November 18, 2022
Letter from the Vice President: Introducing Keanna Lamont
Hello! My name is Keanna Lamont and I am one of the newly elected Vice Presidents of the Massachusetts Youth Leadership Foundation.
I was first introduced to the MYL Foundation when I attended the 2012 MassSTAR Conference as a sophomore representing North Reading High School. After my conference, I came back to my small town knowing there were other motivated and enthusiastic students my age who wanted to make a difference in their communities. Over the last 10 years, I have been fortunate enough to stay involved with the organization (never missing a conference!) and taking part in a number of MYL service and community events. I have served a variety of roles: as a junior facilitator, junior operator, and on our Conference Planning Committee, working mostly on the Recruitment Committee. In 2020, I joined Cristian Bedoya as a Conference Director. I returned as the sole Conference Director for our 2022 MassSTAR conference, excited to be back in person after our delay from COVID. Most recently, I have worked with Olivia Lavidor to help organize the 2022 Alumni BBQ, the Virtual Walk-A-Thon, and an upcoming December service event. Since 2019, I have gained a deeper understanding of the Foundation as I have served on the Board of Directors within my role as Conference Director. Throughout all of these positions, I have come to have a better appreciation of all the work that goes into planning and running the MassSTAR Conference, as well as the variety of events and fundraisers that we put on throughout the year to benefit the organization.
Professionally, I am a 5th grade teacher in Danvers, Massachusetts after receiving my Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Boston College in 2018 and 2020. I have continued to use lessons (and activities) from MYL within my daily teaching. MassSTAR has given me the confidence to stand up for what I believe in and push others to challenge their own ways of thinking. Being intentional in my daily life both professionally and personally, I try to incorporate the messages and beliefs of the organization in everything I do.
Through my continued involvement with the organization, I have been fortunate to make life-long friends, been inspired by the work of my peers, and become a part of a community of change-makers who want to make the world a more positive, accepting place. I was also lucky to have MassSTAR become a true family affair when my sister, Makenna, attended the conference in 2018. Part of the reason I return every year is to help bring delegates the empowering experience that I had, and seeing this firsthand through my sister has reinforced how important it is that we continue to spread our mission and values.
I cannot wait to see how we can grow our organization and its impact through the good work of our Board of Directors, Conference Planning Committee, and alumni who continue to live and share the organization with their communities. I would love to answer any other questions or talk about how the organization has impacted my life at keanna.lamont@massyouthleadership.org.
I was first introduced to the MYL Foundation when I attended the 2012 MassSTAR Conference as a sophomore representing North Reading High School. After my conference, I came back to my small town knowing there were other motivated and enthusiastic students my age who wanted to make a difference in their communities. Over the last 10 years, I have been fortunate enough to stay involved with the organization (never missing a conference!) and taking part in a number of MYL service and community events. I have served a variety of roles: as a junior facilitator, junior operator, and on our Conference Planning Committee, working mostly on the Recruitment Committee. In 2020, I joined Cristian Bedoya as a Conference Director. I returned as the sole Conference Director for our 2022 MassSTAR conference, excited to be back in person after our delay from COVID. Most recently, I have worked with Olivia Lavidor to help organize the 2022 Alumni BBQ, the Virtual Walk-A-Thon, and an upcoming December service event. Since 2019, I have gained a deeper understanding of the Foundation as I have served on the Board of Directors within my role as Conference Director. Throughout all of these positions, I have come to have a better appreciation of all the work that goes into planning and running the MassSTAR Conference, as well as the variety of events and fundraisers that we put on throughout the year to benefit the organization.
Professionally, I am a 5th grade teacher in Danvers, Massachusetts after receiving my Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Boston College in 2018 and 2020. I have continued to use lessons (and activities) from MYL within my daily teaching. MassSTAR has given me the confidence to stand up for what I believe in and push others to challenge their own ways of thinking. Being intentional in my daily life both professionally and personally, I try to incorporate the messages and beliefs of the organization in everything I do.
Through my continued involvement with the organization, I have been fortunate to make life-long friends, been inspired by the work of my peers, and become a part of a community of change-makers who want to make the world a more positive, accepting place. I was also lucky to have MassSTAR become a true family affair when my sister, Makenna, attended the conference in 2018. Part of the reason I return every year is to help bring delegates the empowering experience that I had, and seeing this firsthand through my sister has reinforced how important it is that we continue to spread our mission and values.
I cannot wait to see how we can grow our organization and its impact through the good work of our Board of Directors, Conference Planning Committee, and alumni who continue to live and share the organization with their communities. I would love to answer any other questions or talk about how the organization has impacted my life at keanna.lamont@massyouthleadership.org.
November 11, 2022
Letter from the Vice President: Introducing Olivia Lavidor
Hello! My name is Olivia Lavidor and I am one of the newly elected vice presidents of the Massachusetts Youth Leadership Foundation.
