Amy and Ayan here, with your end of the year letter from AGE UP. We tried to talk about all the great things AGE UP did this year but instead ended up talking about our cheesy love story as Vice-President and President of the Board, co-hosting Family Feast, and being a part of this community.
Amy: I’m Amy and I’m the new board Vice President. I grew up in Beacon Hill with a consistent hatred for socks and am a current junior at Cleveland High School. After going through the AGE UP programs myself, I became comfortable enough to step up into a leadership position. You’d know how AGE UP makes me feel if you were at Family Feast but have no fear – you can read about it in this letter.
Ayan: I’m Ayan and I’m the Co-President of the board (with Lisa Niemann), I am a senior at Raisbeck Aviation High School, and I am currently writing this the day before my birthday! I hope I get a kitten. I don’t have a favorite food but my favorite song is “Tearin’ Up My Heart” by N’Sync.
Here’s how our love story began: It was mid-August last summer and I was planning our annual dinner, Family Feast, almost every day. I needed to find a co-host to make the event as fun as it could possibly be and came up with a list of potential co-hosts, but honestly the only person I wanted to host with was Amy. Reflecting back to our experience in the summer internship, I remembered Amy being a warmed-hearted person that made EVERYONE feel included and cared for.
Amy: So Ayan sent me a very special message on August 14th, 2019. She threw out the idea that I should speak and co-host at Family Feast and I was so shocked! Me? What would I even talk about?? That is what I asked her and she gave me many ideas. They were not that helpful but she tried.
Ayan: Fast forward to October 10th – Amy and I have spent 2.5 months perfecting the script, and there were STILL last minute edits. Of course I was very mad because I spent HOURS going over the script so I wouldn’t mess up in front of people but naturally, Amy took the last minute edits and everything went well. We filled the room with 450 people and welcomed 250 new people to the AGE UP Family. We ended up raising $55,000! It was awesome. THE END.
Amy: Eight days after Family Feast, the girls program began. I was presented with the great opportunity of interning to help run the girls program. Throughout the girls program, we played mafia, tried escape rooms, played dance Jeopardy, practiced self care, learned to understand ourselves, and the most difficult task- tried to teach Hana how to dance. She’s still not good but shout out to her.
AGE UP has consistently given a safe space for everyone from the youth to the boomers. All of the participants from this year’s program put in all their effort to make sure everyone was included and most importantly, made sure everyone ate. I love seeing a packed room of high schoolers every Friday night in preschool chairs at the community center. They build me up even when I don’t ask them to. I’m super appreciative of the way AGE UP has supported me.
This next year I want to see myself leading more facilitation opportunities. I also want to paint a mural somewhere that is cool and also has meaning to it. Finally, I need a Tik Tok video with AGE UP that will go viral. Being VP will mean that I get to work with a lot of different people in new ways at AGE UP.
Ayan: Family Feast was really just a test for Amy to see how well we work together, and she passed with flying colors so it only seemed right to have her be Vice President of the AGE UP Board of Directors. When I think about how much we’ve grown since we started working together, it’s kinda like a cheesy love story. We went from seeing each other every day to only two times a month, yet the love is constant. Whenever we’re together, we’re inseparable, and we both have one common love, AGE UP. I can’t think of anything else to say. If you want to give me a belated birthday present, donate at www.allgirleverything.org or do my astronomy homework for me.
Oh, and so you can see how our relationship grew, here’s an example of our conversation at the first board meeting:
Ayan:
Amy:
Ayan:
Amy:
Ayan: *walks away*
And here’s an example of our conversation two seconds ago:
Amy: Look at the Tik Tok I sent you
Ayan: I already saw it.
Amy: …
Ayan: I love my cat
Amy: …
Ayan: Yes, I think that’s a great idea.
Thanks for reading about our great life together!
Amy D & Ayan H
