All That We Experienced
Club Teens Tour China
By Rebecca Des Marais

"My experience in China was one I will not soon forget. We prepared for months about what to expect when we arrived, but nothing truly prepared us for all that we experienced on the opposite side of the world."

– Nicholas Goodly, Club Member,
Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta

You see Boys & Girls Club teens in many places. But how many have their photo snapped under the huge portrait of Chairman Mao in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square?

The teens, from Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta, were invited by the Beijing Youth Federation to open the "Peace, Friendship and Goodwill Through the Olympic Spirit International Youth Exhibition" on June 1, China’s National Children’s Day.

The opening occurred during the exciting run-up to the 2008 Summer Olympics, part of a 14-day excursion that enabled Club youth to see wonders old and new across China.

Seven Atlanta Club members were selected for the trip, recognized for their participation in the Metro Atlanta organization’s Arts & Cultural Enrichment Program as well as academic performance. Asa Hendricks, Portia Mathis, Alexia Wynn, Cedric Brown, Janelle Treadwell, Rashad Sherman and Nicholas Goodly formed the lucky group.

They met monthly to prepare for the trip and learn about the sites, peoples and places they would meet and visit. Dr. Edward Krebs, professor of Chinese studies and language and the tour leader, led discussions about language, history, food and customs to prepare the teens and chaperones.

Youth Art Connection

Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta’s Youth Art Connection (YAC) – a combination studio and gallery – spearheaded this adventure because of its history with the Olympics, dating back to an exhibit at the 1996 Atlanta Games.

The Beijing Youth Federation invited YAC to organize a display of children’s art as part of the International Exhibition. Linden Longino, a volunteer director with Youth Art Connection and board member for the Metro Atlanta organization, rose to the task.

Longino gathered youth art from 60 countries worldwide, including several by Boys & Girls Club members in Atlanta. Selections were displayed alongside art created by Chinese children at the exhibition.

Marvelous and Memorable

A Chinese proverb observes that "a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." The Atlanta group began its journey with a 7,684-mi. direct flight to Shanghai, followed by another air link to Beijing.

Club teens and their chaperones visited major sites of Beijing – including the Summer Palace, Forbidden City and Bird’s Nest Stadium – and scaled steps on the Great Wall of China. Our kids became expert negotiators with street merchants, explained braided and dreadlocked hair to curious passersby, and marveled over the skill and derring-do
of Chinese acrobats.

The group took an overnight train trip to Inner Mongolia for an adventure on the grasslands, where the primary form of housing is the yurt – a lightweight Mongolian tent.

They stopped by the ancient city of Xi’an to see an army of life-sized terracotta soldiers, discovered during an archaeological exploration of the first Chinese emperor’s tomb.

All along the way – visiting temples, palaces, museums and natural wonders – our Club kids met and mingled with their Chinese counterparts, in cities and towns, along the roadside and at the markets.

Home Again

Our kids are back home in Atlanta, but the Beijing experience is still going strong. The teen travelers are ambassadors for their Clubs now, speaking about their journey at schools, churches, civic organizations and Club board meetings.

And a bit of China has followed them home. Atlanta’s High Museum of Art has just opened an exhibition, "The First Emperor: China’s Terracotta Army." Knowing the subject, our travelers participated in clay workshops sponsored by the museum, making their own "soldiers" for the opening and serving as junior museum guides when fellow Club members visit the exhibit. Clearly, this inspiring journey is still underway.

Rebecca Des Marais is director of arts and cultural enrichment programs for Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta as well as Youth Art Connection.