Young women from all over the state areВ chosenВ to attend a week-long program known as Girls State where they participate in creating their own cities and governments, while learning to be patriotic.
This year’s event was held at Southern Utah University from June 4-9.В Hailee Rogers,В Jessica Guymon,В Lexus Huntsmen,В Savahna Hall,В Nicole McCandless,В Marissa Urie,В Myrka Lerma, andВ Kenlyn Nielson participated.
Adrienne Carter, a 2012 Emery High School graduate and 2011 Girls State graduate, was invited back to serve as attorney general.
Girls State is explained further on the auxiliary’s website.
“American Legion Boys State and American Legion Auxiliary Girls State are the premier programs for teaching how government works while developing leadership skills and an appreciation for your rights as a citizen. As a participant in the program you, will run for office, learn public speaking, create and enforce laws and actively participate in all phases of creating and running a working government in this exciting and fun summer program.”
etv10news.com was able to catch up with three of the Girls State participants after returning home. В
Urie of Ferron said, “Loved it. Not at first, mind you. It took a day or two to get used to the way everything was run. I loved meeting new girls and having an amazing counselor. It was definitely good for me to go out of my comfort zone and learn new things. It was also interesting to see all the different opinions and views on different subjects. I definitely gained a new appreciation for our troops. I wish every girl and boy could go experience a little bit about how our government is run. One of the counselors on staff was also a member of the military and it was really neat to hear her experiences and learn from what she said. It was well worth the money and time to go to this wonderful program. I am proud to be an American and I’m proud of our armed forces. Girls State was one of my best experiences so far.”
McCandless of Huntington said, “Girls state definitely changed the way I saw things. I really didn’t know what to expect whenВ I left home. I knew we learned about our country and everything butВ I didn’t know how much it would change my outlook. You learn what soldiers do everyday trying to keep our country free, and how that effects them and their families. You learn how it is to actually run your own little government and work well with people you have never seen before. My favorite part was the retiring of the flag.В I had never seen one before and you could just feel all the patriotism through the speakers and everything. It was great. It was definitely a learning experience for me and I’m so happy I went.”
Savahna Hall of Castle Dale said, “Girls state for me was a changing experience. Before I left I had no idea about the government or even more, the things our troops do everyday while we sit here in a free country. We learned so much about the government and how things work and how things are done, but I still can’t get over our troops. It was a life-changing experience. I came to love every soldier who is active, veteran, or deceased. It was a great experience.”