JUNCTION CITY – More than two decades after KAY Leadership Camp began shaping their lives, longtime friends Kate Bryan and Angel Romero stood before a new generation of campers hoping to provide the same spark.

Marking 20 years on the KLC staff, Bryan and Romero took the stage July 28 at Rock Springs 4-H Center for speeches titled “Be the Roar That Inspires,” showing campers that inspiration is not about having the loudest voice but using it to lift others. 

“Inspiration is a big word when you think about it,” Romero said. “We tend to think really big when we think about these ideas.

“What I’m going to tell you tonight is that inspiration can live a whole lot closer to home. It lives in our communities, our schools and even right here in this room.”

Bryan recalled something a fellow camp staff member told her several years ago that “completely opened my eyes.”

“She said, ‘You don’t know what someone else admires about you,’” Bryan said.

A Haven native and Washburn University graduate, Bryan lives with her family near Topeka and spends her days caring for four boys ages 8, 6, 4 and 2. She jokingly described herself as a “chaos coordinator,” but said the daily responsibility of raising her sons continually challenges and inspires her. 

“When I was preparing my speech, it was so easy to list all of the reasons someone else should be standing here,” Bryan said, noting the accomplishments of a camp staff that includes educators, medical professionals, police officers and nonprofit leaders. “But it was much harder to think about what I could offer tonight. And that’s what self-doubt does. It convinces us that everyone else has something valuable, and our value isn’t as great.

“Maybe I was measuring the wrong things,” Bryan added. “Maybe I spent too much time looking at job titles, resumes and volunteer hours instead of looking at what actually makes someone unforgettable.”

Bryan built her speech around four central lessons for campers: be present, choose joy, speak the good and be brave enough to do all three.

“Be brave enough to ask for help,” Bryan said. “Be brave enough to apologize. Be brave enough to say the good things out loud.”

Romero, a Junction City native and fellow Washburn graduate, illustrated his message through people who have inspired him with their resilience and service.

Romero serves as vice president of fund development for TFI Family Services, a child welfare agency that provides foster care, adoption and mental health services. Through his career in the nonprofit sector and his volunteer work, Romero said he has crossed paths with people who embody different forms of inspiration.

“I’ve met some truly remarkable people when they’ve been in some of the toughest situations imaginable,” Romero said. “In my mind, I’ve tried to imagine what would happen if the roles had been reversed and I found myself facing those same circumstances.”

Romero told campers about a foster teen who spent much of her childhood moving from one home to another and heard family members question whether she could ever succeed. She refused to accept those expectations, graduating from high school with honors and earning a college scholarship.

“Life gave her a lot of reasons to back down, and she simply refused to do so,” Romero said.

Romero also highlighted a community librarian who combined her interest in knitting with a desire to help people better understand local government. Through a program called “Unraveling the News,” she taught community members to knit while leading informal conversations about local issues and elected officials.

“It was such a simple concept that had a powerful impact on people in our community,” Romero said.

The speeches were part of the five-day camp held July 27-31 that drew more than 260 students from across the state. Campers participated in leadership training, service-oriented activities and sessions designed to help them take ideas back to their schools and communities.

The Kansas Association for Youth is celebrating its 80th anniversary in 2026. Founded in 1946, KAY is a character-building, leadership training and service organization directed by the Kansas State High School Activities Association. Open to students in grades 6-12, KAY emphasizes service to its members’ schools, communities, nation and world. 

Romero’s message resonated with Hodgeman County’s Shelby Olson, this year’s Area 5 president, who said camp has shown her that leadership can take different forms.

“To be a leader, you don’t just have to be loud,” Olson said. “There’s quiet leaders amongst us, and you see that a lot here at camp.”

Olathe West’s Megan Meives, a third-year camper, connected with Bryan’s description of the community created by KAY staff members. Meives said being surrounded by people committed to helping others was one of the reasons she joined the organization.

