The (You)th Residency Program has been created to showcase the talent of the youth of Kitchener and the Waterloo Region as a whole, with three four-month residencies that focus on a different artistic medium. All positions are for youth ages 12-18 to earn volunteer hours towards earning their high school diploma while simultaneously getting their work out there via our Instagram page (@youth.kpl) and this website. Applications can be found on our (You)th Volunteer Opportunity page. Please note that decisions are not made until after the applications have closed for a position and only those who move to the next steps of the application process will be contacted.
(You)th Artist in Residence
The (You)th Artist in Residence is a virtual volunteer opportunity for those between the ages of 12-18 that runs from September to December, submitting artwork for the (You)th Instagram account (@youth.kpl) in their preferred medium (painting, photography, drawing, etc.). Applications are now closed.
(You)th Writer in Residence
The (You)th Writer in Residence is a virtual volunteer opportunity for those between the ages of 12-18 that runs from May to August, submitting creative writing for the (You)th Instagram account (@youth.kpl) and (You)th website in their preferred writing style. Applications are now closed.
(You)th Musician in Residence
The (You)th Musician in Residence is a volunteer opportunity for those between the ages of 12-18 that runs from May to August, working with instruments/equipment from home or with audio recording technology available in Heffner Studio at the Central Library (85 Queen St. N) to compose, record, and perform music under the mentorship of our Audio/Video Associate. Applications are now closed.
The (You)th Artist in Residence is a virtual volunteer opportunity for those between the ages of 12-18 that runs from September to December, submitting artwork for the (You)th Instagram account (@youth.kpl) in their preferred medium (painting, photography, drawing, etc.). Applications are now closed.
(You)th Writer in Residence
The (You)th Writer in Residence is a virtual volunteer opportunity for those between the ages of 12-18 that runs from May to August, submitting creative writing for the (You)th Instagram account (@youth.kpl) and (You)th website in their preferred writing style. Applications are now closed.
(You)th Musician in Residence
The (You)th Musician in Residence is a volunteer opportunity for those between the ages of 12-18 that runs from May to August, working with instruments/equipment from home or with audio recording technology available in Heffner Studio at the Central Library (85 Queen St. N) to compose, record, and perform music under the mentorship of our Audio/Video Associate. Applications are now closed.
(You)th Musicians in Residence
2021
2020
2019
(You)th Writers in Residence
2021
Phoenix always knew she was special. They were one of the select few people who were lucky (or unlucky, depending on how you looked at it) enough to have been born without a timer on their left wrist. To her, it never changed anything, except they were the only person they knew who didn’t have a soulmate. 
Hours later, within the final moments of the game, Becca skated her hardest towards the net. With mere seconds to go in the third and final period and a tally of three to two for Kitchener, there was only one thing left to do. Score. 
Henry checked his soulmate timer subtly as the vampires began to bare their fangs, their leader examining him and his friends closely. 
1:03:27 |
She opened her eyes and sat up, her heart pounding loudly in her chest. There was a faint ringing in her ears that only ceased after she had fully woken up, as if her ears were still recovering from being overused within her dream. It was strange because she felt like she had had that same dream before, only she couldn’t remember when. 
I never really liked four-letter words. All of them mean so much more than the confines of four letters. Love. Hate. Time. Loss. Pain. No mere words can accurately describe any of these terms. In order to understand them, you need to feel. The tender caress of love. The hate that consumes you. The adrenaline coursing through your veins. The heart-wrenching loss. The heavy weight of time. Or the aches and consequences of pain. 
From afar, however, he thought beaches were beautiful, especially when watching the sky aflame in the afterglow of the setting sun and its stunning reflection on the water below. But, as with most elements of beauty, they were only meant to be gazed upon from a distance. He found that the closer he got, the more devastating the consequences were for him and so it was all he could do not to be lured into the trap disguised as elegance that would only end in disaster. 
Her laughter was rare but contagious, echoing smoothly off of the walls in our home. It was moments like these that I cherished the most, as her eyes crinkled in laughter and her mouth turned upwards into a wide smile. The reason for my grandma’s laughter was because I had misspelled the name of her favourite flower forget-me-not as furgot-me-not. |
There were only a few passengers on the bus, most sitting by themselves and spaced out. Indigo and I sat in the very back and planned out how to execute the spell for Indigo to get back home. We chose to do it by the lake so that we would be in a secluded area and the water would be right there so that we could cleanse the crystals. 
I noticed on the inside of the box was a written-out description about where to find the green crystals that we needed. I showed it to Indigo as we both shared a look of confusion. The little notes were one thing, but this, this felt like someone was making sure that we found all the crystals that we needed. 
"To you, it might seem crazy that my society runs that way but it's just as crazy to me that your society doesn’t run that way, although I have gotten a little more used to it over my years of dimension-hopping. Oh! That’s what we call people who travel to other dimensions, ‘dimension hoppers.’” 
