Last Thursday, the Youth Service Club from Richard R Green High School for Teaching in Manhattan had a once in a lifetime opportunity – they were honored on the field before a Mets game! As the winners of the second annual Youth Service Club Coat Drive Contest, these students were thanked for collecting the most coats out of the participating Youth Service Clubs.

Richard R Green volunteers also visited New York Cares’ Coat Drive warehouse in December to help sort through all the donations, so their experience at the Mets game was a celebration of their deep investment in this year’s Coat Drive. 

We want to thank the Mets for this amazing opportunity. Over half the students had never been to a professional baseball game before, so the day was really special! Visiting Citi Field is a quintessential New York experience, and it was the perfect reward for students giving back to NYC.

By Allison Sterrett

In Youth Service, we know we are lucky to work with some incredible kids. Need proof? Check out The Perfect Revolution, a project created by a student at Richard R Green High School (RRG, one of our Youth Service Club schools), with the help of The Future Project.

Mariely Garcia, a senior at RRG, launched a campaign to redefine the word “perfect”. The “Perfectly Made” campaign hopes to increase self-worth in high school students. A statement from the group says: By radically transforming how people think of perfection, and therefore, themselves, we bring together the myriad anti-bullying, self-eesteem, and self-expression initiatives across the country with a powerful and unifying root solution: the understanding that we are all Perfectly Made and must treat others as such.

This campaign grew into an enormous online media presence, with celebrity endorsements, and a rally – taking place this Saturday.

New York Cares isn’t affiliated with the project, but we had to share how proud we are of Mariely.

By Allison Sterrett

Our staff puts their monthly Metrocards to good use, but our Youth Service department gives even the busiest Program Managers a run for their money. Organizing projects with youth volunteers in different boroughs leads to a lot of swipes and transfers. See how many times Allison Sterrett can ride the subway on a typical day in Youth Service:

It’s a good thing I love to travel! As a Youth Service Program Manager, I work with 8 public high schools in 3 different boroughs, and I trek all over the city connecting students with ways to help their communities. Passing by our department, you’re likely to hear: how many boroughs did you visit today? How many trains did you ride? I’ve done the 4 borough day quite a few times (never all 5, but I’m hopeful!) and I think my daily train record is 12 – counting transfers – but it’s hard to keep track. With all that time spent underground, a day in the life of a Youth Service Program Manager may not be glamorous, but it is pretty glorious. Here’s what it might look like:

Trains 1 & 2, Brooklyn to Lower Manhattan:
I start the day in the New York Cares office, meeting with colleagues and confirming plans with schools and community agencies.

Train 3, Lower Manhattan to the South Bronx:
I head up to one of my schools for an Issue Education meeting. We talk about the purpose of parks and gardens in an urban environment, and the students have some incredible ideas about the kind of parks they would design for their neighborhoods! Apparently, this city could use more sports fields, more waterfalls, and more zoos. (Who can disagree with that?)

Trains 4 & 5, South Bronx to Harlem:
A group of 12 high schoolers, a teacher, and I journey down to Harlem to help out in an amazing community garden. The students learn how to trim back hedges, identify weeds from flowers, and build simple trellises. The kids can’t stop singing and telling jokes while they work, and the garden staff is cracking up.

Train 6, Harlem to Lower Manhattan:
After asking my volunteers where they want to help out next month, I walk them to the train and I head back to the office to make sure everything’s in order for tomorrow’s community service adventure.

Trains 7 & 8, Lower Manhattan to Brooklyn:
Home! And I’m looking forward to a new project in a new neighborhood tomorrow.

I may be biased, but I’m pretty sure I have the best job in the city. And if you have any recommendations for podcasts to listen to on the train, I could use them!

By Allison Sterrett

A group of 15 extraordinary teens from all over New York City dedicated more than 800 hours of service to New York Cares and our partner agencies throughout July. The Teen Service Team spent three weeks making short videos with middle schoolers at Episcopal Social Services Summer Program in Brooklyn; giving manicures and dancing with the seniors at Cobble Hill Health Center; serving meals, handing out pantry bags, and socializing with the clients at The Momentum Project soup kitchen in the Bronx; and playing games and doing arts and crafts at Rivington House.

Congratulations to all the participants of this year’s New York Cares Teen Service Team Summer Cycle for providing a summer of extraordinary service.

Learn more about our Youth Service program today.

