{"id":3110,"date":"2016-07-29T09:00:24","date_gmt":"2016-07-29T16:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/?p=3110"},"modified":"2016-07-26T19:09:40","modified_gmt":"2016-07-27T02:09:40","slug":"teen-feature-an-interview-with-cady-west","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2016\/teen-feature-an-interview-with-cady-west\/","title":{"rendered":"Teen Feature: An interview with Cady West"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cady West, Grade 10<\/span><\/p>\n

Cady is a huge Harry Potter fan, as well as a wealth of many other fandoms, including Welcome to Night Vale. In fact, she\u2019s one of the instigators of our Welcome to Night Vale Listening Parties at the Central Library. She considers herself a Slytherin. She was a member of the Teen Advisory Board (TAB) during the 2014-2016 school year. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This year, Cady\u00a0and her family are moving out of Pasadena, so we’ll miss her! She has been instrumental in the success of one of biggest TAB planned events: the Harry Potter Party last year.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cady
Cady as a quidditch Keeper.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How long have you been a volunteer here? \u00a0TAB member?<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been a TAB member for about as long as I\u2019ve been a volunteer, so about a year and a half.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What made you want to join TAB and be a volunteer? How did you hear about it?<\/b><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know how my mother heard about it, but she emailed me about getting in touch with the library and becoming a volunteer. I like books and I like working with people, so whatever I did I thought I\u2019d enjoy it. Then, Jane emailed me about coming to a TAB meeting. From what she told me, it seemed like just a really good opportunity to get involved with something in my community that I could really enjoy doing. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cady
Cady with her “peep”.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

What was your favorite volunteer project? Or what stood out the most?<\/b><\/p>\n

One of my favorite things that I\u2019ve done while in TAB and as a volunteer is the Pasadena Loves YA book festival. For a while I was just telling people where to park, but for most of the time I was just enjoying the book festival and I was introduced to so many great authors, as well as met some of my favorites!<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Is there a contribution you\u2019ve made that you\u2019re particularly proud of?<\/b><\/p>\n

Nothing that I\u2019m <\/span>particularly <\/span><\/i>proud of, but I\u2019m proud of being a member of TAB as a whole and having a hand in organizing so many events at the library along with the rest of the group.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Do you think compared to other teens you have a different understanding about what libraries represent?<\/b><\/p>\n

Yes! For sure I feel like I do. I was discussing something similar to this with Jane and a few other TAB member at our last TAB meeting, and she was telling us how librarians do more than just sort books and all that- they help with research, organize events, work to bring more people to the library, etc. Libraries are for more than just checking out books, they\u2019re really a place to bring people and ideas together, and be a safe space for community members to get help and learn new things. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What skills have you learned from volunteering at the library you think are most useful?<\/b><\/p>\n

A lot of skills that I\u2019ve gained from TAB and volunteering are confidence skills (I feel like that was phrased weird but I don\u2019t know how else I can phrase it). I really struggle with speaking in front of crowds, sharing my ideas, and things like that. TAB has helped me, you know, speak up about my opinions or ideas for events and even just to talk to strangers about events they show up to and I need to tell them about. I\u2019ve also learned a lot about working as a team and getting along with people you don\u2019t really know. In TAB, everything is a team effort. We\u2019re a team who help organize events and help out at the library. The same way I\u2019ve learned to speak up in the group, I\u2019ve also realized I can\u2019t control everything and that I dont <\/span>need<\/span><\/i> to. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Do you volunteer anywhere else?<\/b><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t volunteer anywhere else regularly like I have with the library, but I have volunteered as a camp counselor and as part of beautification team (we clean up parks and such) before.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Would you join TAB at your new local library?<\/b><\/p>\n

Absolutely! I\u2019d love to be a part of a group like TAB at my new local library. One of the first things I plan on doing when I move (after unpacking and going to camp) is to see what I can do at the closest library and if I can get involved with anything similar to TAB. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What other ideas do you have for the library?<\/b><\/p>\n

This idea is actually something that is already being organized, but I think that since a library is a community safe space to bring people together and learn new things, having a way for teen who needs help to reach out and get that help is incredibly important. Something I\u2019d like to see happen at libraries is more LGBTQ+ related or focused events or things like that, since that\u2019s something I personally feel is important to have, and since a lot of LGBTQ+ events are not geared toward teens or minors, having a safe space to connect with other LGBTQ+ teens and get information whether it be about the best colleges to go to, talking to family and friends about it, etc., is something I\u2019d like to see in the future (at any library, really).<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What do you think the mission of the Teen Advisory Board is?<\/b><\/p>\n

