Emily has a lot of spunk. She is the kind of kid who shows her spirit by wearing an elf costume to school the last day before Samoset’s Christmas vacation. I thought that was great! It was not something that I, as a shy, awkward middle-schooler would have ever done. Here she is proudly posing for a picture with an elfin twinkle in her eye.

Since their launch last spring, Emily and Ashlee are dedicated to their cause and are truly embracing the Changemaking mindset of empathy, teamwork and leadership.

Having Fun Social Distancing – UWYV Samoset Venturer Emily Leon

So, what has Emily been up to now since being at home? She answers that and much more in the following interview.

How long have you been participating in UWYV?Ìý

I have been participating in UWYV for about 2 years.Ìý I started off by looking into doing a plant-based project, but then I decided I wanted to help shelter animals because they seemed unlucky, unlike animals who have homes.

Tell us about your UWYV Team Helping Paws. What is your cause and what have you been able to accomplish since your launch last spring? What do you hope to do once everything returns to normal?Ìý

Helping Paws is a United Way Youth Venture based on helping shelter animals. We have currently partnered with the Sterling Animal Shelter.Ìý Our team conducted a bake sale at the Johnny Appleseed Festival in town and made a great profit.Ìý We also conducted a supply drive at our middle school where you could drop off animal food, beds, toys, etc. right before we were sent home for COVID-19.Ìý I hope we can run more drives and raise more money to provide more to the Sterling Animal Shelter.

How are you doing? What does a typical day at home look like for you?ÌýÌý

I am doing amazing. A typical day at home is waking up, eating breakfast, playing games with friends online, doing my schoolwork online and then playing games inside or outside depending on the weather.Ìý

How has the stay-at-home/social distancing of COVID-19 affected you positively?Ìý

While being at home,Ìý I get to spend more time with my family and pets. I am also more active with bike riding, which I didn’t have much time to enjoy before with all my extracurricular activities.

Do you have a positive changemaking story that has resulted from this?Ìý

We have been home and were able to raise some baby chickens to add to our flock. I have also learned how to cook the eggs and have done more baking and cooking than I ever did in the past. We are also supporting local businesses by buying their delicious food.

What do you miss most about school? What other activities have been put on hold for you?Ìý

I miss the art club, where I got to express my love of art. I miss my teachers and my classmates because the school year was going well and I enjoyed the fun activities we were doing. My other activities that are on hold are ballet, soccer, refereeing for soccer, and chorus (including my trip to Canobie Lake we usually have near the end of the year.)

Are you able to talk with your friends?Ìý How do you do that – Snapchat? Zoom? Google Meet?Ìý

Yes, I have been using Facetime to connect with my close friends. I also use Google Meet to see my teachers and classmates. We play Kahoot.Ìý Recently, I met up with a friend on a bike ride to the school. We were able to chat but had to keep our distance for safety reasons.

Are you able to talk to your United Way Youth Venture teammate? How is she doing?Ìý

Yes, I have been talking with Ashlee through FaceTime, texting and meeting up on the bike rides (as stated above).Ìý She is doing very well. She is keeping up with her work and still finds time to play on-line with me.

What is your favorite thing about participating in United Way Youth Venture?ÌýÌý

My favorite thing is I get to help all the shelter animals and feel good that I am making a difference.Ìý I love animals and may pursue a career related to animals someday, such as a Zoologist.Ìý

What does participating in United Way Youth Venture mean to you? Will you sign up next year? Ìý

United Way Youth Venture means that as a younger person, I am able to help out and make a difference in our community. I may not have been able to do that without this program. Yes, I am planning to sign up again next year, because I love interacting with everyone in the program. I also love helping out those who need it.Ìý

Is there anything else you would like to share?Ìý

I hope everyone who is reading this is doing well in their own time at home. If you are sick, I hope you feel better soon.ÌýÌý

Thank you for giving us a peek inside your world Emily. Stay well, have a wonderful summer and keep up the great work with your Venture!

Stay ConnectedÌýÌý

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

The post Having Fun Social Distancing – UWYV Samoset Venturer Emily Leon appeared first on Mount Wachusett Community College.

I was able to virtually meet with four of our UWYV Samoset students with the help of their Champion Francine Meigs who set-up the Google Meet. It was really nice to speak with Hersh Patel and Nathaniel Anim from the recently launched team Wildcats Sports for Kids. This is the team that will fundraise to pay sports fees for fellow students whose families can’t afford them.

