Interact Insider | Issue 15

Interact IInsider nteract Insider

Issue IPreview ssue Preview

Intros District News

Interviews Area News Miscellaneous

Staff SIntros taff Intros

Julia Peng

Editor in Chief, she/her, 11th Grade, A5, Taurus

Hi! My name is Julia and I'll be one of the co-EICs this year:) I've served in MSJ Interact and A5 for three years, and I'm currently MSJ Interact Secretary and A5 Outreach Chair. Matcha and Gracie Abrams are my favorite things in the entire world, and I love watching Studio Ghibli movies<3 (Fun fact: I have a whale shark plushie named borg)

ulia

itor in Chief, e/her, 11th ade, A13, gittarius

Hi everyone, I'm Julia! This year I'm serving as a co-EIC with Julia Peng. Last year, I was the Area 13 Journalist. I'm also the Secretary at my home club (LAHS) <3 I love reading any genre of webcomics, manhwas, manga, etc. and I'm a casual anime/K pop enjoyer, hmu if you want to chat about anything!

Nanki Kaur Editor, she/her, 10th Grade, A4, Aquarius

Hey hey! My name is Nanki and I'm currently a sophomore at American High School. I love theatre, writing, photography, and music. I've been an Interactor for 3 years now, and I'm so excited to be able to further my Interact journey through newsletter this year, bringing together two of my greatest passions! If you ' re into Theatre or R&B, feel free to send me your playlists! :))

Joy Lee Editor, she/her, 10th Grade, A4, Cancer

y y e is Joy and I go to Newark Memorial High School! I play tennis and badminton so if you ever want to play lmk (im not that good so dw ;) Lastly, I love kdramas and fooddddd yumpz. I am so honored to be your editor this year and will work my best to help create many immersive newsletters for you guys!

Haylie Yee Graphics Head, she/her, 11th Grade, A7, Leo

Hey everyone! This is my first year in Interact so I'm excited to be a part of Interact Insider and spreading relevant news across the district. While I have little experience in Interact, I have experience in journalism and yearbook that I am excited to bring to Newsletter! Some of my hobbies include making birthday cards (as the designated art kid in my family) and doing taekwondo; I can kickbutt and draw! I LOVE minions, I hate math and that's all there really is to know about me :) I can't wait for a promising year with the Insider and please say hi, I'd love to make new friends!!

Aki Lam Graphics Coordinator, she/her, 12th Grade, A11, Taurus

Hi I’m Aki and I’m from Area 11! Some hobbies and things I like to do are dance, cross country, art, and computer drawings. Two fun facts about me is that I am left handed and I have 4 birds! I hate ginger and celery but I love rice, pho noodles, and fruit snacks.

Shaylyn Tran Graphics Coordinator, she/her, 11th Grade, A8, Scorpio

hi im shaylyn and i am so excited to be a part of the newsletter committee! interact has always intrigued me, and i have always wanted to play a bigger role. graphic design has become a new hobby of mine over the past year or two so i really want to improve and gain some more creativity with my designs. a fun fact about me is that im sort of a "band kid", dw i don't act like one (i hope), but i spend a lot of time into marching band and winter percussion. this year, i will try my best to be as efficient and flexible as i can when it comes to the newsletters. i can't wait to work with everyone!

Kayla

Coordinator, she/her, 12th Grade, A5, Pisces

Hello everyone!! I'll be working as one of your graphics coordinators this year :)) I'm also currently one of the co media directors for my home club (JFK represent

Some of my hobbies include watching anime, listening to music, journaling, and making fun Pinterest boards. Fun fact: Cute stickers are the way to my heart :0. I'm so excited to work with everyone! :D

Hui Ying Yu A1 Journalist, she/her, 11th Grade, A1, Sagittarius

I love to binge c dramas, play badminton, and listen to Genshin bgms <33

Le Journalist, /him, 10th ade, A2, ancer

Hi everybody! Im Nathan!! Fun fact, actually really really sad fact is that I can't swim.. Do what you want with that information! In addition to my fear of water, I really like the song "Oceans and Engines" By Niki and could go on and on about it.