I think the mission of the Teen Advisory Board is to bring teens together in leadership positions and give them the chance to learn outside of school and gain skills that could really help in college or jobs. Any library employee could do what TAB members do, but we get the chance to see our ideas come to life in events and to meet people we wouldn\u2019t otherwise meet, all while gaining a safe space. I didn\u2019t consider the library a \u201csafe space\u201d for me until I joined TAB. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Why do you think this is important?<\/b><\/p>\n

Teens struggle with confidence! We\u2019re often told our ideas don\u2019t matter, that our job is to go to school and that\u2019s it. In TAB, we\u2019re not told that. As volunteers, like I said, we really get a hand in events and things for the library and that\u2019s not something I get anywhere else. It\u2019s really boosted my confidence. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cady West, Grade 10 Cady is a huge Harry Potter fan, as well as a wealth of many other fandoms, including Welcome to Night Vale. In fact, she\u2019s one of the instigators of our Welcome to Night Vale Listening Parties at the Central Library. She considers herself a Slytherin. She […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[72],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3110","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-agendas-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5ZwbD-Oa","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2476,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2015\/teen-advisory-board-december-2015\/","url_meta":{"origin":3110,"position":0},"title":"Teen Advisory Board — December 2015","author":"Jane Gov","date":"December 14, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Teen Advisory Board 12\/12\/15 Present: Meep, Cady, Hadley, Haneen, Chris, Kara, Lauren, Madison, Maya, Nathan Agenda: News New releases section Youth Master Plan Review TAB teams & breakout: Everyone will work on events\/programs & will help with promoting events Design Advisory (The DA): Responsible for designing logos, library displays.\u00a0Team: Meep,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Agendas & News"","block_context":{"text":"Agendas & News","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/agendas-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2111,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2015\/teen-advisory-board-august-2015\/","url_meta":{"origin":3110,"position":1},"title":"Teen Advisory Board — August 2015","author":"Jane Gov","date":"August 3, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Teen Advisory Board August\u00a01, 2015 Present: \u00a0Bella, Cady, Chris, Haneen, Julia, Kara, Lauren, Madison, Meep \u00a0 AGENDA 2-4pm Finish Harry Potter scavenger hunt (Haneen & Kara)- finish clues, create worksheet, test out clues, Haneen is in charge of set up Finish wand making details (Kara, Julia, Meep) \u2013 paint\u00a0Ollivander signs,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Agendas & News"","block_context":{"text":"Agendas & News","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/agendas-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2420,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2015\/teen-advisory-board-november-2015\/","url_meta":{"origin":3110,"position":2},"title":"Teen Advisory Board — November 2015","author":"Jane Gov","date":"November 23, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Teen Advisory Board 11\/4\/2015 \u00a0 Present: \u00a0Julia, Meep, Hadley, Kara, Madison, Chris \u00a0 Agenda: recap murder mystery recap PHS project recap YA Services Symposium recap TAB tasks--establishing sub-teams Readers Advisory Team (RAd): \u00a0Responsible for selecting top ten & other featured teen book lists, leading YA Book Club, updating online teen\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Agendas & News"","block_context":{"text":"Agendas & News","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/agendas-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2947,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2016\/teen-advisory-board-june-2016\/","url_meta":{"origin":3110,"position":3},"title":"Teen Advisory Board — June 2016","author":"Jane Gov","date":"June 15, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Teen Advisory Board 6\/11\/2016 Present: Cady, Hadley, Julia, Chris, Maya, Madison, Meep, Lauren Announcements: Volunteer party tomorrow! Cady's last meeting -- We'll have a feature about Cady in our next Teen Zine Agenda: SRC marketing \u2013 Starbucks,\u00a0Ice Rink, Vromans -- Also, take some more bookmarks with you and help promote\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Agendas & News"","block_context":{"text":"Agendas & News","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/agendas-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2016\/06\/tab2.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2016\/06\/tab2.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2016\/06\/tab2.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2016\/06\/tab2.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2322,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2015\/harry-potter-end-of-summer-bash-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":3110,"position":4},"title":"Harry Potter End of Summer Bash","author":"Teen Blogger","date":"August 11, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"by Haneen Eltaib,\u00a0Grade 10 This year\u2019s End of Summer Bash was a Harry Potter event. 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