From the NH Kid Executive Council: Working at the Salvation Army

Day One:
My first day working at the Salvation Army was a success! Me and my mother were shown around the store by a staff member named Megan. Our first job was to make sure all the clothing in the women's’ section was in the right place (medium in the “M” section, small in the “S” section, etc.). Unfortunately before our work hours ended, I started feeling sick and had to go home. 

Day Two:
On my second day working at the Salvation Army, we got to visit a lot more of the store, and met two new people. Our first job was to take out all the clothes in the children's section that had blue tags. There we met a man that was also doing community service that told us about his life. Once we finished that, we went to the  “garage-like” area in the store, where we met a young woman who also told us her life story, and hung up clothes that were in donation boxes, then took them into the women's section to be distributed appropriately. Overall, my experience was I've learned it takes many people to run a store like this and a lot of time.

P.S. I’ve also learned that this computer’s voice recognition translates “to be” as “2B”, But it knows, “bro”...(

-Evelyn Ellis-Haines: 

From the NH Kid Executive Council: Evelyn Ellis-Haines

At first when my teacher, Mrs. Weick, announced that we were doing a politics activity I thought that I would give it a try, just to see if I could do it. I thought poverty was important, so I chose that as my platform. So, I just went through the motions of writing a speech and making a video. We all watched each other’s videos and voted on which we liked best—which we thought had the best shot at winning Kid Governor. After we voted, the next day, Mrs. Weick announced that my video had won. I was absolutely ecstatic, completely and utterly.

Mrs. Weick helped me make a final video that would be shown at the “elections” at the schools and online and at Saint Anselm College. A few days after making the video my entire class and family were at the event at the College where we stood up at a podium and listened to different people talk. The other two candidates and I had to answer the questions: How did we choose our campaign platform and what were we going to try to do as Kid Governor? We heard the governor’s wife, Mrs. Sununu, and one of the teachers from one of the candidate’s schools speak, and then voted.

When it was time to vote we all got in a line to a set of booths that had the governor for the state and the kid governor candidates. We voted for one adult candidate and one kid candidate, then waited for the event to end. We didn’t get the results of the kid election for many days.

Evelyn being sworn in to the

NH Kid Executive Council

One of the things Mrs. Sununu told me when she was talking to us during the event was that no matter who won, we should all go on to do our service projects. So when it turned out that I didn’t win, after being really disappointed, I decided I still wanted to do my project.

Mrs. Weick and my classmates were super supportive even though Lola won with her “Anti-Animal-Abuse” campaign. They helped me make posters for a winter clothing drive and put out donation boxes! Honestly my classmates seemed even more determined to go through with the plan than I was! 

When the clothing drive ended, my classmates and I had collected over 700 pieces of winter clothing, most of them for kids and all in really great shape. The next thing we had to do was fold it and organize it all. Luckily, we got through that without any problems.

The next step was to load the clothes into my mom’s van, which we also got through with ease. Then my mom and I drove the items to the local folks in Laconia, which turned out to be at the Salvation Army. The folks at this Salvation Army were so friendly and appreciative that I asked if I could volunteer there in the summer to get more experience in this area.

Evelyn delivering donations from her clothing drive

New Hampshire's Kid Governor Lola's Inauguration

On January 18, 2019, Lola Giannelli was sworn-in as New Hampshire’s first Kid Governor by New Hampshire's Chief Justice Robert Lynn.

Lola is sworn in as the 2019 New Hampshire's Kid Governor

Kid Governor Lola then administered the oath to her Kid Executive Councilors Ben Vachon and Evelyn Ellis-Haines. Lola gave an empowering ceremonial address that captivated the students as well as the legislators in attendance.

During her year long term, Kid Governor Lola hopes to create after school programs where students help make toys for animal shelters, volunteer for the local animal shelter, and start a petition for New Hampshire to adopt a law similar to Bill AB485 passed in California that forbids pet stores from selling animals from mills.

The ceremony ended with an official State Senate resolution delivered by State Senator Cindy Rosenwald of Nashua. Afterwards, Kid Governor Lola and her Kid Executive Councilors held a press conference further discussing Lola’s platform.

All three students are very excited to begin their journey to help stop animal cruelty. Lola not only plans on tackling the issue of animal cruelty but also poverty, an important issue to Evelyn, in New Hampshire. Both plan on volunteering at local food shelters and creating a winter clothing drive to help those in poverty combat the cold.

The inauguration ceremony was made possible with support from the New Hampshire Institute of Politics, the NHKG Advisory Board, the New Hampshire Institute for Civics Education, participating schools, the Connecticut Democracy Center, Governor Chris Sununu, New Hampshire's First Lady Valerie Sununu, and the New Hampshire State House.

A very special thank you goes out to NHKG State Coordinator Luane Genest and NHICE President Martha Madsen for all of their hard work.

From left to right: NH Kid Executive Councilor Ben Vachon, NH Kid Governor Lola Giannelli, NH Kid Executive Councilor Evelyn Ellis-Haines at the 2019 Inauguration Ceremony