Our society's destiny lies in the hands of the youth. They are both the thinker and the doer when it comes to making beneficial social changes through volunteerism, giving birth to the Voice of the Youth Network (VOTY) to inspire, inform, involve, and empower the young members of our society.
Every Saturday from three in the afternoon until five, Voice of the Youth Network features different youth leaders. And on January 16, 2021, the 27th episode of VOTY live, we met a young and talented lad named Joshua Salcedo.
Joshua Salcedo is a 17-year-old Humanities and Social Sciences Student with the dream to become a lawyer or even a senator someday. Aside from being a student, Joshua is on the board of directors of Impact Junior Jaycees Katipunan Branch where he utilizes his talents and strength to help other people.
He shared that one of the unforgettable projects he had with JJC Malabon Grande was the "Pick a name, Bless a child" where they will choose random children and fulfill their wishes. There he met a child whose wish was to go to a mall. He found himself in awe with the child's simplicity and from there he was inspired to do more volunteer work.
Talk about great public speaking skills. Salcedo has a passion for public speaking which he put to great use in empowering other youth. He was awarded as the champion in the 2020 Asia Pacific International Public Speaking Competition Online. He was the first Filipino to win the grand prize in this category.
He is an abstract artist and he also joined different art competitions in order to support mistreated animals, specifically dogs, in which half of its prizes were dedicated to the beneficiaries. As of today, he had joined 20 contests, winning 17 of them wherein eight were from international contests and 12 national contests. With these, Salcedo has helped more than 100 animals.
Joshua also raises awareness about down syndrome and climate change, and he makes good use of his social media account by posting facts about his causes to urge his peers and others his age to start making a difference in our society.
Papalem, Voicerana, and even the viewers were astounded by Joshua's tenacity in pursuing his causes. He proudly showcased his ability in public speaking that even a weak internet cannot hinder. Joshua answered all the questions in a relaxed manner and with a character of humility. When he was asked how he balances all his time, he mentioned that proper time management, and passion is the key to serving people.
He went on by giving inspirational talks to the youth of our society. He mentioned that being young is not a hindrance not to help change our society for the better. He stated that loving advocacy is like a superpower where it needs to be harnessed and developed, that having advocacy is not only helpful to ourselves but also a great benefit to our society.
He then ended his closing remarks with a quotation addressing youth, "Prove to people that you are the youth, that you are much more than your problems"
Joshua Salcedo truly is an embodiment of the saying "there is no age requirement when a person wants to help. Let this story of Joshua Salcedo inspire our hearts and start making a difference.
Tune in on Voice of the Youth Network to meet more Youth leaders and volunteers. See you there!
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