The Blue and White met with The Fashion Club, a brand new club that’s starting soon here at Apopka High sponsored by Ms. McDonald, who generously chose to let members use her room and supervise them. We interviewed the president, Charmyne Brown, as well as many members of the board like Cayley McClure, Christy Reyes, Helen Hirwa, and E’liyah Colon. They’ve presented new ideas to contribute to the school and reasons why joining the Fashion Club can benefit you, not just on the outside, but on the inside as well.

Charmayne Brown begins by explaining what prompted her to create the Fashion Club. “I started The Fashion Club because about two years ago I’ve always had a love for fashion, and I heard a rumor that there was a Fashion Club. [As you can assume] there wasn’t. Now that I’m a senior, I’m still dressing nice, and I still get compliments on my outfits. I wanted to create a club and legacy [and leave] something that people will remember me by, something that the whole school will appreciate!”

Caley McClure explains why some students may need a club like this. “I think something that we want to strive to complete is self-expression. A lot of people have issues with expressing themselves, and fashion can be one of the many ways they can express and let out what they believe, you know. [Like how a lot of] people draw or sing, and fashion can be used as an outlet for them. It could be something that they use to express themselves, express how they feel, express their love for it! [Eventually, they will] learn how to be better at it.”

Taking students’ welfare into consideration, Christy Reyes goes on to explain the lengths the club goes to, to make sure everyone feels welcomed. “We are an inclusive club for everybody. We have so many transgender and queer kids in our clubs. One of our first rules is no homophobia at all. At all. We just know how people are. Do you know what I mean?”

Additionally, Charmyne Brown addresses the fashion club’s priorities when it comes to benefiting others. “The main issue that we want to focus on is we plan on challenging a community in the state of clothing, because there are many kids that walk around in little to no clothing, so we want to give back to the community through clothes, because clothes bring warmth, as Caley, said self-expression, as well.”

E’liyah Colon inserts her own perspective on the club. “We’re also trying to get people to build their confidence, and since a lot of the time that involves how they feel on the outside, it affects them on the inside, making them way more confident being able to walk around and know who they are.” It sounds like the club values self-esteem and the ability to understand who you are without the opinions of others changing how you feel like the wind.

The president came up with some ideas to share with the school. “The Fashion Club builds confidence and creativity by allowing students with the same creative passions to collaborate their ideas together. After our bi-weekly meetings, we’re going to have a theme on what our members could dress up as. For example, a 70’s theme would be on Wednesdays since meetings are on Tuesdays. On that Wednesday they would dress up in 70’s so that would take [reserved students] out of their comfort zones and take them on different venues of fashion, different themes of fashion. That will be our special event that is going to be our contribution to the school. As another club member stated, “Our fits are going to be so hard…They’re going to be so heat…Flavor to the school!”

Charmayne also answered some questions you may have about joining the club. “We do have a five-dollar fee, but right now there are no requirements to join The Fashion Club. All you have to do is have a love for fashion and you’ll be welcomed and accepted with open arms. Even if you want another form of self-expression, you’re more than welcome to come.”

The members of this club are very passionate about encouraging you to be kind to yourself and be the best version you can be, all while battling controversial topics and real-world problems that you don’t see often in other clubs. Are you excited to see what they will accomplish this year? Show up to the next meeting on Tuesday, November 1st between 2:30-3:15 pm, if you’re interested in joining the club.