Inspiring, Educational, Compassionate, Energizing, Enthusiastic, Motivating, Transforming, Long-Lasting, and Life-Changing

These are some of the words that students, schools, parents, alumni, volunteers and supporters use to describe Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY). Founded in 1958, HOBY’s mission is to inspire and develop our global community of youth and volunteers to a life dedicated to leadership, service and innovation. HOBY programs are conducted annually throughout the United States, serving local and international high school students.

HOBY programs provide youth selected by their schools to participate in unique leadership training, service-learning and motivation-building experiences. Today, over 375,000 proud alumni make HOBY stronger than ever. HOBY alumni are leaders in their schools and communities, throughout the United States and the world, making a difference for others through service.

The Home Representative Club, who has sponsored this program for over 20 years, is excited to announce the winner of this year's HOBY Leadership Award. Maggie Yelley, the daughter of Bill Yelley and Kathy Yelley has been selected as the outstanding sophomore for the class of 2017. Maggie has shown amazing leadership potential and for her admirable qualities, Maggie has won a paid weekend leadership retreat provided by the Home Representative Club of Collinsville. This leadership retreat will be held at the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond where she will have the opportunity to participate in hands-on leadership activities, meet leaders in her state, and explore her own personal leadership skills while learning how to lead others and make a positive impact in her community. Maggie will also participate in a hands on community service project during her weekend stay. She will be encouraged to develop critical thinking skills and be given the opportunity to ask pertinent questions of today's leaders so she can emerge as one of tomorrow's leaders.

Maggie was presented with a plaque by HRC member, Rusti Howard at the Collinsville High School on April 13, 2015. Watching Maggie receive this prestigious award was HRC Member Carolyn Brinkley, CHS Principal, Jon Coleman, CHS staff, Ted Wright and Maggie’s mother, Kathy. On behalf of the Home Representative Club, congratulations to Maggie Yelley, the 2015 Outstanding Sophomore and thank you to the Collinsville High School staff, Jon Coleman and Chasity Coulter and Dawn Martinez for their assistance with this award. If you are an incoming sophomore for the Fall 2015 school year and you are interested in this prestigious award please contact the Sophomore Guidance Counselor, Dawn Martinez by September 1, 2015.

What Leaders are saying about HOBY:

Ted Turner, Chairman, Turner Broadcasting Systems:
“You know, we business people like to say we’re driven by the bottom line. The real bottom line is the future, and we owe it to our youth to prepare them for that. Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY) does just that. By promoting leadership, HOBY is building a corps of young people who will be prepared to meet the challenges facing future generations.”

Muhammad Ali, Olympic Gold Medalist and Heavyweight Boxing Champion:
"In this world, success comes to those with confidence and faith in themselves. Hugh O’Brian’s youth organization is the GREATEST in developing that confidence in outstanding 10th graders selected annually to represent over 13,500 public and private high schools at one of HOBY’s leadership seminars. What an outstanding role model for our future!”

Colin L. Powell, Former United States Secretary of State:
"The mission of America’s Promise is to equip the next generation of Americans with the character and competence they need to be successful adults. Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY) is one of our staunch allies in this crusade... HOBY is encouraging each of the thousands of high school sophomores who attend these leadership seminars to volunteer at least a hundred hours a year to a community service project. The HOBY commitment to America’s Promise will produce at least 1,400,000 volunteer service hours a year.”

Once again, the club has tickets available for Quick Trip gas certificates - coinciding with the June 13 Hogs & Hot Rods celebration. - check with any member for purchase.

--Submitted by Linda Pfeffer (4/10/2015)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Senate Update by Sen. Rick Brinkley

Some 44 states have acted to address the dangers of texting while driving. After several failed attempts in previous sessions, it looks as though efforts to ban texting while behind the wheel in Oklahoma may finally succeed. This past week, the full Senate gave its approval to a House measure to try and address this growing problem. The debate was passionate as members addressed their support for the bill.

One of our freshmen members, Senator Ervin Yen, shared his personal experiences that had led him to support texting legislation. As an anesthesiologist, he is often part of a medical team that performs heart transplants. Senator Yen said in recent years he’d had two patients receive heart transplants from donors who had been involved in single-car accidents caused by texting and driving.

But the person texting isn’t always the one hurt. It was just this past January that Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Nicholas Dees was killed while working an accident scene, struck by a driver who was allegedly updating his social media page at the time of the collision. A new law can help us better address the problem, but many drivers, particularly teen drivers may not find that convincing enough to change their behavior.

You can share statistics, and talk about the dangers with your children or grandchildren. You can explain a new law will mean consequences if they are caught texting while driving. They may nod their heads in agreement while continuing to text a friend or check their Facebook page. But for the “plugged-in” generation, I’d like to recommend some powerful testimonials on YouTube. I would urge you to sit down and view some of them with your children or grandchildren, or just look at the videos for yourself. There’s one about an 18-year-old Maryland teen. Beautiful, blonde and popular, she was a good student and described herself as a role model.

But she also admits she was addicted to her phone, constantly texting her friends and checking or updating her social media. In the seconds it took Liz Marks to glance at a text from her mother, she crashed into a truck that was waiting to turn left. Liz is now blind in one eye, has significant hearing loss and no longer has a sense of smell. Her beautiful face is now severely disfigured. You can watch her story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7911kgJJZc

Or watch the story of Aimee Eckert. Six months pregnant and driving to meet with friends, she was struck head-on by a woman who was driving more than twice the legal speed limit while texting. Most of the bones in Aimee’s body were broken, and the baby boy she had been carrying died. Eventually one of Aimee’s legs had to be amputated below the knee. All because someone else didn’t thing texting while driving was a problem. You can watch Aimee’s story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZHRyk4AbFw

Although these tragedies took place in other states, there are far too many accidents that have occurred right here in Oklahoma due to texting while driving. If you or your children still aren’t convinced that it isn’t a big deal, please take a few minutes to watch these videos. These powerful images paint an unflinching picture of why we are on the verge of enacting a new law in our state.

As always, please feel free to contact me at the state Capitol by calling (405) 521-5566 or by emailing brinkley@oksenate.gov.

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