BY ROGER SMITH
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
INEZ — At Martin County High School, the FCCLA Chapter transformed their school year into an “Ultimate Journey.” Under the guidance of their adviser, Connie Harless, students shared a snapshot of their leadership, competition and community impact with the Kiwanis Club during a luncheon Thursday at Masterpiece Kitchen & Café.
“I’m proud of my students,” Harless said. “They work hard.”
Dovie Harless emerged from the Kentucky Leadership Conference as the new state vice president of membership for 2024-2025. Alongside Levi Howell, she clinched second place in the Chapter in Review project. Abigail Osborne also secured a second-place finish with her Entrepreneurship project.
These students are eligible to compete at the national level in Seattle this summer. Dovie Harless will be part of the Kentucky state officer team that will help with the National Leadership Conference.
Dovie Harless and Howell presented a PowerPoint review of the year. The chapter launched the 2023-2024 school year with a membership drive featuring daily events like guessing games, interactive challenges and a suicide prevention walk, ending in a celebratory banana split social.
Their community involvement included preparing a meal at Ronald McDonald House, which was funded by collecting pop tabs. They also donated snacks to the Ronald McDonald House, made hygiene baskets, and made various donations within the community, including blankets at the nursing home.
Darrian Jewell and Jaycee Maynard were standout competitors in the professional presentation category, focusing on organ donation.
The two showed the Kiwanis Club a laminated poster of their Healthy Way project—a research project through the University of Kentucky.
Connie Harless said the duo demonstrated the “healthy way” to apply for a grant to support organ donation.
“These two students worked hard,” Connie said. “They took this part of it and included it in a Star event, which was a professional presentation.”
Jewell left the Kiwanis members with something to think about: “One organ donor can save eight people’s lives.”