Zach Milvo didn’t plan on becoming the 2009 Governor of Boys State.

It just sorta’ happened.

But by the time this 17-year-old Southmoore senior left the campus of Northeastern Oklahoma State University, he knew what it was like to serve as the chief executive of a large, raucous group of people.

He also learned a great deal about government.

And people.

And politics.

“I didn’t know that to expect,” he said. “We were chosen by our counselors, then representatives from the Moore District of the American Legion came to school and interviewed us.”

Zach survived the cuts and made it to Boy’s State. But even there, he didn’t know what to expect.

“The first three days were kinda chaotic. But after a while it settled down and got fun.”

And as the fun started, Zach bonded with the men of his fictional Boys State city and displayed some natural political skill.

“Once I got started, the guys in my city rallied around me,” he said. “That’s when I thought I might have a chance. I figured if your gonna go you might as well go for the top position.”

Getting there, he said, was revealing.

“It was interesting to see just how much politics brewed into the equation. It surprised me to a certain degree.”

Politics or not, Zach was elected governor and presided over the executive branch of the Boy’s State government. “I dealt with two different Senates,” he said. “They would develop a piece of legislation, then we’d discuss it. If we liked it, it passed — if it was Constitutional. If the executive branch didn’t like it, I vetoed it.”

As an example, he cited a piece of education legislation.