A Club With a Purpose
At the beginning of my freshman year, I launched the Herren Project club at my school with a simple goal: to create a consistent space for wellness and connection while teaching about physical and mental health.
I created games and prepared rewards for my meetings, which were held once a month. Things started slowly, and I expected to see growth over time, but participation stayed thin. People seemed to enjoy the meetings when they came, but it wasn’t enough for them to come back the following month—and not enough to pull new people in, either. I stayed consistent, hoping that this would change, but I realized it wasn’t just consistency I needed; it was a new structure.
So in sophomore year, I pivoted.
I already had a relationship with my local Boys & Girls Club through my volunteer work, and instead of trying to manufacture energy inside my school, I decided to merge my two initiatives. Through my connection, I established monthly volunteer events for my Herren Project club members at the Boys & Girls Club. Now, my Herren Project club shifted from just promoting wellness to promoting wellness and providing opportunities to make an impact in the community. A peer and I planned out the activities for the entire school year with a focus on healthy coping mechanisms for kids. This included stress ball-making, watercoloring, slime-making, etc. These were fun and engaging activities for the kids and for the club members to help out with.
Then things started moving uphill.
At my first volunteer event, seven people came. It might not sound like a lot, but to me, it was more than I ever expected. It wasn’t just the number of people—there were faces I had never seen before, meaning my club had gained new members. Over the year, I saw more and more new faces. Yes, there were some months with fewer people, but I knew my pivot was working. I finally saw authentic engagement, interest, and participation within my Herren Project club, and I got to do it while pursuing and sharing my passion for working with kids.
By the end of the year, we had 16 total volunteers. Up until this year—my junior year—we have seen a total of 27 volunteers. I am super proud to see what I have built over the years, and I am excited to keep it going. I am working on growing our volunteer events by upping the frequency and expanding to other organizations. We just established a new partnership with our local Youth Center and look forward to seeing how much further we will go!