By Tiffany Haynes

How will you be spending your summer vacation? By the pool, reading a book, or just trying to find a building with air conditioning? Well, if you’re between the ages of 14 and 18, and are currently enrolled in a New York City public school, you can spend the summer learning more about your community while working with your peers to improve it. The Teen Service Team is back for it’s third year, and is currently accepting applications.

If you’re a student looking to spend your summer by getting more involved with volunteering, then make sure you apply to the program by Monday, June 11th. This summer, our projects are focusing on seniors with special needs and children’s recreation. The program involves an in depth issue education session before diving into your summer project. You’ll also get to reflect with your fellow volunteers on how your summer went.

Make your summer exciting and worthwhile. Be a part of the Teen Service Team. Apply today!

By Susan Torres

Last Friday, nearly 300 of our Youth Service volunteers gathered at Pace University to celebrate another school year spent improving their community. These students represented public high schools from all over the city, and it was a great day to celebrate the 15,867 collective hours of work they completed between October and May. The work these students completed is as varied as the neighborhoods they represent: from leading anti-bullying activities in community centers, to taking a biological survey of the East River, to constructing 3D murals for a school for the blind, their enthusiasm and dedication is amazing!

Chancellor of New York City Department of Education Dennis Walcott started off the day by walking through the audience and asking students about their favorite volunteer projects from the year. Students then dispersed into various workshops that focused on issue education or leadership skills. We are deeply grateful to Chancellor Walcott and all our workshop leaders for giving their time to recognize and support the young volunteers who will continue serving our city for years to come.

Youth Service Director Michael Wise noted “Teenagers in New York City often get a bad rap and all of you here today prove that teenagers are doing great things every day to build a stronger city”. We’d like to give a virtual round of applause to all our Youth Service volunteers and everyone who has supported them this year!

By Allison Sterrett

A couple weeks ago, the Youth Service Clubs at The Facing History School and the Urban Assembly School of Design & Construction teamed up to create a 3D textural version of Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Night. Why 3D you may ask? Because the mural will be donated to the Jewish Guild for the Blind School so they can experience this iconic painting in a whole new way.

A group of 10 – 15 volunteers met four times over the course of a month to work on it. The mural was divided into six panels to make it easier for the volunteers to work. Most of the supplies were donated by Materials for the Arts, a great organization that distributes art supplies to different agencies around the city. You could tell the volunteers all had a blast choosing textures, and a few of them even learned how to sew in the process! Check out some of the pictures of students working, as well as the finished product:

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This month, the Youth Service Team at New York Cares is focusing its efforts on crime prevention within New York City and its public schools.

A group of dedicated Youth Volunteers are helping to spread the anti-crime message by engaging in a number of hands-on activities. At a recent project, teen volunteers got together and painted an amazing crime prevention mural, designed by our very own Youth Service Program Manager, Dakotah West.

Other projects for this month include painting one of three Reisenbach Crime Prevention Murals, also designed by Dakotah West, and working with children to improve literacy by reading Katheryn Otahsi’s anti-bullying book ONE.

We’re proud of our youth volunteers for spreading such a positive message to kids and helping eliminate crime in the New York City community!

We’re thrilled that many of our current Teen Service Team members are planning to sign up again next year. If you or a high school student you know are making a New Year’s resolution to make a difference in your community in 2011, apply by January 10. Here’s what Melissa Avalo has to say about her experience in the program:

“One of my favorite projects during my time in the Teen Service Team was when we planted baby trees in the Bronx. It was so inspirational; the artist really had an amazing vision. This project was great for revitalizing the community, which was our goal for the month.

“It felt great planting the baby trees – it felt like we did so much to help the community. Nature is a beautiful thing, and I’m glad that we got to contribute to making it even more exquisite. I have always wanted to plant a baby tree, and now I can say I have planted several! It was an amazing experience; I would love to do it again.”

This spring, New York City teenagers can reach out to the community and volunteer as caring citizens.

Our One-Time Service Learning Project allows groups of 10-30 volunteers from high schools and community organizations that are not already part of our Youth Service Club to do a range of inspiring, one-time service learning activities. Be sure to apply early so we can accommodate your request.

Students can also address social issues and experience leadership training with our Teen Services Team on an ongoing basis. Projects take place every Saturday from February through June. Complete the application form and return it to us by January 10, 2011. 
 

To find out more about all our programs for teenagers, please visit our Youth Volunteering page.