da ow ournalist, her, 11th de, A3, ini

HELLOO EVERYONEE! i'm jada and am so so excited to be this year ' s area 3 journalist! my home club is dublin interact (shout out to my dublin board i love you guys!) and this is my 4th year as an interactor, despite only being a junior. i'm also an avid boba lover, diehard gilmore girls fan, and varsity jumper on my school's track and field team. if you need anyone for book recs or someone to belt showtunes out with you, i'm your gal and STREAM MIDNIGHTS BY TAYLOR SWIFT OUT OCTOBER 21 :)

Alana Weinstein A4 Journalist, she/her, 11th Grade, A4, Taurus

hi! i'm alana, and i'm a4's journalist this year! i'm also the events coordinator for both american high and for a4's assembly, but aside from interact, i also really enjoy dancing and performing which has led to me leading many dances (especially for our school's spirit weeks) and doing cheer at my school! a couple of random things about me is that i had a big (never ending) hamilton phase and i love niki (specifically her old albums), i can’t wait to work with the rest of the newsletter committee! <3

Kayla Espinosa A5 Journalist, she/her, 11th Grade, A5, Pisces

Hi everyone! My name is Kayla and I'm serving as your Area 5 journalist this year! Along with newsletter, I am also serving as Co President for JFK Interact and RVP's Western Division Fundraiser. In my free time, I love creating art, reading, and swimming. I also love trying out new food spots every now and then :) Fun fact(s): My favorite movie is La La Land and my favorite music artists are Taylor Swift and Niki! Interact is one of my second families and I am looking forward to expanding my passion for its mission through newsletter while working with everyone throughout the year! <3

Tiffany Hua A6 Journalist, she/her, 10th Grade, A6, Libra

HEY GUYS!!! this year, i will be YOUR area 6 journalist while also a dmc at piedmont hills! interact has been a big part of my life ever since middle school and i've made my happiest memories here, by jumping out of my comfort zone, helping others or just being with the people i love. whether it's school, interact, or other hobbies that i'm working on, you can always catch me listening to jazz, classical, or kpop music! i also LOVEE creating art, drinking boba, or watching shows like survivor, reply 1988, and alchemy of souls. if you need kdrama suggestions, I GOT YOU :D i cannot wait to see what this year and our talented committee holds for the newsletter :0

Calista Shih A7 Journalist, she/her, 10th Grade, A7, Cancer my second year in h school and I am r. Fun facts about me are that I do policy debate, I play piano and guitar, I love watching TV (especially kdramas), and I love all things disney! I also love interact and I am super excited to be your area 7 journalist this year!

is so it ng oy p, g , , ey, and especially Taylor Swift. I also love having random conversations with people about any hobby, interest, or passion! Lastly, something controversial about me is that I actually enjoy mint chocolate chip ice cream (my favorite is a good caramel ice cream, however). I hope this wasn’t too much reading, and I hope you, our Incredible Interactors, enjoy reading all the future Interact Insiders!! ;))

Amanda Le A9 Journalist, she/her, 11th Grade, A9, Gemini

Hey everyone! My name is Amanda (or manda) and I will be serving as the Area 9 journalist this year! : ) I love playing badminton and all types of flowers! Fun fact, I used to have a full head of ginger hair, but now I have gone back to black. I've always loved being a part of Interact and I'm super excited to be a part of Newsletter Committee this year! If you ever see me anywhere, make sure to say hi! <3

Hey everyone,

Sofia Guimaraes

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Khadeejah Khan A11 Journalist, she/her, 11th Grade, A11, Scorpio

ves to read and Henry Widjaja A12 Journalist, he/him, 11th Grade, A12, Taurus

Hey Interactors! I'm Henry, and I'm the Area 12 Journalist for this year. I'm a junior at Cupertino High School and am inspired to make the journal a true show of Interact's potential. I write on my own time and value making connections whenever I am able to. I aim to make Interact's journal as encompassing as possible. In my free time, I like to play cello!

Bau rnalist, em, 12th A13, Palo Alto

High School, representing District 13. I have three younger brothers and play too much soccer, oboe, and video games respectively. A fun fact about me... I've had two major surgeries but never broken a bone. I like sunflowers and hate tomatoes and I'm excited to be your area journalist this year!

