Organizing, cleaning, baking, reading, blogging and if I am being honest, playing games on my phone – a lot. These are the things that I am filling my days with. I am home, just like many of you who are reading this, due to the Covid-19 emergency in Massachusetts.

I often think about my Youth Venture students and I hope they and their families are all safe at home and doing well under these circumstances. I miss them!

I hear a lot about how people are paying it forward by acts of kindness. Many people are showing appreciation and thanking healthcare workers on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. This is a time that parents are using to teach their kids kindness and compassion. Families are delivering groceries to the elderly, or implementing “TP Tuesday” (It’s a thing!) by delivering toilet paper and hand sanitizer to their neighbors. This wonderful news of paying it forward made me think of a Longsjo Youth Venture team that is doing just that.

Longsjo Youth Venture Team Pays It Forward

Sam and Me’yah are the Longsjo Middle School students on a team that launched on 2/14/20 Valentine’s Day.  They are called LHCA – Let’s Help Cancer Awareness. This is the Longsjo Youth Venture team that is paying it forward, because……

Me’yah has been the recipient of a full karate scholarship that the Youth Venture team Karate for Kids established.  Karate for Kids is a Fitchburg High School YV team that launched three years prior on 2/14/17 also on Valentine’s Day – a very cool coincidence! So you see, Me’yah and Sam are now paying it forward with their Youth Venture team LHCA.

From Venturer to Panelist

Ethan Chandler, Fitchburg High School Senior,  is the lead venturer of the Karate for Kids team. Here he is being interviewed at the Youth Venture Spring Showcase.

Here is Ethan again on the left, as a panelist for Me’yah’s Youth Venture team. I don’t know of any other student who has done both. These Changemakers have truly “come full circle” when you think about it.

I am happy to report that Ethan and the other panelists were very impressed with LHCA’s presentation and launched the team.  Let’s Help Cancer Awareness is partnering with Why Me and Sherry’s House in Worcester, MA. The team will hold a raffle to raise money so that they can buy stuffed animals. The team will then deliver the stuffed animals to children that are staying at Sherry’s house while undergoing cancer treatments. The team did not ask for any seed funding, as they plan on holding a 50/50 raffle.

Check out this short video clip of their final panel. Me’yah talks about their inspiration for this idea. Congratulations to the LHCA team. I look forward to seeing their venture unfold!

Stay Informed and Reach Out

All of us at Youth Venture want to stay in touch with our students and champions. For the latest news from Youth Venture, please follow us and feel free to reach out via email, text or social media.

For any Youth Venture students that want to reach out to me, please email me at Kmaloney1@mwcc.mass.edu. I would love to know how you are doing and what you are up to!

Also, be on the lookout for videos from our full time outreach – Jake. These will be featured on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Let’s all stay connected during this time!

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Youth Venture was buzzing along as usual at Samoset. In the blink of an eye, we went from our first day together on October 18, 2019, to my most recent visit on March 6, 2020, when teams were gearing up for the Spring Showcase. 

Covid-19 Causes School Closures

Then, just like that, everything came to a halt because of COVID-19, otherwise known as the Coronavirus. The announcement to reschedule the Spring Showcase was made on Thursday, March 12th and ¿ªÔªÆåÅÆ closed on Friday, March 13th. All MA K-12 schools are closed for the next 3 weeks.

Everyday, there are more confirmed Coronavirus cases. Yesterday, I  viewed a notification – Seventy-two new cases here in MA bringing the total to 328 reported cases. It’s alarming how rapidly this virus is spreading.

Social distancing is the recommended way to slow down the spread of this highly contagious disease, and so here we are week one, day five, at home. 

On the bright side, we here at Youth Venture have plans to reach out to our Youth Venture teams and Champions as soon as next week. We will stay connected! Be sure to follow our social media for details!

In the meantime, I have a story that will take your mind off of the news for a moment and hopefully bring a smile to your face.

 A New Year of Youth Venture at Samoset 

October 18, 2019, I met with a large group of sixth grade students at Samoset for the first time in the school year. Picture thirty twelve year old kids sitting at or in some cases on the cafeteria tables. They are all buzzing with excitement, curious to find out what this Youth Venture thing is all about. 

I admit, I was feeling a little overwhelmed. It is a challenge to get thirty sixth graders to focus in a classroom. Imagine trying to do that in a cafeteria where there are at least one thousand visual distractions and noises to grab their attention. Students naturally equate the cafetera as a place for social gathering. 

