Emelie Rickard, 17, has a new passion: community service.

But she hasn’t always felt this way.

“When I think back to what I used to be, I am embarrassed,” she said. “I was disrespectful to my parents and teachers. I didn’t have a job and I didn’t care about school.”

What has changed? Emelie just completed the Oregon National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program, graduating on June 13, after 22 weeks spent at the National Guard’s Central Oregon Training and Education Facility in Bend. She was one of 126 cadets to finish the rigorous program, which is set up to be an alternative high school, run along military school lines.

During their training, all the cadets earned their food handler permits, as well as first-aid and CPR certification. In addition, 112 donated blood through the American Red Cross. Cadets set a goal of giving 100 units of blood and gave 122. The class also provided 11,787 hours of community service, averaging more than 94 hours per cadet. Cadets volunteered at numerous Bend civic events and worked for local nonprofits, including Special Olympics Oregon, Habitat for Humanity, March of Dimes, Deschutes County Fairgrounds, Oregon State Parks and the U.S. Forest Service.

The estimated total value of their service was $103,721.

Although cadets could earn their high school diplomas or get a general educational development degree, Emelie chose to earn enough credits to return to Molalla High School in the fall, graduate early and enroll at Clackamas Community College.

The program was not easy.

“They taught me how to do pushups,” she said. “They will break you down and build you back up to what you are supposed to be. It makes you realize who you are.”

One of the first things instructors do is take away all distractions, so cadets do not have access to phones, television or social media.

And the instructors, who have served in the military, are brutally honest with the cadets.

At one point Emelie said she was being a goof-off, and one of her instructors took her aside and said, “You are better than how you’re acting.”

That was a turning point moment for her, and soon she was selected to be a cadet platoon leader in charge of the other 30 girls in the program.

“I was a star student,” she said. “The program makes you realize what is important in life: parents, school and the future.”

Now that she is back home, Emelie has already secured a volunteer position at Providence Willamette Falls Hospital and is ready to put her job skills to work.

“OYCP gives you great job opportunities; I earned 10 high school credits and learned people, academic and time-management skills. I put in more than 80 hours of volunteer service, which will help me when I interview and apply for jobs,” she said.

The Oregon Youth Challenge Program is built around eight core goals, which Emelie said she has taken to heart. They are: leadership and followership; responsible citizenship; service to the community; life-coping skills; physical fitness; health and hygiene; job skills; and academic excellence.

“I used to be negative about school, but now I am always doing my best to get 100 percent on grades,” she said.

Emelie most definitely recommends the program to others. “I got lost in who others wanted me to be, but OYP helped me get to know myself and it helped me to become who I actually am.”

A last option for family

Emelie’s mother, Catherine Torgerson, said that the family is thankful to the program and to Emelie’s hard work and determination.

“OYCP was the end of the road for us; our last option. We were fearing the worst outcome for our daughter. She was running with the wrong crowd and had no future. OYCP was our last hope,” she said, calling the program a “game changer for our family.”

The program showed Emelie a better way, so “we are no longer working to ‘fix’ Emelie; she is doing the changing for herself. I am especially thrilled to note her most important ‘gift’ from OYCP is integrity. My daughter is able to handle herself in any situation in a respectful manner; she conducts herself as a productive and successful young citizen,” Torgerson added. 

Since her return, Emelie has already participated in Relay for Life and her next goal is to join the local Catholic Church Youth Group and work with them to find more ways to serve others around her.

Torgerson added, “Emelie did her hard work. OYCP showed her the way, and our family is forever thankful to OYCP.”

What is the program?

Karla Ramirez-Gonzalez of Happy Valley and Miguel Crawford of Milwaukie also graduated from the Oregon National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program.

Ramirez-Gonzalez and Crawford earned enough credits to return to high school where each plans to graduate with his or her class; Ramirez-Gonzalez was also a member of the company drill team.

The program is cost-free to cadets and their families and has graduated 3,625 cadets since its inception in 1994. OYCP is one of 33 nationwide National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Programs and has been recognized as one of the premier programs in the country.

Cadets work through two phases, beginning with an intensive 5 1/2-month residential phase, during which they cultivate life-coping skills, perform community service work and attend academic classes. While in the program, cadets also develop life plans to outline clear and organized steps for continuing along the path of success after graduation.

This phase of the program is followed by one year of mentoring with an adult who is trained by the program and selected by the cadet. During this time, the cadets receive encouragement and support in implementing their life plans as they re-enter their home environments. 

Since 1994, more than 4,800 cadets from urban and rural areas of Oregon have entered the Oregon Youth ChalleNGe Program. The voluntary 17 1/2-month program provides youth who are at risk of not completing their high school education, both male and female, ages 16 to 18, with a second chance to succeed. Details about the Oregon National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program are available at oycp.com or by calling 541-317-9623.

Applications for the January 2013 program will be available online in August.