Felix Sanchez – 2011-2012 8th Grader at San Jacinto Intermediate in Pasadena, TX 15-year-old Felix Sanchez from the Communities in Schools-ACE afterschool program in Pasadena, TX, drew the winning design for the 13th annual Lights On Afterschool poster contest. Felix’s artwork was chosen from thousands of entries submitted by afterschool students from around the country. I joined my afterschool program when I was in 7th grade because I wanted something fun to do afterschool. At Communities in School-ACE, I was able to do a lot of fun things and have new experiences like learning to cook and joining the Youth Advisory Committee. But my favorite activities there were drawing, playing soccer and going on field trips during summer camp to places I had never been before. I definitely made a lot of new friends through the program—it felt like a family. Spending the afternoons at my afterschool program helped me feel more connected to school. At ACE, I had a quiet place to do homework, which helped me make better grades, and all of the field trips were based on lessons we did during school. I’ve been drawing since I was 8 years old when my father taught me. The Lights On Afterschool poster contest is the first art competition that I’ve won and I was really surprised when they told me I won. I got the idea for the poster from everything we do in my afterschool program, which includes learning and playing and drawing. I hope that this poster will inspire more kids to participate in afterschool programs. I started high school this year so am no longer a part of ACE. I hope to continue drawing and playing soccer next semester. | 