The kids were excited and talkative, in particular, there was this one group of boys that had trouble staying focused and just staying put at the table. Alas, after some stern redirecting and shushing, we made it through our environmental scan. Now it was time for teams to form. 

Big Team Equals Big Problems?

Usually, teams consist of two or three kids, sometimes four. My talkative, excitable, ants-in-the-pants group of boys all came together as one, huge team of seven! I admit, my first thoughts were not those of a positive changemaker. Big teams equal big problems. This team will never get any work done. They will spend their time goofing off and/or fighting and/or socializing with the girls team with nearly as many members. Pretty negative, right?ÌýÌý

Expect Great Things!

I couldn’t have been more wrong in my gloomy assessment. 

This team worked so hard, so fast, it was amazing. I found out they worked on their action plan at home (and homework is not required!) They breezed right through their plan with limited instruction. Their motivation really blew my mind. 

So just what is it that they would like to do? 

Kids Helping Kids

They would like to raise $ to pay for kids that would like to play sports, but whose families can’t afford the fees. I am sharing the following with you, taken from the part of the action plan where they share their inspiration for wanting to do this:

ÌýÌýOwen Parlin´s inspiration began at Fallbrook Elementary School. The Leominster Basketball Recreation Department was giving three kids a chance to play for free. You had to write a letter to the PTO. The PTO and the Recreation Department went over the letters and picked three lucky kids. My brother happened to be one of the lucky kids. That inspired me to make someone else’s life easier. Then a year later, in the fifth-grade, my classmate (I wont say names) but he was really talented at basketball. Then I asked him ¨Why don’t you play basketball?¨ He responded, ¨ I can’t afford to play.¨ I was shocked, that made me want to do something about this. So when Youth Venture offered an opportunity, I took advantage of it.ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý

How cool is that? 

And how cool is this? 

Samoset’s Youth Venture Wildcats Sports for Kids Launches!

On Friday, February 28, Samoset Middle School Venture Team Wildcats Sports 4 Kids launched as the first middle school team of the year at Samoset. Owen, Jensen, Hersh, Adah, Augustin and Nathaniel showed their love of sports and empathy for their peers by putting together a plan to raise money for students who would like to play a sport, but cannot afford the costs of participating.

Owen has a friend that couldn’t play sports due to the costs. Jensen witnessed a child get upset when told by his parent that he couldn’t play a sport for the same reason. Collectively, the team felt strongly that kids who are eager and want to play a sport should be able to have that experience. They requested a small amount of seed funding to start their 50/50 raffle, however, the panelists agreed that they could use more money to ensure the success of their fundraiser. The team has a plan on how to select the students who will receive the funds with the assistance of their ally, Lori Fiandaca, Samoset Guidance Counselor.

Congratulations to Owen, Jensen, Hersh, Adah, Augustin, Nathaniel, Francine Meigs, UWYV Champion and Special Education teacher, and Lori Fiandaca, team ally. Special thanks to panelists Matt Steinburg, Samoset Principal, Lori Fiandaca, Samoset Guidance Counselor and Kristen Wark, Samoset PTO. 

So, when it comes to large Youth Venture teams of 6th graders, expect great things! I will no longer judge a book by it’s cover because – 

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Every Thursday, I visit the 15 students that participate in Youth Venture at Northwest Elementary. We meet in the cafeteria during their last hour of school. I look forward to meeting with these kids. Their honesty, intelligence and teamwork, surprises me every week.ÌýÌý

I think back to when I was in 4th grade, I was thinking about boys and planning sleepovers. These kids have much bigger fish to fry – they are thinking about causes and planning on how they can help children who are victims of child abuse. Through Youth Venture, these kids understand that they do have the power to make change in their community. What could be a better cause than kids helping kids?ÌýÌý

Once Mr. Prehna, their Youth Venture Champion and Vice Principal, found out that the students wanted their cause to be child abuse, he talked to them about CASA and his involvment in the organization. The team voted in favor of partnering with CASA. of Worcester County is a not-for-profit organization committed to speaking for the best interests of abused and neglected children in the Worcester County Courts. Robb Zarges, Executive Director of CASA and Julie Bowditch, Board Member of CASA and Advancement Officer at UMass Medical School, came in for a visit to talk to the students about CASA. 

The kids were very attentive and engaged, but it never hurts when the potential for a lollipop is part of the equation! Robb started by answering the question that was most likely on everyone’s mind. Just what does CASA stand for? 

