Western Wayne Teaches How “Manners Matter”

By: Western Wayne FBLA

Eleven FBLA members/business students from Western Wayne High School recently participated in “Manners Matter,” an event sponsored by the Wayne County School-to-Work Committee. The event was held at Lackawanna College Lake Region and featured a gourmet luncheon catered and donated by the Lords Valley Country Club,

Students from Forest City, Wayne Highlands, Wallenpaupack, and Western Wayne participated. Prior to the serving of the meal, presentations on proper meal etiquette and job interviewing skills were given by Justin Genzlinger of the Settlers Hospitality Group, and Ryan French, Senior Vice President and Director of Human Resources at the Wayne Bank, respectively.

Those attending included Rachel Hineline, Allison Mattern, Krystal Tregaskis, Abby Burke, Abby Gogolski, Gracie Guarino, and Caroline Trygar, David Tucker, Austin Boguski, Jake DuBeau, and Jake Kunz. Theresa Lubash, FBLA adviser and business teacher, accompanied the students.

Ballpark Trip Provides Valuable Learning Experience

By: Western Wayne FBLA

A day at the ballpark proved to be a valuable learning experience for several members of the Western Wayne High School FBLA. Students from several area schools were invited to attend a Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders game and to hear about career opportunities available in a sports franchise. Railriders personnel who spoke to the students included Josh Olerud, team president and general manager; Scott A’Hara, chief financial officer; Katie Beekman, vice president and assistant general manager; Andrew Yarnall, vice president, ticket sales and service; and Robby Judge, director of youth baseball and sports sales.

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United HS Raises Money For The AHA

By: United HS FBLA

On Friday, September 27, United High School’s FBLA chapter celebrated the annual Gnimocemoh powder-puff game of juniors versus seniors, while raising money and collecting donations for the American Heart Association. During the school day, many members volunteered to collect money from students and teachers for the hat day and dress down day. The cost for a teacher to dress down was $5, and students wishing to wear a hat had to pay $1. When a student or teacher donated, their name was written on a heart, and the student or teacher was also given a red heart sticker to wear throughout the day.

All of the paper hearts with the names of the proud people that donated are displayed outside of the athletic center in the high school for all to see. Halfway through the school day, students were dismissed to the football field for the game, where many members also volunteered to take this cause to the community to collect donations. The junior girls’ powder-puff team supported this cause by wearing red ribbons in their hair in honor of the American Heart Association.

Overall, the United High School chapter collected $426.83. All of the members - new or returning - played a huge role in making this fundraiser a success. United High School FBLA is proud to say that every single penny of the proceeds will be donated to the American Heart Association to aid in the process to cure heart disease, decline deaths related to strokes, and foster cardiac research.

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There Is A World of Opportunity Out There

By: Kassidy Shupp

The 2019-2020 membership theme, “A World of Opportunity,” is not only a great motto for all FBLA chapters, but also to society in general. It demonstrates that there is opportunity out in the world, but sometimes you just have to look or try a little bit harder to find it. American inventor and businessman, Thomas Edison, once said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”

Along with the national theme of “A World of Opportunity,” Pleasant Valley High School’s FBLA has its own unique motto for the 2019-2020 year. Students, advisors, and executives like to say this is PV’s time to “own the stage.” Members of Pleasant Valley’s FBLA spend many hours studying for their selected event, on top of other regular scheduled academics and life events. Advisors strive to have the students do and be the best they can because they know that their hard work, determination, and perseverance will pay off, and they will own the stage this year and every year.

Pleasant Valley FBLA also takes pride in their various different community service activities they partake in. Anything to get members and students out into the community will help with creating various different skills and nurturing their professional development as young adults. Opportunities arise from spending time at West End Food Pantry, our local food pantry, all the way to assisting the Polk Township Fire Company, our local fire company, with their various events. PV FBLA also makes sure to give much support to our 2019-2020 PA State Charity, the American Heart Association, by attending their various events and spreading knowledge about this wonderful organization. Volunteer and community service are yet just another example of how much opportunity is out there, and to remind us that we must utilize the fact that we are “the World of Opportunity.”

