Hi! I am Rabiya K. and I am currently a senior at Arrowhead Park Early College High School. This is my second year working with Evolvement and my first year on the Leadership Team, and I have mostly worked with the 24/7 campaign. 24/7 works to make schools and districts across New Mexico 100% tobacco-free, and we help these districts adopt our policies. I have worked with this campaign to collect support cards, speak about 24/7’s goals and objectives at virtual school events, and spread awareness about the harmful effects of tobacco, especially on minors.

One of the most memorable events that I have attended was the 24/7 Virtual Halloween Party. At this event, we invited students from other schools to join us for games and a costume party on Halloween night. We also made it a priority to talk about our campaign and gain support cards from our attendees as they entered our event. Halfway through the party, I was assigned to give the 24/7 presentation in the entry Zoom breakout room. While I was there, I was pleasantly surprised to see a mutual friend from my school. I gave my presentation and took questions and comments. My friend spoke to the people in the room about her experience with using vapes as a freshman in high school and how she was completely unaware of the dangerous effects that it would have on her body. She told us about how she had recently quit and had come to the event because a friend of hers had recommended it to her. I was glad when she said that going to the event helped her confirm that she made the right decision to stop smoking. 

When we do community service and hold events, we sometimes question if all our hard work is really doing anything. The 24/7 Virtual Halloween Party allowed me to see that making change really is possible. I experienced what it was like to be a part of a movement that makes progress firsthand. Joining Evolvement has shown me that working toward a cause that you are passionate about is incredibly rewarding. As a senior, I hope that our current Evolvement members choose to continue the amazing work our group is doing. I also hope some of the members choose to join the Leadership Team. It’s an amazing opportunity to get to know your Evolvers better, make change on a higher level, and find something that you are truly passionate about.

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