Sixth grader Nathaniel walked me through a typical day at home. He said he wakes up as if it was a normal school day, and does school work. He takes breaks to play Roblox and Fortnight and then it’s back to school work. (Hopefully, it’s not the other way round – playing video games all day and taking breaks for school work!)

Sixth grader Hersh Patel spoke about the team’s plans for a lollipop fundraiser. This is now on hold, since students have been social distancing.

Or is it?

Wildcats Sports for KidsÌý – The First UWYV Virtual Fundraiser?

Lauren Mountain, our UWYV Program Director, suggested the boys think about how they could share a virtual fundraising raffle and accomplish some of their team goals virtually. This team consists of a very smart group of Changemakers who know more about technology than many adults (myself at the top of the list right along with Michelle). While the team has this time at home, this is the perfect opportunity to organize a virtual fundraiser (with our assistance if needed and with parental permission, of course.) They were the first Samoset team of the year to launch, why not attempt the first virtual fundraiser?Ìý

Save Our Earth – The First Virtual UWYV Launched Team?

Moving along to my other team. It was also really nice to speak with seventh graders Janessa Donovan and Brianna Patel from the Save Earth Today Team. Full disclosure, this team has not officially launched yet. However, they are very close, putting the finishing touches on their presentation. Once she heard this, Lauren suggested a virtual team launch – another great idea!Ìý (I wish I thought of it.) One of their teammates was not at this meeting, and Brianna said that she would talk to her about the idea.Ìý

Changemaking at Home

Seventh grader Brianna talked about how her family is making eco-friendly changes at home. They only use metal straws and no longer buy plastic water bottles. The family is planning a big garden of eggplants, peppers, spinach, tomatoes, and more.

When asked what being at home for so long was like, she said it is boring at home. She can’t get her work done and there is nothing to do. (Idea! If there is nothing to do, why not focus on getting your school work done, THEN work on your Venture!) Seriously, I understand her frustration. After this many weeks away, students are missing the structure and of course the social aspect of school.

Composting at Samoset

Save Earth Today has the main focus of eliminating single use plastic in Samoset’s cafeteria. Once the team launches, they also hope to implement composting at Samoset. In fact, composting at school is a Changemaking idea that is very possible! This interesting article from cleanriver.com, might be of interest to this team –

Composting at My Home

Speaking of composting, my son James started a compost pile last year. It is his contribution to our family garden. He said it was so simple to do. He just watched a . It takes about 1 year for all of the food items to decompose. He says, “Composting and gardening are all about patience. If you are patient with both, you will get a nice garden.�

Composting not only produces a rich fertilizer for the garden, it helps minimize landfills’ contribution to climate change. Now, that’s a win-win!

So, will we see the first virtual team launch and fundraiser? Will Samoset be the first school to incorporate composting? No pressure, but, if anyone can do it, these students can!

Stay Informed and Reach Out

All of us at UWYV 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 UWYV 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!

Over these past few weeks of quarantine, Jake has been making some great Changemaker Check-In videos that we have shared out on our social media. To view them, please visit ourÌý

The post UWYV Virtual Team Launches, Fundraisers and Composting – Why Not? appeared first on Mount Wachusett Community College.

Where Are They Now? Featuring UWYV Venturer Caleb VanHillo

Caleb is going to ¿ªÔªÆåÅÆ and will graduate this year with an Associate’s Degree in Chemistry. He will continue his education at the University of MA, Lowell to complete his Bachelor’s and his Master’s Degrees in Biomedical Engineering. He plans to become a prosthetist, which is a person who builds prosthetics for people who need them.

Caleb first participated in UWYV at Murdock Middle School. His team was called the Cool Cats and they raised money to buy and donate supplies to the local animal shelter in Winchendon.

Two years later, he was on the team The First Day Warriors (also while at Murdock). The team partnered with the Wounded Warriors Outreach to donate care packages to homeless vets.

Caleb’s last UWYV Venture was at Monty Tech two years ago. The team was Meals for Shields. This team collected donations to buy meals for first responders at local fire stations and police stations for Christmas.

Caleb VanHillo Interview

In this interview, Caleb discusses what he has accomplished throughout his years in UWYV, what he would choose to do for a Venture now, and how the current quarantine has impacted him.

What was your fondest memory of your years participating in UWVY?

