Emma Baltzersen '24
Staff Writer
Suncoast Aqua Ventures will host a shore clean-up with the RHS chapter of FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) the first weekend in October at the Bradenton Yacht Club. Trash will be collected from the reefs, mangroves, and beaches of Bradenton and Sarasota. Anyone can come and bring a friend to this event to have fun and earn community service hours. The event will start Saturday, October 2nd at 8 am and Sunday, October 3rd at 6 pm.
The Future Business Leaders of America is a national organization that prepares high school students for life. At Riverview High School the club organizes volunteer events and connects students with local businesses.
FBLA’s earlier efforts include local beach clean-ups, raising funds for the March of Dimes, and club events that raise money to attend district and national competitions. This year, they have more beach cleaning planned, and will continue to raise money for the March of Dimes. Students plan to volunteer with Mothers Helping Mothers as well as other groups.
Monthly beach clean-ups are open for anyone who needs service hours. They are currently scheduled on September 18th, October 16th, November 20th, December 18th, January 15th, February 19th, March 5th, April 9th, and May 14th. The club meets for the clean-ups at the main Siesta Key Beach parking lot. As a rule, beach cleaning starts at 8 or 9 a.m. and lasts an hour and a half.
FBLA also plans to help a Louisiana school demolished by Hurricane Ida. The Laureate Academy, started by an RHS graduate, needs supplies and donations to recover from the storm. They will be collecting non-perishable food, baby wipes, pet food, money, and other items for those in need.
Lea Hernandez Bower, the Secretary of FBLA, is grateful that she joined Future Business Leaders of America because she has “learned so much more about what being a business leader requires and has gotten much more involved in the community” around her. Lea “encourages people who are action-takers, need community service hours, and are interested in the business career field to join FBLA.”
