"I don't like to be alone or confined; I really like to talk to people," says Daniel Soto, 9th grader at Cantwell-Sacred Heart of Mary High School in Montebello.

A people person by nature, Soto recently returned from the California Young Leaders State Conference in Sacramento where for four days he learned more about taking charge, honing skills and managing groups of people. The conference theme was Courageous Leadership and students took introspective and personalized assessment of their leadership skills and unique abilities.

"The conference was a good experience," says Soto who attends St. Mary's Church in Los Angeles. "I think the thing that I brought back with me is how to take charge of a project and see it from start to finish. Oh, I did make lots of friends too."

Back home, Soto keeps a busy schedule as an honor student at school and line/full back on the football team. He's also a regular volunteer at neighborhood schools where he reads and supervises second graders. And at a nearby center for mentally disabled, Soto reads to older students and also enjoy "just talking with them and finding out who they are."