Host Committee Press Release - On the heels of Charlotte’s “100 Day Out” marker from the 2012 Democratic National Convention, the Charlotte in 2012 Convention Host Committee, GenerationNation, and the EpiCentre hosted a very different kind of convention; in place of convention delegates, the children of Charlotte were in the spotlight.
Dubbed ‘KIDS CONVENTION 2012’, this event was a non-partisan family event aimed at educating the children of this community about the great civics lesson the 2012 convention provides. Roughly 1,000 people from the community attended including 500 children along with their parents and other family members. Children were invited to participate in a number of civic activities that were facilitated by about 100 teenage volunteers. Families gave back by bringing school supplies to donate to Freedom School Partners, a local youth organization offering summer enrichment programs for scholars. Following are the activities in which the youth participated:
• Poster Decorating and Design:Kids decorated posters with a slogan or image that represents civic engagement.
• Mock Television Interviews:Kids participated in mock television interviews. The footage from these videos will be used to create a youth civic video.
• Kids Convention Voting: The Charlotte in 2012 marketing staff have two designs that will be used in their campaign to prepare the city for the 2012 Democratic National Convention. During the Kids Convention, youth voted on their favorite design that was announced during the program.
• National Convention Post Card Writing:Kids wrote welcome messages for convention volunteers that will be included in the gift bags that volunteers will receive during the convention.
• Wish for America:Students identified their wish for America and their community on cards that will be delivered to elected officials.
• “If I were Elected . . . ” Button Decorating:Kids decorated buttons with words or images that relate to their an issue of their choosing.
• Charlotte in 2012 Kid’s Cloud:Kids had their photo taken by Charlotte in 2012. The photos will make up a composite of faces that will be used to recreate the Charlotte in 2012 word cloud logo.
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