Ralph (second in from the right) and board members accepting a donation
Working for a nonprofit is tough sometimes because we are constantly doing multiple things at once; whether it’s fundraising, grant writing, planning trips or participating in festivals, there is always a project. As the expression goes, Youth Odyssey constantly has our hands in a multitude of cookie jars and it’s all to further our mission by making a bigger impact on the youth of the Coastal Bend.
Luckily, we don’t have to go it alone because we have an amazing group of individuals who volunteer their time and efforts into helping us be the best nonprofit we can. That group is known as our Board of Directors! Currently, our board consists of eight wonderful men and women, and five of them are having birthdays this October and November. We love our board, everything they do for us, and the opportunities that they provide us as perfect Youth Odyssey ambassadors.
James awarding a Youth Mentor with a SCUBA scholoarship
The first birthday we have in October has already passed (October 7th) and it was Dr. Ralph Silva. He is the Leadership Director for Middle Schools in the Corpus Christi Independent School District (CCISD) and he has helped get us in contact with many of the CCISD schools and continues to champion for our programming where he can. After Ralph, we have James Gourley, whose birthday fell on October 15th. James has been a board member for years and continues to be one of our biggest supporters. Being the owner of Gourley Contracting, James is able to help in different ways. Because of James we are able to keep up with any building repairs that we may need, and trailer repairs on some days. He is
actually the one who designed and will be working on the new renovations that we will be doing on our ropes course (more about that to come). He’s a busy man but still finds the “free time” to help our youth and mentors experience the world of SCUBA by giving introductory classes and encouraging them to apply for scholarships that can, and have, taken them across the globe. The last of the October birthdays just happened on Sunday, October 23rd and belongs to Isa Barrera. Isa is a relatively new addition to our board and hit the ground running when she joined our team. She is full of energy and her presence motivates and fuels a creative atmosphere during our meetings. Isa uses her creative expertise to help market our ideas and generate more exposure and charitable giving within the community.
- Jim enjoying some time off
Jumping right into our November birthdays we have Jim Kunau with a birthday just around the corner on November 1st. Jim is the General Manager at Hurricane Alley Water Park and, as one would guess from a job like that, he has the personality to get things done. Jim has proved himself a valuable resource when discussing how to reach a broader audience and to campaign for events and fundraising. Jim is also on our Events Committee and has been using his party throwing abilities from Hurricane Ally and bringing them to Youth Odyssey. Last but certainly not least we have Mark Silva whose birthday will fall on November 28. Mark is our newest board member and is still finding his niche within the board but has dived straight into our Events Committee. Mark is active in his KIWANIS group and is also an Agent with State Farm. Though he has been on the board for just a few months his contributions to our meetings and the Events Committee cannot be overlooked. Mark has been an amazing resource in finding locations and information on upcoming events (stayed tuned for that later).
Our newest board member, Mark, with his family
From all of us here at Youth Odyssey and from our youth, I want to say a big THANK YOU and a huge HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you all!! Youth Odyssey wouldn’t be what it is today if it wasn’t for you amazing people. You make our jobs easier and continue to act as a Youth Odyssey Ambassador throughout the community. Thank you again and I hope you all have (had) a wonderful birthday!
