Humble, hard-working and engaged sum up Mountain Youth’s October youth spotlight. Shelby Spiegel, a Junior at Eagle Valley High School, first appeared on our radar five years ago as Mountain Youth launched Valley’s Voice for middle schoolers. “I heard about the program through a friend and it sounded fun, so I tagged along to a meeting and really enjoyed the work. I like making a difference, and knowing that I am helping people in my community,” Shelby shares. She also appreciated that the organization is built around giving youth a voice, because her and her peers are not always listened to. One highlight of Shelby’s involvement is Youthapalooza, an annual youth-led community event where peers can gather for no cost and have a great time. Shelby appreciate the games, music, free food and opportunities to connect with businesses and others in the community at Youthapalooza.
Shelby also serves as a Youth Advisor for Valley’s Voice where she gets to help guide projects to help the community. Sustainable Splash is one of these projects, a free event hatched by students combining river safety and environmental stewardship. To round out her Mountain Youth hats, Shelby serves as a community board member for Communities That Care. Shelby describes Communities That Care as a place to bring community together around substance use issues and ways to resolve them.
Shelby has many thoughts to offer on the landscape of growing up in Eagle County. As she outlines, “I believe the biggest needs facing youth are that young people are stressed out and don’t know how to deal with their stress in healthy ways. Many turn to substances which is not healthy.” Her key for managing stress and staying healthy has been to get involved in the community. Beyond her list of Mountain Youth roles, Shelby also plays left field on the Eagle Valley High School softball team. Her interests expand into the musical genre with flute, piccolo and the newly discovered saxophone where she plays in the general band as well as pit band, an orchestra during school musicals. “These all give me something to do and keep my mind focused on something positive,” she remarks. The resume continues with numerous school clubs, including Hope Squad, Link Crew, Green Team, and National Art Honors Society- all healthy distractions aimed at helping others.
Leaders can show up in many ways, and Shelby certainly makes an impact on her peers through a soft-spoken, consistent and caring presence. As Cameron Dole, Senior Manager of Youth Engagement at Mountain Youth reflects, “Shelby leads with heart and intellect, and sets an example to her classmates and younger peers. Her involvement and commitment to youth-led initiatives speaks volumes and allows her to further involve in the community at a high role.” Shelby describes leaders as those who are passionate about others and wants to inspire them to do something; to make a positive change and persevere. Of all of her extraordinary educators, Mr. DuPree has shown up as a model leader. He teaches Project Lead the Way and is, “very cool.” Shelby immediately lights up describing Mr. DuPree as nice to his students, great as explaining things to his students, and creating a classroom environment that is a safe space for all students.
Looking toward the future, a conversation that often carries heaviness and pressure with adolescents, Shelby excitedly shares about her aspiration to be a zoologist. It has been her dream to work with animals and science for a long time. Her favorite animals are dogs, because they are kind without needing a reason. Her two dogs, Coco and Ginger and very lucky to have Shelby in their lives.
In the meantime, Shelby leaves her peers with simple advice- get involved. Community engagement is a great tie- in with two of our strongest community assets, or protective factors, here in Eagle County. Trusted adults, also known as positive role models, such as Mr. Dupree, and opportunities for young people to engage in a pro-social activity such as a sport or club. Here in Eagle County, 80% of student report having an adult to go to for help with a serious problem and most participate in a sport or club (2023 Eagle County Healthy Kids CO Survey). As Shelby shares, “If you think you may want to try something out, just do it. Don’t be afraid to try something new, ask questions, or engage help.”
-Michelle Hartel serves as the Executive Director for Mountain Youth. Click here to learn more about Valley’s Voice and here to learn about Communities That Care.
Comments