Pokeno Night at the Monticello Nursing Home, 1st and 3rd Thursdays of the month. 6:15pm till 7:30pm

Giving students adventurous opportunities while learning leadership and peer-interaction skills is the goal of Monticello High School’s new Venturing program.

Participants in the group had their first big trip last weekend when they went outdoor camping through North Wind Winter Adventures at Stearns Scout Camp near Annandale, MN.

By Meghan Gutzwiller, Monticello Times, 3/20/08

High school students have a lot on their plates. They face ever-increasing academic pressure as colleges seek out the best of the best applicants; they face the social pressures of cyber-bullying, gossiping and cliques, and they often juggle a myriad of activities, from athletics and clubs to part-time jobs. It is easy to see how giving back to others can sometimes get lost in all of the commotion, but for those involved in the school’s Venturing Club, volunteerism and community service play a leading role in their busy lives.

Venturing Club is a youth development program founded by the Boy Scouts of America that helps students gain leadership skills and fosters personal growth through community service projects. After its launch in 1998, the Venturing Club quickly became the fastest growing scouts program, with over 288,000 boys and girls involved nationwide by the end of 2003. The program at Monticello High School began in 2003 with eight students; the club is now 150 members strong.

Former principal Pam Ringstad brought the Venturing program to MHS in 2003 and began looking for teachers to help run the program. The club immediately piqued the interest of Barb Hadfield, a math teacher at the high school.

“What’s neat about being in Venturing is you can be in other activities. It’s an activity where you can pick and choose when you are available to help out,” Hadfield said. “It really picks up a wide variety of students.”

Although the Venturing Club has taken part in a variety of service projects, there are a few that are especially close to their hearts. Students particularly enjoy working with elderly citizens in the community and trick-or-treating for the food shelf each Halloween.

Another special project they are involved in is working at a packaging plant for the non-profit organization Feed my Starving Children, which was started by a Minnesota businessman. Three times a year, the students spend the evening packaging a nutrient-rich mixture of rice, soy protein and dehydrated vegetables, a formula that was designed to save the lives of severely malnourished and starving children. The food is then shipped to some of the world’s most poverty-stricken countries for children to eat. The last time the group went they made 24,000 meals.

“It’s amazing the good feelings that come out of it,” Hadfield said. “A lot of the kids continue to come in (to package food) on their own.”

One Venturing Club student, Grace Fair, says the club helps students who want to get involved in the community but don’t always know how.

“Venturing Club gives them the opportunity to help out while doing things that they enjoy,” said Fair. “It has gotten me very involved and has given me a lot of different experiences. “And,” she added, “Mrs. Hadfield is great.”

Hadfield said that one of the best things about Venturing Club is the positive impact it makes on the students’ lives.

“When they do something for other people, it makes them forget about any problems they have. It makes them feel good inside,” Hadfield said. “I think that’s one of the keys to healthy mental health in adolescents.”

Although the focus of Venturing Club is on service, they don’t forget about the fun and games. According to Hadfield, the name “Venturing Club” actually came from the Boy Scouts’ desire for students to not only do community service projects, but to have fun with each other and be adventurous. To accomplish this, each year the group has a lock-in skiing night at Buck Hill, where the students ski from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. They also take in a Twins game as a group each year and have taken a trip to the Boundary Waters. Other fun events the group has held include a sledding party, boccie ball tournament and a trip to Valley Fair.

Looking toward the future, Hadfield said the Venturing Club wants to continue their work tutoring at-risk middle school students and expand their services at the nursing home. Students will soon be going to the nursing home to teach seniors to use the video game Nintendo Wii. They also plan to start volunteering at Feed my Starving Children once per month rather than their current schedule of three times per year.

Through these projects and the many others Venturing Club has taken part in, these 150 busy high school students are learning first-hand the joy of giving back and making a difference in our community and world, Hadfield said.