Aryiane started spending time at the Boys & Girls Club in Atlantic City at just 5 years old, learning essential skills like reading and cooking, as well as receiving a lesson in confidence.
“I was in my own shadow,” she says. “When I got into the club and I started learning how to read, that’s when I started to learn how to speak for myself.”
Now, Aryiane, a recent high school graduate planning to attend Stockton University this fall as a political science major, has been named this year’s Youth of the Year by Boys & Girls Clubs in New Jersey for excellence in three areas: character, leadership, and health and well-being. The organization has awarded her a $12,500 college scholarship.
She also moves on to represent New Jersey as a finalist for Northeastern Youth of the Year; the winner will be announced in October.
These days, Aryiane enjoys reading in her free time, specifically autobiographies. “I like to know about your story,” says Aryiane. “I want to know about you, and that’s something that I kind of learned a lot from the club. I love to learn about people.”
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“When I first met Aryiane, I recognized that she had a lot of responsibilities,” says Melissa Morillo, director of Life & Workforce Readiness at the Boys and Girls Club in Atlantic City. “She was juggling with a lot, and I admired that about her. Her charisma always was displayed.”
The New Jersey Boys & Girls Clubs also awards a Military Youth of the Year award annually; for 2026, it’s high school junior Emryn, whose father is in the Air Force. Emryn receives a $6,000 college scholarship.
Emryn is an artist and looks forward to combining art and her love for marine biology in her future academic career. She notes that if it weren’t for her time at the youth center, she would never have started drawing. She has taken to encouraging her peers to explore their own artistic sides.
“I love anime. I love my characters. Why don’t I try drawing them?” says Emryn. “And that’s what I did at the youth center, and I loved it. Even now, I do art for just like comfort.”
Emryn also learned to be more confident in herself through her time in the club. “I was able to come out of my shell,” says Emryn.
“There’s a lot of requirements for Youth of the Year,” says Emryn’s adviser, Sarita Henriquez. “It does take a lot, and this young lady has shown nothing but success through it all.”
Aryiane, Emryn and 13 other finalists were honored at an event at Montclair State University in May.
