We were delighted to welcome Alan Mckie to the club meeting of 15th August. Alan is a 6th year student at Waid Academy, currently working towards university entrance, where he plans to study engineering. He came to speak about his experiences at the recent RYLA event, where his attendance was sponsored by Anstruther Rotary.
The Rotary Youth Leadership Award is a week-long Rotary International course that takes place at the Abernethy Trust Centre in Nethybridge, just a few miles from Aviemore. It offers young people an opportunity to participate in physical and intellectual activities, aimed at developing skills in team working, leadership, communication, problem solving and decision-making. These are seen as foundations for self-confidence and self-esteem - vital aspects of responsible and global citizenship. Around 90 boys were at the event with Alan.
Alan started his talk in confident style with an excellent DVD showing the scope of the course – canyoning, kayaking, gorge jumping, rock climbing, archery, mountain biking, and raft building. All this being done in teams, with the challenges of team leadership shared.
Alan commented that it probably seemed like seven days of fun activities with newfound friends, but that it was much more than that. He told us that he had learned a lot and felt that he had really grown as a leader and person.
As he said ‘every morning there was a speaker and they were fantastic. Their talks were insightful and they gave me real world examples of where leadership was and is used. I feel like this advice will be really helpful in any future endeavours I take part in and they were happy to answer questions giving us an even greater understanding of their thoughts on leadership. Another great part of RYLA was getting to see my team mates grow and develop and being able to support each other. The best part of the week would definitely be the friends I made and the experience I gained. I'm hoping to go to university and study engineering with a view to joining the Navy. The course will help me lead others and ensure myself and my team reach their full potential on any task I take part in, or at least that's what I hope’.
Alan concluded his first class talk by thanking Rotary for making such an amazing experience possible. Following questions a vote of thanks was proposed by Ian Brunton. Alan is seen here receiving his RYLA certificate from club president Andrew Lindsay.
