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Sylvia R. Longoria Sylvia R. Longoria's column is published Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. She can be contacted at longorias@caller.com. Thursday, April 27, 2000 Teen leaders learn skills, help childLeadership group plans Cole Park benefit concert
Despite considerable planning, a lot of legwork and some serious delegating of committee duties, some unexpected challenges cropped up along the way. For instance, students learned that because the program is affiliated with the county and not the city, Cole Park rental fees could not be waived. Then came some good news; Maggie Guscott, a Teen Leadership mentor, and her husband, covered the $320 park fee for the benefit concert, scheduled for 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. It has been a learning experience, said Benton, a 16-year-old Carroll High School sophomore. But through it all, he and his 19 classmates remain committed to a promise made to help Taylor Berry, a boy diagnosed last year with restrictive cardio myopathy, a rare condition now necessitating a heart transplant.
"Sure, we've had some last-minute problems," said Benton, who is leading Saturday's fund-raiser. "But can you think of a worthier cause than this little boy? I mean, it just touches your heart. And that's why no matter what, I'll go down kicking seeing this through." Learning leadership It's that determination that impressed Guscott, who said planning the Taylor benefit has provided a prime opportunity for students to use the leadership skills that Teen Leadership nurtures. Teen Leadership is a 10-week course, held at Del Mar College, that promotes self-confidence and leadership among youths ages 15 to 18. The program is sponsored by the Teen Leadership Advisory Committee in partnership with the Texas A&M Agricultural Extension Service and involves a community service project. "Benton has never wavered about this benefit for a minute," said Guscott, special projects coordinator with the Port Aransas Park and Recreation Department. "He's done an excellent job of getting the most important thing nailed down. When you do something of this scale, you need to know what the core of the event is, and in this case, it's the musical groups. Getting that coordinated took tremendous leadership skill." The benefit, Benton said, will feature high school musicians, including his own rock band, Poseidon, all performing for free. It'll also feature a moonwalk, face painting, a dunking booth and more. A new outlook Bambi Cunningham, an administrative assistant at a local bank and former neighbor of the Berrys, said the outpouring of local support for Taylor and the upcoming fund-raiser have changed her outlook on Corpus Christi. "Just when I was thinking negatively about the direction that this city was going, this happens and totally turns my thought around," Cunningham said. "These young people have taken it upon themselves to meet a monetary goal to help a child they've never met. It has reinstated my hope in humanity." Taylor is now at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston, expected to undergo heart transplant surgery within 30 to 45 days, said the boy's mother, Tamara Berry. It hasn't been easy, but thoughts of Taylor keep Benton and his group going. "There are some nice people out there and some with cold hearts. As for me, I can feel the need that this family has. It's going to take an astronomical amount of money for the surgery, living expenses in Houston, the medications he'll need for life. Every penny will help, and that's why I'm glad to fund-raise for him." 
© 2000 Corpus Christi Caller Times, a Scripps Howard newspaper. All rights reserved. |
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