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Rustler Insight: Being an Ambassador

Rustler Insight: Being an Ambassador

This year has been a crazy one, to say the least, but something that has been consistent is the relentless work the student ambassadors have put in.  This fall semester has been complicated for students to reach out to the community to help.  However, the student ambassadors have worked hard to assist the city in any way they can.  The students have had one-hour to two-hour meetings every week to keep their volunteer schedule steady.  The students have also put together story maps to summarize the work they have put in over the term.  

A student ambassador is a role that 18-ish students play on campus.  These students are the face of the school and earn a large scholarship for the community service hours they put in, as well as all the effort and energy they put in to keep campus activities running smoothly.  These students help with on-campus activities and off-campus service.  In previous years students have worked sports events, fall festivals, graduation, P.A.W.S, BBBS, and many more organizations in any way possible to help people in need or if an event needs an extra hand.  These students fundraise for groups as well to help take off the large load in difficult times.

One of the first activities the ambassadors helped in, and are continuing to assist in is the health screening station located in the HS Center, Pro-Tech, I-Tech, Equine, Lander, AS Center, and the Jackson location.  These tables are where any visitors, staff, or students visit first before entering to ensure they are healthy and free from any illnesses.  With the help of these students, everyone on campus is protected and is continuing to be protected.  

The second large activity on campus was ushering for the play Everyman.  This one hour show was hosted by Joey West of the theater and was presented in late September.  This show was in desperate need of ushers to ensure everyone had their health screen beforehand, had masks, and was sat six feet apart from groups to ensure the visitors and actors were safe during the performance.  The ambassadors had a short half-hour training beforehand so they knew their designated jobs.  The next performance the ambassadors will help will be November 12th-15th showing Little Woman.

 

Now it’s time to share my favorite activity to date.  RPD, Casper FBI, and Chuck Carr recruited ambassadors to participate in a training hostage scenario at Gardens North Park in Riverton.  This was the most amazing experience I have ever been a part of.  The first scenario featured a husband and wife arguing and yelling, so the neighbors called the police.  The ambassadors played daughter and her boyfriend, as well as mom’s best friend when the training officers arrived they got on a megaphone to ask what was going on, and the husband shot at the officers with a training gun.  Domestic violence escalated in the house and the negotiators were working hard to calm the husband down.  The ambassadors played their part and yelled in the background and escaped from the house safely while the professionals finished the scenario inside the house.  It was so amazing to see how this skit was performed, and how it is nothing like the movies.  It was a very long process, 5 ½ hours total for the entire drama to be finished.  There is a lot of negotiating, including medicine, toys, and hot domino’s pizza (we ate it while hostage).  It was such an amazing experience that will be with me for a long time.  After the whole experience was complete, the whole team consisting of about 20 people ate some more pizza and chatted on how the trainees could improve, and what they should do next time when faced with the same situation.

Being an ambassador is a rewarding experience and I get to help a community that I have grown up in and love. ”

I like to see the recipients face after doing a wonderful job that really helps people who need it.  Even if you aren’t an ambassador, I suggest volunteering every once in a while, it shows you care and want to put work into a community that may be in a tough place.