Since he started high school, Charlie Cea has dedicated his life to community service, working with the Latino services organization of the Salvadoran American Leadership and Educational Fund (SALEF).
“(I was) grabbing the bags of food and the backpacks and seeing that we have an impact on those people in the community makes me feel very good,” says Cea.
That passion to help and to achieve change in his neighborhood opened the doors to the Los Angeles City Council as a member of the city’s first youth council where he took the opportunity to organize public hearings.
“We are talking about affordable housing and also access to information for young people,” says Cea.
Now Charlie Cea is taking those experiences with him to college, while the Department of Youth Development gets ready to elect the next group of youth leaders for the Youth Council.
“The Olivia Mitchell Honor (Youth) Council was established last year and is made up of 30 young Angelenos ages 16 to 25,” said Tarm Fowler of the Los Angeles Department of Youth Development. “Since there are 15 council wards, we elect 2 members from each ward.”
During the year in which they serve on the council, youth are given seats at the table, as was first done over 50 years ago under the administration of Mayor Tom Bradley.
“Every week they usually have a youth council meeting, but at least twice a week they will learn from different city departments,” Fowler points out.
Those interested in being part of the following Youth Council group must live in neighborhoods within the City of Los Angeles and present at least one reference.
Registration closes on July 23 and you can submit your application on the Youth Council page, by clicking here. You can also do it through your Instagram account @LACityYouth.
“It’s a great opportunity,” says Fowler. “They can get a scholarship for their education of up to $300 a month and learn about the city of Los Angeles at the same time.”
