school leadership program. These students are given the responsibility of helping staff and working with the younger children in the nonprofit’s various activities. After that, high schoolers who have volunteered at CPY are eligible to take part in a paid leadership program—the last fiscal year, 19 high school mentors worked 4,584 hours and earned $72,131, according to CPY. These young leaders still find themselves wanting to be a part of the organization even after they age out. The examples within the organization’s team of mentors are abundant: Bruce has been with CPY for 25 years, Art Director Jorge Torres for 15, and Adams for 15, just to name a few. “It’s a real family,” Hastey says. “With family, one of our sayings is, ‘Iron strikes iron and makes us stronger.’” Enrollment for CPY’s six-week summer program opens in May, but if history is any indication, it’ll fill up fast. Each morning begins with group and individual reading sessions— Ender’s Game and Harry Potter are popular choices, Bruce notes—while writing thank-you letters to supporters of CPY before they can play freely. Later in the day, the students are taken on field trips to places such as the Monterey Bay Aquarium (which many had never been to before, notes Rosalinda Macias, CPY’s site coordinator at Martin Luther King Jr. School of the Arts), in addition to a number of activities involving art, science and more. Through it all, CPY’s goal is to provide a safe and structured environment, helping students build their self-esteem while encouraging them to pursue their passions. “We dream big,” Torres says. “We tell our students to keep dreaming, and keep dreaming big. A dream is just a dream, but if you put it into action, you can make that dream a reality.” For information, visit cpy.org. WWW.MONTEREYCOUNTYNOW.COM 19 Book now at EscapeRoom831.com Lighthouse 599 Lighthouse Avenue, Monterey Cannery Row 700 Cannery Row, Ste DD Wave Street 765 Wave Street, Suite A2, Monterey ARCADE FAMILY LOUNGE ESCAPE ROOMS PINBALL SKEE BALL HOOPS 685 Cannery Row, 3rd Floor, Monterey 831.241.6616 ■ OSCARSPLAYGROUND.COM Looking for Fun for the Whole Family? Cannery Row 685 Cannery Row, 3rd Floor EscapeRoom_2-3v_fam24_gk.indd 1 3/20/24 2:27 PM
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjAzNjQ1NQ==