ORLANDO -- Innovation is the mission of all of our Teen Tech Innovation (TTI) Clubs. But there is nothing wrong with mixing in a little fun, and that's just what four of the Clubs had at the 2011 National Keystone Conference.

For those who may be unfamiliar, Keystone Clubs are character and leadership clubs at Boys & Girls Clubs for teens ages 13 and up. Once a year, a national conference is held in a major U.S. city that brings together Keystoners from every corner of the country -- and even from military bases overseas! For three days, Keystoners participate in educational, career and community service experiences -- and have a whole lotta fun!

While most Keystoners raise funds year-round through car washes, bake sales, etc. for their trips, thanks to the generosity of TTI supporter Best Buy Children's Foundation, four of the TTI Clubs -- Haslam Family Club University, Cawood Ledford BGC, BGC of Carbondale and BGC of Murray -- got to join in on the fun and shared with their peers their project's progress thus far.

• Haslam Family Club University scored major interviews for Radio BGC! Teen radio host Ian interviewed youth motivational speaker Gabe Salazar, comedian and conference host Griff, plus the three other TTI Clubs.
• Teen participant Gage from Cawood Ledford BGC spoke about how “The Prime Initiative” started as an idea but it turned into a $10,000 grant, some myclubmylife.com fame and a trip to Disney World!  He encouraged his peers to do the same. Instead of hiring a DJ they are now rocking their own Club events!
• Remie from BGC of Carbondale shared a video of various video clips from moviemaking projects the teens had done. One of the clips showed teen interviewing mayoral candidates, who were all invited (and all accepted) to a discussion at the Club.
• BGC of Murray made a splash with a fancy PowerPoint presentation that described their "Be Cause" project, highlighting some awesome dances they have held as fundraisers to benefit the Huntsman Cancer Institute. 

Outside of sharing their experiences with their peers, the TTI sites got to interact with fellow teens and have some fun along the way. Rapper J. Cole, up-and-coming teenage hearthrob group Mindless Behavior and rising star Tiffany Evans were among the entertainment acts. And inspiring messages by Salazar and shark-bite-victim-turned-champion-surfer Bethany Hamilton made the conference a fulfilling experience for the TTI Clubs.