St. Petersburg Senior Elected To State Government Mock Session

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A St. Petersburg Catholic High School senior reported to Tallahassee Sunday for a state government mock session where he was elected mayor.

Creighton Shafer, a St. Pete native, joins 15 other senior delegates at the 78th Florida American Legion Boys State (FALB) session.

FALB is a week-long leadership program hosted at Florida State University for high school boys, its website said.

A news release said mayors are the first elected officials at Boys State and lead their cities throughout the program.

The FALB committee reviewed many high school applications and then interviewed the students before selecting the winning candidates.

"In just a matter of hours, these young men demonstrated to their fellow citizens qualities of leadership, drive and service,” said Florida American Legion Boys State Director Andrew Satterlee. “Mayors—many of whom move on to higher office at Boys State—set the tone for the week and help leads their cities in simulations, efforts to score well on academic exams, win the dodgeball tournament, and have a strong presence in the mock state government sessions."

Shafer told Patch he applied because he wanted to increase his leadership skills.

"I wanted a challenge where I could be surrounded by the best of the best students in Florida and learn more about my local and state governments and how I could cause effective change," Shafer said.

A couple of the others elected as mayors of their hometown included Billy Jackson of Bradenton and Owen Cunneen of Bradenton, the news release said.

The delegates will complete the mock sessions Friday and return to their homes Saturday, staff said.

Shafer said he wants to see young St. Pete residents get more involved in local government to help create changes for our residents.

"I believe that in order to accomplish this goal, we need to shed more light on the positives that can occur from partaking in politics and by promoting the civic duty each and every citizen has, especially to Gen Z, so that they can cause a change in their city."

Shafer wants to attend the United States Naval Academy following graduation in 2023. He aims to work as an officer directing personnel operations on Navy ships.

To find out more information on FALB, visit its website.