District DNews istrict News

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Fall Leadership Conference 2022

By Calista Shih & Alana Weinstein Area 7 & 4

With October comes District 5170’s Fall Leadership Conference, and it’s no surprise that planning for such a huge event took a tremendous amount of time, effort, and energy from our very own Daybreak District Council. From coordinating the projects to making area shirts to writing out scripts, it was a long and hard process that paid off in the end. District Governor Mehreen Rosmon commented that planning FLC “took a crazy amount of work that you [couldn’t] put a number on ” and the most difficult part was executing the plan: “The hardest part is just doing it. Planning it is fine, but doing it is the hardest”. Her statements reflect the idea that making a plan is always simple. No matter how many

logistical challenges you face, your ideas will always stay intact. However, execution is the final step that could make or break all the work put into the process. Alternatively, district Secretary Alexandra Phan thought “the hardest part was planning out how to do

Though there were struggles planning the event, the District Council pulled through and gave us another amazing FLC. With a spirit rally, DC introductions, and project reveals, the event started off strong. Interactors then participated in four workshops, focused on building networking skills, teamwork, and community service knowledge. Area 4 Interactor Isabelle Sun commented that her “favorite part was the workshop relay race ” , while Area 7 Interactor Landon

Trinh said his “fa part was meetin people and ope his eyes to real problems in the reveals”. The eve ended with a big jeopardy-inspire competition bet all 13 areas (congratulations to area 10 for winning the D5170 spirit stick), and a bittersweet closing ceremony. When DC members were asked about their favorite part, Secretary Alexandra Phan and Co Events Coordinator Kylie Nguyen particularly enjoyed seeing how hyped and excited everyone was at the event. Web Coordinator Zahi Imaduddin kept it simple, saying “I love Interact. Interact is my life”.

As always, a major aspect of FLC was revealing the annual international and community projects. This year, DC’s project coordinators presented District 5170 with the Ripple Effect (international project) and Cultivating our Communities (community project). The Ripple Effect

focuses on providing clean water to those in need, and it is led by our International Project Coordinator, Ashley Yu. “We often take for granted that we focuses on providing clean water to those in need, and it is led by our International Project Coordinator, Ashley Yu. “We often take for granted that we have easy access to water...we forget how lucky we are to be able to have that,” Ashley stated. Partnering with Water 1st International, Interact supports the importance of the Ripple Effect. Additionally, Brenda Duong, our Community Project Coordinator, has created Cultivating our Communities, which works in collaboration with Martha’s Kitchen to combat food insecurity through providing food to those in need. Our project coordinators encourage Interactors to help out by

buying a project shirt, attending fundraisers, and donating to the projects whenever possible!

With FLC, the biggest district event of the year, over now, what comes next for District 5170? Although another districtwide, public event may not be coming up soon, many DC members still have goals for their Area or the District. Co Events Coordinator Kylie Nguyen hopes that “Area 8 remains the biggest, baddest, and the best area. ” Others, like Co-

Publicati Coordina Ho, wish our goal projects members Interact strong!” S general members, such as Candra Kou from Area 5, are excited to see “all of the service events and meet the people in Interact” throughout the year. Many attendees even considered this year ’ s conference to be more fun and interactive than previous years that they have attended as well. With FLC reaching new heights, Daybreak District Council and Interactors across the district have shown that they will rise to any challenge to light the way for yet another year putting service above themselves.

Area 1

Kevyn Sanchez

Q) What was your favorite part about FLC and why?

A) "Human bingo because it forces me to talk to people

Interviewer: Hui Ying Yu and it was fun to exchange socials."

Quyen Dong

Q) What are you looking forward to at FLC and why?

Alan Duong

Alan (left), Quyen (right)

A) "At FLC, I looked forward in seeing what projects we were gonna work on throughout the year towards to help people who are struggling around the world. I also looked forward to meeting new people and making friends."

Q) What was your most memorable experience of FLC in all the years you’ve attended?

A) "Out of the two years, I really enjoy seeing all of the creativity in all of the spirit gear. The most memorable experience at FLC was when I got to lead a whole group to face many challenges and it really challenged me to get out of my comfort zone. "

Q) What are you looking forward to at FLC and why?

Carissa Tran

A. “Learning about the new

Area 3 Interviewer: Jada Chow international and community projects and meeting so many new people!”

