Two youth from the kNOw share their ideal Valentine’s Day plans.
I would love to have a fun and spontaneous Valentine’s Day. If my boyfriend was in town, I’d love for us to be a able to hang out for the rest of the day. I’d be homework-free, he’d be able to borrow his brother’s car, and then we could spend time with each other to make up for the time lost. Whether it’d be going to the movies, having a special dinner, or just driving around town, it would mean a lot to me just because of the fact that we’ve been apart for so long.
My boyfriend Shawn is in the Marines and because of our long distance relationship, my Valentine’s Day is different. Instead of doing things together physically such as hanging out and holding hands, we send each other the presents and wither chat online or webcam. Even so, I’m still happy to even just hear from him. I believe that’s what Valentine’s Day is really about: being able to have that someone special to call yours.
– Denise Yang
Valentine’s Day to me means sharing your day with the person or people you love and mean a lot to you. On this day I usually spend it with my boyfriend, who I have been with for almost 5 years. Before we would always go out and watch a movie and then have dinner, but now we send time with either my family or his. We don’t really spend a lot of money buying gifts for each other any more. The best part I love about Valentine’s Day is enjoying the chocolate and treats I get from friends and family. Just this past Sunday, my boyfriend and I decided to go out and watch Safe House instead of watching a romantic movie, like The Vow. I enjoyed our time together and also just being able to spend a little time celebrating Valentine’s Day.
– Bao Xiong
In 2006, over 25 youth began participating in weekly after-school writing workshops where they congregated in the hallway of a two-story building in West Fresno and learned the essentials of creating media and telling their stories. The group evolved over the next five years and is now proudly recognized as The kNOw Youth Media.
Through our program, we create opportunities for our youth participants, who in turn create long-term positive change in their communities. Our approach weaves youth development and youth media innovation to produce our biannual youth publication, multimedia projects, and community forums.
The kNOw began as a project of New America Media, which was the country’s first and largest national collaboration and advocate of 2000 ethnic news organizations. In 2018 The kNOw became a project of Youth Leadership Institute.
