Neighborhood
2012 Global Youth Service Day to Engage Youth in Grand Rapids!
Contact:
Pitch:
April 20, 21, and 22, 2012 is Global Youth Service Day in Michigan and across the country. Millions of children and youth in the United States and in more than 100 countries are planning service and service-learning projects that highlight the positive contributions young people make throughout the year.
Five Grand Rapids AmeriCorps programs are hosting events Saturday, April 21 to engage the Grand Rapids community in service and all focus on environmental stewardship. This press release details those projects and all the activities to participate in.
Camp Fire USA West Michigan Council, a youth development organization with 10 after school programs locally, will mobilize more than 50 young people to participate in this annual opportunity through a local service project. On Saturday, April 21st, volunteers will be constructing table top garden beds and raised garden beds at local elementary school, Kent Hills Elementary from 930am to 330pm. The garden will provide an educational center for environmental learning and participation. For more information about Camp Fire USA visit www.campfireusawmc.org or contact Ellen Hensel at [email protected] or by calling (616) 949-2500 ext 24
Goodwill Partners of America is partnering with Bethany Christian and Habitat for Humanity to do a garden and beautification project at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans. From 10am to 1pm they will be getting their hands dirty in a garden project, with lunch and a speaker provided. For more information contact Alec Marsy at [email protected] or at (616) 451-8800 ext. 1240
United Way’s Schools of Hope also have a beautification day planned at Roosevelt Park. In partnership with Artists Creating Together, Cook Arts Center, friends of Grand Rapids Parks and Calvin College Biology department they will be planning native species rain gardens, painting a mural, and fixing up the area. They will be hosting Grand Rapids Montessori students and other Grand Rapids Youth. The mural was designed and will be painted by artists with disabilities from ACT and students from Cook Arts Center. The event runs from 10am to 1pm with a pizza lunch. For more information contact Dan Drust at [email protected].
To honor Global Youth Service Day, the American Red Cross of West Michigan and Army
Strong Community Center will be hosting a day of service for youth to serve
veterans and military families. The event, on Saturday will run from 2:30pm to 6:30 pm, with dinner provided at the Army Strong Community Center. Volunteers will do a variety of tasks, including assembling hero packs for troops overseas. For more information, contact Khoa Nguyen at
[email protected] (616) 456-8661 ext. 5402
For more information or quotes, contact any of the above representatives.
Global Youth Service Day (GYSD) is an annual campaign that celebrates and mobilizes the millions of children and youth who improve their communities each day through service and service-learning. Established in 1988, GYSD is the largest service event in the world and is now celebrated in more than 100 countries. On GYSD, children and youth address the world’s most critical issues in partnership with families, schools, community and faith-based organizations, businesses, and governments.
Global Youth Service Day is organized by Youth Service America and its Global Youth Service Network, which includes multiple sponsors and partners throughout the world. In Michigan, efforts are led by the Michigan Community Service Commission and The LEAGUE Michigan, GYSD Lead Agencies.
For more information about Global Youth Service Day, visit www.gysd.org.
The Michigan Community Service Commission (MCSC) builds a culture of service by providing vision and resources to strengthen communities through volunteerism. In 2011-2012, the MCSC is granting nearly $8 million in federal funds to local communities for volunteer programs and activities. The MCSC is funding 24 AmeriCorps programs, 20 Learn and Serve programs, and seven Volunteer Michigan grantees. The Governor’s Service Awards and Mentor Michigan are also premier programs of the MCSC. The MCSC is housed in the Michigan Department of Human Services, whose mission is to assist children, families, and vulnerable adults to be safe, stable, and self-supporting. The Corporation for National and Community Service grants the federal funding the MCSC administers.
The LEAGUE Michigan is a school and web-based program for service-learning that builds character and empowers K-12 students to "do good" through service-learning in their community, nation and world. Their website, www.learningtogive.com, is full of resources for students, teachers and community partners and contains; among other things, over 1,400 lesson plans related to service-learning that are made by teachers for teachers and are all aligned to state standards.
Youth Service America improves communities by increasing the number and the diversity of young people, ages 5-25, serving in substantive roles. Founded in 1986, YSA supports a global culture of engaged youth committed to a lifetime of service, learning, leadership, and achievement. The impact of YSA's work through service and service-learning is measured in student achievement, workplace readiness, and healthy communities.
CONTACT: Ellen Hensel
Camp Fire USA AmeriCorps
(616) 949-2500
Return to the Storybank Ideas
Comments, like all content, are held to The Rapidian standards of civility and open identity as outlined in our Terms of Use and Values Statement. We reserve the right to remove any content that does not hold to these standards.