By: Vanessa Beltran
During my internship, I have learned so many things about our commonwealth assets. Even though I live in a very small town, Silverton, there are still many commonwealth assets here. The 12 commonwealth assets are arts and culture, education, food shed, leisure and recreation, renewable energy, history, health, spirituality, soil and mineral cycle, water cycle, wildlife and natural world,, and sense of place. An example of education in my town would be the school. My school, Silverton ISD, gives all students the education they need and gives them different opportunities to be in. The school gives you many classes including math, reading, science, history, and even computer management.
These different elements help you later in life if you are planning to further your education after high school or even have a job without that. They also give your different opportunities to participate in sports such as football, basketball, or track. You can also participate in FFA, FCCLA, 4-H, and different programs. An example of food shed would be the High Plains Food Distribution. During my internship, I helped twice with food distribution. We went to Quitaque first and waited for the truck to come and package the food in individual boxes and distribute them across different counties. Afterward, we could come back to Silverton and help distribute the boxes with food to the older people in town who aren’t able to come by themselves. An example of a health asset would be our clinic in Silverton. Cogdell Clinic provides great service to all of the citizens that go to the clinic.
They help you when you are ill and give you the right medications. Finally, an example of the water cycle asset would be the water trailer that I helped with at the Roaring Springs 4-H camp.This summer during my internship I went to the Roaring Springs 4-h Camp and I helped with teaching and showing everything about the water trailer.The trailer shows kids how the water cycle is around dirt and sand and how it can effect lakes,rivers,and different bodies of water.