TEENS GIVING BACK TO AGOURA HILLS.

Byline: Teresa Jimenez Daily News Staff Writer

The teens and pre-teens who help out at the day camp at Yerba Buena Elementary volunteered for all sorts of reasons: Their moms made them, they wanted something to put on college applications, they needed something to do this summer.

But they're finding that the work is more fun than they expected - especially when they consider the alternatives.

``I would have had to go to summer school,'' said Jason Alan, 12.

``I would be sitting at home if I weren't coming here, sleeping late,'' said David Almany, 12.

``We'd be doing nothing,'' said Ryan Gerisch, 14.

Instead, they're able to put themselves to good use, said Ralph Bessard, recreation coordinator for the city of Agoura Hills who organizes the camp and the volunteers.

``I'm quite pleasantly surprised with the kids who want to volunteer out here,'' Bessard said. ``Without teen volunteers, we wouldn't be able to do a lot of things. We count on them for supervision.''

On Thursday morning, Kim Mitchell, 14, played basketball with a little girl, fetching the ball and being supportive when the youngster missed the hoop. On another court, Michael Grossman and Scott McCreary, both 16, played two-on-two with two boys half their size.

The Teen VIP volunteer program, in its ninth year, puts interested 11- to 17-year-olds to work during the summer as clerks in City Hall, the recreation center or the Las Virgenes Unified School District, or as counselors at day camps or sports camps.

The program has grown over the years, making this year's enrollment the largest ever with about 80 volunteers, Bessard said. And applications are still being accepted.

Many of the volunteers have grown up participating in Agoura Hills recreation programs and remember the counselors who worked with them, Bessard said. Experience with the programs ends up helping the staff considerably, since many of the volunteers know what they're doing, he said.

``They know all about the stuff we teach. We do a program on archery, for example, and some of the kids are as good as the instructors,'' Bessard said.

Troy Oden, 12, who just graduated from the day camp last year, said he always liked the camp activities and thought the volunteers' jobs looked like fun.

``The counselors were nice, so I thought if I got accepted I'd try this,'' Troy said. ``I'm going to help with the basketball camp next.''

``It's fun making friends and stuff,'' said his friend Matthew Waller, 12.

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Photo: Teen VIP volunteer Scott McCreary, 16, of Agoura plays with Cory Baker, 6, of Agoura Hills during a kickball game at day camp.

Evan Yee/Daily News