About Count Me In!

Building civic participation across generations.

Count Me In! was founded by two Broward County high school students with a shared interest in civic engagement and a goal of making voter registration more accessible across generations.

Based in South Florida, Count Me In! works within schools, senior communities, and local organizations to bring voter registration directly into the places where people already learn, live, and connect. Through outreach, education, and community partnerships, the organization helps eligible citizens understand the registration process and take an important first step toward civic participation.

At its core, Count Me In! is built on a simple principle: informed and engaged communities begin with people who are prepared to participate in them.

Our story

Making participation more accessible, one connection at a time.

Registering to vote may be straightforward, but navigating the process is not equally familiar or accessible to everyone. First-time voters may be unsure where to begin, while older adults—particularly those who have recently moved or transitioned into a senior community—may need help ensuring their registration information is accurate and current.

Count Me In! brings clear, respectful, and nonpartisan voter registration assistance directly into the communities it serves. Through its collaboration with AVUS Connect, the organization also creates an intergenerational approach to civic engagement, bringing students and older adults together around a shared purpose.

By working with schools, senior communities, and local partners, Count Me In! aims to make voter registration easier to understand, easier to access, and a natural first step toward meaningful civic participation.

Meet the founders

Started by students. Built for the community.

Helaina Leuca and Adrian Lutz bring complementary experience in health, education, environmental advocacy, and intergenerational service.

Founder • Civic engagement and public health

Helaina Leuca

Helaina is a senior at Pine Crest School whose interests center on civic engagement, public health, and the research connecting the two. A violinist in her school orchestra and a student of Mandarin and Spanish, she brings a research-driven, interdisciplinary perspective to the communities she serves.

She has served as a research intern in the Cancer Modeling Shared Resource Lab at the University of Miami’s Sylvester Cancer Center, volunteered in the emergency departments at Boca Regional Hospital and the VA Hospital of West Palm Beach, and shadowed physicians in reconstructive medicine. She also tutors advanced math and leads STEM outreach for elementary school students through Florida Atlantic University.

Studying comparative global health systems at Oxford University and working with elderly veterans helped shape Helaina’s thinking about the relationship between civic life and wellbeing. That experience, together with the pressures young first-time voters face from social media and peer influence, became the basis for her research on the polarizing effects of social media on youth voting behavior, submitted for publication in Convergence, a journal published by Indigo Research and the New York Academy of Sciences.

At Count Me In!, those experiences converge. Helaina treats civic participation as part of the health equation, working to make voter registration approachable for young people and older adults alike, one registered voter at a time.

Founder • Outreach and engagement

Adrian Lutz

Adrian is a high school junior whose interests center on civic engagement, environmental advocacy, and the power of communication to move people from ideas to action. Raised bilingually in German and English and having lived in South Florida and Indonesia, he brings an international perspective to the communities and issues he engages with.

As co-president of AVUS Connect, Adrian leads intergenerational initiatives that keep older adults connected and engaged. He mobilizes student volunteers, develops one-on-one programs, organizes activities in senior communities, and leads technology initiatives combining hands-on teaching with fundraising for devices participants can keep. He also helps older adults connect with the wider community, including arranging transportation to student concerts and performances.

A formative year at Green School in Bali helped shape Adrian’s hands-on approach to advocacy. Weekly coral restoration sparked a lasting commitment to environmental action, while Model United Nations deepened his interest in international affairs, earning him an award as the competition’s youngest participant. Today, he takes his advocacy to City Hall, engaging directly with mayors, commissioners, and community leaders on environmental issues affecting Broward County.

At Count Me In!, those experiences converge around a simple idea: participation matters only if people actually participate. Adrian focuses on outreach and engagement—meeting people where they are, making voter registration approachable, and turning civic awareness into civic action.

What guides us

Our values

Nonpartisan

We help eligible residents participate without supporting or opposing any candidate or party.

Respectful

Every person deserves patient, dignified assistance and control over their own information.

Reliable

We direct residents to official state and county sources for registration and election information.

Intergenerational

Young volunteers and older neighbors strengthen civic life by learning from and helping one another.

Collaboration

Working with Avus Connect.

Count Me In! collaborates with Avus Connect to reach seniors and residential communities with thoughtful, practical support. This section is ready for an approved description of each organization’s role, shared programming, and community partners.

Invite us

Bring voter-registration and record-update guidance to a school, senior community, library, or neighborhood event.

Request a community visit