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By NATHAN HOWELL | Staff Writer

HELENA – The city of Helena is accepting applications for the Helena Teen Council, which is an service organization that promotes civic duty through a variety of projects and events.

City Council President Alice Lobell is the sponsor for the organization and is hoping to get a great crew of fresh faces for the incoming council.

“This organization is great because it gives them some civic knowledge about how our city operates,” Lobell said. “They attend all of our city council meetings, and they get chance for service because we volunteer at a variety of events like the Buck Creek Festival, the Christmas Tree lighting, the city Easter egg hunt and others.”

The teen council is limited to 25 people, which represents a huge growth from when Lobell originally took over as sponsor.

“When I took over we had six members and now we have exponentially grown to this point over the years,” Lobell said. “I encourage all teens to join this organization, and if they do not make it one year I would tell them to try again. We have to limit the number because of transportation and other things, but we want to have as many as we can.”

Through the organization teens will develop a broad knowledge of city processes, leadership skills and create a link between the city’s youth and adults.

“As much as anything it is a way for the teens in Helena to be seen in a positive light, not that they already are not,” Lobell said. “They get to do a lot of volunteering work like with the Helena Miracle League games. We also try to take them on a trip to Montgomery when we can, but we were not able to do that this year because of COVID.”

The teen council is available to any teens living in the city that are currently enrolled in grades 10-12, regardless of the school they attend.

Applications are available at Helena High School, for pickup at Helena City Hall or online at Cityofhelena.org. The deadline for applications is Friday, May 14.