The Wiregrass Ranch High School (WRHS) Key Club once again participated in the yearly Key Club Kickoff Conference (KCKC) on Saturday, September 23 to train members and discuss the upcoming school year.

KCKC starts off the Key Club year with leadership workshops, mingling between clubs, and the announcement of the District Convention (DCON) theme. WRHS Key Club President and senior Elli O’Shay, who has attended this event before, couldn’t wait for this year.”I was excited for all the new members to see what our club is all about,” O’Shay said. “Meeting Key Clubbers from other schools is also a fun part of conferences.”

The workshops held at KCKC are full of useful information so that members and leaders know what their roles are in the club. The first one participants attend is based on your position, meaning a secretary would attend the secretary workshop, members would attend the member workshop, etc… The second workshop is based on whichever topics members would like to learn more about, some of which are scholarships, fundraising, and partner organizations.

Since this is the first major Key Club event of the year, it is a big learning experience for anyone. Sophomore Gianna Picarelli, the WRHS Key Club Treasurer, attended KCKC for the first time on Saturday.

“The workshops and officer training that we got to do are definitely going to help me become a better leader,” Picarelli said. “Not only is KCKC helpful for my officer position this year, but it’s helpful to my future in Key Club.”

In addition, WRHS had the largest participation of any school in it’s zone (zone M) this year with 22 members in attendance, most of them new to the club. Advisor Gerard Sukhram was excited to see the number of students participating.

“When I started here, I worked hard to make sure that our Key Club would grow and compete with the other clubs in the region,” Sukhram said. “Now our board is full of amazing leaders who are passionate about inspiring others to serve. I couldn’t wait to bring a huge group of Bulls to the conference to show other clubs how much we’ve evolved in such a short time.”

One of the biggest aspects of Key Club that is encouraged at KCKC is motivation to serve the community. Sukhram believes that this conference is really inspiring to new or inactive members.

“We learn best and improve ourselves by being surrounded by others who are passionate about the same things we are,” Sukhram said. “KCKC gives WRHS students a chance to meet other students who are also passionate about serving their communities.”