Making an Impact in Evolvement

Shazmeen Kamran, Arrowhead Park Early College High School

Hello, my name is Shazmeen Kamran. I am a freshman at Arrowhead Park Medical Academy, and this is my first year in Evolvement. In this past year I have participated in collecting support from the community, hosting a principal meeting, and running a virtual booth informing the community about Evolvement. But in this blog I’d like to share my experience in helping host a  24/7 Halloween Party.

On October 23, 2020 I participated in hosting a virtual Halloween Party for our school’s community to help spread awareness about 24/7 and use of tobacco in schools. Using Zoom, my fellow advocates and I planned and rehearsed for the event. We reached out to students about our party by texting our friends, family, and encouraged them to spread the word. Guests would listen to a short presentation about 24/7 and we’d ask them to fill out a support card to help us collect the opinion of the community, and some shared personal stories regarding tobacco use in school.  Afterwards, they would get to join festive activities such as charades, kahoot, pictionary, but the murder mystery was a huge hit among guests! We took turns running each booth, spreading awareness and enjoyed ourselves at the same time! It was a good experience for both us hosts and the guests!

This experience was great for me as it is my first year in Evolvement. We gained support cards for our campaign, which is really helpful for us to prove how serious tobacco use in schools is. Interacting with my fellow age group and getting to hear their thoughts and opinions on the issue was really eye-opening and insightful. Sharing the importance of tobacco use among students has a huge impact, because we are raising awareness in the community we are trying to help. As a first-time Evolver, this experience helped me build my public speaking skills, social skills, and understand my own personal opinion and value. The Evolvement community itself has such a positive impact on you, everyone is friendly and supportive! When I was preparing for the Halloween event, other Evolvers were there to help if I had questions, or was feeling nervous. Other youth should take on this passion regarding this issue because it will affect our lives and those around us. We can be the generation that will make the change. Evolvement has shown me that change is possible, and I choose to be part of it. I look forward to continuing to be a part of Evolvement, and help bring change to New Mexico.

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