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Upper Dublin Holds First FBLA Meeting

By: Upper Dublin FBLA

On October 15, 2019, the Upper Dublin High School chapter of FBLA had its first official meeting of the 2019-2020 school year. During this meeting, there was a large amount of new business conducted. New members (over 30 new students showed interest and attended this meeting) were educated on many FBLA opportunities and requirements to succeed in the organization, including the Regional Leadership Conference testing and the Business Achievement Awards. Returning members were reintroduced to many important topics regarding the year in FBLA.

The officer team prepared and presented this meeting’s agenda as they serve as role models to new members and the club as a whole. In addition, coupon books were distributed for members to sell; this is a fundraiser that allows Upper Dublin FBLA to finance its many activities throughout the year while allowing students to develop skills in sales and entrepreneurship. Finally, members ended the meeting by playing a trivia game both to further engage new students and give them a taste of the questions asked in the LifeSmarts competition.

The chapter has big goals for this year which include: building on the 57 members who qualified for SLC last school year, increasing involvement in BAAs and other FBLA competitions and opportunities, and increasing Upper Dublin FBLA’s presence in the local community, both by service and by working with the Fort Washington Business Alliance, which works to promote the Fort Washington area as a leader in commerce and an essential part of the Upper Dublin community.

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Chestnut Ridge Collects Items For Backpack Program

By: Chestnut Ridge FBLA

The Chestnut Ridge Chapter of the Future Business Leaders of America collected non-perishable food items for the Central Elementary Backpack Program. This program ensures that elementary students will have adequate meals on the weekends. High school students were asked to donate the needed items. The homeroom that collected the most items per capita earned a doughnut party. Mrs. Kami Oldham and her homeroom won the challenge. In total, over 640 items were collected throughout the high school. The donated items will help supply the needed nutrition during the holiday season.

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Woodland Hills FBLA Shows Their Positive Affect On Their Community

By: Woodland Hills FBLA

As a school that has had its fair share of negative light from our community, the Woodland Hills Future Business Leaders of America try their hardest to show that in a school of thorns, roses are always blooming. They do their best to do volunteer work in the community- while also having fun! Since school started back in August, the chapter has been doing a lot of volunteer work. On October 6th, they volunteered at Hundred Acre Manor- the scariest haunted house in Pennsylvania! Members got dressed up, and gave visitors the fright of their lives.

After hearing about the devastation of Hurricane Dorian, a group of members with the help of the chapters Parliamentarian started a relief fund. Starting on September 23rd, they collected basic hygiene products like soaps, shampoos, and toothpaste, and got together with Brothers Brothers foundation to make care packages that were finished with joyful and uplifting notes to send to the victims of the storm. Starting on October 15th, running through November 26th, they are sending students from the chapter to teach Junior Achievement to seventh graders at PACE- a school for challenged students.

Each group teaches twice, and they can say that they have a lot of fun doing it. The curriculum gives them interesting lessons, and fun and interactive games that everyone can take something away from. They are starting a “Reach out and Read” project, where they will collect new and re-used books to donate to the local children’s hospital.

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Easton FBLA Participates In Local Festive Events

By: Easton FBLA

Being one of our high schools’ most decorated clubs, we are constantly recruiting new members. Every year we set up a table in the main lobby at freshman orientation and a table at back to school night to promote our club. New or returning students are encouraged to join. Meetings are held every other Thursday throughout the year. Our members have met five times since the start of the year and have got a large amount of work done. We offer many different opportunities for students to work within our community.

Our members have participated in local festivals, worked multiple Halloween events held in our home town, volunteered at garlic fest, and held a fundraiser at MOD Pizza. Our members could be seen cleaning up the local public library to recycle old books and working and participating in a charity walk at a local farm known as Raub’s Farms. Our members have had lots of fun and the year is only beginning.

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Waynesboro Area Middle School FBLA

By: Isabella Ruefle

Time is flying by and it’s time for our annual FBLA business tours. The most recent business that we toured was our local police station. All of our members were so excited to see the behind the scenes of an everyday job, so we hopped in the vans and drove off. One wrong turn and we could get arrested. Don’t worry, I’m just kidding. As we arrived at our destination the anticipation was building. One of the police officers, Officer Kim Wolfe, welcomed us with a bright smile to go along with the tour.

