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By DONALD MOTTERN | Staff Writer

PELHAM – The American Legion recently celebrated the successful completion of the 87th annual American Legion Alabama Boys State event that concluded on June 1.

Taking place from May 26 to June 1, young men from across the state attended the week-long event held at Troy University. Meant to instill knowledge and a familiarity with the governmental process, the conference featured hands-on practical experiences that included the formation and management of a model state government.

“The American Legion Matthew Blount Post 555 proudly sponsored four delegates from local area high schools (to go to this year’s event),” Post 555 Adjutant Nancy Waller said. “The young men are all appreciative of being sponsored by Post 555 and are honored that they were selected to attend.”

The four students sponsored by the post included Grant Gillespie and Nicholas Varvoutis from Oak Mountain High School, Cliff Windham from Pelham High School and Thomas Graham from Cornerstone Christian School.

While in attendance, all participants were separated into two fictional political parties and contributed to the development of each’s political platforms. Students were also tasked with creating budgets, and writing and passing legislation.

“During this activity-packed event, the boys have very little downtime,” Waller said. “The boys enjoyed the challenge as well as spending time with other like-minded students.”

Following the conclusion of the event, Post 555 again welcomed the four students to attend the post’s July 11 general membership meeting. While there, the students relayed lessons they learned over the course of the week and shared memories of their experiences—including Graham’s recollections of having run for Governor in the model government and then being elected to a mayoral position.

In addition to managing budgets and passing legislation, participants were also given scenarios and events to react to as part of the process.

“I was elected to city council along with four other members, and the scenario was that we were in a coastal town recovering from a hurricane,” Varvoutis said. “(It was) very interesting what we had to do to try and take care of the community and our citizens.  The camaraderie was great with the other boys.”

In addition to learning how to work together in a governmental system, the experience also served as a revelatory moment for others, who were able to experience deadlocked congresses and stalled legislative efforts firsthand.

“During my stay at Troy University, I was selected to be part of the constitutional convention and did my part to help until I was appointed to a state office alongside eight others from my dorm,” Windham said. “I got to work closely with the Boys State governor as his bodyguard, and got to witness first-hand the ineptitude of government. We spent the better part of three days attempting to convince our House of Representatives to actually pass meaningful legislation that the governor could legitimately and conscientiously approve. I had fun, but I also came to realize that Boys State is about forming good citizens—forming leaders that would take action instead of idly sitting by.”

No matter the individual experiences, all four students sent to the conference by Post 555 described their enjoyment of the experience and issued their thanks to the organization.

“Thank you all for inviting me and my family here this evening, and thank you for selecting me to be Pelham High School’s representative at Boys State,” Windham said. “I have since learned to live by the mantra ‘If not now, then when; if not you, then who?’  I hope to carry-on this legacy of service, and to carry it well.”

The creation of the Boys State Program is credited to Hayes Kennedy, who in 1935 was an instructor in the Loyola University School of Law in Chicago and Americanism Chairman of the Illinois Department of the American Legion.

The Illinois Department of the American Legion approved Kennedy’s project, and in June 1935, the very first Boys State in the nation was held on the grounds of the Illinois State Fair.

Alabama Boys State began two years later in 1937. Today, the American Legion conducts a “Boys State” program in 49 states, with only Hawaii excluded.

The dates for next year’s event have already been scheduled, with Alabama’s 88th annual event taking place from May 25-31 next year.