On Friday, the Gentry High School Chick-fil-A Student Leadership Team presented its annual Do Good December Impact Project and as part of their effort, impacted the lives of two local favorites, McKenzy Blackwell of Indianola and Ashley Drisdale and her family of Sunflower.
The Do Good December project is an extension of the Chick-fil-A Leader Academy and the Gentry team has been active for at least the past three years.
The Academy is a national program that encourages high school students to give back and do something good in their communities.
Friday’s recipients were presented with not only material gifts and gestures of love but also warm embraces and smiles that further conveyed how much the community stands in support of them.
Gentry High graduate Kyle Pernell addressed the gathering and offered encouragement based on schooling he stated that was learned from Sponge Bob. Using the fictional cartoon character as a jumping-off point, Pernell said, “There are some lessons to learn through SpongeBob.”
He said as a child watching the TV show, he admired the sea creature’s enthusiasm, his eagerness and excitement for the day's journey. “No matter how triumphant it was, no matter how trivial it was, he would always say, I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready,” said Pernell.
He told the listeners that life is filled with rain as well as sunshine.
“No matter how gloomy your situation seems or appears, develop the attitude of Sponge Bob.”
Pernell said he uses that philosophy to steer his life.
“No matter what I have to face, I’m ready. There’s a lion in me, there’s a champion in me, (and) I am undefeated. I can’t lose and I won’t lose… I’m ready,” he roared.
He then challenged the crowd to adopt a likewise attitude and attempted to further demonstrate the need for resilience by sharing a story about one of his first-grade experiences.
He told of a blow-up dummy that the teacher had in the classroom and no matter from which direction he hit it to knock it down, the dummy kept bouncing back up, so he asked the teacher what was wrong and why the dummy would not stay down. She had a thought-provoking reply.
The teacher told the first-grader, “The reason why he can’t fall is because there is something on the inside.”
In Pernell’s closing pronouncement, he told the audience, “And there is something inside of you that won’t let you fall. Life may try to knock you down, but get back up,” he said.
Chick-fil-A Leader Academy is a national high school leadership program focused on impacting through actions.
A statement on their website reads, “The world needs more leaders who impact their local communities, and we believe high school students are the answer.”