Q. What was your most memorable experience of FLC in all the years you’ve attended?

Q. What was your favorite part of FLC and why?

demonstrating the experiences of people in the world and having us experience what it’s like to live with disadvantages and get to learn from them.”

Jayden Solis

Q. What was your favorite part of FLC and why?

A. “The district council

Aaron Adamos Q. What was your favorite part of FLC and why?

A. “Immersing myself in the experience and meeting people from other schools”

Jeia So Q. What was the most rewarding part of seeing FLC happen?

A. "Seeing everyone fill up our part of the

bleachers and also in my workshop, whenever I saw someone from A3, we were like wooooo A3!”

Q. What do you hope Interactors take away from their experience at FLC?

A. “I hope they learn the main purpose of each of the workshops and overall become more comfortable with reaching out to new people, and one of the main purposes of FLC, like as whole, is to meet people across the district and get comfortable being out of your comfort zone. ”

Area 4

Interviewer: Alana Weinstein

Q. What was your favorite part of FLC?

Roman Young

A. "My favorite part of FLC was the ripple effect video and the community project videos. I thought they were really good and it made me want to learn more about the projects afterwards. I think the most memorable experience from both years was the area wave during the opening rally.”

A. "My favorite part of FLC was just meeting new people and doing activities that translated into leadership and teamwork since they led to characteristics that can be used in the real world.”

Alisa Agyare

Area 5

A. "My favorite part of FLC was the people bingo because I got to meet a lot of new friends.”

Interviewer: Kayla Espinosa

Emily Chen

Q. What was your favorite part of FLC?

Niki Dube

A. "My favorite part of FLC was probably the rally because it was my first in person rally and we had a lot of fun screaming and flashing flashlights”

Espinosa

A: “My favorite part of FLC was the rally as well because I got to learn new things and participate in the cheers.”

Area 6

Interviewer: Tiffany Hua

Anne Chen

Q. What are you looking forward to at FLC and why?

A. "Meeting all the Interactors from around the district!"

Q. What was your most memorable experience of FLC in all the years you’ve attended?

A. “I remember crying during my freshman year because of the project video.”

Kelly Ha

Q. What are you looking forward to at FLC and why?

A. “Definitely agree with Anne, since this is my last FLC, so I really want to make the most of it today. YAAAAAAY”

Kelly Ha (continued)

Q. What was your most memorable experience of FLC in all the years you’ve attended?

A. "I think for me, the projects were memorable too. I feel like they were so good, like the way they told the story and announced it was SO good. I was like, WWOOOOWW! THAT'S GOOOOD"

Andrea Nguyen

Q. What are you looking forward to at FLC and why?

A. "Definitely our new projects"

Q. What was your most memorable experience of FLC in all the years you’ve attended?

A. “This past FLC, at the beginning, when we all went into the gymand started mosh pitting.”

Kristina Huffman

Q. What was your favorite part of FLC and why?

A. “My favorite part of FLC was meeting very fun people, even though I

probably won't see them until next year, but it's OK because now I have their socials. And you know what, meeting new people is FUN."

Q. What was your most memorable experience of FLC in all the years you’ve attended?

A. “I feel like the most memorable one was last FLC, where there was this guy running around with his Instagram asking people to connect with him”

Area 7

Interviewer: Calista Shih

Sky Shih

Q. What was your favorite part of FLC?

A. My favorite part was seeing everyone together and so spirited; it felt like an actual community rather than just people coming together, especially when we were doing area chants and during the rally.

Sharon Kim

Q. What was your favorite part of FLC?

A. My favorite part of flc would have to be the high spirited rally. Starting off flc with

all hundreds of the other interact members cheering with excitement really fueled up the entire gym with energy, and the spirit was amazing. All of the different area representation was so fun to see, with all of their creative decorations and mascots.

Area 9

Interviewer: Amanda Le

Vied Angelo

Q. What was your favorite part of FLC?

A. Probably the rally, just everyone coming together and it’s been pretty fun seeing all the people cheering together.

Brian Molina

Q. Is this your first time at FLC and what is your favorite part of FLC so far?

A. Yes, this is my first time at FLC! The rally and everyone yelling was super cool. I loved meeting the rotarians and the people who support the projects.

