I’m in the West Gym Lobby, surrounded by students chatting and eating their lunches, peeling paper after paper off of the wall. The work is extremely particular, as one mistake could rip the banner we spent time carefully planning out, or could pull paint off of the newly-painted school walls. As I continued this tedious process with the other people on my committee, I realized that this experience illustrated what working on Enloe Charity Ball is like. Well, at that exact moment I was pretty discouraged and disappointed that another lunch period or after-school meeting would have to be dedicated to fixing the collage that had previously been almost complete.
Finding new places around the school to paste banners that had previously been finished, pasting a paper over written-out directions that had been changed, creating banners with only a few days notice — those are all regular occurrences for physical publicity, the subcommittee I lead within Charity Ball. Flexibility and adaptation to change are essential to being on physical publicity, which I have learned as a member of publicity for the first time this year. These skills carry over to any role that exists within charity ball, as we work through everything from fundraising setbacks to miscommunication in the planning of an event.
Something that has always stood out to me with regards to charity ball is the myriad of roles to be filled throughout the entire process — charity selection to check presentation. Everyone’s unique role within Charity Ball is influenced by their own strengths and passions, providing the opportunity for anyone to have a tangible impact in their community. Each role is distinctly suited to different people, yet always equally rewarding and impactful. For me, my role within physical publicity incorporates my passion for art into serving the community surrounding Enloe. While hurriedly-made banners don’t exactly equate to AP Art portfolios, they are still outlets for creativity and exploration of color, as I work to effectively advertise to the student body about everything going on with Charity Ball.
Playing a part in charity ball involves previous skills and experiences, but it also involves growing as an individual throughout the process — learning new skills and making new memories. I have never thought about myself as a leader. I am always the last to speak in class seminars and think myself better suited as a “listener” rather than a “talker.” This year, however, I am the leader of physical publicity and help co-lead other aspects of publicity. Being a part of charity ball has helped me grow in leadership and confidence; it has helped me to find and define my personal voice, a process that I will continue throughout college. Whenever I look through the back of my bullet journal, where I have all my sketches and plans for every banner we made this year, I will think about the unique role I’ve grown into within Enloe Charity Ball.
Hannah Floyd
Multimedia Officer