The Members of Heroes and Cool Kids Take a Trip to BCC

Many students in PPHS are probably wondering where these students go every

time there is an announcement, “Any members in Heroes and Cool Kids attending the

trip report to the main lobby.” Some might even question what or who are the Heroes

and Cool Kids in the first place and their reasons for having such advantages to miss

boring and mundane classes. While some students conclude that these guys are going

somewhere fun and exciting, others just assume that they are leaving the school

building for no valid purposes. Well, as a member of Heroes and Cool Kids, I can surely

tell many of the skeptical students that we are heading to a place in search of knowledge

and realization on how to become a leader, a hero, a role model in the midst of the

“ignorant” society that we are living in today.

Every year, about three conferences are held in Bergen Community College

located in Paramus for the members of Heroes and Cool Kids to unite and discuss some

of the crucial topics such as sportsmanship, leadership, bullying, teasing, and respect

and bystander responsibility. Students from all different towns come together to listen to

the voices of young men delivering messages that have shaped and changed their

characters and perhaps their entire lives. When the students are grouped with four to six

other students, each must deliver a story or lesson that they have learned from their

personal and social experiences in the past. When the students are done sharing their

fine stories, one person representing each group has to stand up in front of the whole

audience to share his or her anecdote. When the student is done delivering the story, the

whole group evaluates the person’s speech, encouraging and applauding the student for

his or her bravery.

 The whole purpose of holding these meetings is not only to learn how to

become a leader or how to stand up and voice our thoughts and ideas in front of group

audiences but also to prepare ourselves for visits to our local elementary schools. After

each meeting at BCC, the Heroes and Cool Kids head towards to the schools where

younger students are. (For PPHS, we go to Lindbergh Elementary School) In our

visitations, we cover three of the main topics which are leadership and sportsmanship,

bullying, and drug and alcohol prevention. After the members finish delivering their

stories and experiences to the class, the whole group has a further discussion on the

major topics or even plays games.

The members of Heroes and Cool Kids actually spend their “precious” school

time to take a worthwhile trip to Bergen Community College. Although they attend only

three meetings per year, from them these guys are truly learning how to develop into

individuals who seek for uprightness and honesty and also achievements in our lives

and society.