As we entered, she showed us important workers that help with case paperwork, files, and secretary duties of the job. We also got to visit the waiting and interviewing rooms. It was interesting because every word or action we said was recorded while we were visiting. Most members would agree that the most interesting thing we got to see was the holding cells. We got to go inside and see how most of the people would live if they were being detained. The cell was very dirty and uncomfortable.

On the beds, there was no mattress or pillow, just a platform.It seemed like we had just gotten then when we had to leave. All in all, our visit to the police station was an informative tour that benefited us in many ways. It is always interesting to see something as a business that we don’t perceive that way at first glance.

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Cedar Crest FBLA Raises Money For The AHA

By: Hannah Richardson

This fall, the Cedar Crest FBLA chapter participated in numerous fundraising and community service opportunities to benefit the American Heart Association. Chapter members volunteered to hand out water bottles to participants at both the Harrisburg and Lancaster Heart Walks in September. In October, a number of members walked in the Lebanon Heart Walk.

At the State Leadership Workshop in November, Cedar Crest placed third in contributions for the state charity walk, raising $631.97. Since the SLW, our school had a lock-in and the chapter raised over $200 additional money for the American Heart Association by selling chips and soda at the event.

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Fleetwood Holds Annual Craft Show

By: Fleetwood FBLA

On November 16, Fleetwood FBLA held their 14th Annual Holiday Craft Show. The Craft Show is their largest fundraiser which provides funds for both the Fleetwood FBLA chapter and the 2022 class. This year, they had over 170 vendors, making this the largest one to date. FBLA members help out every year by setting up, assisting vendors, selling refreshments, and making the whole process run smoothly. It’s estimated that around 2,000 community members came and supported the fundraiser. Fleetwood FBLA and the sophomore class enjoy the experience of the Craft Show and plan to expand it more in the following years.

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Phil-Art-Thropy at Pleasant Valley FBLA

By: Jaxon Havens and Hannah Stanhope

For their Community Service Project, Pleasant Valley High School’s FBLA (Chapter 9640) partnered with Paul’s House, a local veterans home through VALOR, in collecting necessities and artwork for the new homes of veterans. PV FBLA representative, Jaxon Havens, spearheaded the project, Art for Vets, as members of the community were encouraged to bring in upbeat art to help make the veterans’ new houses feel like true homes.

The transition period between military service and civilian life is unimaginably difficult, so showing thanks and raising awareness about the need for community involvement in helping Paul’s House, is just one step student organizations like FBLA can take to give back to those who have served. Artwork has the power to soothe and bring ease to the viewer, so the artwork will help make the overall environment more positive and comfortable. Pleasant Valley’s FBLA also accepted necessities, such as tuna pouches and toothpaste tubes, as VALOR is always in need of such items.

This project got the whole school involved. Any student, whether an FBLA member or not, had the opportunity to bring in donations, and since an artwork drive is not a regular thing that happens, people got talking and word got around. The school’s most artistic students created artwork of their own to share both in art classes and outside of school Since the school has a large concentration of people who have relatives who are veterans, the cause resonated with the students and they were able to collect 115 pieces of artwork and 170 personal care items. The chapter created a display in the hallway to show off all the amazing artwork collected and promote the cause.

Something as small as a display in the hall can begin an important conversation about the struggles of veterans in transitional living as well as what can be done to give relief, and that type of conversation is the exact thing Pleasant Valley High School’s FBLA hopes to inspire. The team believes that the best thing that will come from this project is that the veterans are reminded that they have the community’s support and that the sacrifices they have made for the nation's protection will always be honored.

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Jersey Shore FBLA Celebrates American Enterprise Week

By: Jersey Shore FBLA

Jersey Shore FBLA has spent the week celebrating American Enterprise Week with various groups of students. At the high school, all students and teachers have been asked a question about American Enterprise Week every day over the announcements in the morning. If students and teachers write down and turn in the correct answer to the question, they are put in a daily drawing for a gift card. On Monday, FBLA invited three guest speakers to talk to all chapter members about owning their own businesses.

