Member Spotlight: Kathy Campanelli
It all began at a wedding shower. They were looking for a school to conduct the Dream It, Be It program, and so, the collaboration between SI/Brea/La Habra, SI/Huntington Beach (both of Desert Coast Region), and El Camino Real High School began.
El Camino Real High School had the perfect setting for our Dream It, Be It program, offering a women’s study class. We worked with the school to further educate them on our Soroptimist programs and SI/Brea/La Habra began in-classroom sessions with the girls shortly after.
The program’s success was immediate. The girls in the class showed up and participated. All was well until March 2020, when in-person sessions were discontinued due to Covid-19. Not wanting to stop the program, we pivoted to offer the Dream It, Be It program via Zoom. Together, both clubs collaborated and developed a program using some of SIA's online resources and some SI/Huntington Beach's modified sessions. El Camino Real was receptive and since that time we have presented three complete programs.
The success and impact of the program led to both clubs collaborating with El Camino High School to host an in-person mini conference scheduled for April 23, 2022. In addition, as a result of the clubs’ Dream It, Be It partnership with El Camino Real High School, two Soroptimists—Kathy Campanelli of SI/Brea/La Habra and Terry Rose of SI/Huntington Beach—were selected as Placentia Yorba Linda Unified School District (PYLUSD) Community Honorees for 2022. They were each nominated by the host teacher, Christine Bonner, and school principal, Carey Aiello.
The two Soroptimists received the following email from the school:
“Thank you so much for bringing Dream It, Be It to El Camino Real High School. Even with the challenges presented by Covid-19, student feedback reveals the value and impact of the program. We are delighted to share that we have selected the two of you as PYLUSD Community Honorees for 2022. This is among only a few times in the history of the school we have been fortunate enough to build a meaningful partnership. We would be honored if you would join us at the Valencia High School Auditorium on May 10 at 6:30 pm for special recognition by district leadership and the Board of Education.”
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