CASA stands for Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children. He reviewed it with the students. What does the C stand for? What does the A stand for? A correct answer earned a lollipop.ÌýÌý

Robb explained that kids aren’t allowed to go to court, so that’s where a CASA worker comes in to be the voice of abused and neglected kids. Next, he passed out a very informative graphic that breaks down what a CASA actually does. Here are the steps involved in the process: 

1. A CASA volunteer is appointed by a judge to be the voice of a child that has been removed from his or her family and is perhaps in foster care. The CASA makes sure that a child is safe in foster care. 
2. The CASA volunteer meets on a regular basis with a child at least once per month to get to know the child and to learn more about him or her. 
3. The CASA volunteer communicates with everyone involved in the case: therapists, doctors, foster parents, biological family, CPS workers, teachers, and attorneys (ad litem). 
4. The CASA volunteer goes back to court to advocate for the child’s best interest. He or she will make recommendations, for example, a child may need a trumpet for lessons or the funds for summer camp. They help to arrange for whatever the child needs to thrive while that case is open. 
5. The CASA volunteer supports the child through transitions, for example, moving to a different foster home, starting at another new school, or when reassigned to another caseworker. According to Robb, the average child lives in foster care for 2 years and moves 3 times. 

The CASA volunteer will continue working on the case until the child has a permanent home. 

Robb and Julie patiently answered questions and listened intently when one student shared her own experience with foster care. 

The statistics are alarming. Every year in Massachusetts nearly 8,700 children are removed from their homes because of abuse or neglect.There are over 1,700 children in Worcester County many of whom are in need of CASAs to be the voice and advocate for their best interests. Most children are under the age of 12, nearly half are under 6. There is some good news. In 2018, CASA has successfully served 906 children!

 The students seemed to have a much better understanding of what a CASA is and how extremely important CASA volunteers are as advocates for abused and neglected children right here in their own community.

Time flew by, and we had just enough time for a picture before the students were dismissed for the day. Before they left, I asked Julie how much money needs to be raised to fund a CASA case.  It is $1,200 per year, per child. That may seem like an unreachable goal for a group of elementary students, but not this group.  In fact, I worked with Northwest students last year and they raised just under $1,000 for the Gardner Animal Shelter. I have no doubt they will raise enough money to support the next CASA volunteer, and as their Youth Venture Outreach, I am happy to be helping them to reach this goal.ÌýÌý

The students are currently working on their action plan and I am confident their Youth Venture will launch in early 2020. I will keep you posted on the students’ progress!

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Gardner High School’s Youth Venture team Gardner Grows, also known as the GHS Community Garden has come a long way since their launch in 2017! Their vision of a beautiful courtyard garden with a bounty of vegetables to donate to local families-in-need came to fruition over the summer.

Mr. Tata’s Botony class donated $3,000 to the school which gave the project a huge boost! Students were able to use the funds to beautify the courtyard space. The money paid for the soil, paint and powerwashing.

The Gardner Grows team has also partnered with Growing Places. To find out more about Growing Places and their mission here in North Central, MA, check out my last two posts – and part two. Growing places gave a grant that paid stipends to students to water the garden over the summer months. Growing Places has also given the team a grant for six more raised beds.

What Did Gardner Grows, Grow?

Growing places also visited GHS and gave the students the support they needed to grow, harvest and use fresh, healthy produce. So how did their garden grow? The garden exceeded expectations! This list of flowers, herbs and vegetable plants is long and impressive:

• sunflowers
• wildflowers
• green beans
• beets
• radishes
• lettuce
• mint
• tomatoes
• bell pepper
• chili peppers
• swiss chard
• carrots
• cucumbers
• pumpkin
• squash

The students hosted a farmer’s markets at Heywood Hospital and Growing Places hosted a farmer’s markets right here at ¿ªÔªÆåÅÆ with their produce on behalf of the students.  The funds raised where used to support Growing Places, who will continue to partner with GHS and Gardner Grows.

Changemaking in Action

So what do the staff of Growing Places, ¿ªÔªÆåÅÆ and GHS all have in common? We are all in the process of becoming official changemakers. This is what makes this collaboration and partnership so special. Ayn of Growing Places, Thuy Bui and Jack Jackman of GHS and myself (UWYV) are participating in five full-day professional development sessions called Changemaking.

The Changemaker communities of North Central, MA is a connected, regional eco-system created through intentional partnerships with influential institutions in our region to build support for the next generation of Changemakers. It is our hope that the students we work with feel empowered to take the initiative to create positive change for the greater good. To learn more about Changemaking, visit . I am very excited to be a part of this movement and I am sure I will have more great things to share in upcoming posts.

For now, check out these images of Gardner Grows vegetables courtesy of the team’s champion and science teacher Thuy Bui.

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