Each of the speakers talked individually about their companies and what it takes to keep them running. They also gave the students advice on how to manage time properly, how to network with other people and other small businesses, and how to keep customers loyal to a business. This meeting gave students who may be thinking about opening their own business after graduation an opportunity to learn about the details of doing so. A few students also visited the elementary school and talked to the life skills class about business.

The life skills students run a coffee cart business in their room taking orders and delivering coffee to teachers. The elementary students taught the high school students how they run their business smoothly and efficiently. The FBLA members then led a group activity to show the younger students the importance of teamwork and working together with each other to accomplish a goal.

The kids talked to the high school students about what they want to be when they grow up and colored pictures of themselves in the future. Jersey Shore FBLA spent the 2019 American Enterprise Week educating students of all ages about business.

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North-Penn Mansfield FBLA Has Been Very Hard At Work

By: North-Penn Mansfield FBLA

During the past few months, our chapter has been hard at work. The highlights included Hosting the Harlem Wizards and attending the State Leadership Workshop. The chapter showcased volunteerism and dedication.

The Harlem Wizards came to our school on October 23rd to host a trick basketball game. The goal of the event was to raise funds for this year’s community service project. The event was a huge success! We had a full house and we raised over $4,000 that will be used to benefit our local food bank and the purchase of winter clothing for children in our school district. Members came together to sell tickets, advertise the event, and help organize on game day. Our members logged over 100 community service hours, which showed that they were committed to our chapter and it’s success.

November started strong with 28 members attending the SLW. Our members had nothing except positive feedback once they returned. The workshops our members attended were influential. The keynote speaker was entertaining and motivated our members to strive for greatness and appreciate the journey rather than the end result. The skills, friendships, and memories made during SLW will stick with our members throughout their futures.

Our agenda for the next few months includes installation, American Enterprise Week, chapter secret Santa, and of course competitive event preparation. It is apparent that our members are excited and committed to making the most of this FBLA year, and we look forward to the upcoming competition season.

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Central Valley FBLA Has Been Very Busy

By: Central Valley FBLA

Beginning September 13th, the chapter began meeting every Friday to begin preparing for the region competition. It is in these meetings that we began to look into what events each member would be participating in. Throughout October we continued to prepare for the events each member has chosen, but also voted officers for the club, including President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Reporter, Historian, and Parliamentarian.

Recruiting was also mentioned throughout the meetings. The officers went around to freshman study halls to talk to them about joining FBLA by telling them what FBLA really is. After gaining a few new members, FBLA held an ice cream party for all of our fully paid members. Everyone who has joined has now picked their events and is studying for their tests coming up at the end of November.

Officers met on September 27th, October 30th and November 7th to go over dates and logistics of fundraisers, such as our FBLA Dinner Fundraiser, March of Dimes, and Jean Day for teachers, Chocolate bar sales, and Gourmet Fortune Cookie sales. These fundraisers were worked out during this time and all information was reported to all members.

The SLW at Kalahari was also introduced to any available officers at the meeting. The option to fundraise was offered to the attendees. The officers attended the SLW the first weekend of November. They participated in workshops and gained more leadership qualities.

In the coming weeks, our FBLA chapter will be continuing to prepare for the Regional level competition and fundraising for the state competition. Students are fundraising for these events by selling Anderson Candy Bars, Gourmet Fortune Cookies, and Gourmet lollipops. Students are buying all three items very quickly causing a big profit to come into our chapter.

Multiple Chapters Attend Regional Leadership Workshops

Red Land FBLA Attends RLW

By: Red Land FBLA

On Tuesday October 15th, 32 members of Red Land’s FBLA chapter traveled to Maize Quest in New Park PA to participate in the Region 6 Leadership Workshop. The students completed the corn maze while honing their teamwork, cooperation and problem-solving skills. The students met with 115 students from 9 different schools across York and Adams counties where they networked and shared information about our chapter goals and plans for the year.