Area 12

Interviewer: Henry Widjaja

Anchita Arora

Q: What is your favorite part of FLC?

"Meeting new people across areas! I've already met several new people from schools so much farther away and it's really nice to bring that gap of members closer together."

Q: What is your most memorable moment in FLC?

A: "I've attended FLC for 2 years, and my most memorable moment is when I walked into the gym for my first in person FLC. The energy was unmatched!"

Raima Falor

Q: What is your favorite part of FLC?

The rallies where we have time to show our area spirit!

Q: What is your most memorable moment in FLC?

When the IPC and CPC Intermunity projects were revealed last year. Those videos were very impactful and changed the way I thought about my community.

Area 13

Interviewer: Mars Bau

Sandhya Krishnan

Q. What was your favorite part of FLC?

"My favorite part of FLC was the Relaying the Way

workshop because it was really fun that we could work together with other interactors from different areas and it was really high paced because it was a competition."

Q. What was your most memorable experience of FLC in all the years you’ve attended?

A. "I think my most memorable experience was the project video from last year for RISE because watching it was really cool."

Simona Yau Chan

A. "The most rewarding part wa the Relaying the Way workshop. At first it was complicated because we weren't sure which direction we were going with, but after we pieced everything together, it was so nice to see a lot of interactors enjoying it."

A. it's an It's tog

Q. What was the most rewarding pa of seeing FLC happen?

Q. What do you hope Interactors take away from their experience at FLC?

Area ANews rea News

The Little MSaigon id-Autumn Festival

By Hui Ying Yu | Area 1

September 10th was no ordinary Saturday. From 3:00 7:00PM, Oakland’s Little Saigon Mid Autumn Festival took place at

Clinton Park. Organized by the Oakland Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce, the festival featured art activities, mooncakes, free lanterns, local vendors, and live Vietnamese cultural performances. Famous Vietnamese singers Trường Vũ and Vân Ânh Võ uplifted the crowd with their music, and delicious traditional snacks like otakotak and mung bean mooncakes were served at Mama Judy’s booth. With the

help of Interactors, groceries such as tomatoes, bok choy, and potatoes were sorted into bags to pass out to the community. Interactors also assisted with setting up tables and venues and brought food and other materials to the park.

The Mid-Autumn festival is a celebration of reunion, friends, and family, where everyone strengthens their bonds under the moonlight, sharing the beautiful night together. The Little Saigon Mid Autumn Festival perfectly encapsulates this meaning. It reinforces the unity of the community, bringing people of different generations and ethnic backgrounds together to celebrate an important part of Asian culture. This was something the Little Saigon community desperately needed with all the Asian hate crimes plaguing the city. Though many Interactors felt that moving heavy things was tiring, they persisted because it was something that could bring a sense of hope and happiness to the locals. One

Interactor found that the festival “riled up excitement.” Indeed, seeing all of the seniors crowd around the lantern booth contemplating which lantern to give their grandchildren, and all of their grandchildren running around with big smiles, made Interactors’ hearts full to the brim.

Octopi Power, Passion, and Packages!

By Tiffany Hua | Area 6

Ever since the school year has begun, many clubs have struggled with gaining more active members for their service events but not for Milpitas’s

Interact! On September 30, 60 members and officers came together on campus to help a local organization, Loaves and Fishes, package hygienic materials for those in need. Just one productive hour was enough for the volunteers to package a whopping 300 packages, which included shampoo, body wash, razors, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and deodorant! By now, you may wonder, “how did they

organize such a successful event so early in the year?” Well, thanks to the club’s officers and Marco, the Volunteer and Community Relations Manager, they were able to host the packaging event with a smaller group over the summer so they could better understand how to prepare and instruct the volunteers in the future. Club President Therese Sanchez also explained that she and the officers needed to allocate different group roles and “give out a lot of specific directions at the start of the event,” resulting in the event running really smoothly!