One of my fondest memories was at the fire station. One of the firefighters started tearing up. He was so thankful for what we were doing. It really warms your heart to see what impact you are having on people (in person). He was thankful and happy to have a meal on Christmas Day. It’s one of those things that makes you realize and think of the effect that we can have. It really drove home the importance of this community work.

What did being in UWYV mean to you?

It was a way for me to pay back and help the community around me that helped shape me for so long. It was an opportunity for me to do things that otherwise I couldn’t. There is no way I would have been able to raise hundreds of dollars for meals. We delivered meals to all of the counties from Fitchburg out, including Winchendon and Templeton. We covered so many areas. Youth Venture enabled me to help many communities and have a greater impact on everyone in them.

You had a break from UWYV until your senior year at Monty Tech. Do you wish that you had particpated in UWYV?

I do. Actually, during my freshman and sophomore years, I had very little extra ciricular activities. I was on student counsel and was a class representative.

The programs that I was in during middle school, like robotics and theater, I dropped out of in my freshman year. It was hard for me to keep up with schooling and everything else that I was doing. I just stayed in the same trend following that. ÌýYeah, I definitely wish I got involved more, especially in community service projects. After doing UWYV my senior year, I regretted not doing it for the previous couple.

In your senior year at Monty Tech, you were awarded a one thousand dollar scholarship from the UWYV program from Bob Chauvin (Business Avisor/past president of Tyco SimplexGrinnell). What did that scholarship mean to you at the end of your three Ventures?

The scholarship was really….I don’t want to call it a reward for doing those ventures, because that’s not what it felt like. This scholarship was much appreciated. It really helped me to pay for the first year of school – which is always a struggle. I did not have to take out loans for my first semester at ¿ªÔªÆåÅÆ.

It doesn’t feel like an award. I don’t feel that I deserve an award for doing those things. I was grateful to have the opportunity to do them. It was more, I think, the recognition that made me feel proud, than the money awarded. I feel great about doing those Ventures. Also, I am glad that other people were made aware of UWYV through that recognition, and hopefully that inspired more to go on and do UWYV.

Let’s shift gears and talk about what is going on in the world today and how you are handling it. You are a college student who is now teaching yourself from home. What are you struggling with during this time?

Currently I am not working, and I was before, so that is a financial worry. However, the academics are definitely the biggest pressure that I have on me now. I am going from having incredibly intelligent professors teaching me calculus, physics and chemistry, to having just a text book, reading it and finding sources online. This is incredibly difficult during this time. Everyone is going through it and we are finding ways around it. It is just another skill I will teach myself eventually. Right now, I think that is the most challenging.

If you could go back to your middle school self, or if this gets put in a blog post and a middle schooler reads this, what is one thing that you want them to know about UWYV?

The thing I would probably say is, it’s work to do it. I know when I first started Youth Venture in middle school, we started with classrooms full of excited students. Then, all of the paperwork required drove a lot of them away. They found it boring to sit down and plan a budget and write about smart goals. It’s really worth it to stick it through. Being able to see the effect of helping and inspiring people, and the ability to say that you made a difference in the community is so rewarding. It’s worth all of the time and effort that you have to put in.

If you could go back and do one Venture, anything that you wanted to do, what would be on the top of your list?

There is a program that I’ve recently discovered, not associated with UWYV, but I think it would have been an amazing project. It is a community service group called . It’s about3D printing prosthetics for people around the world who need them, most notably children. Considering how expensive normal prosthetics are in a hospital and with that being a special interest of mine, I would have done that.

I’ve actually printed a prosthetic working with a physics professor at ¿ªÔªÆåÅÆ. Being able to offer that up because it is a group in need of things, would be amazing. The 3D printers used to make these parts are expensive, usually only found in schools or businesses that use them. Being able to do something with that and working with a school or college to make that more of a mainstream idea, I think would be really cool to do right now.

Anything else you would like to share?

The ability to care for a community taught me that I have the ability to change the environment around me for the better, inspiring me to choose a career where I can help others.

Thank you for taking the time to fill us in Caleb! You are an inspiration. We wish you success in all of your future endeavors!

UWYV 2020 Scholarship Winners and Changemaker Check-In Videos

We are pleased to announce that we have three new Senior UWVY 2020 scholarship winners. To find out who the lucky winners are, watch their video interviews by tuning in to our .

Over these past few weeks of quarantine, Jake has been making some great Changemaker Check-In videos that we have shared out on our social media. To view them, please visit our

The post Where Are They Now? Featuring UWYV Venturer Caleb VanHillo appeared first on Mount Wachusett Community College.