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The Centralia Youth Commission has had over 40 area organizations sign up for a booth at the first annual Opportunity Fair to be held at Castle Ridge on June 28. The Opportunity Fair is an event for all ages featuring job opportunities, civic organizations, community resources, youth programs and more. Youth Commission Advisor Gayla Harting says the event has grown beyond initial expectations thanks to the kids’ efforts.

“We originally said, let’s try to get about 20 to 25 booths that will set up and show people in Centralia and surrounding communities what’s here for them,” Harting said. “We ended up bypassing that and we’re at 45 now versus 25, so we’re full and we’re very excited about this. The kids have worked hard to bring the booths in… we are just so excited about how this is turning out for us and the work they’ve done for it.”

Each organization with a booth will have information about upcoming opportunities to share with attendees, and several will also have features to interact with, including a boat display by the National Boat Racing Association, kids’ activities by Carrie Leigh’s, and soccer practice with the Little Egypt Soccer Club.

Jordan Wiley, a senior in high school and member of the Youth Commission, says he and his peers have been putting in work to spread the word about the fair.

“(We’ve been) talking to people we know in a lot of local groups, local businesses and things we’re involved in ourselves,” Wiley said. “A lot of people in the community are excited for this. They’re excited for opportunities, because there are a lot of opportunities around here. They just want to make sure that everyone knows that.”

With all the booths filled, the commission’s efforts are now focused on spreading the word in the community to draw as much attendance as possible. Members are sharing posts on Facebook and sharing information in-person at churches and other organizations they’re involved in.

The Opportunity Fair will last for three hours on June 28, from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.