Posted February 24th, 2009 by admin
Posted by Neva Geisler, Director, Volunteer Engagement
Every Thursday night you can find 15 high school kids at United Way taking time from their very busy schedules of school, college searches, music lessons and soccer practice to invest two hours of brain power to plan Break Through with Farmway Village, this year’s alternative spring break project. In addition to the 30+ hours they have already invested, these students will spend two full days of their spring break getting down and dirty creating community gardens, renovating housing units, fencing a basketball court, painting and doing trash pick up. This is tough stuff; we’re talking about breaking up concrete and hauling it away with wheelbarrows and buckets. Like that.
Which might lead you to ask–who does that? What high school kid, already juggling a hundred responsibilities, spends every Thursday night talking about sponsorship needs and concrete cutters?
These are kids like Mara Truslow. Mara is a senior at Riverstone International School. Mara is completely and totally dedicated to service, and not because she’s building her resume, but because, in her words, “What else is there?”
It is this spirit that helped seperate Mara from 350 other candidates to be selected for the Ingram Scholarship, a full tuition scholarship at Vanderbilt University, specifically for students showing and outstanding commitment to service and volunteerism. This scholarship is just the next step for Mara, who will go on to create, serve and lead people in ways that make the world a more livable place for everyone.
I am honored to know Mara, just as I am honored to know the rest of these amazing students who are giving so much of themselves, many just for the fun of doing it. This is one of the coolest parts about being a part of United Way–there’s a lot to do out there, and a lot of different ways to do it. And I think we’ve struck gold with the alternative spring break project and the process of planning it.
My thanks and admiration to Kylie, Maddie, Karl, Adam, Monica, Ali, Carol, Daniel, Janelle, Linda, Lucas, Shannon and Tamara. It is an honor to work with you.
Posted August 2nd, 2008 by admin
By Kylie Poppen, Junior, Riverstone International School United Way Intern
Every student looks forward to Spring Break – a week long recess from school. Some schools affectionately call it “slack week.” But this last spring break, nearly seventy high school students passed on slacking and decided to make a difference instead.
This was the first year for “Break Through.” Break Through is an alternative Spring Break option for volunteer students throughout the Treasure Valley, combining meaningful service learning projects with lots of fun. I was one of the four students who had the opportunity to serve on the Steering Committee for Break Through this past year.
Building benches during Alternative Spring Break
Last October, Neva Geisler, the United Way Volunteer Center Director, challenged us to put together a project that would persuade students to give up part of their Spring Break to work – to help others and build community. After brainstorming project ideas, we decided to partner with the Original Gangster’s Basic Academy of Development.
OGsBAD, is not exactly what it might sound like. It is an alternative school in Nampa that provides youth at risk of gang involvement with positive alternatives through tutoring, job training, recreational activities, and just plain caring. Steve and Paula Terrano and Bob LaChance are the leaders of OGsBAD and worked closely with us in developing the project.
Nelson Henderson, an author, once said: “The true meaning of life is to plant trees under whose shade you do not expect to sit.” Both selfless giving and plants played a major role in our project.
OGsBAD had purchased the entire lot surrounding its building. It was a city block of mostly sand, dirt, and rocks. OGsBAD vision, and our goal for Break Through, was to transform that empty lot into a place where OGsBAD students, the neighborhood, and the community could come together.
We spent several months of intense planning, mapping, and fundraising for the project. And in the end, we exceeded our goals. Nearly seventy students from at least eight different area high schools and some of the students from OGsBAD participated in the two-day event.
Together with the kids from OGsBAD, we created a 300 foot pathway across the property complete with trees, bushes, rock and bark. We put in a sand volleyball court, built benches for the path and courts, removed some walls in the building for further renovation, and painted a giant mural on an interior wall.
Break Through was not just hard labor though. On the night between the two days of, we were hosted by the neighborhood for an authentic Mexican dinner and learned how to dance the salsa. But, the student volunteers agreed that probably the most important part of Break Through was the learning component. After the first day, three young people who attend OGsBAD told us about their experiences with gangs, their struggles to achieve a better life, and the positive impact of OGsBAD programs.
The Break Through project was a very successful combination of community service, learning, and fun. With the projects we completed, OGsBAD is already taking shape as a real community spot. Student volunteers said that they really enjoyed the project, that it ended way too soon, and that they can’t wait for next year’s project.
View more images on Flickr
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