With an amazing board and passionate Interactors, it’s understandable how they have achieved so much in such a short amount of time. With genuine smiles, these volunteers represent what Interact is all about: serving their community while pou jumpstar

Prehistoric Past & Fossilized Future

By Sarah Bednarek | Area 8

Prehistoric Past

The slow integration of autumn and halloween creeps its way into our lives: replacing flowers with pumpkins, Starbucks Refreshers with Pumpkin Spice Lattes, and summer series for fall movies. For some, fall is planning halloween costumes, bringing out candles, and choosing which fuzzy socks to wear while watching comfort movies. For Silver Creek and Oak Grove High School, it’s Coraline movie night, boba, and more concessions. On Wednesday, October 19th, these two Area 8 schools came together to host a successful and satisfying crossover movie night at Silver Creek’s Raider Hall. It created the opportunity for interacting (wink wink)

wit sc oth ex of watching Coraline for the 5170th time.

Another noteable event was the Water Lantern Festival, which Santa Teresa and Oak Grove Interact attended and which occurred on Sunday, October 22nd from 2 to 10 PM at Almaden Lake Park. The long hours of this event provided volunteers with a cornucopia of opportunities to garner service hours, assist their community, and live out their Tangled fairytale. To continue the flow, don’t yet close your window to the autumn chill before the mention of movie nights and Santa Teresa (ST) Interact. On Friday, October 28th, ST Interact hosted mas movie night ering complimentary and boba bar.

SHedgehogs preading Love

By Amanda Le | Area 9

Live Oak InteractCecilia’s Closet As the school year starts to fly by, Interactors in Area 9 are continuing to spread love within their local communities. As

the year kicked off, Live Oak Interact hosted two service activities to help a local community called, “Cecilia's Closet and Food Pantry”. This local event helps families in need by providing them with food and clothing along with goodie bags for kids. At Live Oak Interact’s first service event, on September 20th, interactors created bracelets and placed them in goodie bags filled with sweets and stickers. The members of Live Oak Interact had beaming smiles as they made over 30

bracelets to donate to local families and their kids. The second service event, on October 11th, also made goodie bags filled with treats and toys, but this time for Halloween! Live Oak Interact made 100 goodie bags that will be handed out to each kid attending Cecilia’s Closet’s annual Halloween “Costumes for Children'' event. At this annual event, Cecilia’s Closet gives out hundreds of free Halloween costumes to children all over the South Bay. Lastly, Live Oak Interact introduced its first volunteer opportunity of the year! At this volunteer opportunity, volunteers will be able to help families choose costumes for their kids and set up the event with Cecilia’s Closet. Small service events like these, help members have fun while making a positive impact on our local communities. :) Keeping up with Area 9 Christopher Interact, Sunrise Interact, Gilroy Interact, and Oakwood Interact started off the year with their first club

meetings! Oakwood Interact mentioned they will also be working with Cecilia’s Closet in the future. I’m excited to see how my fellow hedgehogs will help put a smile on our local communities and families throughout the year!

A Treat from October: the SVHS’ Book Drive

By Sofia Guimaraes | Area 10

From October 17 to 28, the Interact Club at Scotts Valley High School hosted a book drive. Students were encouraged to bring in gently used books for readers of any age range, and the donations went toward benefitting the Friends of the Santa Cruz Public Library (FSCPL). FSCPL has been a beloved part of the Santa Cruz community since 1979. It began as a grassroots initiative and quickly grew to hold 500 members in just a few short years. The organization is known as an “advocate, fundraiser, partner, and champion for [the] local library system.” Currently, active Rotarian, Marc Winquist, is a part of the board of directors. He is a great mentor to the SVHS Interact club and helps inspire their goal to diminish the educational inequalities that derive from unequal access to books.

The donations collected at SVHS were sent to one of the FSCPL’s regularly hosted book sales. The money raised by these sales goes toward funding programs, activities, and purchasing equipment for all local library branches in Santa Cruz County; for example, their latest campaign “Recover and Thrive.” We can all agree that Covid 19 forced us to completely shift to new ways of learning and socializing. Because of this, the main goal of the campaign, “Recover and Thrive” was to provide learning opportunities to students that spark creativity and connection. Similarly to Rotary, service is at the core of FSCPL. Its members will help students achieve their educational goals by providing nd tutoring.

Furthermore, they will encourage social emotional learning through creative expression and STEAM act Ultimately, Santa Cruz Pub want to “recognize the inte academic, artistic, social, a intelligence.” In support of steps, SVHS interactors pla contributing to this initiativ to kids at different branche Cruz Public Libraries.

