Hey everyone! My name is Sheyla and I’m a sophomore at Powhatan High School. This is my second year in Y Street and my first year on the Y Street Leadership Team. Y Street has had many successful campaigns that I’m proud to have been involved in. My favorite campaign is Rev Your Bev!

Rev Your Bev raises awareness on the importance of drinking water and the effects of consuming sugary beverages every day. Water makes up 70% of your body and helps in more ways than you could possibly know! H2O helps your body digest food and get rid of waste, keep your temperature stable, and carry nutrients throughout your body. Because water is so
important, a lack of it can cause blood thickening and kidney stones. Ouch!

As an athlete, this campaign has been more than just an educational opportunity. It has been a lifestyle overhaul! I remember a time when I was leaving my lacrosse game and I caught a cramp in both my calves. I realized I had sweet tea throughout the day and only one bottle of water. I needed to drink much more water.

I’ve made some easy tips and tricks to help you increase your water intake.

Sheyla’s Top 5 Tips To Staying Hydrated.

1. Trick your brain into drinking more water by using a refillable water bottle. Not only does it save the environment but it also makes you want to drink more because of how cute your water bottle is!

2. To know how much water you should drink, take your body weight, and divide it in half. That’s the amount of water in ounces you should drink a day.

3. Start slow. Switch out one sugary drink at a time until it becomes a habit. If you are used to having a sugary drink with every meal, for lunch, try switching out your beverage with water until it becomes routine. Then move on to dinner…

4. Infuse your water with cucumbers, strawberries, or any masterpiece you create!

5. Eat foods high in water such as lettuce, honeydew melon, watermelon, cabbage, and cantaloupe!

During these times, it’s especially important that we learn healthy habits. We’re all in this together, Y-Sters! For easy tips to drink more water every day, please visit RevYourBev.com.

Hi! My name is Jordyn and I am a senior at Caroline High School. I have been in Y Street for two years and this is my first year on the Y Street Leadership Team! Enjoying the great outdoors is one of my favorite activities and it can be rewarding for both people and our pets. In this post, I will talk more about our Share The Air campaign and how it is beneficial for us and our furry friends!

Share The Air is all about promoting tobacco-free and vapor-free outdoor spaces in Virginia to create healthier spaces for men, women, children, and even pets. Smoking and using e-cigarettes in public spaces releases toxic fumes which are extremely harmful. Exposure to secondhand smoke and vape aerosol makes pets susceptible to respiratory illnesses and multiple forms of cancer. Creating spaces that are tobacco-free and vapor-free would reduce these risks. It would also provide safe and healthy places for you and your pets to enjoy!

My dog and I love to play outside together. She loves rolling around in the grass and playing with toys. I like taking my dog out to play, but the possibility of her health being compromised is a little frightening. I want her to have a long healthy life. Share The Air is working to ensure that our public spaces are tobacco-free and e-cigarette-free to create a cleaner and healthier outdoor environment. I encourage you to learn more about this campaign by visiting ShareTheAirVA.com. You can also follow both Y Street and Share The Air on social media to show your support for tobacco-free and vapor-free outdoor spaces in Virginia!

Hello everyone! My name is Sydney and I am a rising senior at Potomac Senior High School. This is my third year in Y Street and my first year on the Y Street Leadership Team. I came into Y Street scared to use my voice, but I grew as a leader the more I got involved. Also, fellow Y-Sters helped me to feel more comfortable and make it easier. 

Y Street gives youth the opportunity to advocate and encourage others to improve their community and lifestyle. As you participate in this organization, you learn how the work you’re doing will not only benefit you but your school and community environment too. Through our Y Street campaigns such as the Share The Air and Rev Your Bev, we have come across opportunities to promote policy change within our school and community. Policy change can create a healthier school and community environment because it can positively influence people’s decisions and actions.

Since joining Y Street, I have promoted policy change for tobacco-free outdoor spaces across Virginia through Share The Air and helping my peers make healthier beverage choices in school through Rev Your Bev. To raise awareness, we have held events during school lunch shifts and even sporting games! Also, in our meetings, we have brainstormed ideas for future Y Street events and key decision-makers we should get in contact with.

Along the way, I have gotten questions and responses like, “Well we’re young, why does it matter right now? We have time.” As a youth, now is the time to work for change. These campaigns could make life better for generations to come. We have to be the change we want to see. Y Street gives us the platform and opportunities to make a difference, become more aware of issues we have the power to change, and better ourselves and our communities.

To learn more about how to become a part of the movement, visit YStreet.org. I hope you take the next step and join Y Street!

Hey! My name is Yvonne, and I am a rising senior at Granby High School. I have been a part of Y Street for two years now! At the end of the school year, I applied to be a part of the Y Street Leadership Team and, to my surprise, I was accepted! Usually, the staff on the team would get existing and new members of the Leadership Team together in Richmond to host a Summit. While in Richmond, there would be many interactive activities to prepare for the upcoming school year, including meeting with our local representatives, and (most importantly) getting to know everyone on the Leadership Team. However, this year the Y Street Leadership Team Summit was a little different. Because of the times we are in, having an in-person summit was not an option. So, we took advantage of Zoom, making this year the first-ever virtual summit. During the Summit week, we participated in various fun activities and talked in-depth about Y Street’s Share The Air and Rev Your Bev campaigns. We also used that time to talk about the expectations we have as leaders in Y Street. Each night during the summit week, we also joined social activities.

During this time, there was no talk about anything related to Y Street. This was the time we used to play games and get to know each other since we could not meet in-person. We played online group games, including my favorite, the virtual escape room!  Along with getting to know each other through the presented social activities, we also had ZOOMmates. If this summit were to be held in Richmond, each of us would be assigned a roommate, but since that could not happen, we had a ZOOMmate.

Each night, there was an activity that allowed us to talk with and learn about our ZOOMmate to get a deeper understanding of who they were. 
 
This Virtual Summit was more than I expected it to be. The staff at Y Street made this a memorable experience. I met a lot of ambitious, intelligent young people and also made a couple of new friends. Of course, it would have been nice to see everyone in person, but we had to make the best of it. Y Street Leadership Team is truly a fantastic opportunity to meet like minded people who want to make Virginia healthier.  To learn more about Y Street and the Leadership Team, visit YStreet.org.