Sheridan Smith, right, and one of the students of Awareness Theater speaks at CHQ Bright Spots. Photo by Daryl Simons Jr.

Since 2016, over 35 organizations within Chautauqua County have been recognized as “Bright Spots” of the community. The subcommittee of the Hope Chautauqua Coalition was founded after “we discovered so many organizations doing great things in our community,” said Kate Ebersole of CHQ Bright Spots. They decided to start the CHQ Bright Spots in an effort to spread awareness of those organizations who are already doing great things in the region.

This year recognized organizations that are empowering youth of the community included Battle of the Books, the Prendergast Library, Winifred Crawford Dibert Boys and Girls Club of Jamestown, Infinity Performing Arts, Impact Group, and Awareness Theater.

“A bright spot comes from the book Switch by author Jerry Sternin. In it, it tells you how to develop healthier communities. One of the suggestions were to find the Bright Spots. Find the people already doing great things in our community,” Ebersole said.

This effort is an attempt to make Chautauqua County healthier. From obesity rates, rates of smoking being too high, Gilson argues that the only way it can be fixed is by working together. “Everyone should have as much help and support to make a healthier community,” she said.

“We’re all about making sure that the kids we see are enjoying themselves, become better people, stronger people, and contributing members of our community,” said The Boys and Girls Club Executive Director Jeff Kroon. “Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to graduate. They pushed me to be the man I am today. They are like a family to me,” said Simon Ferringer of the Boys & Girls Club

Infinity Performing Arts Executive Director Shane Hawkins some students provided quotes regarding their experiences at Infinity. “The band made her a braver person.” It had 527 students last year, with 14,000 private lessons and 2,000 group lessons. But Hawkins said that this time spent can be much more than a musical or artistic lesson.

“For some of the kids, it’s the only time that they have an adult figure that’s not a parent all to themselves for 30 minutes. Sometimes its playing music. Sometimes its theater. Sometimes, the kids might be going through something unrelated to the arts. Sometimes the kids need that attention more than they need the lesson,” Hawkins said.

Two of the recipients, Battle of the Books and Prendergast Library, emphasized on education and knowledge for growth. Prendergast Library developed a Makerspace, which is where you can learn anything from poster art, to Lego building, robotics, electronics, green screen capabilities, 3-D printer and 3-D pens. The Battle of the Books challenges students to read a number of preassigned books, and then the fifth-grade students will compete against other teams. A few of the teams were present: Pagepeelers, Sporty Readers, and FBI (Fifth Graders with Book Intelligence).

“Because the nerds are not really celebrated. Parents during the first year came up to us saying thank you for doing something for the nerds.” said Sara Toth and Karen Schiavone of Battle of the Books.

Awareness Theater, which is an outlet for local youth to express themselves was also recognized. “For kids, sometimes just being there is amazing,” said Sheridan Smith of Awareness Theater.

County Executive George Borello, representatives of State Sen. Catherine Young, R-Olean, Rep. Tom Reed, R-Corning, and Mayor Sam Teresi, were present at CHQ Bright Spots ceremony. They all shared their gratitude to these organizations for what they do everyday for the community and the youth here.

“They work so tirelessly and often without recognition. You are doing an incredibly important job,” Borello stated.

The nomination form and other information can be found on CHQ Bright Spot’s Facebook page, they are always looking for new organizations to recognize in Chautauqua County