While some kids are heading to the beach or to a theme park this summer, a trio of girls who just wrapped up fifth grade at Lutz Elementary are gearing up for a trip to Washington D.C.
Kylie Flynn, Kaitlyn Britton and Alice Mooneyham will be participating in the Junior National Young Leaders Conference.
The students were nominated by their former teacher, Cindy Morrissey.
The girls can’t wait to check out the nation’s capital.
“I’ve never been to Washington D.C., and I’ve wanted to go there,” said Alice, who is 11. “I think it’s going to be a really cool experience.”
Eleven-year-old Kaitlynn shares her enthusiasm.
“It’s going to be fun. My sister went in eighth grade. She got a lot of really cool photos. It was really pretty there.”
Plus, Kaitlyn added: “It will be fun to learn all about the statues.”
Ten-year-old Kylie is eager to make the trip, too.
“I can’t wait for the experiences to go to the different places,” she said. “I was really happy that I was nominated.”
Alice is particularly interested in visiting the Lincoln Memorial, while Kylie is looking forward to visiting Harper’s Ferry. Kaitlyn is looking forward to an activity-packed schedule.
“There’s going to be a lot of stuff to do in the day,” Kaitlyn said. “You’ll get to learn the history behind the monuments.”
The conference includes sessions on leadership traits and historic topics, as well as visits to national memorials, museums and a sleepover at the Maryland Science Center, amid mummies, dinosaurs and space exhibits.
Kaitlyn thinks the conference will be a good experience, but she’s not sure if it will help her with her future career. She wants to be a chiropractor when she grows up.
Alice wants to be a teacher.
Kylie wants to be a teacher, too. But, she said: “If that doesn’t work out, I want to be a lawyer. I want to be a lawyer that helps people get custody of their kids.”
Both Kylie and Kaitlyn live in Lutz, and Alice just moved from Lutz to Land O’ Lakes.
Kaitlyn will be attending Terrace Community Middle School in Temple Terrace. Kylie will be attending Buchanan Middle School in Tampa, and Alice will be attending Cypress Creek Middle High in Wesley Chapel.
Alice’s mom, Michelle Milone, is thrilled that Alice was nominated for the program.
“All three of you should be so super-duper proud of yourselves,” Milone told the girls, during a recent interview with The Laker/Lutz News.
“I think it’s really, really great,” Milone said.
“When I was in high school, I went to something called GHP, the governor’s honors program. It was paid for by the state. It was a big deal. I learned a lot.
“I went to law camp, one year,” she added. “I went to Spanish camp.”
“I met people. I learned things,” Milone said. She’s glad the girls can take advantage of this opportunity.
Like Milone, Andrea and Kiel Flynn are delighted that the girls were nominated.
They estimated the conference cost for each of the girls to be around $3,000, and that doesn’t count the expenses that Flynn, Milone or Dave and Melissa Britton will incur because they’ll be on their own.
While it’s pricey, Milone and Flynn think its worthwhile because they believe the experience will have a lasting impression.
Published June 14, 2017