My story with the MYL Foundation starts similarly to many of us when I attended the 2016 MassSTAR Conference. From the get go, I knew how empowering and special the organization was to its budding leaders. I came back as a Junior Facilitator at the conference in 2017 and joined the Conference Planning Committee (CPC) the following year as the Director of In-Kind Donations. In 2019, I joined the Board of Directors as Co-Director of the Empowered Citizens Grant with Sean Flaherty (who was in my group at the 2016 conference!). During our 3 years in this position, we successfully mentored 4 alumni across the state, whose projects spanned from translation voting materials during the presidential election to executing public speaking workshops for local middle school students. For the 2022 conference, I transitioned to be Director of Senior Staff and began to work closely with our other new vice president, Keanna Lamont, who was serving as the Conference Director at the time. As Keanna and I witnessed the success of our teamwork during the conference, we used our excitement as momentum to plan the Alumni Barbecue this past summer and the Walk-a-Thon in October. I firmly believe that our partnership is a force of nature, and I look forward to seeing what it will bring us as we serve as the vice presidents of the Foundation.
In my everyday life, I perform virology research in the Harrison Lab at Harvard Medical School and in my free time I dog sit and volunteer at the Animal Rescue League in Boston. Part of what makes the Foundation so special is that the skills that I continue to develop are applicable to any path in life, including mine which may seem completely unrelated to leadership and citizenship. Being empowered to speak my mind as a female in a male-dominated field and lab is something that I take pride in. The introspection at the conference each year reminds me how I continue to grow as a person outside of my career and external expectations.
What brings me back to the Foundation is the family that I have found throughout my experience volunteering. From old friends, who were in and led my group during my conference, to new ones, including the 2022 delegates, I continue to be amazed by the community of dedicated individuals that support the organization. As Vice President, I hope to inspire current and future board members, CPC leaders, conference staff, and delegates to be dedicated to the mission of the foundation and inspired by each other.
If you have any questions for me or if you want to chat, please feel free to reach out to me at olivia.lavidor@massyouthleadership.org.
Stay outstanding and enthusiastic!
Olivia Lavidor
My story with the MYL Foundation starts similarly to many of us when I attended the 2016 MassSTAR Conference. From the get go, I knew how empowering and special the organization was to its budding leaders. I came back as a Junior Facilitator at the conference in 2017 and joined the Conference Planning Committee (CPC) the following year as the Director of In-Kind Donations. In 2019, I joined the Board of Directors as Co-Director of the Empowered Citizens Grant with Sean Flaherty (who was in my group at the 2016 conference!). During our 3 years in this position, we successfully mentored 4 alumni across the state, whose projects spanned from translation voting materials during the presidential election to executing public speaking workshops for local middle school students. For the 2022 conference, I transitioned to be Director of Senior Staff and began to work closely with our other new vice president, Keanna Lamont, who was serving as the Conference Director at the time. As Keanna and I witnessed the success of our teamwork during the conference, we used our excitement as momentum to plan the Alumni Barbecue this past summer and the Walk-a-Thon in October. I firmly believe that our partnership is a force of nature, and I look forward to seeing what it will bring us as we serve as the vice presidents of the Foundation.
In my everyday life, I perform virology research in the Harrison Lab at Harvard Medical School and in my free time I dog sit and volunteer at the Animal Rescue League in Boston. Part of what makes the Foundation so special is that the skills that I continue to develop are applicable to any path in life, including mine which may seem completely unrelated to leadership and citizenship. Being empowered to speak my mind as a female in a male-dominated field and lab is something that I take pride in. The introspection at the conference each year reminds me how I continue to grow as a person outside of my career and external expectations.
What brings me back to the Foundation is the family that I have found throughout my experience volunteering. From old friends, who were in and led my group during my conference, to new ones, including the 2022 delegates, I continue to be amazed by the community of dedicated individuals that support the organization. As Vice President, I hope to inspire current and future board members, CPC leaders, conference staff, and delegates to be dedicated to the mission of the foundation and inspired by each other.
If you have any questions for me or if you want to chat, please feel free to reach out to me at olivia.lavidor@massyouthleadership.org.
Stay outstanding and enthusiastic!
Olivia Lavidor
May 20, 2020 Newsletter
Dear MYL Family,
It is usually around this time of year that we work on perfecting our MassSTAR beat, brush up on the ferret cheer, and get ready to receive our new class of delegates for the MassSTAR Conference. While we will not get the chance to yell at the top of our lungs in the neighborhoods of Newton on an early Friday morning, we continue to promote citizenship and social connections in our communities as we move forward into the summer months. I am excited to share with you in this newsletter some of the ways MYL has and will continue to fulfill that mission over the coming weeks.
Alumni Virtual Service Event - May 30th at 1pm EST
One of the most impactful moments of the MassSTAR Conference is our community service fair as it is a time when we all come together to serve for a greater cause in our community. We wanted to continue the mission and spirit of the community service fair this year during the weekend of the conference. On Saturday, May 30th, we will be hosting a virtual service event for the MYL community where we will be preparing e-cards for care facilities in Massachusetts. Similar to the in-person event, we’ll spend time talking with each other and create greeting cards, encouraging signs, and other crafts. At the end of the event, we will be sending them to care facilities in Massachusetts. All alumni, family, and friends are invited to be part of this event. You can find more details of this event on our website. A link to Zoom will be posted on our Instagram and will be sent out via email as we get closer to the date.