I came face to face with a girl I was sure I had never seen before. I looked at her puzzled but by the excitement expressed on her face, I thought maybe I was the mistaken one. I didn’t have the best memory and at that moment I cursed my hippocampus for failing me in a time of need. “I’m sorry, have we met before?” I asked politely. |
2020
“At this time, I don’t know the locations of any other prison camps, except that they are very far away.” she explains. “They’ll also be more heavily guarded in light of our attack here, so it only makes sense to strike the government while we have the element of surprise.” Here, Brealynn pauses and gazes around the room. “Are there any objections?” 
I jump up to my feet, standing protectively beside Jayda. She hardly blinks at the sudden appearance of the Accursed street gang. None of them bear the tattoos of an Accursed, making me wonder whether they’ve hidden theirs as well or simply never got them. Veronika stumbles back a step, standing beside me as if preparing to grab my hand so I can teleport us away. I’m not against that idea, but I’m not sure if Jayda will be with us, or if I have the energy to teleport all three of us again to some unknown location. 
In a blink, the three of us appear. Somewhere else. We’re surrounded by forest, and I have no idea where we are. 
I take a seat and roll up a sleeve. On the underside of my arm, my veins are clearly visible. The doctor comes over and quickly inserts a needle into the crook of my elbow. I watch as he takes some of my blood. The blood will be tested and based on the results, they’ll know if I have any of the three curses. |
I refuse to conform and cave, 
Jean Shinoda Bolen once said, “When you recover or discover something that nourishes your soul and brings joy, care enough about yourself to make room for it in your life.” While we learn many valuable things throughout our high school careers, one thing that can’t be answered during a lesson or through reading a textbook is finding joy in our lives. 
Four goals. Four objectives. Four things I am striving to attain and understand in the future. Like a kid trying to grab the cookie jar from a high shelf, despite a step stool or jumping as high as they can, they are not able to reach it. Like the kid, often times people take shortcuts or rush themselves to grow up fast in modern society due to cultural lag. However, is anyone truly prepared for adulthood? 
Teens have the ability to look back on some of the most impactful moments in history, the good and the bad, and make different decisions in the present. The current generation of teens can even be compared to the 60’s; a time where advocacy of social issues was more common and people were more willing to be independent and vocal with their opinions. This is a quality which can help with the reconstruction of society, allowing future generations to become more expressive about changes that need to be made in our world. |
If you were to ask me three years ago if I wanted to move, I would hesitate to say yes. I had dreams at a young age to grow up as quickly as possible, move out onto my own, live in the city, and somehow perfectly balance a work life, school life, and social life all at the same time like they do in the movies. I didn’t want to let go of my friends at the time, but I knew we all would drift apart eventually with time and my life choices shouldn’t be based around them. But, there was something daunting about that at the same time. 
The Kingdom of Gardenia had never fallen so silent before. All the children who would play out in the long narrow streets close to their friend’s homes became hidden within the depths of their own rooms. Merchants had all closed down their shops and the maidens had given themselves house chores to fulfill while they had all prevented from going outside to run their errands. Today marked the second year from the passing of Aliana’s father. 
In fact, I couldn’t wrap my head around the reason as to why my mother wanted me to get along with my siblings. At the time, I didn’t have a role model of any sort (other than aspiring to be Hannah Montana), and I definitely didn’t think my brothers would be one. How they acted and their values at the time were things I never really cared about nor wanted to. Additionally, they were people I grew up arguing with. Our sibling banter got in the way of me seeing what they were actually like as human beings. 
The feeling of home is quite hard to explain. It’s like having your mother cradle you in her arms for the first time and the sheer look of love on her face as she adores your entire existence. It is a place where you can strip away your most outermost levels and truly be yourself. Home is more of a feeling than a location; a destined place of residency, a permanent location that you could find on a map — or at least that’s how I see it. |
2019
A scraggly man wielding a dull dagger approached my table. He pointed the knife in my direction, holding a wide grin on his face. 
Should I have listened to my father’s warning? 
The foliage shuffled. Twigs snapped. Bela and I glanced at each other preparing for the worst. 
What is the cost of knowledge? For us, it was summoning a demon. |
As soon as he woke up, Oscar knew he was going to die. 
Iris had never really been into crime. 
Jim was having a stressful day. A stressful week, for that matter. It was an itchy, pesky sort of stress not unlike the itchy, pesky sort of sunburn he usually got on the top of his head in the summer. The stress of the week grew positively tiresome after he made this comparison - Jim was a man who prided himself on his superior intellect and calm and he did not like to be reminded of the little thing in life that bothered him like incessant mosquitoes. His ever-expanding bald spot was one such pest. 
On April 14th, 2015, Jenny became the ocean. |
(You)th Artists in Residence
2021
2020
2019
2018