“For Kate, she talked a lot about the staff and everyone that she works with and how it’s such a great community,” Meives said. “That’s one of the first reasons that I decided to join KAY, is that I could be with tons of wonderful people.”

Like Bryan and Romero did as students, Meives hopes to take what she learns at camp and use it to influence others after returning home.

“I try to learn new ideas that I can bring back to where I’m from and share with other people so that I can help make my school and my community a better place,” Meives said.

KAY state director Sarah Smith said Bryan and Romero connected with students because they have spent two decades living out the principles they discussed from the stage.

“Their actions resonate with the kids as much as their words tonight,” Smith said.

Smith said Bryan’s love for her family and the campers came through in her remarks, while Romero characteristically used his opportunity to recognize others.

“This could have been his opportunity to highlight himself, but all he did was highlight others,” Smith said. “And that, to me, is Angel Romero. He’s just a selfless guy, would do anything for anybody.”

Smith said both have played important roles in the development of the camp during their 20 years on staff.

“They’ve truly shaped this camp and helped create what it is,” Smith said.

Long before Bryan and Romero helped shape KLC as staff members, both experienced its influence as students.

“I would say I was pretty shy growing up, and this camp just believed in me,” Bryan said. “The people that would spend an entire week of their vacation to come and play, do games, energizers and just speak goodness into us was such an inspiration.”

Romero already had an interest in leadership and service when he first attended KLC, but camp helped him understand how the two fit together.

“When I came to camp, it kind of all clicked together for me about what the organization was all about,” Romero said.

He returned the next year as an area president and eventually joined the staff.

“I remember that first year and I said, ‘This is something we’ve got to be a part of in a big way,’” Romero said. “I remember going home so excited and pumped up.”

Fittingly, the day of Bryan’s speech also marked her 14th wedding anniversary with her husband, Luke, who is in his 22nd year on the camp staff. The two met through KLC and planned their 2012 wedding around camp.

After camp concluded that year, they drove to Hutchinson and were married the next day, allowing many of the staff members who had become their closest friends to attend. Bryan estimated that KLC staff members made up half of their wedding guest list.

“These are my best friends,” Bryan said. “These are my mentors. These are the people I reach out to when I’m considering a different job or a career path or a change of anything. These are the people I reach out to when I need prayer. These are the people I reach out to when I need guidance. This is my family.”

Camp has also remained a cornerstone of Romero’s life since his teenage years.

“It’s one of the things I’ve done the longest in my life, so it’s been a constant in my life for a long time,” Romero said. “Writing this speech was a good chance to really reflect on all of that and think about 20 years and what I’ve learned from the people around me and from the organization.”

Romero said the most rewarding part of returning each year is watching campers grow over the course of the week.

“For me, it’s seeing the transformation that happens over a week for kids, seeing kids who maybe aren’t so sure the first day what’s going on,” Romero said. “And by the end of the week, they are changed people. That’s pretty amazing.” 

Romero and Bryan said they treasured the opportunity to give speeches alongside each other. 

“It was so awesome to get to listen to Kate,” Romero said. “We’ve known each other for 20 years. It’s amazing to see the way that she gives back and how she’s inspiring her kids and her family.”

“Angel is absolutely an inspiration,” Bryan said. “He touches lives every single day. And so, for a person I’ve grown up with, a person I’ve served alongside, a friend, a mentor, to be able to give a speech next to him was just a moment that I will always treasure.”

After spending much of his speech recognizing the people who had inspired him, Romero closed by placing the campers among them.

“Whether your roar is soft and quiet, whether it’s loud and powerful or whether you’re still figuring it out, each of you is an inspiration,” Romero said. “Inspiration doesn’t have to come from a phone screen. It doesn’t have to come from what you see on television. It lives inside each of you – in the circumstances you’ve overcome, the way you help others and the way you care for those most important to you.

“Because after all, your roar doesn’t have to shape the world. It only has to change one person’s life.”