Crisp Cafes and Bustling Bookstores for Fall

By Khadeejah Khan | Area 11

The clouds creep in the sky as morning dew coats grass. Clouds move with the sun playing hide and seek in the sky. It is October and fall is still fresh. The mornings are crisp and cloudy with the crunchy leaves wearing warm hues of red, orange, and yellow. To embrace this season of autumn, Interactors should find:

Recycle Bookstore San Jose

Located in San Jose, Recycle Bookstore is the perfect place to bring friends and browse the book shelves filled with a plethora of genres. This San Jose location is also home to two cats, both of which contribute to its comforting, cozy environment. Its aesthetic is the perfect place for a dark-academia loving interactor to go to, with its packed bookshelves and unique posters.

The Recycle Bookstore also has another location in Downtown Campbell in addition to the store in San Jose. Both locations have welcoming environments, making them perfect places to find your next fall read.

Nirvana Soul Nirvana Soul, a small-owned cafe located in the vibrant, busy streets of downtown San Jose, offers customers a variety of calming lattes, teas, and breakfast items. Upon entering, the cafe’s pink walls, plants, and arranged art pieces make for a vivid and modern cafe, allowing all customers to feel energized while they study, hang out, or simply enjoy their order. As fall begins, Interactors should find themselves in this San Jose cafe, taking in its modern and vibrant vibe.

Big Mug Coffee Roaster Big Mug Coffee Roaster, located in Santa Clara, is the perfect study spot for Interactors seeking a productive, yet comforting cafe to spend time at. Its environment is laid back, with.

FALLing into an A12 Glimpse

By Henry Widjaja | Area 12

As we turn our gazes to a flourishing palate of orange hue, we should opt to reminisce on what we ’ ve gone through. We look forward and opt to tell ourselves, “We have a long journey ahead.” Now, let’s turn back and look at the equally long path we ’ ve already walked. We, Area 12, would like to take this glimpse with you. Throughout the 5 flourishing Interact clubs comprising Area 12, Interactors have taken to numerous in school and local opportunities to start off the year!

Cupertino Bike Fest

Cupertino’s Bike Fest is a city-hosted event advocating for the use and integration of bikes into daily life work, play, and exercise! Interactors from Monta Vista HS and Cupertino HS came together to help the City of Cupertino create a bike fest that will be remembered for years to come.

They took on numerous roles to help make the event as streamlined as possible. A group of bike inspired Interactors from all five schools across A12, namely Cycle 4 Change, took part in Cupertino Bike Fest’s planning of a family bike ride and a scavenger hunt! They set their mission to bring biking opportunities to the young generation and expose biking to the young earlier on, and they portrayed this in the Bike Fest. Amid the many ways that Interactors took part in the event the collective effo made a Cupe for the over 20 Clubs Fair The Interact c comprising A1 respective sch volunteers an able to conne helping them leadership.

With each school consisting of more than 60 clubs, Interact nevertheless stood out to be one of the clubs offering a consistent method for volunteer hours and one to provide a pathway towards service above self.

Looking Forward

We, as Area 12, are so excited to be part of Interact’s District 5170 and look forward to working with all of our Interactors and Rotarians! We will work closely with our school district board and Rotary to create a scintillating Interact journey for all to walk down.

Club Fairs: StartingAUp gain

By Mars Bau | Area 13

Despite having their club fair pushed back by 2 days of 110 degree weather, the Youth Community Service Interact (YCS) club at Palo Alto High School hosted a successful booth to welcome in the school year.

On Thursday, September 15th, the bustling quad was full of students looking for new friends, activities, and volunteer opportunities, especially after the awkward years of quarantine. Palo Alto High hosts around 100+ clubs throughout the year, and during the Club Fair each and every one of those has the opportunity to showcase themselves across two lunch periods. With so many options to choose from, sometimes it can be difficult to stand out. So YCS-Interact got creative.

In addition to the poster boards filled with information detailing the perks of YCS, board members handed out stickers and took pictures through decorated cardboard frames.