Continuing to inspire change in our communities
I would like to congratulate Jessica Costas, our most recent recipient of the MYL Empowered Citizens Grant. Jess is 2015 alumna and currently finishing up a BFA in Theatre Education and a minor in Entrepreneurship at Emerson College. Jessica was awarded the grant for her work with Senior Theatre, a nonprofit she helped start that brings intergenerational programming for eldery communities. Senior Theatre placed second in Emerson’s Annual E3 Expo this past April and has already brought joy to some of the elderly communities in Jess’ area. Check out our website to learn more about the MYL Empower Citizenship Grant and see past winners and their projects.
'>It is usually around this time of year that we work on perfecting our MassSTAR beat, brush up on the ferret cheer, and get ready to receive our new class of delegates for the MassSTAR Conference. While we will not get the chance to yell at the top of our lungs in the neighborhoods of Newton on an early Friday morning, we continue to promote citizenship and social connections in our communities as we move forward into the summer months. I am excited to share with you in this newsletter some of the ways MYL has and will continue to fulfill that mission over the coming weeks.
Alumni Virtual Service Event - May 30th at 1pm EST
One of the most impactful moments of the MassSTAR Conference is our community service fair as it is a time when we all come together to serve for a greater cause in our community. We wanted to continue the mission and spirit of the community service fair this year during the weekend of the conference. On Saturday, May 30th, we will be hosting a virtual service event for the MYL community where we will be preparing e-cards for care facilities in Massachusetts. Similar to the in-person event, we’ll spend time talking with each other and create greeting cards, encouraging signs, and other crafts. At the end of the event, we will be sending them to care facilities in Massachusetts. All alumni, family, and friends are invited to be part of this event. You can find more details of this event on our website. A link to Zoom will be posted on our Instagram and will be sent out via email as we get closer to the date.
Continuing to inspire change in our communities
I would like to congratulate Jessica Costas, our most recent recipient of the MYL Empowered Citizens Grant. Jess is 2015 alumna and currently finishing up a BFA in Theatre Education and a minor in Entrepreneurship at Emerson College. Jessica was awarded the grant for her work with Senior Theatre, a nonprofit she helped start that brings intergenerational programming for eldery communities. Senior Theatre placed second in Emerson’s Annual E3 Expo this past April and has already brought joy to some of the elderly communities in Jess’ area. Check out our website to learn more about the MYL Empower Citizenship Grant and see past winners and their projects.
Welcoming our new Director of Development
It is with great pleasure to introduce Jam Sulahry, Director of Development, to our Board of Directors. Jam graduated from Boston College in 2017 and is currently working as a Senior Business Analyst at Kearney in Chicago. He will be working with the rest of the Board to continue expanding our fundraising efforts so that we may continue to provide enriching leadership programs to young adults across Massachusetts. Jam first became involved with MYL through word-of-mouth. He was never a delegate, but the missions of the MYL Foundation and the MassSTAR Conference strongly resonated with him. He has been an outstanding leader in his community and has led several initiatives, including a service project to raise money for a school in Indonesia through the Fulbright Program.
Stay connected
We continue to showcase our fantastic alumni through our Alumni Spotlight on our website. Make sure to follow us @massyouthleadership on Instagram and tune in today to catch Olivia Lavidor ‘16 for this week’s Alumni Instagram Takeover. Finally, catch us next Wednesday at 9pm EST for our next featured guest on our Alumni Interview Series.
As we navigate these uncertain times, it is important to keep in mind that we are all in this together. We may not be able to dance to our favorite songs at the MassSTAR social, but I hope you are still gettin’ down and living on the energy and lessons of the conference at home. I hope to see you during our virtual service event. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me for more information.
Warm Regards,
Cristian Bedoya
President, Massachusetts Youth Leadership Foundation
It is with great pleasure to introduce Jam Sulahry, Director of Development, to our Board of Directors. Jam graduated from Boston College in 2017 and is currently working as a Senior Business Analyst at Kearney in Chicago. He will be working with the rest of the Board to continue expanding our fundraising efforts so that we may continue to provide enriching leadership programs to young adults across Massachusetts. Jam first became involved with MYL through word-of-mouth. He was never a delegate, but the missions of the MYL Foundation and the MassSTAR Conference strongly resonated with him. He has been an outstanding leader in his community and has led several initiatives, including a service project to raise money for a school in Indonesia through the Fulbright Program.
Stay connected
We continue to showcase our fantastic alumni through our Alumni Spotlight on our website. Make sure to follow us @massyouthleadership on Instagram and tune in today to catch Olivia Lavidor ‘16 for this week’s Alumni Instagram Takeover. Finally, catch us next Wednesday at 9pm EST for our next featured guest on our Alumni Interview Series.
As we navigate these uncertain times, it is important to keep in mind that we are all in this together. We may not be able to dance to our favorite songs at the MassSTAR social, but I hope you are still gettin’ down and living on the energy and lessons of the conference at home. I hope to see you during our virtual service event. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me for more information.
Warm Regards,
Cristian Bedoya
President, Massachusetts Youth Leadership Foundation