We are all understanding, compassionate and intelligent students wanting to create a better future. 

We (the youth ambassadors of CV Cares Club) kicked off Kindness Week at Crescenta Valley High School on Tuesday, Feb. 11 during lunch. We had set up a table for students to walk by and learn more about who we are and what we do as a club. We had many fun prizes for students who stopped by our booth and completed our survey, and we also encouraged them to sign up for our newly created club at the high school. 

We are so excited to have finally created the CV Cares Club at school! There are many fun events planned for our club that offer community service hours and free hands-on learning experiences with others. Our club accepts anyone willing to help raise awareness of the importance of mental health and substance misuse prevention to help others. We also greatly appreciate any donations and we accept volunteers of any age within and outside our community to help with the Impact Foundation/CV Cares events. I am so blessed and grateful to have this club; it is such an honor to be a part of the team! 

Go Falcons!