"Farmer Hugh" gave a presentation to the entire group about Agribusiness, his successes and failures with the farm and other terrific information for our Future Business Leaders. For example, he talked about using all the fruit that the farm produces: first fruits are usually gone at the end of the 'Pick Your Own' season; seconds are sold in retail outlets and stores; and the fallen fruit is pressed into juice to make wine for their winery. He emphasized to the members that you need to find a way to sell ALL that you produce, even the scraps and leftovers.

All of the students had a wonderful time and learned so much about what other schools are doing and creating those important relationships for sharing information and goals. Our students really enjoyed the challenges during the day and the S’Mores that we made by the campfire after lunch!

Cedar Crest FBLA Attends RLW

By: Hannah Richardson

The Cedar Crest chapter enjoyed the morning spent at Gretna Glen Retreat for their Regional Leadership Workshop. Groups consisting of Cedar Crest, Eastern Lebanon, and Central Dauphin chapters got to know each other through team building activities. The teams of roughly 10 members were challenged with problem solving and communication tasks. Good leadership and listening skills were vital for challenges to be completed safely and effectively.

Delaware Valley Attends Their RLW

By: Ashlee Wilson

On Oct. 29, 26 members of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) club and two advisers traveled to Woodloch Resort for the 2019 Region 22 Leadership Workshop. At the workshop, the DV members were able to interact with students from other schools in the region, ice skate on an outdoor rink, participate in the student business meeting and go on a haunted hayride around the property of the resort.

During the business meeting, the regional officers, including regional vice president senior Gavin Brazanskas and regional treasurer junior Kaleigh Kuddar, read a message from the Pennsylvania State Level of FBLA, reflected on the attendance at the 2018 Regional Leadership Conference, took attendance at the workshop and recapped on updated fundraising totals.

There was a gift card auction available to fundraise for the state project organization, the American Heart Association. In addition, one of the owners of the resort spoke to regional members about the legacy of the resort.

Many of the members enjoyed the activities they were able to participate in at the workshop.

“I would say the best part was the camaraderie we had with Mrs. [Maura] Angle, Mr. [Jeffrey] Luhrs and the officer team,” said community service director of DV FBLA senior Cyan Vazquez.

STATE LEADERSHIP WORKSHOP

Delaware Valley FBLA Attends The SLW

By: Ashlee Wilson

From Nov. 2-4, DV FBLA chapter officers and two advisers attended the Pennsylvania State Leadership Workshop at Kalahari Resorts. The officers arrived around noon on Nov. 2 and had the rest of the day to get settled in and have free time.

Between Nov. 3-4, the officers had schedules full of workshops, an opening session, a keynote speaker session, a state project benefit walk and a battle of the chapters competition.

At the opening session, there were two sets of inspirational speakers who informed members from across the state of key qualities business leaders should possess. One of the speakers encouraged members to become good leaders and role models in school and in their futures. The other speakers emphasized how important reflection on past success and failure is for future encounters and how crucial it is to know one’s role in any situation.

The workshops available to the officers ranged from learning how to succeed in certain competitive events to interactive workshops that were more hands on. Exhibitors were also present at the conference to provide members with information about different organizations.

Easton FBLA Attends The SLW

By: Easton FBLA

At the beginning of this month, we attended the State Leadership Workshop (SLW). We had 20 members attend the SLW, ten officers and ten members. Sunday morning when we arrived at Kalahari our advisor had checked us in and we got our name tags. Shortly after that the opening ceremony, we split off to attend different workshops on how to become a successful leader.

Once the workshops ended we attended and participated in the battle of the chapters and were granted access to our rooms.From there we joined our state officer Vincent at the Heart Walk to raise awareness for our state project, The American Heart Association. After the Heart Walk, we had exclusive access to the water park beginning at 9:30 pm until 11:30 pm. Monday morning had arrived and we again attended more workshops before going to the main hall for a keynote speaker and the closing ceremony. At the conclusion of the closing ceremony, we returned to our rooms to change and gather our belongings. Together, we boarded the bus to begin our ride home.

UPCOMING PENN PAL INFORMATION