They attracted many different faces, including old members eager to start the new year and fresh newcomers nervous yet excited to explore Interact. Among the many clubs offering volunteer opportunities, YCS has always stood out as a reliable, long standing way to get consistent volunteer hours, serve the community, and meet new people!

As Paly enters their official club season, they hope to rebuild a large club dedicated to community service. They hosted their first club meeting on October 5th, inviting volunteers to help with the Palo Alto High College Fair and attend FLC.

With upcoming events like making Halloween crafts for Blossom Birth and ushering the production of Beauty and the Beast for PA players, as well as the ever-traditional lunch time service projects, the year is teed up to be exciting, busy, and productive. For students both familiar and unfamiliar with YCS-Interact, school clubs are the best way to access the larger web of the Interact community and find consistent volunteer opportunities. This is why it is so important that clubs be up and running and why it’s so exciting to see them starting up again.

Miscellaneous Miscellaneous News News

Tur-Keys to Success!

By Nathan Le | Area 2

Happy November impassioned Interactors! I hope all of you are settled into the school year and your sleep schedules are calibrated to rock and roll! As the turkeys start singing and Christmas grows nearer, there is no better time to start helping out your community. This year ’ s Interact Club started off with a bang, providing a plethora of events to get back in the “Service Above Self” mood.

Starting with a collaborative event with our friends at Areas 1 and 3, the Stassy Stoats from Area 2 had the leisure of watching the new “Minions” movie while making new acquaintances with the Cartwheeling Cats (Area 1) and Strawberry Seals (Area 3).

At this point, you may be asking yourself, “Wasn’t this article going to tell me about the key to success?” Let me be the first to tell you that the only way to find success is by helping others! With that in mind, here are some of the events that have been hosted and some ways to make sure you can be involved in future events! September 23rd marked the first distict wide service event of the school year for District 5170. Interactors from all over came together to garden and learn about the importance of food sustainability.

The best way to stay up to date with your school’s Interact club is to frequently attend meetings and stay in touch with your officers. If you are not able to make the meetings, you can also find information about events on Instagram!

District

Instagram

Behind the Sea: INTERACTing with Area 3 Director, Jeia So

By Jad junior at Dublin organized, and making her not the perfect lead tides! This inter on how she balances Interact between academics and other extracurriculars, and the advice she has for Interactors across District 5170.

With a new of Interact, something else follows, a new A Director for Are Jeia So, the successor of An He, and a curre

Q: How have your first few months of AD been so far? Is it what you’ve expected?

A Slice of A5: Student Spotlightwith Anushree Marimuthu

By Kayla Espinosa | Area 5

Happy November District 5170! This month, I wanted to highlight Anushree Marimuthu and her amazing work so far! Anu (she/her) is a junior at Mission San Jose High School and is serving as District Council’s Area 5 Director and MSJ Interact’s Outreach Coordinator this year. With her love for service, research, and organizing Google Drives, Anu has been involved in planning area events with the Area 5 Assembly. From Pre FLC to the A5 Intercast, her contributions to Area 5

have helped our area connect with each other in service and community. This brief interview discusses her journey in Interact along with her thought process when helping to plan FLC this year.

Q: Reflect on your journey in Interact so far and how it has impacted you.

A: “Interact has helped me improve my leadership style by teaching me how to modify how I work depending on who I’m working with! It’s also taught me to be more empathetic and understanding when approaching different service opportunities. It’s also brought me a lot of my closest friends and sharing interact w/ people is kinda my love language :’)”

Q: What was your thought process when helping to plan FLC this year? Any favorite memories?

A: “I remember the Pay It Forward workshop from FLC 2021 (my sophomore

year) and always knew that’s what I would want to help out w/ if I was on DC :’)) being able to provide service learning opps and giving back to the community is my #1 fav thing to do and I was so so glad I was put onto the PIF team :DD. [Behind the scenes], it got a little difficult figuring out logistics and balancing schoolwork and all but it was a rewarding experience and I’m glad with our collective effort + how it turned out :PP”

With Anu’s many contributions to Area 5 and her involvement in planning service events, fundraisers, and bondings, Interactors now have many new ways to connect and bond through a shared passion for service. This bright beginning to the year serves as a light to the path of many Interactors beginning or continuing their journey of service. We, as Area 5, are looking forward to seeing our area grow in service and community this year!